The Young Adventurers facts for kids

The Young Adventurers is a cool collection of mystery books by the famous author Enid Blyton. You might also know this series as The Riddle Series. It's all about exciting adventures and solving puzzles!

About the Series

These books weren't always a series. They started as separate stories or short tales written by Enid Blyton. Later, her daughter, Gillian Baverstock, updated them. She made sure the same characters appeared in all the books. This way, they could be published together as a series.

The series first came out in 1997 after Enid Blyton had passed away. It was called The Riddle Series by Collins. Then, in 2004, it was published again as The Young Adventurers Series by Award. The awesome pictures in The Young Adventurers books are by Patricia Ludlow.

Books in the Series

Here are the books in The Young Adventurers series:

• The Young Adventurers at Holiday House
• The Young Adventurers and the Mystery That Never Was
• The Young Adventurers and the Rajah's Ruby
• The Young Adventurers and the Hollow Tree
• The Young Adventurers and the Hidden Treasure
• The Young Adventurers and the Boy Next Door

And here are the books from The Riddle Series:

• The Riddle of Holiday House ISBN: 1-84135737-5
• The Riddle That Never Was ISBN: 0-00-694574-0
• The Riddle of The Rajah's Ruby ISBN: 0-00-694575-9
• The Riddle of The Hollow Tree ISBN: 0-00-694576-7
• The Riddle of The Hidden Treasure ISBN: 0-00-694577-5
• The Riddle of The Boy Next Door ISBN: 0-00-694578-3

Original Stories Behind the Adventures

The books in The Young Adventurers series are based on older stories Enid Blyton wrote. These original tales featured different characters. When the series was created, characters from these older books were combined. This made the new series have consistent main characters.

Here are some of the original books that inspired the series:

• Holiday House (1955)
• The Mystery that Never Was (1961)
• Adventure of the Strange Ruby (1960)
• Hollow Tree House (1945)
• The Treasure Hunters (1940)
• The Boy Next Door (1944)

Exciting Plots and Mysteries

In The Young Adventurers series, you'll follow siblings Nick and Katie. They team up with their friends to solve all sorts of mysteries. In one book, The Riddle of The Hollow Tree, you learn that Nick and Katie's parents have passed away. They go to live with their aunt and uncle. By the end of that story, they are adopted by their friend Laura's family. Laura then joins them on their adventures in the later books.

Book by Book Adventures

Here's a quick look at the mysteries Nick, Katie, and their friends solve:

The Holiday House Mystery

Nick and Katie are sent to Holiday House to get better after being sick. They see a strange light in an old, empty house nearby. Soon, they discover secret passages from a cave and even inside Holiday House itself! They also figure out who has been stealing things from the house.

The Mystery That Never Was

Nick and Katie's Uncle Bob, who is a private investigator, comes to stay. He's recovering from an illness and seems bored. So, Nick and his friend Mike decide to invent a mystery for him. They write a fake, coded note and set the scene on Skylark Hill. This hill has a burned-out house that used to belong to a prince. But then, the fake mystery starts to become real! Nick, Katie, Mike, Penny, Uncle Bob, and their dog Punch must solve it. They find out that smugglers are hiding in a tower.

The Rajah's Ruby Adventure

Nick and Katie read in the newspaper that their friends, David and Sophie, have inherited a special ruby. This ruby was stolen from an Indian temple a long time ago. People believe it brings bad luck. The ruby gets stolen again, and David and Sophie are kidnapped! Luckily, they manage to send a secret letter to Nick and Katie. The letter tells them where they are being held. Nick and Katie bravely cycle to Brinkin Towers to rescue their friends. They find a way to free David and Sophie. After a thrilling escape, they alert a policeman. The police catch the kidnappers and find the ruby. The children return the ruby to a bank and enjoy the rest of their holiday together.

The Hollow Tree Secret

Nick and Katie go to live with their strict Aunt Margaret and quiet Uncle Charlie. They become friends with their neighbor, Laura, and her dog, Russet. While exploring the woods, they find a hollow tree. They start to make it into their own secret hideout. When they get into trouble, and their uncle leaves, they are told they might have to go to a children's home. Instead, they run away to live in the hollow tree house! Laura helps them hide. One day, Laura gets lost in a storm while looking for them. She becomes very ill. Nick and Katie manage to get Russet back to Laura. In the end, Laura's family adopts Nick and Katie.

The Hidden Treasure Hunt

Nick, Katie, and Laura, along with their dog Russet, visit Laura's grandparents at Greyling Manor. It might be their last visit because the family needs to sell the manor. Their grandmother tells them a story about the Greyling family's lost treasure. It was given to an ancestor by an Indian prince 250 years ago. The children find an old cottage in the woods. They clear it out and light a fire, only to find the chimney is blocked. Inside the chimney is a box with a map to the treasure! A man named Mr. Potts tries to find the treasure too. The children trick him with a fake map. They follow the real map, find the treasure, and escape from Mr. Potts. They bring the treasure back to their grandparents, so the manor doesn't have to be sold.

The Boy Next Door Mystery

Nick, Katie, and Laura, with Russet, notice a boy has moved in next door. But when they ask about him, they are told no boy lives there! Still, they manage to talk to him. They learn his name is Kit Anthony Armstrong, and he's an American boy hiding from his uncle. They sneak out together sometimes. They even find an abandoned houseboat called The Black Swan and fix it up. They get into trouble for cleaning it. Kit hides on the houseboat at one point. It turns out this is where Kit's enemies were planning to hide him anyway. Finally, Kit is rescued and reunited with his father, who has also been looking for him.

Main Characters

• Nick Terry: Katie's brother. Nick is very responsible and always ready for an adventure. He is based on characters like Pat, Nicky Fraser, Peter, and Robin from Enid Blyton's original books.
• Katie Terry: Nick's sister. Like Nick, Katie loves adventures and solving mysteries. She is based on characters such as Mary, Winnie, Tessa, and Susan from the original stories.
• Punch: Nick and Katie's dog. He appears in The Mystery that Never Was.
• Mike: Penny's brother and Nick's best friend. He lives next door to the Terrys and is in The Riddle that Never Was. Mike is likely based on Ken from the original book The Mystery that Never Was.
• Penny: Mike's sister and Katie's best friend. She lives next door to the Terrys and appears in The Riddle that Never Was. Penny is likely based on the Penny from the original book The Mystery that Never Was.
• David: Sophie's twin brother. He appears in The Rajah's Ruby. David is named David Gatherhood in the original book Adventure of the Strange Ruby. He and Sophie meet Nick and Katie on holiday.
• Sophie: David's twin sister. She appears in The Rajah's Ruby. Sophie is named Faith Gatherhood in the original book Adventure of the Strange Ruby. She and David inherit a ruby and get kidnapped.
• Laura: Nick and Katie's friend. They meet her in The Hollow Tree. She later becomes their adoptive sister. Laura is based on characters like Angela, Jeffrey, and Lucy from Blyton's original works.
• Russet: Laura's dog. He is based on dogs like Barker, Rags, and Sandy from the original books.