Diplomatic Deceit

The Hardy Boys Casefiles #38

by Franklin W. Dixon

On the high wire of foreign affairs, one slip can lead to disaster!The Hardys and friend Callie Shaw are off to Washington, D.C. Callie finally has the chance to meet her Parisian pen pal, Madeleine Berot, whose parents have been assigned to the French embassy. But when Maddy is caught shoplifting, Frank and Joe suspect that there's something rotten in the state of French diplomacy.Determined to get to the bottom of the Madeleine Berot mystery, the Hardys find themselves caught in a web of international intrigue. They take of on a tingling chase through the nation's capital, pursuing a gang of continental con artists. In a case of D.C. deceit, it's up to Frank and Joe to nip the caper in the bud!

Genres: Mystery, Young Adult, Fiction, Childrens

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Franklin W. Dixon is the pen name used by a variety of different authors who were part of a team that wrote The Hardy Boys novels for the Stratemeyer Syndicate (now owned by Simon & Schuster). Dixon was also the writer attributed for the Ted Scott Flying Stories series, published by Grosset & Dunlap.
Canadian author Leslie McFarlane is believed to have written the first sixteen Hardy Boys books, but worked to a detailed plot and character outline for each story. The outlines are believed to have originated with Edward Stratemeyer, with later books outlined by his daughters Edna C. Squier and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams. Edward and Harriet also edited all books in the series through the mid-1960s. Other writers of the original books include MacFarlane's wife Amy, John Button, Andrew E. Svenson, and Adams herself; most of the outlines were done by Adams and Svenson. A number of other writers and editors were recruited to revise the outlines and update the texts in line with a more modern sensibility, starting in the late 1950s.
The principal author for the Ted Scott books was John W. Duffield.

Reviews

[Jahnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Extra star for the nostalgia. The Hardy Boys were my favorite in high school. I think I know why now. It was because their books were more action-packed. There were lots of chasing and jumping around, and throwing punches, with just the right amount of swagger and humor. Frank Hardy was my favorite. He did lesser action compared to Joe, but he was the brainy one. :D

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

When I first read Hardy Boys, I think I was in class 5, I had such a crush on Frank Hardy. I liked the brainy one over the brawny one and that sums up my first impression of Hardy Boys.
In their late teens, Frank and Joe Hardy take after their detective father Fenton Hardy. Frank is the older of the two and has more breakthroughs in the cases because he is the brainy one. Joe is the younger brother who more often than not is useful when things get hot and they need to fight their way out.
Like Nancy Drew, the books in the The Hardy Boys series re written by ghostwriters under the collective pseudonym Franklin W. Dixon. And yes, the earlier books were better than the latter ones.

[Pascalle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good for what it is. :) Although quite predictable, it keeps the reader intrigued.

[Dharia Scarab · Rating 3 out of 5]

My love of reading started when i was young, and it gives me immense pleasure to provide books to Spread the Word Nevada, an organization that passes them on to children in the community. They are a terrific organization supporting an important cause. If your local I encourage you to check them out. For those living further a field, look in your own community, their may already be a similar program in place. And if not, you can always help start one.

http://spreadthewordnevada.org/

Myself, I go out on the weekends and
shop thrift store and bulk book lots to rescue books and donate them. Sometimes I'll find a book I remember reading when I was young and will read it again before passing it on.

I don't rate these books using my normal scale, instead I give most of them three stars. This isn't a Criticism of the book, simply my way of rating them as good for children.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I was still schooling, I tried to read all of the Hardy Boys books. I didn't come close to finishing the whole series, and by now I had already forgot most of the content of those that I had read. But I do recall how much I loved reading each and every one of them.

[Dannuel Delizo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Parisians are adorable <3