The Rainbow Riddle

Judy Bolton Mysteries #17

by Margaret Sutton, Pelagie Doane (Illustrator)

n Judy Bolton #17, The Rainbow Riddle, Judy and Peter are married in a double wedding in which Arthur and Lorraine are also married. Roberta arrives unexpectedly just before the wedding and seems quite afraid that Judy and Peter will be injured. Roberta disappears with one of the wedding presents, and shortly thereafter, an explosion is heard. This is passed off as nothing, and Peter acts mysterious.

Genres: Mystery, Young Adult, Childrens

200 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1946

About the author

Margaret Sutton was born Rachel Irene Beebe in Odin, Pennsylvania in 1903. She was the daughter of Victor Beebe, a well-known historian, and Estella Andrews Beebe. Being a spirited nonconformist, she dropped out of high school, but in 1920, graduated from the Rochester Business Institute. After graduation, she worked for several years as a secretary and in printing. During that time, she met William Sutton at a church dance in New York City. After a courtship exchanging poems and playing chess, they were married in 1924, and she began writing stories for her husband's daughter, Dorothy. Her first Judy Bolton Mystery was published in 1932 under the pen name Margaret Sutton. Ms. Sutton wove many real events and places into the Judy Bolton stories through the 35-year history of the series. She also wrote numerous stories for children and young adults. She was also active in social causes, joining the historic March on Washington in 1964. In 1965, her husband of more than 40 years died. In 1975, after traveling extensively, she married a long-time family friend, Everett Hunting. They moved to Berkeley, California and made their home there until 1993 when they moved back to Pennsylvania. Mr. Hunting died shortly after they moved. In 2001, at the age of 98, Margaret Sutton died in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, not far from her native Potter County.

Reviews

[Rebekah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Judy has a lovely "rainbow" wedding only briefly marred by a bomb going off at the reception. It could have been the end of the Judy Bolton series, but luckily Judy's little orphan flower girl, Roberta, who we met in the previous book saves the day. Coincidences abound and there is danger around every corner, along with some nice romance between Judy and Peter. A careful reader will find a number of aspects that strain credulity, but I'm gonna put them in the context of the original target audience.

So far I'm not a Roberta fan, but she is going to be around for a few more books, so I'll try to keep an open mind. She did almost get herself blown up to save Judy so I'm willing to give her a pass for now.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

My book is the original book with dust jacket from my childhood. It has been read many times. I just re-read it for a review in an article in a fanzine magazine. For those not familiar with the vintage Judy Bolton series, that has 38 titles, this is book #17 and is the dividing line between Judy's single growing up years and her later ones as a wife; she marries Peter Dobbs in this book and in this book he also becomes an FBI agent. It isn't the best book in the series but deserves a solid 4 stars. At Judy and Peter's wedding Roberta, a little girl from a previous book, arrives in rural Pennsylvania from Connecticut to warn them that a wedding gift is set to blow them up. Later there is an explosion in the hills after Roberta is seen running into the woods with a package. She insists that she heard some "bad men" say that Judy knew too much about the "Rainbow" gang. Judy's double wedding included all the attendants dressed in colors of the rainbow and indeed, rainbows seem to follow them on their honeymoon as they travel from place to place as suggested by Agent Trent of the FBI and told to keep their ears and eyes open: all the places have names after colors of the rainbow. This is a wonderful series and read best from the beginning since the characters age and evolve and friends are never lost or forgotten.

[LuAnn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting how one book in this series sometimes starts the day after the previous one ends. After some suspense in the last book over whether Judy, Peter, Lorraine & Arthur's wedding finally takes place, accompanied by a new mystery--of course! As usual, questions that would have cleared some things up earlier are not asked of Roberta who is convinced that one particular wedding gift poses a mortal threat to Judy and Peter. For people on a honeymoon living in the 1940s, Judy and Peter certainly travel a lot, from north central Pennsylvania to Western New York State to Albany, down to NYC and Connecticut, then back to some of their earlier destinations, all to solve the mystery.

[Bev · Rating 3 out of 5]

Judy and Lorraine Lee are getting married in a double wedding outdoor ceremony. Rainbows abound in this story as it rains early, but clears off just in time--with a double rainbow display--for the brides to have the ceremony they dreamed of. But all is not romance and wedding vows. Roberta, a girl whom Judy met in a previous adventure, arrives just before the ceremony bearing a warning that one of the wedding gifts has an explosive in it! And that there are bad men associated with her (Roberta's) aunt who want to get rid of Judy and her soon-to-be husband, Peter, because they're going to interfere with "the rainbow ring."

Judy has no idea what Roberta's talking about and the girl has had a tendency to embroider stories before, so she's reluctant to believe that a gift bearing the address of her good friends Irene and Dale would have an explosive radio in it. However, after the ceremony, Roberta is seen carrying a package into the woods and immediately there is an explosion. It seems she was right after all and fortunately no one was hurt when the package exploded.

But why do these people think Judy and Peter are going to meddle in their business? And what exactly is the business, anyway? Strange incidents follow the couple when they go on their honeymoon. A honeymoon itinerary that has been set by Peter's future boss, Mr. Trent with the FBI. They find themselves stopping at various places with names from the colors of the rainbow. And more explosions happen at various factories. Judy and Peter discover what the rainbow ring is and who is behind it by the time their honeymoon comes to an end.

Another fun entry in the Judy Bolton (now Dobbs) series. Exciting adventures and mystery. Lots of coincidences. And our heroine and her hero have a calm, happy ending--until the next book!

First posted on my blog My Reader's Block.

[Mikayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a particularly sweet mystery, as it followed Judy on her wedding day and honeymoon.

[Jane Irish Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally, Judy's wedding day is here! The sun is shining and everything seems to be ready, until her flower girl comes down with chicken pox!. But then Roberta shows up, with a warning for Judy, and the beginning of a new mystery. Judy's (and Lorraine's) bridesmaids are dressed in rainbow colors, and suddenly rainbows seem to be everywhere Judy looks, not just in the sky, but also in the various locations Mr. Trent had asked Peter to stop on their honeymoon. As often happens in these stories, coincidences abound, helping lead Judy to the solution of the mystery. Enjoyable.

[Pamela Butler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Judy gets married in this volume and the writing shifts some. The plot is a bit more intricate and the sensibility more adult overall. I read all the earlier books and I really like them, but I like this shift too. Quirky characters still appear and not all are lovable but that keeps things interesting. I have written a blog post on the Judy Bolton books which can be found at: https://pams-pictorama.com/2020/02/23... or by searching Pams-Pictorama.com.

[Nancy Bandusky · Rating 5 out of 5]

The wedding!!!! Delightful continuation of the Judy Bolton series. Many of the usual characters are present along with some recent additions. Sweet and old-fashioned, yet with Judy there is always a little of an independent streak. Death threats, explosions, and the FBI - not a usual wedding.

[Nora · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this every couple of years. A great girls series...

[C Krengel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good one -- about Judy's wedding and bridesmaids.

[Johanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, wow! This book is great fun! Judy has a rainbow wedding. Peter has joined the FBI. I liked that the wedding was longer than one sentence like it is in other series books.

[Tami · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one seemed to have more things going on at once then other Judy stories. It made it very enjoyable to read.