The Most Unhinged Book I've Ever Read: A Review of Nancy Drew Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland by Carolyn Keene

Hello, Book Nerds! Welcome back to Reading Has Ruined My Life or welcome if you are new. As always, my name is Hannah and I am your captain on this journey into my bookcases.

I have be scouring used book stores recently. I have been on a mission to find the later entries in this iconic book series. Today, I’m talking about the one and only Nancy Drew because I finally found an insane entry from the early 2000’s.

In the 90’s and 2000’s, the Nancy Drew series was on a sharp decline; I would say in both quality and popularity. In order to save this beloved series, drastic measures were taken. Namely just writing the most unhinged things that came to mind. As you’ll see with today’s book, that didn’t work out. It really didn’t work out because this book killed the Nancy Drew series.

Please welcome to the stage Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland by Carolyn Keene!

The River Heights Winter Carnival has arrived once again. Nancy, Ned, Bess, and George have been hired to work it. But this year’s carnival will be anything but pleasant. Someone has been damaging the festival’s art, creating safety hazards which cause terrible injuries, someone has been leaving ominous warnings, and worst of all, two wolves have gone missing from the nearby wolf sanctuary WildWolf.

With all these strange goings on, the winter carnival seems cursed. So cursed that some, namely carnival chairman Poodles McNulty, begin saying there’s a werewolf on the loose and is causing the problems; because that makes perfect sense. It’s up to Nancy Drew to figure out who wants the carnival ruined and why. It’s also up to Nancy to find those two missing wolves and see them safely returned to WildWolf. Maybe the cases are linked? Only Nancy can discover the truth.  

Yeah…I can see why the original series died with Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland. Objectively this is not a good book. It is poorly written. But it is also so incredibly camp and I had so much fun reading it. Is Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland so bad it’s good? Maybe…? Let’s discuss.

If you look up "camp" in a dictionary, you'll see a picture of Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland.

First of all, the pacing of this book is straight up terrible. The story moves far too fast. Something is happening on every page that it’s on the verge of being too much. Not enough time is given for readers to digest big moments. For instance, Nancy and Bess get locked in a barn right at the end of chapter two. Within two pages the girls manage to escape. Listen, I know this is Nancy Drew. The stakes are low, Nancy and friends are never in immediate danger nor will they ever die, but the incidents and solutions occur with pages of each other; that is where the issue lies. The characters could struggle some more. The tension could be drawn out.

Now I don’t remember the pacing in the original 56 Nancy Drew books. I know it was fast. The plot had to be wrapped up in 25 chapters and these are children’s books after all. But I do not remember the pacing be as fast as it is in Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland. The pacing is just bad.

What’s also bad is the fact I don’t know who the villain is. Let me explain. I know who the culprit is, I read the whole book, but I don’t know exactly when they were introduced. I don’t know who they are or what their deal is, and at this point I’m too afraid to ask; they kinda just appeared. I should note, I don’t believe this is actually an issue with the book, I think this is more a me issue and I simply didn’t pay enough attention during my late night reading sessions.

Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland is absolutely unhinged and I love it. It may sound like I’m shitting on this read, cause I definitely am, but I had the best time reading this book. I had no idea where the plot was going because big plot points feel random. Part of me believes the ghost writer spun a wheel of outlandish things that could happen and that is how they came up with parts of the plot.

10-out-of-10

Nothing beats the joy of reading a beloved series from your childhood. While I’ve only ever read the original 56 Nancy Drew books, I now have a special place in my heart for the later entries to the series. If they are as unhinged as Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland then I need to read them all. I will be on the lookout for more entries from the 90’s and early 2000’s. I need to know what insanity Nancy and friends get up to. As for the question of is Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland so bad it’s good? I think I have to say that yes, this book is so bad, so campy, that it’s good.

With that, I shall bid you all adieu. Thank you for joining me today, Book Nerds. I hope you had a fun trip down memory lane with Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland. I am on the hunt for more Nancy Drew titles from this era of the series. Now I will see you all again next week with another new review. If you can’t wait that long, you can always check out Reading Has Ruined My Life over on Instagram (@ReadingHasRuinedMyLife). I post there almost daily so come back often to revel in literary goodness. You can also follow the blog on Twitter and BlueSky (@RHRMLBlog). If you’d like something not related to books then I highly suggest checking out my podcast Nothing to See Hear. The show stars me and two of my dearest friends as we talk about everything and anything. You want to hear about another story that’s super unhinged? I led an episode on the insanity that is Rebecca the musical. You can currently find the show on Spotify and YouTube.

Until next time, stay safe, wash your hands, and read some good books for me. 

See y'all then, bye!