The Castle Conundrum

The Hardy Boys #168

by Franklin W. Dixon

AN ANCIENT HIDDEN TREASURE STIRS UP A CUNNING PLOT!
Teen Village International brings Frank and Joe to the south of France to rebuild a deserted town. The finished project will be a center for refugee children. But word is that the local castle is haunted -- by the centuries-old ghost of its lord, who hid a fortune in diamonds from bandits within its thick stone walls.
Spooky lights, strange noises, and several close shaves convince the Hardys that someone is trying to sabotage the project. A pair of French twins, descendants of the owner, want to save the castle from developers. Every facet of the case leads to a dead end -- and the Hardys are hunting a desperate enemy!

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

160 pages, Paperback

First published June 26, 2001

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

[David Allen Hines · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the "modern" Hardy Boys adventures. The Hardys travel to France where they participate in program to restore an old village while trying to figure out why the group is being threatened, harassed and potentially chased away. The village lies underneath the ruins of an ancient chateau, which is a source of some of the problems, and includes a mystery over a lost treasure, which if rediscovered, could help restore the whole area. The dialog is very modern unlike older Hardy books, and the story line is also plausible and modern: potentially a wealthy development company wants to chase away the non-profit volunteer restoration group. There is also a tie-in to Mr. Hardy's work on a case involving international diamond smuggling. It is a shame this Hardy Boys book is now out of print, because it is well-written and a good adventure that I think children today would continue to enjoy it. Like many of the "Minstrel" paperbacks, the paper is of very poor quality, and even though this book is only 20 years old, the pages of my book were already self-destructing, with t the cheap, acidic paper discoloring the paper and the pages already becoming brittle. If you can find 2 copies, you might want one for a reading copy and one as a collectible but I don't know how these poor quality paperbacks will stand the test of time!! Nonetheless, this is one of the better "modern" Hardy Boys books!

[Alyson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve read a large number of Nancy Drew books in my day, figured it was time to give The Hardy Boys a go. Easy going story, lots of characters and background story to follow that wasn’t necessary for plot but had content from the areas in France where it was set so that was cool, especially the few historical mentions. I definitely predicted the family motto being the key to finding the treasure, good for kids, easy for adults.

[Ethan Hulbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wasn't too good, wasn't too bad, pretty average. Setting was sort of interesting, characters were all completely undeveloped and bland. The writing in this one seemed worse than usual. And the plot, honestly, made much less sense than usual also. Still had good parts, but eh.

[Sean Correia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great to go back to my younger years, but too rushed and something's seem unnecessarily too simple... but amazing for kids looking to read more.

[ಆದಿತ್ಯ|Aditya · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fair mystery it was. I read this when I was 13(I guess!). My age was within range to read Hardy Boys. I remember a part where one of the Hardy boys escapes an accident and gets tagged as Monsieur Tarzan:) And I read that chapter again, just because I liked Tarzan!:) I know this is not exactly a review, but, I like writing about it:)

[Dishha · Rating 1 out of 5]

Awesome book this is .....
Frank n Joe are with teen village international rebuilding a whole town!
They here routers that the old castle is haunted.....
Will they stumble upon a mystery????? :):):):):):):):)

[Yashi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first book from the Hardy Boys' series and i found it totally amazing and engrossing,,, it's totally different from the mystery series of enid blyton that i've been reading.......So, it was really a good book to read....

[Amit · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the oldest books that I have read. A must read for anyone who is just getting into the hobby of reading