The Disappearing Floor

Tenants Harbor - 2022 #2 - Another gripper from the teenage sleuths...yet another creepy mansion on the shore of Bayport, with white ghosts, smoke bombs, amethyst stashes, boat sabotage, an ugly band of jewel thieves, and plenty of good food from Aunt Gertrude! Having just struggled to finish a spy thriller lacking in gravitas that took over 6 months to finish, this was a delight! I love these Hardy Boy mysteries.....simple.....simply elegant actually.....thank you, Franklin W. Dixon, whoever the hell you were!

Once again Frank and Joe Hardy take on a puzzling case when their famous detective father asks the boys to assist him in tracking down a notorious jewel thief and his accomplices. The trail leads to the outskirts of the Hardys' hometown and to a weirdly guarded mansion on the old Perth estate. With their pal Chet Morton, the brothers must tackle the mystery of the mansion heir's sudden death. A disappearing floor, a huge, savage-looking hound, a galloping ghost, and a college professor's startling invention are just a few of the strange elements that complicate the boys' efforts to solve both mysteries.

Somehow, after all these years, this single Hardy Boys book has remained in my collection, following me from place to place, spending years in storage, and somehow ending up on a shelf in my storage room. In its honor, and in honor of the Hardy Boys themselves, whose adventures probably were more responsible than anything else for my lifelong love of reading, I give it four stars! This is one of the original editions--where there car is a jalopy with a rumble seat and their boat, the Sleuth, is made of wood!

Not the best writing, these book series, but somehow I love them all the same. There is something comforting and yet exciting in the Hardy's adventures. This particular one had plenty of fun gadgets and a fairly neatly tied up storyline. The kids and I have fun with each of these books and will continue through the series.

The changes between old and new are again numerous. I think my favorite is a freeze gun vs a sleep gun. The concept of super heroes and mysterious weapons were huge in the 40s between the emergence of superman and his villains and the war against the Nazi's and the fight for power.

I absolutely loved Nancy Drew growing up. This was a series I latched on to for dear life and never let go. So after my obsession with Nancy Drew started to dwindle (mostly because I had read all the ones I could get my hands on), I moved on to The Hardy Boys because that was the natural next step, duh. Love the Hardy Boys (though they weren't quite as amazing and Nancy Drew and her friends).

Many changes between OT and RT. Especially in this book having a sleep ray vs ba freeze gun. The floor causing the death of the previous owner always strikes me as sad as well as the kidnapping of the professor in this version vs taking advantage of a man in the OT.