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Nancy Drew: Girl Detective Graphic Novels #3
The Haunted Dollhouse
To celebrate the 75th Anniversary of Nancy Drew, this graphic novel features many subtle tributes to classic Nancy Drew adventures. River Heights is celebrating 'Nostalgia Week' and everyone in town is dressing up and acting like it was 1930—including Nancy, Bess, and George! Wait till you see Nancy in her roadster! But when scenes of crimes displayed in Emma Blavatsky's antique dollhouse start coming true, Nancy has a full-blown mystery on her hands! Nancy's shocked when she stakes out the dollhouse, and witnesses a doll version of herself murdered! Will that scene become reality too?! Plus a preview of the next Nancy Drew graphic novel, 'The Girl Who Wasn't There.' Ages 8 to 12.
96 pages, Paperback
First published November 10, 2005
10 people are currently reading
281 people want to read
About the author
Stefan Petrucha
342 books273 followersStefan Petrucha (born January 27, 1959) is an American writer for adults and young adults. He has written graphic novels in the The X-Files and Nancy Drew series, as well as science fiction and horror.
Born in the Bronx, he has spent time in the big city and the suburbs, and now lives in western Massachusetts with his wife, fellow writer Sarah Kinney, and their daughters. At times he has been a tech writer, an educational writer, a public relations writer and an editor for trade journals, but his preference is for fiction in all its forms.
Born in the Bronx, he has spent time in the big city and the suburbs, and now lives in western Massachusetts with his wife, fellow writer Sarah Kinney, and their daughters. At times he has been a tech writer, an educational writer, a public relations writer and an editor for trade journals, but his preference is for fiction in all its forms.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
April 1, 2023
I am pretty sure a lot of you have gone through stories, novels and have played games on Nancy Drew, the girl detective. Few days ago, I, while roaming through Batighar Chittagong, got this 600+ pages Graphic Novel on her detective quests. It's a 7 stories in one Comics digest.
I bought this Graphic Novel or Comics for three reasons,
1) Graphic Novels or Comic Books, whatever you like to say, is my big cup of tea.
2) I have never read any Nancy Drew stories before.
3) Detective story, where a teenager is doing all the deductions, got me interested.
I am going to review the first one here. The story starts with a surprise as it's NOSTALGIA week. Where everyone including Nancy Drew are dressed as 30's people. No gadgets, no techs are around. As if they have time travelled back to the year 1930.
The fun of Nostalgia quickly turns into horror because of a small dollhouse. A haunted one, so to speak, as per Mrs Blavatsky's superstitious beliefs. Whatever is seen inside the dollhouse becomes true. The fearful part of it is, Nancy, her friends and inspector Mcginnis can only see crimes being happening inside the dollhouse.
The ruthless and courageous Nancy Drew, with her besties get into a mystery ride where they might have to deal with spirits or something more dangerous than spirits, greedy people.
The Comics art is a bit cartoonish for obvious reasons. This book deals with a teenager girl detective with a lighter tone of storytelling. But, at the same time, panels with scary and full of tensions comic book arts are there. Nancy Drew's crime fighting attributes has got more focused here than her deduction skills.
Nonetheless, it was a fun read. I am looking forward to review the rest of the stories gradually.
Comics Review
Name : The Old Fashioned Mystery
of the Haunted Dollhouse
Writer : Stefan Petrucha
Artist : Sho Murase
with 3D CG elements by Rachel ITO
Based on the series by
CAROLYN KEENE
Genre : Detective Story
Reviewer : Wasim Hasan Mahmud
I bought this Graphic Novel or Comics for three reasons,
1) Graphic Novels or Comic Books, whatever you like to say, is my big cup of tea.
2) I have never read any Nancy Drew stories before.
3) Detective story, where a teenager is doing all the deductions, got me interested.
I am going to review the first one here. The story starts with a surprise as it's NOSTALGIA week. Where everyone including Nancy Drew are dressed as 30's people. No gadgets, no techs are around. As if they have time travelled back to the year 1930.
The fun of Nostalgia quickly turns into horror because of a small dollhouse. A haunted one, so to speak, as per Mrs Blavatsky's superstitious beliefs. Whatever is seen inside the dollhouse becomes true. The fearful part of it is, Nancy, her friends and inspector Mcginnis can only see crimes being happening inside the dollhouse.
The ruthless and courageous Nancy Drew, with her besties get into a mystery ride where they might have to deal with spirits or something more dangerous than spirits, greedy people.
The Comics art is a bit cartoonish for obvious reasons. This book deals with a teenager girl detective with a lighter tone of storytelling. But, at the same time, panels with scary and full of tensions comic book arts are there. Nancy Drew's crime fighting attributes has got more focused here than her deduction skills.
Nonetheless, it was a fun read. I am looking forward to review the rest of the stories gradually.
Comics Review
Name : The Old Fashioned Mystery
of the Haunted Dollhouse
Writer : Stefan Petrucha
Artist : Sho Murase
with 3D CG elements by Rachel ITO
Based on the series by
CAROLYN KEENE
Genre : Detective Story
Reviewer : Wasim Hasan Mahmud
Read
July 1, 2016I like the Hardy Boys GNs way better than the Nancy Drew ones. The Nancy Drew ones are slow.
October 11, 2019
This was a clever way to bring the character back to their original versions, having the whole town behave like it was the 1930s. Weaving in references to the titles of many of the original books was also a nice little nod. The mystery itself was old-fashioned, with plenty of breaking and entering, thefts, and even a couple attempted murders, but in a way that felt less like it was straining to be modern. Frankly, I just enjoyed this one.
May 10, 2019
Predictable but intriguing. Probably the best Nancy Drew comic adaptation I’ve read.
March 23, 2013
I couldn't get past page 10 of this book. It is an aweful example of graphic novels with WAY too much exposition. Clearly, the "author" and "illustrator" don't understand how narrative is explained through the images and the writing is for quick, interesting dialogue. Snooze-ville.
October 22, 2017
Summary:
This book is a graphic novel version of the famous and classic Nancy Drew mystery series. In this story, Nancy and the rest of her town, River Heights, is celebrating the creation of the Stratemeyer Foundation established in the 1930s. To celebrate, the entire town is participating in Nostalgia week and living as if they were in the 1930s. When Nancy Drew hears about a 'haunted dollhouse', made in the 1930s, that shows the future, she has no choice but to investigate. When Nancy does, she sees the dolls in the house move and commit different crimes in the dollhouse that eventually come true in real life. When Nancy's life is threatened, she only gets closer to the answers of what/who is really behind the 'haunted dollhouse' and the robberies.
Evaluation:
This novel is a fun and unique twist of the classic Nancy Drew books. The novel contains detailed illustrations that help tell the story aside from the dialogue. While this story is slightly on the cheesier side, it's great for kids and contains a lot of comic relief and has an interesting plot.
Teaching Idea:
This book would be useful in a character traits lesson. The teacher could use this book within a book study and guided reading setting; each student would have their own book to read. Throughout reading, the students could identify each character in the story and write down their key traits. As they read more of the story, they can add more traits that they discover. After reading the novel, the students could write a persuasive essay about their favorite character. The students would need to identify their favorite character's traits and use them as reasons behind why that specific character was the best.
This book is a graphic novel version of the famous and classic Nancy Drew mystery series. In this story, Nancy and the rest of her town, River Heights, is celebrating the creation of the Stratemeyer Foundation established in the 1930s. To celebrate, the entire town is participating in Nostalgia week and living as if they were in the 1930s. When Nancy Drew hears about a 'haunted dollhouse', made in the 1930s, that shows the future, she has no choice but to investigate. When Nancy does, she sees the dolls in the house move and commit different crimes in the dollhouse that eventually come true in real life. When Nancy's life is threatened, she only gets closer to the answers of what/who is really behind the 'haunted dollhouse' and the robberies.
Evaluation:
This novel is a fun and unique twist of the classic Nancy Drew books. The novel contains detailed illustrations that help tell the story aside from the dialogue. While this story is slightly on the cheesier side, it's great for kids and contains a lot of comic relief and has an interesting plot.
Teaching Idea:
This book would be useful in a character traits lesson. The teacher could use this book within a book study and guided reading setting; each student would have their own book to read. Throughout reading, the students could identify each character in the story and write down their key traits. As they read more of the story, they can add more traits that they discover. After reading the novel, the students could write a persuasive essay about their favorite character. The students would need to identify their favorite character's traits and use them as reasons behind why that specific character was the best.
January 15, 2020
The Haunted Dollhouse mystery had Nancy Drew and her friends scrambling to figure out who was behind the weird happenings during Nostalgia week when the town was transformed back in time to 1930. Dressed in 1930's garb and without any modern conveniences like computers and phones Nancy worked to get to the bottom of disturbances surrounding a dollhouse that eccentric Mrs.Blavatsky, a medium, put on display. The actions taking place in the dollhouse were coming true in the real world but no one could believe it. The dolls inside it were acting out crimes before they actually happened. Making herself have an open mind and not disregard these "coincidences" Nancy went against everyone's better judgement to solve this mystery.
Different because of the lack of technology to use in solving the crime. I liked it because of that. I also thought the costumes and nostalgic air about the story to be refreshing. I couldn't figure out how this would turn out and was excited to read on to the conclusion.
Different because of the lack of technology to use in solving the crime. I liked it because of that. I also thought the costumes and nostalgic air about the story to be refreshing. I couldn't figure out how this would turn out and was excited to read on to the conclusion.
June 2, 2022
Okay the art was still subpar and it was STILL PITCH DARK SO I COULD BARELY SEE THE ART LIKE DID THEY NOT FIGURE THIS OUT BY THE 3RD BOOK?!
The storyline for this one was very predictable, but it was way better then the mess of the first one.
Drawings still didn’t match up to the dialogue bubbles all the way.
The villain really yeated Nancy Drew off the roof then says “ I would have saved you anyways, we aren’t killers” and pulls her back on the roof and she filled her car back up with gas.Then, they both re enter the house and she regrabs her and tries to throw her over the staircase and tells her comrade they can take her back up to the roof to kill her——/ LIKE BRO MAKE UP YOUR FUCKIN DAMN MIND
The storyline for this one was very predictable, but it was way better then the mess of the first one.
Drawings still didn’t match up to the dialogue bubbles all the way.
The villain really yeated Nancy Drew off the roof then says “ I would have saved you anyways, we aren’t killers” and pulls her back on the roof and she filled her car back up with gas.Then, they both re enter the house and she regrabs her and tries to throw her over the staircase and tells her comrade they can take her back up to the roof to kill her——/ LIKE BRO MAKE UP YOUR FUCKIN DAMN MIND
March 2, 2018
Interesting little mystery about a haunted dollhouse. Quite fun too, seeing everyone in 1930's style. After having played the game "Secret in the Old Clock", this was a great throwback to that era. Quick, fun, and a new take to everyone's favorite girl detective, this is for the comic book fans who are looking for something short but thrilling. Only gave it four stars because it was too short and I figured it out almost from the get-go who the villain was. I like more of a challenge. But if you're not looking fro a challenge and just want a quick read of the Nancy Drew world, then this is the one for you. Enjoy!!
May 11, 2022
Very predictable plot yet still an intriguing mystery. This was such an easy read, exciting nonetheless and I think the art of this comic adaptation was lovely but sometimes it doesn't compliment the writing.
May 15, 2017
An exciting mystery that exposes "supernatural phenomena" for what they really are.
October 18, 2017
Lots of Easter eggs in this, since it's "1930s" week in Riverdale.
May 14, 2019
The writing and the art don't always compliment each other, but I will add an extra star for the casual name drops and references to many of the original books in the series.
July 12, 2019
Weak but not the worst in the papercutz series.
Set up and plot are especially non-sensical but it’s readable.
Set up and plot are especially non-sensical but it’s readable.
November 8, 2019
Nancy Drew never fails to amaze me. Stefan Petrucha deserves a 5-star rating for making Nancy Drew more fun to read.
March 14, 2021
The amount of throwbacks alone was impressive, good motive and poor technology-deprived George.
October 5, 2021
The plot is ridiculous, and was Nancy Drew this clueless in the original series? I doubt it.
April 8, 2022
I loved all the references to classic Nancy Drew books!
October 2, 2024
4.5 stars
June 15, 2010
This Nancy Drew graphic novel was a fun read. I felt that it would speak mostly to a young audience. Although the story was most definitely written for young adults, the content and presentation make it appropriate for older children and pre-teens as well. The story, being a Nancy Drew story, obviously contains a mystery that must be solved. Interestingly, this story also contains a supernatural element too. Nancy’s town is involved in a “Nostalgia Week”—the residents all dress, talk, and act like there are from the 1930s. When a guest to the town brings a dollhouse to town, a small replica of some of the town’s buildings, the dolls inside seem to be able to reposition themselves in order to predict crimes that are going to happen in the town. While the owner claims that the house is haunted and that there are supernatural forces at play, Nancy is determined to prove that there is a logical explanation. I enjoyed it primarily because it was a simple, fun read. There was not necessarily a lot of depth to the story or the characters. They are all flat characters, and it is evident that this is part of a series. Reading it seemed to be like watching an episode of a sitcom—it’s enjoyable, and that’s about it. This book, however, would greatly appeal to young girls who enjoy graphic novels or series books.
January 18, 2016
This is the third book in the Nancy Drew graphic novel series and it's a tribute issue to Nancy Drew of the 1930's. Notice the front cover has an inverted image of the original Nancy Drew silhouette, and the upper part is the modern-day Nancy Drew equipped with today's technology, while the lower figure only has the magnifying glass.
The story is about a haunted dollhouse and the writer does an excellent job of working in the titles or parts of the titles of the first sixteen Nancy Drew books. The entire city of River Heights is doing a 1930's theme, so Nancy even drives an old roadster.
It starts out referring to the Stratemeyer Fooundation, then moves on references to an old clock from an attic (book #1), a hidden staircase, a bungalow, Lilac Inn and so on through references to book #16. Not only do they do the references, they even do so in the order the books were published.
This is a really fun tribute to Nancy Drew and something everyone should add to their collections.
The story is about a haunted dollhouse and the writer does an excellent job of working in the titles or parts of the titles of the first sixteen Nancy Drew books. The entire city of River Heights is doing a 1930's theme, so Nancy even drives an old roadster.
It starts out referring to the Stratemeyer Fooundation, then moves on references to an old clock from an attic (book #1), a hidden staircase, a bungalow, Lilac Inn and so on through references to book #16. Not only do they do the references, they even do so in the order the books were published.
This is a really fun tribute to Nancy Drew and something everyone should add to their collections.
June 16, 2013
Ok, now THIS is my favorite so far in the Nancy Drew graphic novels. I know I really enjoyed Dress Reversal and thought it was my favorite, but this novel with its added element of nostalgia in honor of celebrating 75 years of Nancy Drew and my love of antiques and things of the past made reading this novel that much more fun!! Just like the other graphic novels Nancy does solve a mystery and there are added elements where Nancy will give insight and information concerning pieces of the case or just little random interesting factoids. This novel was no different. These factoids just interested me more given the factoids reference the 1930's!! From the sayings to the old style of dress and the complete abandonment of the modern technology, this book is perfect for the nostalgic side of me!! After reading this novel I'm really excited to start the actual first 1930's Nancy Drew mystery novel that I just picked up from the library this morning!
September 9, 2009
This is one of my two favorites in the series so far (along with
Mr Cheeters Is Missing
. Like Mr. Cheeters, it's got its tongue in cheek--though in this book, it's because it's packed with in-jokes and references to the original (1930s!) Nancy Drew novels. The conceit is that everyone is participating in "River Heights Nostalgia Week", celebrating (among other things) "the creation of the Stratemeyer Foundation in 1930"(!) Nancy's family contributes an "Old Clock" to the auction, notes that the dollhouse on display has "even got a little hidden staircase!"--well, you get the idea ;-).
(Finished 2009-08-31 23:07 EDT)
(Finished 2009-08-31 23:07 EDT)
Read
July 2, 2011River Heights is celebrating Nostalgia Week, and everyone is acting like it’s the 1930s, including Nancy Drew. Nancy’s newest case begins when the dolls in Emma Blavatsky’s antique dollhouse begin depicting real-life crimes, including her own murder. Will Nancy be able to solve the mystery before it’s too late? Fans of the traditional Nancy Drew series will love this graphic novel. Though Nancy has been given a modern makeover, her tale remains as exciting and suspenseful as ever. Reluctant readers will particularly enjoy the brevity of the text; but, not too worry, Petrucha includes some surprisingly rich vocabulary in his tale. The tale, however, would be ineffective without Murase’s full color, manga inspired illustrations. This tale, in addition to the sneak peek at the next episode, will have readers demanding more. (Ages 8 and up)
September 13, 2013
This was a huge flop for me. The illustrations are so disappointing. It's as if they didn't get quite finished. They also lack continuity, which I find really frustrating. To me, the story should be told through details in the pictures--you have to do a little detective work of your own. The speech bubbles are for dialogue to punch up the action, and the explanation boxes should be used rarely--certainly not on every page. The story was ok. I mean, it's predictable, but it's also a kid's graphic novel. There are so many other great GNs for kids these days that I have a nice list of books to recommend other than this one. It makes me feel like someone is just chugging out books because they think "Oh! I can make money doing this!"
September 17, 2010
I read this book because I wanted to see what a graphic novel was like and very curious to read one that was based on the Nancy Drew series. I enjoyed it. This story takes place in the present day but the fun thing was that River Heights ( the setting) is celebrating retro days and everything is themed to the 1930s. The story is original as far as I know and not based on an early original book. The story also refers to previous real Nancy Drew books, which I thought was kind of fun. I'd like to think that reading these would encourage the reader to try the old Nancy Drew books.
November 29, 2011
This book was a great surprise to learn about and see that Nancy Drew was carrying on as a graphic novel now. While I wasn't too keen on the art style, I still sucked it up and enjoyed it. The story was good, but Nancy was a bonehead! She was so absent minded and forgetful, this was nothing like the real Nancy Drew in the main series. I was disappointed about that, but it was still a fun read.
One other thing I am wondering about is where the heck is Helen Corning? Nancy seems to only be hanging out with Bess and George now. Don't get me wrong, I like Bess and George, but I liked Helen too.
One other thing I am wondering about is where the heck is Helen Corning? Nancy seems to only be hanging out with Bess and George now. Don't get me wrong, I like Bess and George, but I liked Helen too.
February 28, 2010
It’s nostalgia week in River Heights. The residents have given up modern technology and fashion to return to the simple life of the 1930s. Nancy and her friends, Bess and George are going to the antique auction celebrating the Stratemeyer Foundation. Emma Blavatsky donates a dollhouse that’s rumored to be haunted. Not believing it for second, Nancy is determined to solve the mystery behind the secrets of this dollhouse.
Read
March 14, 2012I read this for my graphic novel choice because I loved Nancy Drew growing up and wanted to see how it read as a graphic novel. The same old Nancya nd her pals are fighting mysteries, but it definitely different to have graphics to depict the plotline instead of picturing it in my head. At times, the abstract-ness of the graphic novel made it difficult to follow. Not my favorite Nancy Drew.
September 23, 2025
Reread in 23 Sep 2025
I came across the graphic novels and decided to pick a few up. I was surprised to find that Carolyn Keene was not one person or a woman but a group of people. The art of the graphic novels is weird and skewed though the plot was interesting. There are some Easter eggs from the yellow hard cover series in this story.
I came across the graphic novels and decided to pick a few up. I was surprised to find that Carolyn Keene was not one person or a woman but a group of people. The art of the graphic novels is weird and skewed though the plot was interesting. There are some Easter eggs from the yellow hard cover series in this story.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews