Mistaken identities? Beautiful ghosts
in the night? Stolen lilac trees? It must be time
for the latest episode
of the Nancy Drew Review with fred flare’s Lulu and
Keith.
Keith: Well, readers, we have some good news and some bad news… The
bad news
is that
The Mystery at Lilac Inn has a lot of similarities
to The Bungalow Mystery that
we reviewed last month.
Lulu: More orphaned girls and more stolen jewels…
K: Exactly. The book even begins the same, with Nancy and Helen thrown overboard
from their canoe.
L: What’s the good news?
K: The good news is that – as I recall – we LOVED that last one!
L: I really loved this one, too! There were definite similarities but this
episode was
even more action-packed than the last one, if you can believe
that. It all starts
when Nancy and Helen are on their way to visit their
friend Emily Willoughby at
Lilac Inn to talk over her wedding plans. They’re
to be bridesmaids.
K: There’s no time to talk about the wedding, though, because it soon
becomes
clear that someone is trying to sabotage the Inn, recently purchased
by Emily and
her fiancé. I love how Emily says that a mysterious enemy
is trying to "jinx" it.
L. That’s cute.
K: Yeah, totally. Meanwhile, back at River Heights, a mysterious woman is
posing
as Nancy Drew, complete with her stolen charge card. The manager of
Nancy’s
favorite store even yells at her, "I don’t know
what your game is, Miss Drew. But
unless you have a twin, you owe Burk’s
Department Store for merchandise worth
two thousand dollars!"
L: I loved that. This type of situation actually becomes a cherished Nancy
Drew
theme. We will see many more doubles, twins, impersonators and mistaken
identities in the episodes to follow.
K: And let’s not forget disguises! I love Nancy’s fashion fantasies…
L: Yes, Nancy really is a master of masquerade in this episode. The best
one is when
she cooks up this scheme to catch the ghostly figure of Lilac
Inn by dressing up just
like her. She wears a white evening dress, a black
wig and a transparent white scarf.
K: And then wires pocket-size flashlights to the cuffs of her gown for a
glowing
effect. It’s brilliant!
L: Nancy’s schemes don’t always work out, though. Doesn’t
she get caught by the
security guard or something?
K: Yes, but the scheme wasn’t a total loss because Nancy finds out
that the ghost is
actually her impersonator.
L: Nancy also does some impersonating of her own in this episode.
K: You must mean her "acting" debut… Later in the book Nancy
pretends she’s an
actress named Dru Gruen.
L: And Helen pretends she’s a dancer named Helga Marsh. Where do they
come up
with these names?!
K: Yet another cherished Nancy Drew theme: the proper name. I’ve noticed
as the
stories continue the cast of characters in each episode seems to grow
and grow.
This one in particular is packed with peeps! And, in typical Nancy
Drew fashion, we
come to know their first and last names.
L: Here’s a brief list: There’s the friend of the fiancé,
John McBride, who’s actually a
secret agent. Police Chief McGinnis,
who has tremendous respect for Nancy. Maud
Potter, the social director. She’s
after Carson Drew! The gardener, Gil Gary. The
geeky waitress, Jean Holmes.
Another waitress, Mary Mason, whose real name is
Dotty Mae. The guard, Carl
Bard. John Daly, the previous owner of the Inn, who
gives a wonderful horticultural
lesson on lilacs. Lillie Merriweather, the aging actress.
And, Nancy’s
evil nemesis, Gay Moreau. She is trouble!
K: Nancy really gives it to her at the end, though. She trips her and Gay
falls flat on
her face. "That’s one score evened," Nancy
said firmly. You go, girl!
L: I can’t wait to see Nancy kick butt in
The
Secret of Shadow Ranch!
Tune in
next month!
08/2002
