Review: The Secret of Shadow Ranch

Finally finished my 5th Nancy Drew book for the Nancy Drew challenge over at Books, Movies and Chinese food.  At this rate I will never get these books finished by the end of the year.  That's okay though, I am interested in them now, and they are quick reads, so I will continue reading them.
In this story Nancy is now with new friends, no Helen in this book.  She meets George and Bess for a visit at Shadow Ranch and it is immediately obvious that somebody doesn't want her there, so something is up, there is  a mystery or two to solve.  I have noticed that there are usually two mysteries to solve in these books which of course end up being related.  In this book Nancy needs to solve the mystery of where her friends'cousin's father is.  Is he involved in a bank robbery or is he a victim/hostage?  In addition, there is a mystery at the ranch.  Who is causing the sabotage and why?  And why/how is it connected to the appearance of the "phantom" horse?
I enjoyed this book.  The mysteries are getting more involved and it is quite enjoyable trying to figure out who the culprit is.  It was pretty obvious especially after the one was eliminated from suspicion.  It's the little hints that help Nancy to figure out all the mysteries.  I have noticed it is a little tricky to figure some things out, like how they were getting the phantom horse to work because of thinking in 21st century terms and trying to figure out what would have been technologically available several decades ago.
All in all, I give this book 5 stars.

Review: The Mystery at Lilac Inn

This is the 4th Nancy Drew mystery in the series.  This story opens, once again, with Nancy and her friend Helen finding themselves in the water after having something to the boat they are in.  Not that that is a big deal, I am just trying to keep track of such things.  They are on their way to help a friend prepare for her wedding and find themselves involved in a mystery of strange happenings at the inn.  A twist in this one is that someone is impersonating Nancy and the reader doesn't know why.  How is it related to the strange things happening at the inn?  How come it seems that Nancy is involved even before she arrives at the inn and finds out that items are coming up missing? 
Nancy was in quite a bit of peril in this book.  It took me a while to figure out who was the "villian" in this story. I kept suspecting others.  This one definitely is the best so far. 
5 stars

Teaser Tuesday: The Mystery At Lilac Inn

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB ofShould Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser:

"Nancy's face remained serious.  'I like him, too.  But-well, Helen has a feeling he's at the inn for some other purpose than just helping Em and Dick.'"

p. 106 The Mystery at Lilac Inn by Carolyn Keene

Review: The Bungalow Mystery

This is the third Nancy Drew Mystery in the series.  In this book Nancy and her friend Helen Corning get caught in a storm  and are saved by Laura Pendleton who states she may need Nancy's help in the near future.  Laura is an orphan who is about to meet her new guardian.
In the meantime, Mr. Drew requests Nancy's help in discovering who has stolen bank securities from the local bank.  While investigating the security thefts, Nancy is drawn into Laura's dilemma with her rude, scary guardians who state that Laura's parents have left her with nothing.
So here are the mysteries:
What happened to Laura's family's money, her inheritance?
How does the bungalow come into play?
What is it about the Aborn's (her new guardians) that isn't right?  Is Laura in danger with them?
How do the missing securities tie in?


I liked this book once I got into it (and past reading Kathy Herman's Baxter Series books).  I didn't feel the answers just fell into Nancy's lap as easily this time.  There was quite a bit of suspense, even though I did figure out what was going on with the guardians pretty quick (okay they are juvenile books).  And Nancy was in some peril.  We didn't see Helen very much though.


I would give this book 4 stars.

Spring Reading Thing 2010 Wrap Up

It's time to wrap up the Spring Reading Thing 2010.  

Summer just crept right up on me.  In fact, looking at Hannah, and realizing she is 2 months old, is so shocking, I have no idea where these last two months have gone.  Furthermore, I can't believe we are almost halfway through this year already. Time really does fly.  Why is it that time really does seem to go faster as you get older?  

I realize I started this challenge late, but I set my goals and it seems I set them a tad too high.  In other words, to answer Katrina's first question posted over at Callapidder Days, "NO" I didn't finish the books on my list and I am a bit upset with myself.  I started out strong, I thought.  I had changed my list a few weeks into when I started the challenge because I had discovered some different books I wanted to read.  I posted about that here.  From my updated list, here are the books I did finish.

From the Christian Suspense:

Deadline by Randy Alcorn (which I have yet to review, but I loved it)

Tested by Fire by Kathy Herman

Day of Reckoning by Kathy Herman

Vital Signs by Kathy Herman

High Stakes by Kathy Herman

A Fine Line by Kathy Herman

(the last two books in the Baxter series by Kathy Herman above were not on my list but I couldn't put the series down once I got started.  Which is one reason why I didn't finish all the books I planned to read.  You can read reviews for all the books in the Baxter series at my book blog, Me, Myself, I Read.  

As stated in the update post, I did put Dominion by Randy Alcorn on hold for now as it was just so long and bulky so it was difficult to hold while nursing, which is when I do the majority of my reading.  

I did not finish any of the books in my Non Fiction category.  I am trying to read Better Late Than Early: A New Approach to Your Child's Education by Raymond S. Moore.  It is hard for me to get into this book for some reason.  I am reading Einstein Never Used Flash Cards by Kathy Kirsh-Pasek and Roberta Michnick Golinkoff , but the second half of the book is not as easy for me to focus on.  And I started reading Storm Warning by Billy Graham but then I misplaced it.  

I have definitely been addicted to my fiction books.  In fact, I started reading Twilight by Stephenie Meyer again in anticipation of the Eclipse movie coming out next week.  I have also started reading The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, another vampire series my daughter's friends are reading and she decided she would read after finishing Breaking Dawn.  Seeing as she is at her dad's this week, mommy helped herself to the books when they became available through the library.  

From the Nancy Drew challenge:

The Secret of the Old Clock

The Hidden Staircase

The Bungalow Mystery (I technically finished this one morning of the 21st, so I probably shouldn't count it, but I wanted to mention I had finished it, though I haven't written my review yet)  

You can also find reviews for these books over at Me, Myself, I Read.

I realize I had better pick up the pace if I am going to reach my goal for my other reading challenges I am participating in.  To see all the challenges I am participating in go here.

I would like to answer some more of Katrina's questions in the remainder of this post.

• What was your favorite book that you read this spring? Least favorite? Why?

           It is a toss up for me when it comes to picking a favorite book.  I enjoyed both Day of Reckoning and A Fine Line by Kathy Herman.  I feel, out of the series, these two held the most suspense and kept me glued to the book.    Better Late than Early by Raymond S. Moore would have to be my least favorite because of my difficulty in being able to get into it.

• Did you discover a new author or genre this spring? Did you love them? Notlove them?

I am so glad I started participating in these reading challenges.  I am now addicted to Christian Suspense!  I found a great site called The Suspense Zone that lists Christian Suspense authors and the suspense books they wrote.  i am looking forward to reading more by Kathy Herman, for starters.

• Did you learn something new because of Spring Reading Thing 2010 — something about reading, or yourself, or a topic you read about?

I didn't really learn anything new about myself.  Just the same old, same old... Give me a fiction book and I will bury myself in it.

• What was your favorite thing about the challenge?

I enjoyed the fact that there was no pressure in this challenge.

Head on over to Callapidder Days' Wrap Up Post to see the list of links to all the other wrap up posts to see how everyone else has done.