Trial by Fire

Nancy Drew Files #15

by Carolyn Keene

After Carson Drew is arrested on bribery charges, Nancy swings into action to clear her father--going undercover as a cabbie on the midnight shift--and finds herself in a deadly demolition derby with a vicious mobster

Genres: Mystery, Young Adult, Fiction, Childrens, Adventure, Crime, Mystery Thriller

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Carolyn Keene is a writer pen name that was used by many different people- both men and women- over the years. The company that was the creator of the Nancy Drew series, the Stratemeyer Syndicate, hired a variety of writers. For Nancy Drew, the writers used the pseudonym Carolyn Keene to assure anonymity of the creator.

Edna and Harriet Stratemeyer inherited the company from their father Edward Stratemeyer. Edna contributed 10 plot outlines before passing the reins to her sister Harriet. It was Mildred Benson (aka: Mildred A. Wirt), who breathed such a feisty spirit into Nancy's character. Mildred wrote 23 of the original 30 Nancy Drew Mystery Stories®, including the first three. It was her characterization that helped make Nancy an instant hit. The Stratemeyer Syndicate's devotion to the series over the years under the reins of Harriet Stratemeyer Adams helped to keep the series alive and on store shelves for each succeeding generation of girls and boys. In 1959, Harriet, along with several writers, began a 25-year project to revise the earlier Carolyn Keene novels. The Nancy Drew books were condensed, racial stereotypes were removed, and the language was updated. In a few cases, outdated plots were completely rewritten.

Other writers of Nancy Drew volumes include Harriet herself, she wrote most of the series after Mildred quit writing for the Syndicate and in 1959 began a revision of the first 34 texts. The role of the writer of "Carolyn Keene" passed temporarily to Walter Karig who wrote three novels during the Great Depression. Also contributing to Nancy Drew's prolific existence were Leslie McFarlane, James Duncan Lawrence, Nancy Axelrod, Priscilla Doll, Charles Strong, Alma Sasse, Wilhelmina Rankin, George Waller Jr., and Margaret Scherf.

Reviews

[Bill Riggs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nancy takes on her most important case yet - proving her father is innocent of bribery charges. With disbarment and jail waiting for her father, Nancy becomes involved with a sinister plot that has sunken its claws over the entire town.

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Quickie Review

Quick, fun, exciting, easy...pretty much standard fare for this series.

Score: 4/5

[Qt · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick, fast-paced, fun read. I might have given it three stars, but it gets mega bonus points for mentioning "Sons of the Desert" :-)

[Posie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was really good. I love the Nancy Drew files. Quick read, but fun. :)

[PenNPaper52 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a fan of the Nancy Drew books ever since childhood. And I love returning to her whenever I need a quick book fix. But this mystery was just awesome. There was maturity in the story and the mystery had genuine villains that were scary. Carson Drew rarely took center stage, so this book was surprising. Another thing different was reading about Ned and Nancy's rough patches in their relationship. The book gave a real life feel to it, something not common in the other stories. Although while reading I did get the old TV series feel. You know McGuyver and TJ Hooker and M*A*S*H... that era.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick moving tale where Nancy has to clear her Dad, and gets mixed up with some major crime organisations. Lots of twists in this one, and its not clear how the baddies are doing it until near the end. A good read.

[Bookish Indulgenges with b00k r3vi3ws · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys throughout my school and college days.

Nancy Drew is an amateur detective who solves crimes with occasional help from her best friends, Bess and George and, her boyfriend Ned. She also has occasional help from her father Carson Drew who runs a private law practice. From finding stolen goods to missing persons and solving mysterious happenings, Nancy is a force of nature.

Until I discovered that Carolyn Keene is a pen name for a whole bunch of ghostwriters, I used to feel confused about the slight differences in each character from books to book over the many series of Nancy Drew mysteries. I like the character of Nancy best in the original books written by Mildred Wirt Benson where Nancy is truly a character to root for – an independent and street smart girl with a penchant for trouble.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best one in the series!

[Jamie (TheRebelliousReader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars. This was probably the best book in the series thus far. It was entertaining from beginning to end. It starts off strong and stays pretty stay all the way until the end. I liked the fact that the plot and mystery was really close to Nancy and how action packed this novel was. Sure, the ending was ridiculous but I’m not even mad at it because I was thoroughly entertained.

[Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ Jenn Ƹ̴Ӂ̴Ʒ Schu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Carson Drew is in hot water as he's heading to court for bribery charges. Nancy knows her father would never accept a bribe and is determined to figure out who is framing Mr. Drew. Nancy, Bess, and Ned work alongside a local newspaper reporter to find the culprits, leading them into precarious situations at the Gold Star Cab Company. Readers should expect dangerous and violent situations, a thriller and mystery combined with courageous actions by the main characters.
Not your typical Nancy Drew mystery, but I still would recommend it to fans of Nancy Drew.

[Mainon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Found this in a Little Free Library and gave it a quick read for old times' sake. Nancy is fearless, gutsy, resourceful, and smart -- exactly the heroine I so liked up to as a kid. The plot is a bit dated, as most mysteries from the pre-cell-phone era probably are. I laughed a little at the idea of a "million-dollar" criminal enterprise being profitable enough to finance 3 cover operations and bribe multiple officials.

[V. Arrow · Rating 3 out of 5]

For all the explosions and kidnappings, this book was glacial in its pacing. Also, River Heights is approximately where I live and I really want to tell the ghostwriters that we do not have winding cliffside roads for Nancy to be chased on so often.

[Roderick · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's nice to see Bess be so brave and actively helpful: her quick thinking, especially at the end, really made the case against Carson crumble.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am loving this series so much.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

My review: https://anchor.fm/nancy-drew-nickerso...
Sooooo much Nancy/Ned ❤️❤️❤️

[Justine · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the better, more believable mysteries in the series so far. I didn't quite know where they were going with it and I enjoyed that Bess got a little credit too.

[Sharisse Sons · Rating 4 out of 5]