Book Description Review BOOKLIST (STARRED) — As soon as supersleuth and fashionista Nancy Drew cracks a case about a missing school mascot, another mystery arrives in her mail. Someone has pieced together newspaper headlines in a threatening letter that references Nancy’s late mother. Nancy returns to her childhood hometown, reuniting with Bess, George, and the Hardy boys, and their clue-hunting leads them to a dead body, an unsolved case, and a dangerous rave. Quippy banter and steadfast friendships propel this amusing, action-packed adventure in which teens rely on their instincts, and adults cannot be trusted. The writers excel at capturing what made Nancy Drew such a plucky protagonist in the first place while updating her story for today’s teens. Bess is a chubby, adorable gossip, who flirts with Joe Hardy. George, who must constantly be pried from the lips of her girlfriend, sports an edgy haircut and a sarcastic personality. Nancy’s new love interest, Pete, rounds out her team and flaunts a trendy, Erik Killmonger-inspired look. The illustrations adopt the bright, expressive aesthetic that has so often been effective in other graphic novels. The panels accentuate the jokes by pausing on deadpan facials and stretching out the slapstick sequences. Lastly, the clothes-oversized sweaters, knee-high boots, cold-shoulder crop tops, and more-will appeal to fashion-forward teens. Highly recommended for spirited readers, whether they’re familiar with Carolyn Keene’s originals or not. – Biz Hyzy Read more Customers Review: This was amazing. I can’t wait until the next book!I was never a big Nancy Drew reader when I was a kid, so I can’t say how well this compares to the novels, but it was a really fun story and a neat little mystery.
I grew up reading Nancy Drew, and I’m a huge fan! I wasn’t sure what I would think of the comic books. I had bought one and actually enjoyed it, and then saw that now they are all in one graphic novel. I loved it and can’t wait to keep reading!
A return to Nanct Drew! It’s been years since I’ve hung with Nancy Dre and the crew and it was everything I needed it to be and more. I cannot wait for my next adventure.
This series collection takes a bit of time to get up to speed, so don’t despair.Original Nancy Drew was an accomplished, independent, bold, sometimes abrasive, surprisingly tough cookie, for all her apparent refinement. Over the years she was softened up, and made more demure and submissive. Then she went into a more passive victim mode before emerging into the light of teen romance. After that, different platforms repackaged her for different ages and demos and, to my mind, dumbed her down. (I think this happened to The Hardy Boys, too.) So now, Nancy pops up here and there, and you never know what style or flavor you’re going to get – kiddie Nancy, fancy Nancy, angsty teen Nancy, feisty Nancy? Anyone can do whatever they want with the character.This one, by a new team, is interesting. Nancy’s gone back to being a bit tough, (and she gets tougher as the series progresses). She’s been away from home for years, but returns to solve a crime. This theme of returning to her roots is a nice play against the character maybe being reimagined as a return to the original Nancy Drew. It sort of works, but in a breezy way that may in part be a consequence of the fact that a graphic novel has to be somewhat lighter on backstory, internal monologue, and character development than a prose novel. Anyway, at least it isn’t Bikini Nancy.All that said, is the story fun to read and entertaining? For me it was. We have a mysterious note. The return to Bayport. A cliff and cave adventure, (now joined by the Hardy Boys), and dead bodies start piling up. A handsome young stranger shows up in the nick of time, and so on. Happily, a bit of snark , some witty and/or deadpan banter, and a touch of humor all come into play once we get to the Hardy Boys and the caves, so this becomes, if not quite old school, at least comfy and high energy. Some of the recent versions of Nancy in graphic novel form have been surprisingly violent, dark, angsty, or melancholy, or some combination thereof. This one is lighter on its feet and more adventurey than thrillery, which was fine and consistent with the book’s look and style. (It’s also has a bit of romance, but only in a cute guy character way, which actually adds a bit of dash even if it’s distracting.)The drawing isn’t particularly exceptional. It’s often in a corporate cartoon style, with little inking, almost no shading, bland backgrounds, and big patches of color. Usually that’s a little too “Paw Patrol”/”Mickey’s Clubhouse” for me, but there’s just enough detail and character expressiveness to keep this from being an actual cartoon. And the detail and depth get better as the series progresses.Commentators have argued for years whether Nancy’s pals Bess and George were just the feminine yin and the masculine yang to Nancy’s middle of the road feminine identity. Food for thought. This version is more literal and brings George so far out of the closet that her girlfriend, Danica, becomes almost the fourth member of the gang. The jokes about excessive PDA between George and Danica get a bit heavyhanded, but I sort of liked the in-your-face freedom that represented. And that George-the-tomboy stuff was such an annoying beard. Along the same lines there’s a sub-plot about racism and class conflict that gave the tale a bit of heft, and hearkened back to old gripes about Nancy being an icon of white privilege.So, there’s a lot going on here, a good deal of it representing a knowing wink at Nancy Drew’s history, and the rest being an engaging mystery/adventure. This struck me, overall, as a worthy Nancy adventure.(Please note that I had a chance to read a free ecopy of this work without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
This book is targeted towards YA audiences, and it contains cursing, multiple scenes of same-sex or opposite-sex couples making out, and a drug-related mystery. The library where I work cataloged this book as a juvenile graphic novel, so I raised the alert, and we’re going to get it in the proper section. For that reason alone, I’m glad that I read this, but I didn’t like anything about the book.Nothing about this story gripped me, and its “modernization” is lazy beyond description. The author changed side characters’ races and sexual orientations, and she dropped a few superfluous references to Taylor Swift, but that was pretty much it. Even though Nancy had a cell phone, she didn’t bother to use it, and she acted selfishly throughout the entire book, letting her friends run all over town and fear for her life because she couldn’t bother to keep her phone with her or answer it when it rang. Nothing about this updated version of the character is likable or appealing, and I will not waste my time on any future installments in this series.
Kelly Thompson has brought new life to this well-loved character with her quick, witty graphic novel. I was an occasional mystery lover growing up and though I was never an avid fan, I fondly recall the Nancy Drew books I took from my elementary school library. I enjoyed the reintroduction to familiar characters (including The Hardy Boys!) and how Thompson portrays them in their late teen years.The story begins with the midst of her hi-jinks, finishing up a mystery involving the disappearance of her school’s mascot. As Nancy begins searching for her next case, she is suddenly drawn back to her hometown by a mysterious letter relating to the death of her mother. Back in Bayport, Nancy reunites with her old friends and rallies the group to aid her investigation.The artwork throughout the entire graphic novel is gorgeous, I’m a huge fan of Jess St. Onge’s style. The story is filled with interesting twists and a diverse cast of characters. Though the plot didn’t completely thrill me, I was definitely hooked by the cliffhanger and I will be looking forward to the next installment.I received my copy of Nancy Drew: The Palace of Wisdom from Diamond Book Distributors via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. |
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