The Secret at the Hermitage

Dana Girls Mystery #5

by Carolyn Keene, Mildred Benson (Ghostwriter)

"Nina Regan! I've captured you at last!"

Delusional Harold Norton, ex-warden of the Pinecrest Reformatory, accuses Louise Dana of being escapee Nina Regan. Louise clears herself, only to find that Norton continues to stalk her every move. After Louise is attacked by Norton, she is lost in the woods and spends the night with a strange hermit.

Upon Louise's return to Starhurst, she becomes intrigued with Nina's strange case. Nina was never proved guilty of her crime, so Louise wants to help her. The girls discover that the old hermit may know where Nina is hiding.

Meanwhile, Harold Norton relentlessly hunts for Nina, endangering both Louise and the old hermit. Louise and Jean must quickly discover Nina's whereabouts and learn whether she is guilty.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Childrens, Young Adult, Crime, School

218 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1936

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 In a few cases, outdated plots were completely rewritten.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

[CLM · Rating 2 out of 5]

The nieces and I finished this last night, and I must say it has to be the weakest Dana Girl adventure ever. We laughed until we cried at the constant reappearances of the villain, ex-Warden Norton, and the ponderous way Dana Girls followed clues. My recollection of their prowess gave them way too much credit.

[James Crawford · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fifth book in the Dana Girl series and it's excellent. There's a lot of the usual hi-jink involving Lettie and the Dana Girls at Starhurst Academy.

The book centers around a small statue the girls find, entitled 'The Recluse.' From there they are led on a mystery about who made the statue and what happened to that person. They find that the woman had escaped from a prison. A crazy ex-warden keeps mistaking one of the Dana girls for the escaped prisoner, and we find that both girls end up having an extremely difficult time as the story unfolds. In fact, whether or not Louise and Jean will actually live to the end of the story is put into question.

Then there's the issue of an old hermit at a cottage in the forest, another woman at the prison who knew the escaped woman, a very young child, and a cave-in. There's a lot of stuff going on in the book and it's probably even more action-packed than any of the others in the series so far.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I grew up reading the Nancy Drew books. I never knew there was another series out there under the same 'author' as those. I enjoyed reading the story! It owed very much like the Nancy Drew stories, the main difference was the characters. The characters all seemed interchangeable for the most part until you got into their specific characteristics. I also noticed the original version of Nancy Drew and the Dana sisters is longer and in much more detail than the shorter versions of Nancy Drew that are on the bookshelves today.

[C.G.Koens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nancy Drew it was not... but if you're looking for another cheesy teenage mystery book from the 30's where everything turns out sunshine and roses... "The Secret at the Hermitage" should be on your list.

[Debra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved this series of books that I read back in junior high. They are from the same syndicate that wrote the Nancy Drew books and the Hardy Boys, but I much preferred the Dana Girls.

[Joseph · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's no question that The Secret at the Hermitage has an excellent plot, concerning a missing fugitive, mistaken identity, and an odd hermitage where secrets lie. I was glued to the pages! Louise has a slightly bigger part in this particular volume than Jean (Lousise is being harassed by a delusional ex-warden who thinks she's fugitive Nina Regan). The storyline contains many twists, along with good action and lots of suspense, wrapped up by a tense climax. However, there are number of minor things I didn't like:

~ The trick Lettie Briggs plays on Louise is not plausible: Lettie disguises as Warden Norton, a man, and startles Louise so much that she falls backwards onto a rock. But how on earth could a teenage girl sound like a man? And the body shape would not be masculine.

~ The elderly, bearded hermit turns out to be Nina Regan in disguise, with a false beard and wig to change her appearance. Nina Regan is a 31-year-old woman; there is no way she could make people believe she's an old man - her skin, her voice, her figure - with a mere wig and beard! That should have been protrayed more realistically; perhaps Nina could have disguised as an old woman, and with the help of makeup.

~ The climactic downfall of Warden Norton is not very believable. After the girls "seal" him into a hidden room of the hermitage (that part alone was brushed over and seemed hard to believe), when they rescue Nina and finally release Warden Norton, he suddenly acts worn-out and "beaten," that is, fully submissive to them. The Dana sisters tell him sternly that he is to take the local train to the farthest point and "unless [he] want[s] to spend the rest of [his] days is prison...[he] must never come back." Why on earth did they help him to escape the authorities?! That man is both delusional and dangerous, not to mention that he was blackmailing Mrs. Keiting and almost ruined Nina Regan's life. I was really disappointed that they let him get away.

The above complaints are what lowered my rating to 4 out of 5 stars. I do wish those factors were different, but this is still a very enjoyable mystery.

[Trent Clegg · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a difference! This is the first Dana Girls mystery ghost-written by Mildred Wirt, the original ghost writer for the Nancy Drew series. From the first paragraphs, it's clear Wirt is taking ownership of the two central characters and infusing them with her life and drive. Where the author of the previous four books failed to inject any color into Louise and Jean, this book more clearly differentiates between the sisters and gives them individual personality.

The plotting is still somewhat fantastic, but once it's accepted this series plays fast and loose with reality, it's a fun ride. Additionally, the blatant racism in book #3 is nowhere to be seen here. I'm looking forward to book #6!

[Jane Irish Nelson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exciting, adventurous — and almost completely unbelievable! What boarding school would give its students the latitude that Louise and Jean receive while solving mysteries?

In this book, it begins with a coincidence, when Louise is mistaken for an escapee from a`local reformatory, despite being much younger. The former warden refuses to believe her or her friends, and practically stalks her! Then her rival and nemesis, Letty Briggs, plays one of her tricks, which only lands Louise deeper into mystery, and leads her to the mysterious hermitage of the title.

Enjoyable, although perhaps a bit dated. And one plot point is entirely explained. Probably 3.5 stars.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of coincidences and drama in this book. The antics of Lettie Briggs cause Louise Dana some real troubles when she falls over a hill, hits her head on a rock, then falls into a stream, and finally falls into a well where she is rescued by a hermit. But really, it's almost silly. I like the Dana Girls and the books are fun to read, but you must ignore the coincidences! They always manage to solve the mystery.

[Rex Libris · Rating 4 out of 5]

The girls find a beautiful sculpture, only to find the artist is a young woman who has escaped from prison. To make matters worse, the escapee looks like Louise, and the vindictive warden who is pursuing the escapee harasses Louise, thinking she is the escapee. Of course, the escapee is innocent of the crime of which she was accused. Toss in young toddler who needs medical treatment, and you have quite the soap opera.

[Lucy Takeda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I finished all the library books I had, so I grabbed this off my shelf. It’s probably from when I was in third grade. Time warp! A wristwatch that needs to be wound up; fountain pens; hamburger “ sandwiches.”
Simplistic characters, unlikely plot coincidences; somewhat entertaining.

[Catherine Hawthorn · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a mass market detective fiction, it wasn't that bad. Though I will say I like Nancy Drew better.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very fun mystery. There were some darker parts that I haven’t noticed in other Dana Girls books. The plot had some interesting twists and turns.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read long ago--I want to read it again, since I remember liking it.