Mystery of the Pirate's Ghost

by Elizabeth Hoffman Honness, Beth Krush (Illustrator), Joe Krush (Illustrator)

When Abby and Kit Hubbard moved into the family homestead on the New England coast they were unprepared for the surprises the historic old house had in store for them.
Into their lives, for the first time, came their mother's elderly half sister, Miss Ann Pingree. from her they learned about the secret closet, the smugglers' tunnel which no one had ever been able to find—and about one of their ancestors who was captured by pirates in the early eighteenth century. He was never heard of again and was believed to haunt their old house!
Tangled family relationships, a caretaker who arouses their suspicions, and a disappearing desk result in the uncovering of a clever racket. And a dangerous exploration undertaken by Abby and Kit lead to a gruesome discovery.
Elizabeth Honness has again written a fast-paced story, with an unusual setting and a challenging mystery for her large audience.

Genres: Mystery

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1966

About the author

Elizabeth Hoffman Honness was born on June 29, 1904 in Boonton, New Jersey. She graduated from Skidmore College in 1926, settling in New York to write advertising copy for the Macmillan Company, Century Company, and Shelton Looms from 1927 to 1934. She also worked as the managing editor for the magazine American Girl. She married Jesse Alfred McKaughan in 1936. That same year, she published her first children’s book, The Tale of the Sorry Sorrel Horse. She went on to publish a series of mystery novels, including Mystery of the Diamond Necklace (1954) and Mystery at the Villa Caprice (1969), travelling extensively in order to research the various locations for her books. She also wrote two volumes of Bible stories, People of the Promise (1949) and We are His People (1959). Her final novel, The Spy at Tory Hole (1975) was a work of historical fiction for adults. She died on August 12, 2003.

Reviews

[Sarah - All The Book Blog Names Are Taken · Rating 5 out of 5]

I checked this book out from my library in elementary school over and over and over. I kept hoping our librarian would just let me have it by the time I read it for the millionth time, like the shopkeeper did in Beauty and the Beast. Sadly, she never did. I found a decent used copy on Amazon a few years ago, and can't wait to read it to Eleanor now that she is really digging the spooky stories. It will be interesting to explain what a lot of the words mean (like icebox, etc), seeing as how the book was written in the sixties and many of the phrases will be foreign to her.

[Charli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another book from my childhood that I remember very fondly!

[Jill · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book when I was a kid! Super fun mystery just creepy enough.

[Kathie H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my gosh was this book good! Everything a (big) kid could want in an adventure mystery: an inheritance, pirates, ghosts, caves, secret doors, treasure! I loved it.

[Kris · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the few books, I loved as a teen, that I can still read as an adult. The mystery isn't terribly deep but the ghost/haunted house angle adds a wonderfully creepy vibe to the story, particularly at the reveal at the end of the book.
Miss Honness was never afraid to put her child protaganists into real danger, which made her books a far more compelling read that most other authors aiming to the preteen crowd. She was a master at atmosphere and tone and never talked down to her readers but never dumbed down her stories either.

[Sharon Buxton · Rating 4 out of 5]

B. children's fiction, grade 4, adventure, mystery, New England, Weekly Reader Book Club, Mom's stash, keep

[Shawn Padley · Rating 3 out of 5]

It takes about 2/3 of the book for the pirate's ghost to really come in, and the secondary plot takes up most of the story. The illustrations are really nice!