A review by postitsandpens
The Secret of Shadow Ranch #5 by Carolyn Keene

3.0

Continuing on my Nancy Drew readalong with book five! Obviously with the Nancy Drew books, you know going in there are going to be some problematic elements due to their age. This installment had more than the previous four, however, and I found myself cringing, even though the mystery was sound enough. The use of the word "Indian" is what first jumped off the page, but we also have a sheriff who, for some reason, refers to men as "hombres" and the girls dressing up in Native American clothing to attend a town barbecue. Nancy is also annoyingly prepared for whatever life throws at her (including just having to have packed a compass, of all things), which is honestly just laughable at this point. Still, I had a fun time reading all about Nancy's adventures on a ranch in Arizona, and it was nice to see George and Bess make their debut on the pages. While not the best written books in the world by any means, it's fun to revisit some childhood favorites for nostalgia's sake each month.