Trixie Belden #3 The Gatehouse Mystery by Julie Campbell

 

The Wheeler's large property includes an old abandoned Gatehouse that the girls and Bobby decide to explore.

Bobby rushes in the doorway before he can be stopped. He trips and lands on a sharp piece of glass that turns out to be a diamond.  It's not even buried, it was just lying non the surface of the dirt floor.

Naturally Trixie speculates that jewel thieves dropped it here, and will be back for it.  She wants to hold onto the diamond till they can figure out who the thieves are, and why they were here.  Honey reluctantly agrees and says she has a safe place for it.

Suddenly both girls hear a rustling in the shrubbery outside the Gatehouse and as they run out to see who has been listening, the person gets away.

Trixie's brothers are back from camp, and they're all in for trying to solve the mystery as well, and capture the thieves.  This is the first time we meet smart aleck Mart and cool headed Brian.  They're perfect additions to the group we know of Trixie, Honey and Jim.  Everyone brings something useful to the solving of mysteries.

Two suspicious new hires are watched carefully in case they're the thieves.  All possible clues are examined.  A club is formed and the Gatehouse is eyed as a possible club house.

I mostly enjoyed the introduction of the brothers to the group, and how easily everyone got along right away.  The mystery of the jewel thieves was intriguing though one of the thieves gave himself away pretty quickly.

Review: Trixie Belden and The Red Trailer Mystery by Julie Campbell

 

Picking up almost exactly where Secret of the Mansion left off, Trixie, Honey and the governess Miss Trask leave in a trailer called the Silver Swan to find Jim before he leaves the area forever.

They know Jim will be trying to get work at a summer camp relatively nearby.  He's had a head start, but they think they can catch up, stopping at campgrounds along the way.

At their first campground, they're parked next to a luxurious, large red trailer for the night.  It's called the Robin.  Trixie and Honey are certain a wealthy family must own it. They long to get a peek inside.

When they see the owners, however, they see a family in worn clothing looking completely dispirited. A couple with several children emerge briefly, long enough for the girls to see the trailer is definitely luxurious, but it doesn't fit this family at all.

As Trixie, Honey and Miss Trask travel looking for Jim, they hear radio alerts saying thieves are stealing and hijacking trailers, and everyone should be wary of leaving their keys in their cars, and their trailers unattended.

They wonder if the red trailer has been stolen, but they can't see the sad family as part of a gang.

It's a book that makes you want to hit the road in your trailer (Scamp), solving mysteries, eating cake and pie baked by a kind farmer's wife, and fresh fruit and vegetables from road side stands. 

There's something about this series that's like a big hug for the reader.

 

 

Review: Trixie Belden #1: The Secret of the Mansion

 

It's going to be a long boring summer for Trixie.  Her brothers are away at camp as counselors, and she's stuck at home doing chores and babysitting her little brother Bobby.

She doesn't see her school friends in the summer time and it's lonely at Crabapple Farm.  As she's complaining to her mother about these things, she spots a moving van in the driveway of the long empty mansion across the street. 

Off she goes, Bobby in tow, to meet the new owners. There's no shyness in Trixie, just curiosity and an inborn friendliness. 

To her surprise, there's a girl her age moving in. Honey Wheeler seems way too cautious, timid and serious to Trixie.

Before you know it though, Trixie is on one of Honey's family horses, a dream of hers, and they're off exploring.  The neighbor who lives in a rundown mansion next to Honey's place is in the hospital and the house is empty right now, Trixie knows, so over they go to investigate the house.  Not content with peeking in the windows, Trixie wants to go inside "to make sure everything is locked up".

She's not usually a breaking and entering person, but Honey insists she saw a face in the window earlier in the day. This makes it Trixie's "duty" as a good neighbor to make sure the house is secure.

Inside, it's more than run down.  The house is piled in every room with trash and old papers.  The upstairs part of the house has been blocked off by the owner.

Once she's in, Trixie has to look around and tells Honey it's rumored the old man who lives here has a fortune hidden in the house. They should look for it while they're here!

Trixie has no fear.  She heads right for trouble and is fiercely loyal.  She also speaks her mind, saying things she shouldn't before she can stop herself.  

Having Honey as a friend, particularly during this boring summer is a dream. She gets to learn horseback riding, and canoeing.  Her new friend knows nothing of the sort of life Trixie leads, but she quickly joins Trixie in her chores, including working in the garden and doing dishes.

The two are a natural team, finding out the secrets of the tumbledown old house, and helping a new friend escape a terrible life.

I enjoyed it as much as I did when I first read it long ago. When I finished, I reached for the next book,  The Red Trailer Mystery to see what happened next.