[Book Review] Secrets Can Kill

[thebookishescape]

AUTHOR: Carolyn Keene
RELEASED: January 1, 1988 by Grey Castle Press
SERIES: Nancy Drew Files (#1)
GENRE: Mystery, Fiction
AGE RANGE: Juvenile
RATINGS: ★★★☆☆
SYNOPSIS: Nancy Drew goes back to high school - but this time, the curriculum is murder.

No one has been able to catch the elusive thief who is stalking the nighttime halls of Bedford High. So Nancy goes undercover as a transfer student When she meets her contact, Daryl Gray, a gorgeous senior with blueberry eyes, Nancy thinks this new case would turn out to be a lot of fun. But she is dead wrong.

Dangerous secrets, run deep at Bedford, and Nancy learns the hard way when she takes Daryl for a ride in her Mustang - and the car ends up exploding in a ball of fire. Though her suspect list is long, Nancy is almost certain she knows who the thief is - until her top candidate is found sprawled outside the video lab, very dead.

Suddenly it's a whole new game, a game called murder. And Nancy is the killer's next target.



REVIEW: I didn't realize Nancy Dew had so many spin-off brands. I wondered if the spin-offs were as good as the originals. The result was that they were okay.

To find out who is ruffling through school records and breaking into lockers, Nancy undercovers as a high school student. Despite Nancy's best efforts, her chief suspect turns up dead on the school's steps. She has a new mystery to solve and a murderer to catch.


If Nancy is supposed to be undercover, why is she using her real name? It states that she is already an established amateur detective. It is reasonable for her to use an alias after receiving the threatening tape before even starting the investigation.

My wish is that Jake would stay around longer. He has an interesting character; he is just a teenager and already running a blackmail ring. It is also amusing to watch him get on Nancy's nerves because he is confident and cocky.

The part where Nancy's car catches on fire, and her Dad buys her a new Mustang GT convertible, makes me roll my eyes. When Nancy says she'll repay her Dad with her allowance, I wonder if you are not receiving compensation from your case, Nancy, since you are an established amateur detective.

There was one part of the book that had me laughing out loud. This was when U.S.S.R. villains had a high-speed chase with Nancy through the streets of Bedford. I was surprised by it, especially when Nancy was shocked to discover that a red traffic light couldn't stop international supervillains who were pointing guns at her.

I found Secrets Can Kill to be an easy read. The plot was engaging, with a well-paced narrative that kept me interested. The mystery was intriguing, though somewhat predictable, and the characters were likable, adding depth to the story. Overall, it was an enjoyable experience, even if it didn't quite match the charm of the original series.