Sunday 18 March 2018

Zorro Reviews The Charmed Bracelet (Nancy Drew Graphic Novels: Girl Detective #7)

https://www.amazon.com/Charmed-Bracelet-Nancy-Graphic-Novels/dp/159707036X?tag=dorishay-20
Title: The Charmed Bracelet (Nancy Drew Graphic Novels: Girl Detective #7)
Author: Stefan Petrucha
Illustrator: Vaughn Ross
Genre: Action Adventure / Female Sleuth / Graphic Novel
Status: Read
Cats?: Zero

Zorro Says:

Last year KitKat inspired me to read a Hardy Boys mystery for the first time. When The Charmed Bracelet showed up on the Mystery Cats' desk, I swiped it too. (Sorry, KitKat. You can read it next.)

Why did Zorro, your action/adventure cat, want to read a Nancy Drew mystery? Easy answer. Just flip through this graphic novel and the first thing you'll notice is all the car chases and squirming around in air ducts. Nancy Drew is a total ninja in this graphic novel. Early on, she saves her boyfriend from being struck down by a murderous motorcycle. Okay, the motorcycle itself wasn't murderous. The guy riding it was. But wouldn't that be cool if the motorcycle was a sentient being intent upon Ned's ultimate demise?

Maybe I should be writing Nancy Drew graphic novels!

As you might have guessed by my description, the Nancy Drew in this graphic novel is a contemporary version of the character. She's a kick-ass super-heroine, for the most part.

Bess and George are no delicate doilies either. While Bess is interpreted as a bit of a femme fatale, George is her usual tomboy (KitKat's type, I'd venture to guess) and self-proclaimed "Girl Computer Whiz."

There are two mysteries to be solved in The Charmed Bracelet. One involves a stolen computer chip. The other is more personal: Nancy's boyfriend Ned is being framed for crimes he didn't commit.

Despite the dual mysteries, The Charmed Bracelet is a quick read. Maybe too quick? I'm not a big reader of graphic novels, so I'll be the first to admit I'm not overly familiar with how the pacing usually works in this style of book. I'll pass it along to KitKat, but I don't think she's a huge reader of graphic novels either, so the Mystery Cats probably can't provide an expert opinion. But, heck, we never claimed to be experts! We're just cats who like mysteries. And, as a cat who likes actiony thrillery tales, I thought it was a neat little read, but with an emphasis on "little." This glossy paperback has a total of 112 pages, and a whopping 24 of those pages are bonus materials and ads for other books! 

If you're a Nancy Drew aficionado, you'll surely want to investigate this graphic take on the franchise.