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The Five Find-Outers #14
The Mystery of the Strange Messages
Mr Goon, the policeman, can't understand it. Messages keep coming to him, popping up all over the place. But who is sending them?
Mr Goon thinks it is Fatty, playing tricks on him but this is the first the Five Find-Outers have heard about the messages. It all becomes a remarkable mystery and one which the Five just have to solve.
Mr Goon thinks it is Fatty, playing tricks on him but this is the first the Five Find-Outers have heard about the messages. It all becomes a remarkable mystery and one which the Five just have to solve.
240 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1957
73 people are currently reading
692 people want to read
About the author
Enid Blyton
5,133 books6,299 followersSee also:
Ένιντ Μπλάιτον (Greek)
Enida Blaitona (Latvian)
Энид Блайтон (Russian)
Inid Blajton (Serbian)
Інід Блайтон (Ukrainian)
Enid Mary Blyton (1897–1968) was an English author of children's books.
Born in South London, Blyton was the eldest of three children, and showed an early interest in music and reading. She was educated at St. Christopher's School, Beckenham, and - having decided not to pursue her music - at Ipswich High School, where she trained as a kindergarten teacher. She taught for five years before her 1924 marriage to editor Hugh Pollock, with whom she had two daughters. This marriage ended in divorce, and Blyton remarried in 1943, to surgeon Kenneth Fraser Darrell Waters. She died in 1968, one year after her second husband.
Blyton was a prolific author of children's books, who penned an estimated 800 books over about 40 years. Her stories were often either children's adventure and mystery stories, or fantasies involving magic. Notable series include: The Famous Five, The Secret Seven, The Five Find-Outers, Noddy, The Wishing Chair, Mallory Towers, and St. Clare's.
According to the Index Translationum, Blyton was the fifth most popular author in the world in 2007, coming after Lenin but ahead of Shakespeare.
See also her pen name Mary Pollock
Ένιντ Μπλάιτον (Greek)
Enida Blaitona (Latvian)
Энид Блайтон (Russian)
Inid Blajton (Serbian)
Інід Блайтон (Ukrainian)
Enid Mary Blyton (1897–1968) was an English author of children's books.
Born in South London, Blyton was the eldest of three children, and showed an early interest in music and reading. She was educated at St. Christopher's School, Beckenham, and - having decided not to pursue her music - at Ipswich High School, where she trained as a kindergarten teacher. She taught for five years before her 1924 marriage to editor Hugh Pollock, with whom she had two daughters. This marriage ended in divorce, and Blyton remarried in 1943, to surgeon Kenneth Fraser Darrell Waters. She died in 1968, one year after her second husband.
Blyton was a prolific author of children's books, who penned an estimated 800 books over about 40 years. Her stories were often either children's adventure and mystery stories, or fantasies involving magic. Notable series include: The Famous Five, The Secret Seven, The Five Find-Outers, Noddy, The Wishing Chair, Mallory Towers, and St. Clare's.
According to the Index Translationum, Blyton was the fifth most popular author in the world in 2007, coming after Lenin but ahead of Shakespeare.
See also her pen name Mary Pollock
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews
April 24, 2023
Another good mystery and thankfully back on track. Mr Goon is center in this one as he is the one getting the strange messages. As usual he bungles everything with his impatience and his hatred of Fatty. He's not really a very good policeman. Ern is here again and in the thick of the mystery with the Five Findouters. He ends up having a pivotal part of the solving of the mystery. So now we have two people adoring Fatty, Ern and Bets! While Fatty is still best at everything, he's not as annoying as usual. I enjoyed it!
I still don't understand the change in the last book. It didn't read like one of the series. There were subtle differences but very obvious ones to a regular reader of her books.
I still don't understand the change in the last book. It didn't read like one of the series. There were subtle differences but very obvious ones to a regular reader of her books.
October 6, 2022
As a child I was blissfully unaware, but as an adult thos particular story hit me hard with the rank class difference and condescending attitude of the five find outers and their parents towards Mr. Goon and Ern.
Now I could understand a bit why Goon behaves like that. Poor Ern, the hero worshiper of Fatty, who doesn't know anything about equality and basic human dignity .
Yes, I know it's the 50s or 60s and concepts such as class equality were alien worldwide.
Now I could understand a bit why Goon behaves like that. Poor Ern, the hero worshiper of Fatty, who doesn't know anything about equality and basic human dignity .
Yes, I know it's the 50s or 60s and concepts such as class equality were alien worldwide.
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April 16, 2018Findouters challenge: Book 14. This is the second of the findouters cases to involve mysterious letters, the first being the Mystery of the Spiteful Letters. This time though, the target is not random people around Peterswood but a certain Mr Smith against whom they are directed and Mr Goon to whom all the notes are addressed. The notes are anonymous and composed of words/letters cut out of newspapers and magazines. Nobody is seen leaving the notes but they appear all over Goon’s house. Goon immediately suspects Fatty and goes to warn off the findouters but this turns out to be a blessing in disguise for our five who have no case to solve (as usual) in the holidays. Goon too soon realises that it wasn’t the findouters who are playing a trick and enlists Ern’s help―actually hires him to help. And so the Findouters start off on another exciting mystery, this one with plenty of hidden secrets and also more to it than first meets the eye. Like in the Mystery of Tally-Ho Cottage, Ern takes on a more active role in this one and does himself proud.
Before I get to my reactions to the actual book itself, I have to rant about the updated eds. Totally my fault, but somehow, I bought a new edition (2011) of this one, something I actively avoid doing usually, and every change they made―pointless in my view (except may be one, but even that didn’t make sense) jarred. For instance, Fatty always called his parents ‘mother’ and ‘father’―which has been changed here to ‘mummy’ and ‘daddy’―why? Do children today not know what ‘mother’ and ‘father’ means, or is it so hard to understand that perhaps in the past, people addressed their parents differently? Elsewhere ‘daily woman’ becomes ‘cleaning lady’―again something that needn’t have been changed, anyone can easily look it up―isn’t that the point of books (or one of the points, at any rate) that you learn new things― new words/expressions, new things about other places and cultures, about your own culture/ country, about the past. Such pointless changes simply ruin the book for me, it loses its sense of time and place, which is part of its value. A third change that stood out was all the references to ‘fat boy’ which is what Goon does call Fatty are changed to ‘big boy’―this I get why it was changed but for one, it wasn’t used in the sense that it is understood today (something else that children today can’t understand, apparently―if we go by the changes), and two, it was meant to be nasty, which ‘big boy’ simply doesn’t convey. Grrrr….
Apart from the edition, Blyton herself made a bit of a mistake in this one, with Mrs Trotteville claiming that she’s been living in Peterswood from nineteen years, when she and her family only moved here in book 2 of the series―and if it were indeed nineteen years since then, our findouters ought to have been in their thirties now
But anyway, now finally the story itself. While the updated text, as I said, was jarring, the story itself was interested. The opening was different from the usual (one or the other of the children having to be received from the station, holidays with nothing to do)―this one begins with Goon puzzling over the anonymous notes and takes off from there. The mystery was one of the more interesting ones with as I said a little more complicated than it seems at first and it was fun to see how Fatty worked the whole thing out. Of course, it was him that put together everything at the end. Bets this time has some good ideas but one major clue comes from Ern and his attempts at writing por’try (I always forget that all his poetry begins with ‘The Poor Old’ or ‘Pore Old’ ) and Ern indeed has a very active role in this one, helping the findouters and Fatty when he is needed the most, and proving himself brave, loyal, and clever. The solution was among the more interesting ones and was rather enjoyable. There was disguising of course, though only once, and actual investigating by all the findouters. On the foodmeter, this one was average, there was food, plenty, but not overflowing. Sid and Perce’s antics are brought in, and with it some laughs, though they themselves don’t make an appearance. A fun read though spoiled for me by the edition (which I must get rid of asap and replace with an older one).
Before I get to my reactions to the actual book itself, I have to rant about the updated eds. Totally my fault, but somehow, I bought a new edition (2011) of this one, something I actively avoid doing usually, and every change they made―pointless in my view (except may be one, but even that didn’t make sense) jarred. For instance, Fatty always called his parents ‘mother’ and ‘father’―which has been changed here to ‘mummy’ and ‘daddy’―why? Do children today not know what ‘mother’ and ‘father’ means, or is it so hard to understand that perhaps in the past, people addressed their parents differently? Elsewhere ‘daily woman’ becomes ‘cleaning lady’―again something that needn’t have been changed, anyone can easily look it up―isn’t that the point of books (or one of the points, at any rate) that you learn new things― new words/expressions, new things about other places and cultures, about your own culture/ country, about the past. Such pointless changes simply ruin the book for me, it loses its sense of time and place, which is part of its value. A third change that stood out was all the references to ‘fat boy’ which is what Goon does call Fatty are changed to ‘big boy’―this I get why it was changed but for one, it wasn’t used in the sense that it is understood today (something else that children today can’t understand, apparently―if we go by the changes), and two, it was meant to be nasty, which ‘big boy’ simply doesn’t convey. Grrrr….
Apart from the edition, Blyton herself made a bit of a mistake in this one, with Mrs Trotteville claiming that she’s been living in Peterswood from nineteen years, when she and her family only moved here in book 2 of the series―and if it were indeed nineteen years since then, our findouters ought to have been in their thirties now
But anyway, now finally the story itself. While the updated text, as I said, was jarring, the story itself was interested. The opening was different from the usual (one or the other of the children having to be received from the station, holidays with nothing to do)―this one begins with Goon puzzling over the anonymous notes and takes off from there. The mystery was one of the more interesting ones with as I said a little more complicated than it seems at first and it was fun to see how Fatty worked the whole thing out. Of course, it was him that put together everything at the end. Bets this time has some good ideas but one major clue comes from Ern and his attempts at writing por’try (I always forget that all his poetry begins with ‘The Poor Old’ or ‘Pore Old’ ) and Ern indeed has a very active role in this one, helping the findouters and Fatty when he is needed the most, and proving himself brave, loyal, and clever. The solution was among the more interesting ones and was rather enjoyable. There was disguising of course, though only once, and actual investigating by all the findouters. On the foodmeter, this one was average, there was food, plenty, but not overflowing. Sid and Perce’s antics are brought in, and with it some laughs, though they themselves don’t make an appearance. A fun read though spoiled for me by the edition (which I must get rid of asap and replace with an older one).
September 21, 2022
Se trata de un libro muy juvenil (casi infantil) para mi gusto.
El esquema es el básico de series similares como Los Cinco o Los Hollister: un grupo de niños (y su perro) que se enfrentan a un misterio policíaco que, finalmente, acabarán resolviendo.
Sin embargo, por mucho que me gustaran Los Cinco en su día, este libro no ha estado a la altura de lo que yo recordaba de la literatura de Enid Blyton... aunque a menudo durante su lectura me ha surgido la duda de si no sería la traducción.
En todo caso, creo que Blyton es una escritora a la que no me voy a volver a acercar para mantener el buen recuerdo de lo que leí en su día.
El esquema es el básico de series similares como Los Cinco o Los Hollister: un grupo de niños (y su perro) que se enfrentan a un misterio policíaco que, finalmente, acabarán resolviendo.
Sin embargo, por mucho que me gustaran Los Cinco en su día, este libro no ha estado a la altura de lo que yo recordaba de la literatura de Enid Blyton... aunque a menudo durante su lectura me ha surgido la duda de si no sería la traducción.
En todo caso, creo que Blyton es una escritora a la que no me voy a volver a acercar para mantener el buen recuerdo de lo que leí en su día.
November 20, 2021
3.75 stars
April 16, 2019
The fourteenth entry in Enid Blyton's fifteen-book Five Find-Outers and Dog series, in which a group of British schoolchildren spend their holidays playing detective, The Mystery of the Strange Messages follows Fatty, Larry, Daisy, Pip and Bets as they become involved in a puzzling case involving anonymous letters sent to PC Goon, the village police bobby. Who is this Smith that the note-sender seems determined to expose, and why does he need to be cleared out of old Fairlin Hall, once known as "The Ivies"? The Find-Outers, together with their friend Ern, and Buster the dog, are on the case!
This penultimate title in the series was enjoyable enough, although Blyton really seems to be writing on auto-pilot here. In one scene, Pip is the designated look-out, but somehow manages to make a comment, despite being outside the hall! In another, Bets doesn't know what an anonymous letter is, even though the Find-Outers have already encountered them, in The Mystery of the Spiteful Letters . Despite these errors of continuity, and the fact that the mystery wasn't terribly suspenseful, I did enjoy the resolution. It was refreshing to see Ern play the hero for a change!
This penultimate title in the series was enjoyable enough, although Blyton really seems to be writing on auto-pilot here. In one scene, Pip is the designated look-out, but somehow manages to make a comment, despite being outside the hall! In another, Bets doesn't know what an anonymous letter is, even though the Find-Outers have already encountered them, in The Mystery of the Spiteful Letters . Despite these errors of continuity, and the fact that the mystery wasn't terribly suspenseful, I did enjoy the resolution. It was refreshing to see Ern play the hero for a change!
May 18, 2013
I still enjoy Enid Blyton's books for kids. I still get totally involved in the mystery and still love stringing the clues together. Another wonderful adventure with memorable characters.
January 18, 2016
چند روز پيش كه دخترخالم ميخوندش كنارش نشستم خوندم و چقدر براي يك بچه ي ١٠ ساله هيجان انگيزه
من كه مردم از سررفتگي شديد حوصله
ولي براي بچه ها عاليه
من كه مردم از سررفتگي شديد حوصله
ولي براي بچه ها عاليه
April 8, 2024
“Oh every time
You want a rhyme,
Then let your tongue go loose,
Don’t hold it tight,
Or try to bite,
That won’t be any use!
Just let it go
And words will flow
From off your eager tongue,
And rhymes and all
Will lightly fall
To make a little song!”
Excerpt From
The Mystery of the Strange Messages
Enid Blyton
You want a rhyme,
Then let your tongue go loose,
Don’t hold it tight,
Or try to bite,
That won’t be any use!
Just let it go
And words will flow
From off your eager tongue,
And rhymes and all
Will lightly fall
To make a little song!”
Excerpt From
The Mystery of the Strange Messages
Enid Blyton
October 30, 2015
Ok. I'm wondering where is Mr Wilfred's son gone and why Ern won't help his uncle and Buster that's locked. Why he waits until tomorrow?
December 19, 2018
The more I read these books, the more I detest Fatty. My insistence to complete a favorite series from my childhood is making me dislike them instead. Well at least only a book to go.
July 22, 2021
This has all the makings of an Agatha Christie setup and the FFO&D do a good bit of detecting throughout to arrive at answers. Also lots of examples of kindness and fairness. Reminded me just why I love this series so much!
May 19, 2017
This is one of dad's old books and I don't think I've read it before. But I enjoyed it very much and I would love to read more of the books in the series, though I'm pretty sure this is the only one.
Enid Blyton wrote brilliant mysterystories for kids.
Enid Blyton wrote brilliant mysterystories for kids.
October 13, 2025
An sich ist Geheimnis um ... super und ich mag das Setting. Allerdings war diese Geschichte zu sehr auf Dietrich fokussiert, sodass die anderen Kinder viel zu kurz gekommen sind, was Schade war.
June 28, 2020
Poorly written, even by Blyton's standards, and riddled with careless mistakes.
Blyton has Mrs. Trotteville claim that she has lived in Peterswood for nineteen years.
And in Chapter 19, Pip is both inside the kitchen and keeping watch outdoors at the same time.
"When you're paid to do a job, it's better to give a few minutes more to it, than a few minutes less. That's one of the differences between doing a job honestly and doing it dishonestly! See?"
Blyton has Mrs. Trotteville claim that she has lived in Peterswood for nineteen years.
And in Chapter 19, Pip is both inside the kitchen and keeping watch outdoors at the same time.
"When you're paid to do a job, it's better to give a few minutes more to it, than a few minutes less. That's one of the differences between doing a job honestly and doing it dishonestly! See?"
May 23, 2011
Much better than the other one. Deeper, with more mysteries and more drama. Also has comical parts. I love the part with Fatty improvising the poem =D
Although Fatty gets on my nerves. He's so conceited.
Although Fatty gets on my nerves. He's so conceited.
December 22, 2025
Has a few factual errors which disrupt the timeline
January 4, 2020
Novel MISTERI BERITA ANEH ini adalah novel klasik terjemahan, judul aslinya THE MYSTERY OF THE STRANGE MESSAGES, ditulis oleh Enid Blyton pada tahun 1957, dan diterbitkan oleh Penerbit PT Gramedia, Jakarta pada tahun 1985. Novel ini menceritakan tentang Pak Goon, seorang polisi desa, mendapatkan beberapa surat kaleng yang ditujukan untuk dirinya. Surat pertama berisi, 'Tanyakan pada Smith siapa namanya yang sebenarnya.'. Surat kedua berisi, ' Usir dia dari The Ivies!'. Surat ketiga berisi, 'Orang seperti Anda mengaku polisi? Ayo, datangi Smith!'. Surat keempat berisi, 'Jika Anda menjumpai Smith, sebut kata RAHASIA. Ia pasti mengambil langkah seribu.' Pak Goon menanyakan siapa yang mengirim surat itu pada Bu Hicks, wanita yang bekerja di rumahnya sebagai asisten rumah tangga, namun Bu Hicks berkata surat itu tiba-tiba saja ada saat ia pergi sebentar. Pak Goon mencurigai ini adalah perbuatan iseng Frederick Trotteville (dipanggil Fatty) - Si Gendut dari Pasukan Mau Tahu (grup penyelidikan/detektif Fatty bersama teman-temannya), namun ternyata bukan ulah Fatty. Kebetulan di situ sedang ada teman-teman Fatty, sehingga Pak Goon menceritakan sedikit hal yang terjadi kepada anak-anak itu. Pak Goon juga meminta Ern, keponakannya yang pintar, untuk mengintai di rumahnya, agar kalau ada orang mencurigakan bisa langsung ketahuan, dan Ern mendapat upah dari pamannya. Lalu karena Ern juga dekat dengan Fatty dan teman-temannya, mereka bekerja sama untuk menyelidiki kasus surat kaleng ini, mencari The Ivies dan Smith yang dimaksud dalam surat-surat itu, dan ternyata surat-surat itu merupakan kata kunci yang berkaitan dengan kasus pencurian di masa lalu.
Novel ini terasa sekali cerita misterinya, pembaca dibuat semakin penasaran dan menduga-duga hal yang terjadi, dan petunjuk yang datang serta hal-hal yang mulai terungkap berjalan perlahan, sehingga pembaca semakin mengikuti jalan cerita karena penasaran. Novel ini menggunakan diksi yang baik, sehingga pembaca mudah memahami. Tidak terkesan membosankan karena dilengkapi dengan ilustrasi juga. Aku baru selesai membaca setelah hampir dua minggu, karena aku mulai sibuk belajar (efek mau tes) dan novel ini cukup tebal, ada 22 bab, dan sebuah novel ini ada 251 halaman.
Novel ini kurekomendasikan untuk teman-teman yang suka genre misteri/detektif.
Novel ini terasa sekali cerita misterinya, pembaca dibuat semakin penasaran dan menduga-duga hal yang terjadi, dan petunjuk yang datang serta hal-hal yang mulai terungkap berjalan perlahan, sehingga pembaca semakin mengikuti jalan cerita karena penasaran. Novel ini menggunakan diksi yang baik, sehingga pembaca mudah memahami. Tidak terkesan membosankan karena dilengkapi dengan ilustrasi juga. Aku baru selesai membaca setelah hampir dua minggu, karena aku mulai sibuk belajar (efek mau tes) dan novel ini cukup tebal, ada 22 bab, dan sebuah novel ini ada 251 halaman.
Novel ini kurekomendasikan untuk teman-teman yang suka genre misteri/detektif.
September 10, 2019
This story really starts with Goon! He begins receiving a slew of anonymous notes demanding that he investigate a certain Mr Smith and eject him from his home. This makes no sense to Goon. Then he gets a brainwave and wonders if Fatty was behind these notes, trying out one of his disguises. He takes all the notes to Fatty and dumps them in the hands of the Find-Outers. Of course, they knew nothing about it, and Goon has just presented them with a brand new mystery!
The delighted five, not to mention Ern, who had been employed by Goon to watch out for the mysterious letter-writer, set out to find the solution to this mystery. They discover Smith, and so does Goon. But they take different views of the matter from thereon. I rather enjoyed Ern's role in this one, where he blossoms on his own.
The class differences are stark in this one. Ern is always delighted to be with the upper middle class children and happy to be accepted by them, enough so that he does not bother about the constant lecturing about not lying and stuff that the other children keep giving him. A bit of an eyeroll there! Then, of course, the trope about how Ern's mother can't even remember if he had had an illness or not and just sent him away to be on the safer side. That's literally no mother ever!
The story is decent enough, but this was never one of my favourites. But I like all of the Mystery titles by Enid Blyton, some more than others.
The delighted five, not to mention Ern, who had been employed by Goon to watch out for the mysterious letter-writer, set out to find the solution to this mystery. They discover Smith, and so does Goon. But they take different views of the matter from thereon. I rather enjoyed Ern's role in this one, where he blossoms on his own.
The class differences are stark in this one. Ern is always delighted to be with the upper middle class children and happy to be accepted by them, enough so that he does not bother about the constant lecturing about not lying and stuff that the other children keep giving him. A bit of an eyeroll there! Then, of course, the trope about how Ern's mother can't even remember if he had had an illness or not and just sent him away to be on the safer side. That's literally no mother ever!
The story is decent enough, but this was never one of my favourites. But I like all of the Mystery titles by Enid Blyton, some more than others.
May 11, 2025
This review contains spoilers.
I first read this novel, oh, more years ago than I care to remember, How would I react to it as a reader in his sixties?
Back in the day, I went through Enid Blyton's books like a stream train at top speed. I devoured them and the Five Find Outers Mystery series was a particular favourite.
The interactions between the bumbling policeman PC Goon and his garrulous charlady are funny. It could be argued that they are familiar stock characters but none the worst for that.
The emphasis is on Fatty Trotteville and Goon's nephew, Ern. The other Find Outers play a secondary role in the book. They were never well developed characters even in earlier books in the series but Fatty and Ern make a good partnership. Fatty's mother also features prominently in the story in a lady of the manor role.
Although written in the late 1950s, the book still has very much a 1930s feel to it. The class distinctions are to the fore. Even though Fatty and Ern are friends, Ern is expected to eat his meals with the cook and housemaid in the kitchen, because Ern is from a different class.
Several loose ends are left untied at the novel's conclusion. Was Mrs Hicks reprimanded for delivering the notes? Did Mr Smith recover? What happened to him and his wife? Did they return to Fairlin Hall?
I first read this novel, oh, more years ago than I care to remember, How would I react to it as a reader in his sixties?
Back in the day, I went through Enid Blyton's books like a stream train at top speed. I devoured them and the Five Find Outers Mystery series was a particular favourite.
The interactions between the bumbling policeman PC Goon and his garrulous charlady are funny. It could be argued that they are familiar stock characters but none the worst for that.
The emphasis is on Fatty Trotteville and Goon's nephew, Ern. The other Find Outers play a secondary role in the book. They were never well developed characters even in earlier books in the series but Fatty and Ern make a good partnership. Fatty's mother also features prominently in the story in a lady of the manor role.
Although written in the late 1950s, the book still has very much a 1930s feel to it. The class distinctions are to the fore. Even though Fatty and Ern are friends, Ern is expected to eat his meals with the cook and housemaid in the kitchen, because Ern is from a different class.
Several loose ends are left untied at the novel's conclusion. Was Mrs Hicks reprimanded for delivering the notes? Did Mr Smith recover? What happened to him and his wife? Did they return to Fairlin Hall?
April 28, 2020
In her latest years, Blyton developed dementia, and you can notice her decline in a few of her latest books. Fortunately, there is no trace of that in this, the second to last Five Find-Outers book. This book has a lot of the signature humor involving Mr. Goon, a strong investigation plot and some heart-warming moments. The premise may be a bit forced, but it's kind of explained once we find out the whole truth. Ern takes a stellar role here, despite the exaggerated way he looks up to Fatty, and the other children have clearly accepted him by this point in the series, despite some patronizing by Fatty. If there's a fault here is that Blyton doesn't find much for Larry, Daisy and Pip to do.
October 6, 2021
Goon is getting some rather rude anonymous letters telling him to ask about The Ivies. He accuses the FFO of sending them, but the children are soon on the trail of a mystery. Goon also recruits his reluctant nephew Ern to help figure out how the letters are arriving, but after he treats Ern cruelly one too many times, the boy decamps to Fatty and is put up in his shed. The children follow a trail involving houses called The Ivies, Rangoon, spies, and stolen diamonds before Ern comes to the fore and helps rescue Fatty from a sticky situation
April 24, 2021
For young minds, these books proved to be so thrilling, the zest, the tumble into adventures, cracking puzzles, finding clues and finally putting criminals and robbers behind bars!
The mystery series were one of the best series in the Enid Blyton collection. The English highlands, and moors, the prolific city life and the extremely enigmatic children finding their way around, made for some of the best reads as a kid.
The mystery series were one of the best series in the Enid Blyton collection. The English highlands, and moors, the prolific city life and the extremely enigmatic children finding their way around, made for some of the best reads as a kid.
December 22, 2024
Mr. Goon was baffled by a series of strange notes arriving at his doorstep. He initially suspected Fatty of playing a prank, but soon realized the Find-Outers wouldn't be involved in such mischief. The Find-Outers, intrigued by the mystery, decided to investigate. Their inquiries led them down an unexpected path, uncovering a plot by ex-convicts to recover stolen diamonds.
March 19, 2022
A return to form, despite some glaring continuity issues. There’s a freshness to the storytelling (less happenstance and more from Goon’s perspective) and Blyton structures the plot more tightly around the mystery and its investigation. One of the better Five Find-Outers books.
April 6, 2025
It was nice to discover an Enid book at our local free library.
I like her Famous Five series though; I wasn't a fan of the class discrimination here. Plus, the 5 find-outers weren't given equal exposure; I couldn't differentiate them too.
I like her Famous Five series though; I wasn't a fan of the class discrimination here. Plus, the 5 find-outers weren't given equal exposure; I couldn't differentiate them too.
June 18, 2025
Süß, nostalgisch und kurzweilig, so wie alle Bücher der Geheimnis-Reihe. Ein Stück Kindheit für mich, weshalb ich es sehr genossen habe, diese erneut zu lesen. Sehr zu empfehlen für Kinder, welche Lesen bereits genießen oder daran geführt werden sollen.
November 13, 2025
The mystery of strange messages is a delightful mystery suitable for readers the mystery keep the young readers guessing and characters remain as lovable ever. Compared to earlier books this one has slightly darker edge due to inclusion of an old crime, which adds more depth.
May 18, 2019
Amazing
February 1, 2020
It's lacked in the mystery part or maybe I've just grown up.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews