A Treacherous Tide

Hardy Boys Adventures #21

by Franklin W. Dixon

Brother detectives Frank and Joe dive deep into the Florida Keys to find a missing person in the twenty-first book in the thrilling Hardy Boys Adventures series.

Frank and Joe Hardy have been invited to take part in a conservation mission by a marine biologist at the Bayport Aquarium. The boys get to go on an all-expenses paid trip to the lush and beautiful Florida Keys to help save sharks!

But the trip’s purpose is suddenly sidelined when a paddle boarder goes missing and rumors start that the disappearance is the result of a shark attack. After spending so much time learning about the local shark population, the Hardy Boys aren’t buying the story.

It will take all of Frank and Joe’s recently acquired knowledge about sharks and their habitat to solve this case. Will they be able to discover what’s really going on before it’s too late?

Genres: Mystery, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Audiobook, Childrens

160 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 23, 2020

About the author

Franklin W. Dixon is the pen name used by a variety of different authors who were part of a team that wrote The Hardy Boys novels for the Stratemeyer Syndicate (now owned by Simon & Schuster). Dixon was also the writer attributed for the Ted Scott Flying Stories series, published by Grosset & Dunlap.
Canadian author Leslie McFarlane is believed to have written the first sixteen Hardy Boys books, but worked to a detailed plot and character outline for each story. The outlines are believed to have originated with Edward Stratemeyer, with later books outlined by his daughters Edna C. Squier and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams. Edward and Harriet also edited all books in the series through the mid-1960s. Other writers of the original books include MacFarlane's wife Amy, John Button, Andrew E. Svenson, and Adams herself; most of the outlines were done by Adams and Svenson. A number of other writers and editors were recruited to revise the outlines and update the texts in line with a more modern sensibility, starting in the late 1950s.
The principal author for the Ted Scott books was John W. Duffield.

Reviews

[Jim Shaner · Rating 4 out of 5]

The cell phone wielding teenage detectives of 2020 travel to the Florida Keys for adventure, shark study, and… who knew? A mystery! Like classic Hardy Boys literature, this book has good pacing while introducing the characters, i.e., suspects, of a researcher’s disappearance; and following the investigation by the inquisitive Frank and Joe, who call each other “bro.” It is also quite funny in parts, particularly in the antics of the slimeball politician, Mayor Boothby. Each character’s motives are cleverly vague, so there is no clear villain until the climax, and by this time the action has become irresistible. I just wish there was one more chapter, as the characters and setting had grown very compelling. All in all, the author does a great job weaving the mystery, and if it hadn’t been for those meddling kids on paddleboards… it might have been easier for the bad guys to have their way.

[Danica Elle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one gets a 4! I enjoyed it! It was the first Hardy Boys mystery I’ve read. It’s a new one though? Published 2020 so not the OG hardy boys? but it had the same sort of spirit. Even though instead of torches (flashlights as the Americans say) 🔦 they had smart phones 📱 the feel of it was still that nostalgic vibe of the Hardy Boys 70s tv show I loved watching as a kid. I did also watch the modern reboot they made in 2022 I think, which I enjoyed, but that tended to lean too much into the supernatural which was never the case for the old series or indeed for this book! That’s the whole thing with the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew, things might first appear magical or supernatural but in the end it’s always humans doing the things and the ‘magic/marvel’ of the story is how the teenage detectives outsmart the adults and solve the case!

The mystery itself was really enjoyable, I found myself quickly emerged in the setting and the characters, plus the plot was actually quite political (ironically I read it on the day of the Australian Federal Election and one of the character’s names (Boothby) is literally the name of my electorate! Haha so I found the mayoral/political moments hilariously apropos) and the mystery was actually rather complex, lots of layers and loved the main twist near the end! I guessed some of it but the extra little twists and turns I really enjoyed! The action scenes were good, but some of the scenarios, were lacking in a little detail, that would have made them less confusing…just a couple extra sentences would have done the trick to explain proximity and the location a little better,
All in all a short (150ish page), fun, nostalgic read! I’d love to get my hands on more!

[Gill · Rating 3 out of 5]

The more I read these new Hardy Boys books the more I dislike them. I don't understand why they canceled the series "The Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers (2005–2010)" the books were getting better and better and just out of no where they cancel it? I'd rather watch Sesame Street than this crap, a huge waste of time.

[Krista Rushane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great books

Thank you soooo much Mr.Franklin you books are great!!!!!! I love your series hardy boys adventures they are amazing!
Thank you for your hard work.

[Isaiah (aka Isaiah Ward) Herrero · Rating 5 out of 5]

this one was about storms, trying to find criminals during the rough storm, when they say adventure they mean it.

[Raine · Rating 3 out of 5]

enjoyed the pirate captain and that the scientist ladys name was Trip

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting mystery.

[X-Ayvi · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Treacherous Tide was a good adventure book, it had some minor twists and turns through out the book and then one HUGE twisty turn at the end. over all I liked it.