Rating: 
Summary: Bland, lacks the spark of the original series
Review: Without A Trace is an inauspicious beginning to the "All New Girl Detective" series. Firstly and most importantly, the problem is Nancy herself. In the original series, she was feisty, intelligent, loyal, rich, fashionable, and thoughtful. I give these people credit for trying to perserve these qualities (as other spin-off series have not) but it didn't work. In trying to make Nancy more human, they've lost her appeal. She used to be every girl's dream for growing up. Now she's just another fictitious detective, not as smart as most.The first-person narrative is dull reading, and makes Nancy sound dull-witted. The people tried to make her human through the first-person and by making her a "casual" dresser, slightly klutzy forgetful. A beginning reader could probably understand most of the book, including the two simple mysteries. The first-person does distinguish the series from "Nancy Drew Files" and "Nancy Drew On Campus," but it is just boring. The plot tension is lame, too. The only things at stake in the novel are neighborly relations over a couple of vandalized vegetables and a new neighbor's loss of a valuable Faberge egg. The solutions to both mysteries are gimmicky and lacking in the genius of the originals. Bess, George, and Ned have lost their personalities too. Bess is a girly girl--and then, in a random, vain stab at avoiding stereotype, she is also an auto mechanic. George is an internet junkie, in an attempt to modernize the characters, and Ned is a warmhearted, bland doormat with no romantic tension at all. However, the book had a few good points: Nancy is still helpful and polite, volunteering at the animal shelter on the weekends and now driving a hybrid car. The writers have stayed closer to the Nancy we love than the "Nancy Drew On Campus" series, which turned her into a brat. There are a few amusing moments. The book is wholesome, easy to understand, and may be entertaining for younger readers. However, older readers will realize that Nancy has lost her class and her sparkle. Real Nancy fans are better off rereading original series.
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