Nancy Drew 34: the Hidden Window Mystery

I loved this book. Let's start with the art on the cover. Absolutely beautiful. Between the art and the description of the window, I really wanted to see it in person. There are many mysteries in this book to be solved, and Nancy does an excellent job as usual. It was a page turner and I really enjoyed the background information about peacocks as well as the making of a stained glass window. I'm still new to the series, and I'm reading the books that have been revised. I still love them and I love the unique writing and the way Nancy is able to always get to the bottom of things.

This review concerns the original 1956 edition as well as the revised 1975 edition, which is a shorter version of the original. Nancy reads a magazine article about an Englishman who is offering a reward for a centuries old stained-glass window believed to have been brought to the U.S. many years ago, but it has since vanished. Believing that the window could be located around Charlottesville, Va, near Richmond, Nancy, Bess and George set off to stay with Nancy's cousin who lives in the area. While there, an actress and her daughter beg Nancy to solve the mystery concerning the mysterious noises that they hear in their new home, Ivy Hall. How Nancy locates the hidden window and discovers the truth behind the ghost of Ivy Hall is a rather interesting story. Personally, I feel that this is the last of the really great books of the series. From #35 on, the books are typically nothing more than horribly-written, boring mysteries that (if Nancy goes to an actual place) read more like tour guides than anything else. The exceptions to this are few and far between. Thankfully, this book is nothing like that. The mystery is interesting, there is plenty of action and the book is fairly well-written. The book also manages to keep you wondering just who is friend and who is foe. I enjoyed reading this book and I would be surprised if other people who read this book couldn't say the same.

If you hven't read this book you've got to!! This exiting book starts out when Nancy sees an article saying that whoever finds an old stain glass window will get a big reward. Nancy and her friends soon find themselves going to vist Nancy's cousin Susan to see if they can find more information concerning the window. Nancy soon gets aquinted with Mark Bradshaw who makes stain glass windows. While learning to make stain glass windows Nancy watches a suspect who is also workin there. Well if that isn't enough Nancy and her friends get aquinted with Sheila Patterson and her daughter Annette. Sheila and Annette recently bought the old mansion "Ivy Hall". They've been hearing strange sounds during the night and wonder if Nancy and her friends can stay at Ivy hall with them for a few days to see if they can solve the mystery. Of course Nancy agrees to help them. Soon she finds herself thinking up a plan to trap one of the suspects. If you want to find out how Nancy traps the thiefs, and whether or not she'll find the stain glass window you'll have to read the book!!!

"The Hidden Window Mystery" finds Nancy, Bess, and George visiting Nancy's cousin, Susan, at her lovely home outside Richmond, Virginia. The young sleuth is soon tracking down a beautiful stained-glass window, several centuries old. Along the way Nancy, and the readers, learn about the painstaking process of creating beautiful leaded stained glass. Secret panels, hidden passageways, and double walls figure into the story. It's a rip-roarin' adventure for Nancy, her girlfriends, and Ned Nickerson. Highly recommended.

This is a book that I would recommend to my friends, but not many people are into Nancy Drew anymore. This book made me very anxious. I could not put it down. I squeezed in a page every minute I had. I had the greatest urge to turn to the back of the book to see what happened.