Mixed Signals

Nancy Drew Files #63

by Carolyn Keene

When Nancy Drew attends homecoming weekend at Emerson College, she comes to the aid of second-string quarterback Randy Simpson, who faces not only the responsibility of the starting line-up but also a series of death threats

Genres: Mystery, Young Adult, Fiction, Childrens, Ebooks, Mystery Thriller

141 pages

First published September 1, 1991

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 In a few cases, outdated plots were completely rewritten.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

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

Another football-themed mystery? Yes...but it's a good one!

[Melody · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was very similar to Two Point To Murder. The culprit was so extremely obvious but Nancy goes out of her way to ignore it, I hate when she does that. It makes the whole book seem pointless.

[Eric Wood · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good ND book! The mystery really keeps you guessing until the end and was really suspenseful. The author did a good job of making everyone look like a possible culprit and although I had a feeling who the culprit might be, I honestly couldn't figure out who it was until the end! It was nice that one of the characters from #54 Cold As Ice appears in this book, which makes nice continuity. The ending was a bit different from most ND books as Nancy gets the culprit to cooperate with her, which was nice. My favorite scene in this book had to be when Nancy is attacked by a knife wielding mascot, which reminded me of a scene something out of a horror movie! Overall, a great mystery that you won't be able to put down. 4 stars.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

This was still fun to read but I’m not a fan of sports so it wasn’t the perfect read for me. I managed to figure out/remember who the culprits were around halfway. I think it’s dumb how seriously some people take sports and I can imagine that someone might do whatever they could to make sure their team won.

[Shaila Furtado · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute read but very predictable. I was able to guess what the big motive was in the beginning of the book but I love Nancy Drew books and they will always have a special place in my heart.

[Alisha]

Pretty sure this was my very first Nancy Drew, at the age of 9. Go figure that it's about football. 😂 At least it introduced me to the concept of the cliffhanger, which I LOVED.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was just okay.

[V. Arrow · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this title would be super boring -- how many sports mysteries at Ned's college can Nancy really solve? -- but it was well-paced and had a good spread (pun) of suspects.

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

3 stars. Not a favorite of mine but it was so absurd that I couldn't help but enjoy it.

[Eustacia Tan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sorry for the very short review in advance.

Mixed Signals features Nancy solving a case at Ned's college. For some reason, I prefer the older novels in the series (like her first few cases). Still, it was a fairly entertaining read.

The only reason it got 3 instead of 4 stars was that for once, I managed to guess who the culprits were when I finished around half the book.

[K.L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Back at Emerson for another football mystery. Ned as usual asks for help and then gets annoyed when Nancy suspects his friends. This does touch on some serious issues that varsity athletes face though. End a bit ridiculous though. Enjoyed the book

[Brooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book!

[Cristal Bridges · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a pretty good Nancy Drew mystery. I honestly didn't figure out who the culprit was until the end when it was revealed. I am really enjoying these Nancy Drew Files books.

[Zoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

good book