William Arden

Reviewed on 3rd August 2024

The 22nd adventure for the Three Investigators sees them set to unravel a series of riddles left in a contested will.

It’s one that I remember better than others from my childhood, probably due to the distinctly British flavour of the riddles, which gave me something of an advantage over the characters for once.

I really enjoyed revisiting it, and seeing such a well put-together mystery despite the intended audience of children. The plot likely wouldn’t work today with the availability of the internet, but the 1970s setting doesn’t to me feel unimaginably long ago, though might to a younger audience.

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Reviewed on 3rd September 2023

Things get creepy and dangerous again for the Three Investigators as they hunt for actual pirate treasure.

It’s a fairly run of the mill T3I novel, with a mystery happening upon them, and lots of going places to hunt clues. There’s perhaps a bit more structure set up than sometimes, which makes it feel a little formulaic.

Not bad, but not their best outing either.

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Reviewed on 29th July 2023

This classic 3 Investigators mystery sees the friends clearing out the possessions of a deceased artist, then hired to track them back down.

It’s incredibly readable for a kids book from the early 1970s, and the mystery really holds up. It certainly feels like a lot more effort went into crafting this series than into Hardy Boys adventures.

It’s full of the quirky elements that make this series fun, a bunch of the series regular elements, and some proper puzzles which you can try to solve along with the team.

A solid entry and one that really represents the series well.

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Reviewed on 19th May 2019

One of the classic Three Investigators stories that I remember well from reading as a child. The team set out to locate five stuffed cats, after one is stolen from them at a travelling fair.

It contains all the elements that make up the best of this series. A guest child that needs help, a bunch of creepy adults with their own agendas, and a mystery that’s just scary enough.

It’s a great tale, if a little dated now, and a thrilling adventure for the characters.

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Reviewed on 23rd September 2017

The twelfth adventure of the Three Investigators, and the second by William Arden, finds the trip well into their stride and tells a tale in what I remember as the classic style of the series. When two of the boys accidentally hear a call for help and intercept a coded message, they're drawn into a complex and fascinating investigation.

While it must be said that some of the narrative hasn't aged well and some of the choice of language would be unlikely to be published today, the mystery itself is strong, the peril real, and the adventure interesting.

I felt is was a good quick read and am happy I decided to revisit the series.

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Reviewed on 21st August 2015

The Mystery of the Moaning Cave sees the Three Investigators travel out to the desert to stay with a friend of one of their fathers. They encounter an unusual cave which makes strange noises in a way that doesn't appear random, and set out to investigate.

The story follows the typically slightly creepy bent of the series, going places that in some cases I recall being creeped out by when I originally read them as a child. There's a lot that goes on which would be slightly uncomfortable from a modern health and safety viewpoint, but the book does well to represent the real peril that the hats era often find themselves in.

This is actually one of the more plausible plots for the series and this really helps to engross the reader and suck them into the plot. There are a few twists that don't seem to fit properly, some convenient coincidences and the oft played but scarcely plausible call to the local police chief.

Overall a good entry in the series and one that encourages me to continue re-reading the series.

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