Clue in the Ancient Disguise

Nancy Drew Mystery Stories #69

by Carolyn Keene, Paul Frame (illustrator)

In searching through his recently deceased grandfather's effects, Pierre finds a letter from Louise Duval. Louise died only a short while after writing the letter, so Nancy tries to reconstruct what she had discovered.

Genres: Mystery, Young Adult, Fiction, Childrens, Middle Grade, Juvenile, Mystery Thriller

206 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1982

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 In a few cases, outdated plots were completely rewritten.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

[Laura (Reading is a Doing Word) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of the more coherent mysteries, although the resolution was a little abrupt. Nancy helps a visiting French inventor discover the truth behind an old family letter. There are sabotaged cars, exploding computers, clues sewn into old dresses - action galore! I enjoyed this as Nancy actually had to work at following a trail of clues and there were fewer wild coincidences than in some of the other stories. Fun as usual.

[Mskychick]

Placeholder for reread of Written in Red by Anne Bishop

[David Allen Hines · Rating 4 out of 5]

While a forty year collector of the Hardy Boys, somehow I bought this 1982 Nancy Drew title many years ago and it has remained on my shelves ever since. Engrossed in my 3 years long task now of re-reading my Hardys books, I decided to read this Nancy tale, and was glad I did. It is very well written and interesting, and unlike some of these books has aged well and could still be a current story. Nancy is called by a young Frenchman who is a budding computer scientist, to do genealogical research into an old French family, and finds clues in ancient dresses stored in an old attic. Along the way, the young man's work is repeatedly attacked, and a young woman he has come into contact with is also harassed, to the point her autocratic father rejects her interaction with the young man. A wannabe local artist who has apparently copied a painting in a local art institute also comes into the picture and in fact becomes a main part of the story. The adventure is fast-paced, intriguing and very plausible and comes to a fascinating conclusion that is unexpected. It is a shame this paperback Nancy Drew book just like its Hardy Boys counterpoints, is no longer in print, because it is great Nancy Drew story any fan of the series will much enjoy. Even the cover artwork and pencil sketches inside are excellent, and the now nearly 40 year old binding and quality paper remain in good shape, unlike the cheap quality of the final books of the series. If you like Nancy Drew and find an old copy of the Clue in the Ancient Disguise, buy it and you will not be disappointed!

[Lindsay Luke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Little Free Library Nancy Drew find. This one is also from 1982. Nancy stays at home for this mystery and has help from Bess and George. It takes place in the fall, so maybe Ned and the other boys are off at college.
Carson Drew introduces Nancy to Pierre Michaud, a young French engineer. He has come to the US to try and sell his new computer memory invention (so modern!) and to River Heights because he found an old letter from a resident, Louise Duval, in his grandfather's papers. The letter said that Louise had made a discovery regarding one of her ancestors that would be important to herself and to M Michaud and she was planning to come to France once she had all the facts. Now Pierre wanted to know more.
Nancy discovers Louise passed away years ago but has a nephew and great niece, Lisa Thorpe, still in town. Lisa and Pierre seem to get along, but her father detests him for some reason. When Nancy meets Pierre, she notices they're being watched. Of course, this only encourages her, and she eventually finds other people who knew Louise and lead her to an old trunk of things that belonged to the ancestor, Yvette Duval. From there, everything comes together in a convoluted plot worthy of Hitchcock - including a MacGuffin about a prize-winning artist copying an old painting, ancient French royalty who somehow still had money in the 1980s, industrial espionage, and the ancestor coming down with amnesia (!?!) while on the run from the French Revolution Terror.
I did enjoy this, even as I laughed out loud at the amnesia.

[Carli · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved Nancy Drew as a little girl and it was fun to pull one of these books out and read it again. Reading this again made me realize probably why I liked these books so much as a kid - Nancy is a bada**! I mean, she’s bold, courageous, clever, and she drives around town in a little blue sports car. Maybe deep inside, there’s a part of me that wishes I were a little more like Nancy. Though I must say, she puts herself in dangerous situations quite often, which contradicts my risk-averse nature.

Anyway, this is a fun read. The mystery is fun, fast-paced and surprisingly complex with all the clues and whatnot. There are a lot of characters and at times, I found myself getting a bit confused and mixed up with all the different parties involved. The mystery itself was interesting, involving ancestry tracing and digging up old artifacts. It has been awhile since I’ve read any of the other Nancy Drew books so I can’t compare, but I enjoyed getting to read this one again.

[Tech Savvy]

A Ned free adventure for Nancy (good job, he wouldn't handle her helping a young frenchman) but jealously does rear its head in the form of said frenchmans assistant who takes a dislike to Nancy. Pretty good story and the villain intends to gas Nancy in a car in chapter 19 and has actually killed before.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t think I had read this book but it sounded really familiar as I was reading it so I may have read it before 🤷🏻‍♀️

[Emma Gallacher · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the better Wanderer paperbacks but still don’t compare to the original 56 hardbacks

[Pertti Lahti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hyvä kirja

[James Crawford · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story is rather complicated, delving into a mystery involving a painting (which is not ancient, by the way) and the people associated with the painting. There's questions about forgery, a break in at a museum and a thug which threatens Nancy at her own home.

Which brings up an interesting question. Considering the number of times Nancy has been threatened by thugs why hasn't she taken martial arts courses? The next thug that threatens her could end up unconscious on the ground, the police called and one more thug in jail. Yet she never seems to do anything that would give her a good defense against such pieces of trash.

The book was so much into who was involved with the painting, when, what happened to them, etc, that it actually, at least for me, ended up being boring.

I will point out, though, that the particular version I have does contain five full-page illustrations which is quite unusual.

[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.

[Keely · Rating 3 out of 5]

In which the "pretty young sleuth" helps a Frenchman investigate a mysterious letter sent to his grandfather many years ago, and eats many tasty desserts, including a hot fudge sundae, a chocolate shake, petit fours, blueberry pie and coffee cake. This was the first Nancy Drew I'd ever read, and it's one from the 80s. I got tickled at the desserts, the multiple references to Nancy's attractiveness, and the digs on her friend Bess Marvin for being chubby. We've come a long way in 30 years, thank goodness! I'd like to read a classic Nancy Drew from the 30s next to see how it compares.

[Cara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, but I will say that about any book featuring my favorite detective! I did enjoy how the mystery from the past intermingled with the mystery in the present. Some of the clues and connections were very obvious, but others took me by surprise. All in all, this isn't my favorite book in the series, but I enjoyed it and thought it was clever. (In all honesty, it deserves a 3.5 or 3.75, but I rounded up because I really liked the premise of the mystery - I wish Goodreads had half points!)

[Robyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about Nancy is back and has another mystery to solve that mystery is with a inventor who has found a strange letter to his gram pa who is now dead. She also has to help an art museum who has had two break in's but had nothing stolen. These two mystery's are strangely connected toghter. Read the book to find out why.

[Alicia · Rating 5 out of 5]

great story.

[WhatShouldIRead · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another fun story in which Nancy solves 2 mysteries, one from the past related to one in the present.

The usual ND story with the usual kinds of suspects and hidden clues, treasures, etc. Enjoyable.

[Amelia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Susannah Hills · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a great book! I LOVE a good mystery.I couldn`t put it the book down!

[Serena · Rating 3 out of 5]

My Rating System:
* couldn't finish, ** wouldn't recommend, *** would recommend, **** would read again, ***** have read again.