'The Three Investigators' Return in 60th Anniversary Editions of Robert Arthur's Classic YA Mystery Series
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In the first adventure of Robert Arthur’s classic mystery series, it's 1964 in the town of Rocky Beach, California. Working out of their newly established Headquarters – an old trailer hidden behind carefully arranged junk in the Jones Salvage Yard – and driven around southern California in a gold-plated vintage Rolls Royce they've won the use of in a contest, Jupiter Jones, Pete Crenshaw, and Bob Andrews decide to get publicity for their fledgling detective firm by finding a real haunted house for the renowned film director Reginald Clarke.
But although the highly rational Jupiter starts with the belief that there is no such thing as a ghost, a spook, a phantom, or a spirit, Terror Castle – the old mansion supposedly troubled by the ghost of the late Stephen Terrill, the silent horror film star called the Man with a Million Faces – may prove him wrong!
By turns exciting, spine-tingling, and humorous, The Secret of Terror Castle promises to please not only the existing fan base of The Three Investigators series but a whole new generation of readers who will find in its pages three very different boys whose imagination, courage, and intelligence can remind us that curiosity, perseverance, and rational inquiry are just as vital as friendship and cooperation.
At the end of each Three Investigators book published by Hollow Tree Press are notes written by Robert Arthur's daughter and son-in-law, exploring three subjects connected to the story – in this case, Silent Movies, Salvage Yards, and Rolls Royces – and young readers may want to use the notes as guidelines for further investigation. After all, the motto of The Three Investigators is "We Investigate Anything," and their trademark is “???” – three question marks, taken together.
In the second adventure of Robert Arthur’s classic mystery series, Jupiter, Pete and Bob are in search of a missing parrot. The case soon gets complicated as they discover that not one but six talking parrots and a mynah bird have disappeared.
With the help of their new friend Carlos, the Three Investigators figure out that each of the birds has been taught to recite part of a complex puzzle, that, when taken together, could lead the boys to a great painting. But as their search takes them to a spooky graveyard, they're not the only ones hot on the trail!
In the third adventure of Robert Arthur’s classic mystery series, Jupiter, Pete, and Bob encounter Ra-Orkon, the mummy of an Egyptian prince dead for three thousand years. But sometimes the dead don't rest easily, and an Abyssinian cat named Sphinx suggests that more is at stake than at first appears.
As it turns out, Ra-Orkon has things to say, and the Three Investigators, along with their new friend Hamid - the son of a Libyan rug merchant - have to answer some puzzling questions, posed by the notable archaeologist Professor Yarborough. How can a mummy speak? What is he trying to say? And can the boys discover his secret before they and others fall victim to the mummy's ghastly curse?
In the fourth adventure of Robert Arthur’s classic mystery series, the ghost of a California sea captain who married a Chinese princess leads Jupiter, Pete, and Bob from an open coffin in southern California to a vineyard north of San Francisco.
There the Three Investigators meet Chang Green, the sea captain's great-grandson, who helps them solve a devilish case that involves a donkey's skull, a kidnapping, the mysterious and priceless Ghost Pearls - and the promise of eternal life!
In the fifth adventure of Robert Arthur’s classic mystery series, Jupiter, Pete, and Bob are in hot pursuit of a magnificent gold belt, studded with jewels, which once belonged to an ancient line of Japanese emperors.
When it is stolen from under their noses at the Peterson Museum, the Three Investigators are determined to find it - partly to help Taro Togati, a Japanese boy whose father will be disgraced if they don't. Soon they're tangling with garden gnomes, gymnasts, and a gang of ruthless criminals!
In the sixth adventure of Robert Arthur’s classic mystery series, the Three Investigators travel to southern Florida, where the ghost of a young girl on a haunted carousel threatens a film crew shooting on an island off the coast.
There they meet a Greek boy, Christos Markos, who's an expert deep-sea diver. In the face of sudden danger, ugly rumors, and continuing mysterious events, can Jupiter, Pete, and Bob save Chris's reputation, unravel the mystery of the young girl's ghost, and rescue the movie from disaster?
As the seventh adventure of Robert Arthur’s classic mystery series begins, thirteen plaster busts arrive at the Jones Salvage Yard. Soon, Jupiter begins to suspect they are more than they appear, and after some of them are sold, Pete, Bob, and Jupiter have to track them down and decipher a riddle to help their new British friend August August claim his extraordinary inheritance.
But several dangerous men are also on the trail of the Fiery Eye. Which one of them will get there first - or will the Three Investigators trump them all?
The eighth adventure of Robert Arthur’s classic mystery series takes the Three Investigators to the fictional European country of Varania. Their new friend, Prince Djaro, cannot ascend the throne without the historic royal emblem - a silver spider on a silver chain.
But it's been stolen by Djaro's enemies! Posing as tourists, but actually secret agents, Jupiter, Pete, and Bob must find the spider to save the monarchy and see their friend crowned.
Why would someone want a clock that screams? In the ninth adventure of Robert Arthur’s classic mystery series, the Three Investigators have to find out. The answer could help Jupiter, Pete, and Bob free a man who's been wrongfully imprisoned - and time is running out!
Who was the mysterious A. Clock? What does the trail of clues he left behind him mean? And how will a book cipher and a room full of clocks lead to the twisted truth behind this complex and exciting case?
At the beginning of Robert Arthur's tenth and final novel in his classic mystery series, Jupiter Jones buys an old steamer trunk at an auction. The trunk originally belonged to a magician who has gone missing and contains a skull named Socrates, which is reputed to talk.
But the boys soon discover that others want the trunk, too - including Three-Finger Munger, Maximilian the Mystic, and a mysterious woman named Zelda. Does the trunk hold the clue to the Great Gulliver and the money that has gone missing? What does Socrates have to say about that?
Great news -- thanks for posting this. I gave up on trying to find the originals at decent prices.
ReplyDeleteI loved this series when I was a kid. Discovered the original 1960s editions in my elementary school library and later collected the 1970s editions with those great Stephen Marchesi covers.
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