Nancy Drew -- The Secret of Shadow Ranch
Ages: 10 and up

With the way that girls love horses there had to be a Nancy Drew mystery involving horses. ButThe Secret of Shadow Ranch feels more like Nancy at a horse camp instead of on a case. I mean what terrible things can happen on a sunny farm with horses, chickens and a vegetable garden? The setting is too homey to feel scary. Nevertheless, there is a mystery. A ghost horse makes it appearances and misfortunes follow. Legend couples the horse with a tragic love story and a treasure. In the course of her investigation Nancy meets Dave Gregory - good looking enough to be the romantic interest; Tex Britten - the head wrangler, loves his horses and no one else; Shorty Thurmond - the gossipy cook who is responsible for most of the chores that Nancy has to do.

The chores/puzzles are all related to the sites in the game. Somehow gathering eggs, picking ripe veggies and mending baskets doesn't seem to be appropriate for a detective. There are lots of things to do relating to horses. You have prove youe knowledge of horses before Tex will let you ride. I was hoping that the riding part would be like the Barbie games where you get a feeling of cantering. Instead when you ride from one place to another you get on the horse, click where you want to go, there is a short scene behind the horse and you dismount when you arrive at your destination. I was disappointed. The larger size screen image is a good development and if you are a Nancy Drew fan as I am, you will play the game and wait for the next one.

If you need a guide as I eventually do, you can purchase one online by going to http://w ww.nancydrewgames.com $9.99

Reviewed by: Editor - 09/04