The Arctic Star is on its maiden voyage to Alaska. Something that looks like a bloody body is floating in the ship’s pool. It turns out to be a mannequin, but the assistant cruise director, Becca Wright, has already had threatening emails. She asks her old friend Nancy Drew to come aboard. That is how the Nancy Drew Diaries began in February 2013, published by Aladdin, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, under the house name Carolyn Keene.
How Many Nancy Drew Diaries Books Are There?
As of October 2026 there are 27 numbered books and one unnumbered holiday special, A Nancy Drew Christmas, from 2018. The newest is book 27, Vans & Villains, published in January 2026. Book 28, Major Discord, is announced for January 2027. Since 2022 a new book has appeared about once a year.
Nancy Drew Diaries Books in Order
Books 1 and 2 form one story, so take them as a pair. Every other volume is a standalone case.
- Curse of the Arctic Star (2013)
- Strangers on a Train (2013)
- Mystery of the Midnight Rider (2013)
- Once Upon a Thriller (2013)
- Sabotage at Willow Woods (2014)
- Secret at Mystic Lake (2014)
- The Phantom of Nantucket (2014)
- The Magician’s Secret (2015)
- The Clue at Black Creek Farm (2015)
- A Script for Danger (2015)
- The Red Slippers (2015)
- The Sign in the Smoke (2016)
- The Ghost of Grey Fox Inn (2016)
- Riverboat Roulette (2017)
- The Professor and the Puzzle (2017)
- The Haunting on Heliotrope Lane (2018)
- Famous Mistakes (2019)
- The Stolen Show (2019)
- Hidden Pictures (2020)
- The Vanishing Statue (2020)
- Danger at the Iron Dragon (2021)
- A Capitol Crime (2021)
- The Blue Lady of Coffin Hall (2022)
- Captain Stone’s Revenge (2023)
- What Disappears in Vegas . . . (2024)
- Superstitions of “The Scottish Play” (2025)
- Vans & Villains (2026)
A Nancy Drew Christmas, which also brings in the Hardy Boys, came out in 2018 and fits between books 16 and 17. There is also a three-in-one collection of the first three titles.
What Is the Nancy Drew Diaries Book Series About?
It is a fresh approach to an iconic classic mystery series: a 2013 reboot that replaced the Girl Detective books. Nancy tells each case herself, in the first person. Her friends Bess Marvin and George Fayne are at her side, and Ned Nickerson is her boyfriend. Her home town is River Heights, but the cases travel: a lake, Nantucket, Las Vegas, a road trip in a camper van. She owns a smartphone, but her wits do the work. The publisher aims the books at ages 8 to 12.
Our Review of Curse of the Arctic Star
The first book is a good choice for a child’s first real mystery. The ship is a closed world, and the incidents pile up quickly. Nancy, Bess and George pretend they won the cruise in a contest so they can snoop. The danger is real without being graphic: Nancy is nearly crushed on the mini-golf course and pushed into icy water. The language is mild, along the lines of gosh and heck.
The weak point is the ending. The trip goes on in Strangers on a Train, through the mountains, the Yukon and Denali. Only there is the case settled. Buy both at once, or a ten-year-old will be left hanging.
Does Nancy Drew Diaries Have LGBTQ Characters?
We found no source that names an LGBTQ character in any book of this line. Elsewhere in the franchise the answer is different. In The CW’s Nancy Drew TV show, Bess is queer and has a girlfriend. George is not written as gay in the books, though some fans read her that way.
Why Was the Nancy Drew TV Show Canceled?
The CW show starring Kennedy McMann ran for four seasons, from 2019 to 2023. In October 2022 the network said season 4 would be the last. Deadline reported that the decision came as Nexstar took over The CW and cut costly scripted shows. Executive producer Larry Teng later said the network had called the show too expensive.
Which Nancy Drew Book Is the Rarest?
Not one of these: every title here is in print. For collectors, the rarest Nancy Drew book is an early printing of The Secret of the Old Clock or one of the next two titles. The first dust jacket makes it rarer still. The 1930 to 1932 printings with blank endpapers come closest to truly rare. That is according to the collector guide at series-books.com, which also notes that very few Nancy Drew books are rare at all.
Who Is Carolyn Keene?
No single person. Carolyn Keene is a house name, first used on the 1930 books of the Stratemeyer Syndicate, which also produced the Hardy Boys. Ghostwriters worked for a flat fee. Mildred Wirt Benson contributed to 23 of the first 30 books, and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams revised the old titles from 1959. The writers behind this 2013 line have not been named publicly, so we credit the books to Carolyn Keene. The covers are by Erin McGuire.
Quick Facts
| Series | Nancy Drew Diaries, 27 numbered books and a Christmas special (2013 to 2026) |
|---|---|
| Author | Carolyn Keene (house pseudonym) |
| Publisher | Aladdin, Simon & Schuster; paperback, hardcover and ebook |
| First book | Curse of the Arctic Star (February 2013) |
| Ages | 8 to 12 |
| Sleuth | Nancy Drew, with Bess Marvin and George Fayne |
| Audiobook | Book 1 narrated by Jorjeana Marie, 3 h 35 min (Oasis Audio, 2015); the series is on audio with the same narrator |
| Next book | Major Discord (announced for January 2027) |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it a cozy mystery?
Not in the adult sense. It is a middle-grade mystery, but it shares a lot with cozies: an amateur sleuth, no gore and a puzzle at the center.
Are there audiobooks?
Yes. Jorjeana Marie narrates the books for Oasis Audio. The first runs 3 hours 35 minutes.
What should a young fan read next?
When a reader is ready for adult mysteries, Agatha Christie is the classic next step. Our pick is The Murder at the Vicarage, Miss Marple’s first case.