Rate the Last Titles from Major Series

[sixret]

Split from 'What Enid Blyton book are you reading right NOW!'


I list all the last two titles in the main mystery/adventure series below.

1) Five Have A Mystery To Solve
2) Five Are Together Again
3) Look Out Secret Seven
4) Fun For The Secret Seven
5) The Circus Of Adventure
6) The River Of Adventure
7) The Mystery Of The Strange Messages
8 ) The Mystery Of Banshee Towers
9) The Rat-A-Tat Mystery
10) The Ragamuffin Mystery
11) The Secret Of Killimooin
12) The Secret Of Moon Castle

Below is my list of all 12 starting from the most enjoyable(plot, story telling etc). This is my personal opinion and feeling attached to each title when I read them.

The first eight still have redeemable aspects to them. Some titles are stronger entries in their respective series.

1) The River Of Adventure (strong entry)
2) The Secret Of Killimooin (strong entry)
3) The Mystery Of The Strange Messages (strong entry)
4) The Secret Of Moon Castle (strong entry even though it is the last title in Secret series)
5) The Rat-A-Tat Mystery (mediocre entry but still enjoyable)
6) The Circus Of Adventure (mediocre entry but highly enjoyable)
7) Look Out Secret Seven (mediocre entry but still enjoyable)
8 ) The Ragamuffin Mystery (mediocre entry but enjoyable)

Noticeably the weakest/weaker title(s) in their respective series:

9) The Mystery Of Banshee Towers
10) Fun for The Secret Seven
11) Five Have A Mystery To Solve
12) Five Are Together Again

[sixret]

I would love to see your list for these 12 titles to see and compare which titles are in bottom four.

[Anita Bensoussane]

An interesting exercise, Sixret. My order and ratings are similar to yours in some respects, though not identical:

The first nine - some are very strong entries and the others are worth a read:

1) The River of Adventure (very strong entry)
2) The Mystery of the Strange Messages (very strong entry)
3) The Secret of Killimooin (strong entry)
4) The Secret of Moon Castle (fairly strong entry)
5) The Circus of Adventure (mediocre entry but highly enjoyable)
6) The Rat-a-Tat Mystery (mediocre entry but still enjoyable)
7) The Ragamuffin Mystery (mediocre entry but still enjoyable)
8 ) The Mystery of Banshee Towers (very mediocre entry but has some enjoyable elements)
9) Look Out Secret Seven (very mediocre entry but has some enjoyable elements)

Noticeably the weakest/weaker title(s) in their respective series:

10) Five Are Together Again
11) Five Have a Mystery to Solve
12) Fun for the Secret Seven

[Lucky Star]

I shall have to work out my own list but The Circus of Adventure is mediocre???? Really? It's one of the weaker Adventure series entries but it's still a fabulous book.

[timv]

I would rate the final books in the major series as follows, with strongest first:
1. Circus of Adventure ( v strong - though it has always been a favourite anyway as it was the first of the series I
read).
2. Strange Messages (v strong, among the best of series)
3. Secret of Killimooin ( strong)
4. Rat-a-Tat (strong)
5. River of Adventure (some strong moments and good atmosphere).
6. Moon Castle (some good elements, though some are a bit formulaic eg Guy looking through a portrait's
eyeholes).
7. Ragamuffin (some amusing moments though the villains are weak).
8.Banshee Towers (plot-holes, eg the mistake in painting, but some amusing moments).
9.Five Have A Mystery To Solve (the strong Brownsea/ Studland location makes up for the holes in plot).
10. Look Out Secret Seven (amusing moments but weak plot).
11. Five Are Together Again (repeat of the Rilloby Fair plot and a lot of series cliches).

Notably I think Enid still has some good moments even in Together Again, eg George going off on her own to the island and dealing with Mr Wooh. The holes in the plots here and in Banshee Towers suggest that as her powers declined thinking up new ideas was more difficult than visualizing how her characters would interact.

[db105]

This is an interesting topic.

I have only read 3 of those From best to worst:

1) The Circus Of Adventure
2) Five Have A Mystery To Solve
3) Five Are Together Again

I think it's interesting to see the correlation between the publication date and how good or bad the book is.

sixret's list:

1) The River Of Adventure (strong entry) --> 1955
2) The Secret Of Killimooin (strong entry) --> 1943
3) The Mystery Of The Strange Messages (strong entry) --> 1957
4) The Secret Of Moon Castle (strong entry even though it is the last title in Secret series) --> 1953
5) The Rat-A-Tat Mystery (mediocre entry but still enjoyable) --> 1956
6) The Circus Of Adventure (mediocre entry but highly enjoyable) --> 1952
7) Look Out Secret Seven (mediocre entry but still enjoyable) --> 1962
8 ) The Ragamuffin Mystery (mediocre entry but enjoyable) --> 1959
Noticeably the weakest/weaker title(s) in their respective series:
9) The Mystery Of Banshee Towers --> 1961
10) Fun for The Secret Seven --> 1963
11) Five Have A Mystery To Solve --> 1962
12) Five Are Together Again --> 1962

Anita's list:

1) The River of Adventure (very strong entry) --> 1955
2) The Mystery of the Strange Messages (very strong entry) --> 1957
3) The Secret of Killimooin (strong entry) --> 1943
4) The Secret of Moon Castle (fairly strong entry) --> 1953
5) The Circus of Adventure (mediocre entry but highly enjoyable) --> 1952
6) The Rat-a-Tat Mystery (mediocre entry but still enjoyable) --> 1956
7) The Ragamuffin Mystery (mediocre entry but still enjoyable) --> 1959
8 ) The Mystery of Banshee Towers (very mediocre entry but has some enjoyable elements) --> 1961
9) Look Out Secret Seven (very mediocre entry but has some enjoyable elements) --> 1962
Noticeably the weakest/weaker title(s) in their respective series:
10) Five Are Together Again --> 1962
11) Five Have a Mystery to Solve --> 1962
12) Fun for the Secret Seven --> 1963

timv's list:

1. Circus of Adventure ( v strong - though it has always been a favourite anyway as it was the first of the series I
read). --> 1952
2. Strange Messages (v strong, among the best of series) --> 1957
3. Secret of Killimooin ( strong) --> 1943
4. Rat-a-Tat (strong) --> 1956
5. River of Adventure (some strong moments and good atmosphere). --> 1955
6. Moon Castle (some good elements, though some are a bit formulaic eg Guy looking through a portrait's
eyeholes). --> 1953
7. Ragamuffin (some amusing moments though the villains are weak). --> 1959
8.Banshee Towers (plot-holes, eg the mistake in painting, but some amusing moments). --> 1961
9.Five Have A Mystery To Solve (the strong Brownsea/ Studland location makes up for the holes in plot). --> 1962
10. Look Out Secret Seven (amusing moments but weak plot). --> 1962
11. Five Are Together Again (repeat of the Rilloby Fair plot and a lot of series cliches). --> 1962

It seems to me that from 1959 there's a noticeable decline, and by 1962 poor Enid was not able to create a consistent plot like she used to do, although those books still could have a few enjoyable elements.

[sixret]

Interesting observation, db105. There's another obvious weak title as far back as 1956 i.e. Five On A Secret Trail. I try to see if there is a pattern/trend of another weak titles in different series that were published in 1955/1956 but can't find any other weak titles. I wonder why Secret Trail is so weak like a sore thumb among other great/mediocre entries around that time.

[John Pickup]

Looking for a pattern of "weak" titles from the major series seems a bit pointless to me when it is a matter of opinion which of the books are weak. Many people will rate highly Secret Trail. Foe example, Anita has said she doesn't rate Circus Of Adventure but Rob and Lucky Star do. Therefore there is no pattern.

[sixret]

I agree. In case of Secret Trail, it could have been a one-off occurence. However, post-1959, Enid had consistently written weaker or mediocre at best, books even titles outside major series. I think db105’s observation is valid in some way.

[Rob Houghton]

Interesting exercise!

Here are my choices from strongest to weakest -

1) The Circus of Adventure (very strong entry - a sweeping 'epic' tale in my view!)
2) The Mystery of the Strange Messages (one of the strongest in the series)
3) The River of Adventure (extremely strong for the last in the series - the best 'last in the series' book!)
4) The Secret of Moon Castle (Very strong, though also very different to the other Secret books)
5) The Secret of Killimooin (interesting especially due to the idea of the Secret Forest and mysterious robbers)
6) The Ragamuffin Mystery (Stronger than Rat-A-Tat in my view, though not as good as earlier entries)
7) Five Have A Mystery To Solve (confused entry, but interesting for the real-life settings)
8 ) Look Out Secret Seven (rather mediocre and Enid finishes nearly all chapters by talking to the reader!)
9) The Rat-A-Tat Mystery (I enjoy the idea and the spookiness, but in the end find it dissatisfying)

10) Five Are Together Again (inconsistency in plot and descriptions such as Timmy not being allowed at George's school)
11) The Mystery Of Banshee Towers (no disguises, no real sense of fun, daft mystery)
12) Fun For The Secret Seven (a Secret Seven story with no plot whatsoever! By far the weakest in the series)

[Stephen]

I need to make myself more familiar with all these books to answer this properly. I quite liked 'Look Out, Secret Seven', and I'm convinced there is actually a good story buried in the otherwise flawed 'Five Have A Mystery To Solve'.

On the other hand, it's probably rather telling that I only read 'The Rat-a-Tat Mystery' a few months ago, and have already forgotten most of what happened!

[Anita Bensoussane]

I shall have to work out my own list but The Circus of Adventure is mediocre???? Really? It's one of the weaker Adventure series entries but it's still a fabulous book.

It's only mediocre (for me, at any rate) in relation to other books in the Adventure series. I'd put it at number 7, with only Mountain below it. It still has many enjoyable elements but it's competing with the likes of Valley and Sea which are (in my opinion) absolutely superb.

[Rob Houghton]

I do agree about Valley and Sea.

For me, though, Circus is third. Mountain is most definitely last on my list, although I did enjoy it more than I thought I would the last time I read it!

[Courtenay]

I haven't read the last books in all the major series, but I would definitely rate Circus above River. It's definitely in my top two or three — probably even slightly above Valley, which I still find a bit hard to swallow because of the improbability of the elderly couple surviving on their own in the caves for so many years. Not that that's the only (or indeed the most) improbable element in the series as a whole, but it did spoil the otherwise brilliant story just a little for me.

As for Circus, it's a while since I last read it and I can't remember exactly what I enjoyed so much about it — I only know I thought it was fantastic! But I do agree with John Pickup — one can't really find a definitive pattern of "weak" titles when everyone's tastes differ. I think the main thing we can agree on is that the few books that everyone seems to find weak — particularly the last title in the Famous Five and the Secret Seven (I haven't read either, so can't comment) — were written when Enid was going into a genuine decline, which turned out to be the onset of dementia, not just her running out of ideas.

[sixret]

She managed to write enjoyable books within the period of 1959-1963 like Secret Seven Fireworks(1959), Strange Ruby(1960), Demon’s Rocks(1961) apart from the titles discussed earlier and even Four Cousins(1962) is mildly amusing. I give her credit for that.