NANCY DREW MOVIE GIVEAWAY

**Warner Bros. Home Entertainment provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray I reviewed in this Blog Post. The opinions I share are my own.**

I grew up reading Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew mystery novels. So I felt some nostalgia when my daughter started checking out Nancy Drew books from her school library to read at home. She has really been enjoying reading this series and was thrilled when Warner Bros. Home Entertainment sent us a brand new Nancy Drew movie to view.

Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase is based upon the second book in this classic mystery series that was originally published in 1930. This 2019 film adaption modernizes the story and portrays Nancy as a rebellious high schooler compared to a college aged woman in the book to make her more relatable to teen and tween aged audiences. Actress Sophia Lillis does a nice job portraying Nancy Drew as a likeable character who has a tendency to get herself into trouble through impulsive behavior.

We had a great family movie night watching Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase. It is a movie that all ages can enjoy watching together, though there is one haunting scene that may be too intense and scary for younger viewers which involves Nancy confronting the ghostly figure of a "pig man." Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase is rated PG for peril, suggestive material, thematic elements and language.

Our whole family burst out laughing in a scene where Nancy engages in a hilarious prank seeking revenge for a cyber bullied friend. This leads her on a path to investigating a haunted house. Shocked to find out that this house may actually be haunted, Nancy also finds herself immersed in another mystery of what has happened to her father who has gone missing while she was investigating ghosts at the Twin Elms mansion. What is going on here and are these two incidents connected?

Watch Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase, which is available now on Digital and will be released April 2, 2019 on Blu-ray and DVD, to solve this mystery. To help ageekdaddy.com readers and social media followers enjoy their own family movie night, Warner Bros Home Entertainment has provided us with a Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase Combo Pack for a blog giveaway plus provided Escape Room & Mystery Match online games to share with you. Have yourself a good time playing these games and watching this mystery flick for a fun family movie night.

MOVIE GIVEAWAY

Enter to win a Blu-ray+DVD+Digital Combo Pack of Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase. Complete the rafflecopter entries below by 11:59 pm ET on Sunday, April 14, 2019 to participate in this blog giveaway. One lucky winner will be randomly selected. Must be a United States resident over 18 years old to participate. Good luck!

Each household is only eligible to win Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase - Theatrical Pack via blog reviews and giveaways. Only one entrant per mailing address per giveaway. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you will not be eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification

a Rafflecopter giveaway

ESCAPE ROOM + MYSTERY MATCH GAMES

Enjoy these two online Nancy Drew games. In ESCAPE ROOM you must solve riddles and find items to uncover the three numbers needed to open the door to escape the room. Use your mouse to click + drag puzzle pieces to unlock clips from the film in the MYSTERY MATCH Video Puzzle.

ABOUT THE MOVIE

The iconic mystery solving teenager from the classic Nancy Drew books is back with an all-new feature length film that will keep you guessing until the very end! Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will release Nancy Drew And The Hidden Staircase on Digital starting March 26, 2019 and Blu-ray™ Combo Pack & DVD on April 2, 2019. Executive Produced by Ellen DeGeneres, the film stars Sophia Lillis (IT and “Sharp Objects”), Sam Trammell (“True Blood” and “This is Us”), and Linda Lavin (“The Good Wife” and“Alice”) and follows Nancy Drew in her new town, making new friends and on a mission to solve the case! The film carries a suggested retail price of $19.99 for the Digital, $19.98 for the DVD and $28.98 for the Blu-ray Combo Pack.

After the death of his wife, Carson Drew decides to leave Chicago behind and make a fresh start with his daughter in River Heights. But for 16-year-old Nancy Drew, life in a small town is mighty dull. She longs for excitement, adventure, and the chance to make a difference. Nancy gets that opportunity when she is asked to help solve the ghostly activity at the Twin Elms mansion. Can she help explain the creaking footsteps, exploding lightbulbs and the ominous creature? Is it the handiwork of high-school bully Derek Barnes? Or is it possible that the ghost of original owner Malcolm Colfax is back for revenge? Recruiting her best friends George and Bess, along with local “mean girl” Helen, Nancy Drew is on the case!

MOVIE REVIEW

My daughter was delighted by Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase. She loved Sophia Lillis' portrayal of the teen detective. She also felt the movie was entertaining and also did a nice job of encompassing the book's original plot.

I joined my daughter in appreciating Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase as it captured my interest throughout the movie. The movie transported me back to my own youth reading Hardy Boy and Nancy Drew books in bed under the sheets with a flashlight at night when I was the age my daughter is now. It was fun enjoying this move together with her plus my son and wife expressed liking the film too. So obviously Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase gets A Geek Daddy nod of approval.

NANCY DREW AND THE HIDDEN STAIRCASE

**Warner Bros. provided me with a swag pack to facilitate this post. The opinions I share are my own.**

I was a huge fan of the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew mystery novels as a kid. Between fourth and eighth grade I read all of the books featuring the adventures of these teen detectives. So the new Nancy Drew movie that is arriving at movie theaters across the country on March 15, 2019 from Warner Bros., Ellen DeGeneres’ A Very Good Production and Red 56 peeked my interest.

NANCY DREW AND THE HIDDEN STAIRCASE is based upon the second book in the classic series of mysteries investigated by this witty high school aged detective. The story was originally published in 1930 and this new movie provides a modern take on it. It is nice to see these stories that I grew up reading being adapted for a new generation to enjoy. Hopefully this movie will encourage kids to pick up some of the original books to read.

ABOUT THE MOVIE

The movie starts off with Carson Drew deciding to leave Chicago behind after the death of his wife and make a fresh start with his daughter 16-year-old daughter Nancy in the community of River Heights. Nancy befriends a classmate named Flora and agrees to help this new friend solve ghostly activity at her home, the Twin Elms mansion. Can Nancy help explain the creaking footsteps, exploding lightbulbs and the ominous creature? Is it the handiwork of high-school bully Derek Barnes? Or is it possible that the ghost of original owner Malcolm Colfax is back for revenge? Recruiting her best friends George and Bess, along with local “mean girl” Helen, Nancy Drew is on the case!



Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase stars:

Sophia Lillis (IT and “Sharp Objects”) as Nancy Drew 

Sam Trammell (“True Blood” and “This is Us”) as Carson Drew (Nancy’s father) 

Linda Lavin (“The Good Wife” and Alice) as Flora 

Andrea Anders (“Joey” and “Better Off Ted”) as Hannah (Nancy’s Aunt) 

Laura Slade Wiggins (“Shameless”) as Helen

 Zoe Renee (“The Quad”) as George 

Mackenzie Graham (The Purge) as Bess 

NANCY DREW AND THE HIDDEN STAIRCASE is rated PG by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) for peril, suggestive sexual content, thematic elements, and language.

ESCAPE ROOM + MYSTERY MATCH GAMES

Have some fun with these two online Nancy Drew games. In ESCAPE ROOM to escape, you must solve riddles and find items to uncover the three numbers needed to open to door. Use your mouse to click + drag puzzle pieces to unlock clips from the film in the MYSTERY MATCH Video Puzzle.

NANCY DREW SWAG PACK GIVEAWAY 

We have a NANCY DREW AND THE HIDDEN STAIRCASE swag pack to giveaway! Must be a United States resident over 18 years old to participate. Complete the rafflecopter entries below before 11:59 pm ET on March 24, 2019 for a chance to win.

Swag Pack includes:
 - Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase - film t-shirt
- Nancy Drew Escape Room Sticker Sheet (4"x6")
 - Nancy Drew - Earbuds & pouch

Each household is only eligible to win Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase - Theatrical Pack via blog reviews and giveaways. Only one entrant per mailing address per giveaway. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you will not be eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification

. a Rafflecopter giveaway

Teen Detective Turns 85: Happy Birthday Nancy Drew

Before there was Veronica Mars or Katniss Everdeen, the teenage detective Nancy Drew opened the door setting an example that women can be strong leading characters on their own merit.  This year marks the 85th anniversary of the first Nancy Drew mystery novel, The Secret of the Old Clock, which have been since followed by numerous books, television shows, movies, and video games featuring the female sleuth.  As a father who doesn't want his daughter limited in life by stereotypes, I appreciate that Nancy Drew sets an example of women being able to be the standout hero of a story without a man coming in to save the day.  What was unheard of at the time the stories first came out in the 1930s, this girl drove a car, packed a gun, didn't hesitate about getting into a brawl, and most importantly relied on herself to get out of tough jams.

The Nancy Drew Mystery Stories were created by publisher Edward Stratemeyer after marketing research showed his successful Hardy Boys detective stories were very popular with girl readers.  He set about creating a similar series for girls featuring an amateur teen detective as the heroine.  Stratemeyer himself didn't write the stories though, the very first books were authored by a woman named Mildred Wirt under the pen name Carolyn Keene.  Wirt wrote 23 of the original Nancy Drew Mystery Stories with numerous other ghost writers joining her in drafting stories under the Carolyn Keene name over the years resulting in 175 novels being published between 1930 and 2003.

I've noticed that there is a lot of lip service by brands about providing more hero characters in books, movies, toys and video games but much of what I've seen out there in that regard has been more contrived at getting into parents pocket books rather then really addressing the need for such things.  The nice thing about Nancy Drew is that she really is genuine.  In fact, Wirt whose work really established the foundation and identity for Nancy Drew stated that she wanted to create a "genuinely adventurous heroine" that would inspire girls with stories featuring someone like themselves.  I wish more brands took this approach which seems so simple yet seems to confound so many in our society.

While I don't notice Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew books lining the book shelves at libraries and stores like they did when I was a kid, Nancy Drew is still out there solving mysteries and inspiring new generations of boys and girls to be inquisitive and adventurous problem solvers.  While the original Nancy Drew Mysteries Stories series was canceled in 2003, here are a few new adventures people can still enjoy.

Simon & Schuster is currently publishing a series of contemporary books titled Nancy Drew Diaries and penned by Carolyn Keene aimed at children 8 to 12 years old which has the young detective traveling the world and using her brain to solve brand new mysteries.  Nancy and her friends Bess and George tackle everything from sabotage to kidnapping, using impressive powers of deduction and reasoning to creatively crack cases and outsmart their enemies.  So far Simon & Schuster have published eight books in the series with two more set to be released in 2015 - Clue at the Black Creek Farm on May 12th and Script for Danger coming out on September 22nd.

Papercutz also publishes graphic novel adventures featuring Nancy Drew in a series also called Nancy Drew Diaries. There newest issue Nancy Drew Diaries - Volume 5 hits stores July 7, 2015.  This comic book story features Nancy Drew teamed up with an eccentric scientist to find a prototype engine that can operate at 200 miles per gallon that was lost during an experiment on a tank during the final days of World War II.  In addition to finding the engine there is one other problem to deal with...the engine and tank are haunted.

Additionally, Papercutz has 21 volumes of Nancy Drew stories available in an older series called Nancy Drew - Girl Detective that have more of a similarity to the original Nancy Drew Mystery Stories books and three other graphic novels Nancy Drew The New Case Files that have more of a trendy supernatural vibe to them and also feature the Hardy Boys joining her in the stories. Papercutz focus is providing quality comic books for kids and if you haven't checked out their products you really should.

By Her Interactive has an iPad app that allows you to solve a mystery as Nancy Drew titled Ghost of Thornton Hall which has some good reviews on the App Store.  Her Interactive's focus though has been more on PC games for Nancy Drew with several titles having been published over the last few years that have sold more than 9 million copies.  Their 32nd Nancy Drew video game - titled Sea of Darkness is scheduled to be released on May 19, 2015 and will be available for Windows and Mac PC operating systems. In the game, players take on the role of Nancy Drew as they must solve the mystery through interrogation of suspects, solving puzzles, and discovering clues.  These Nancy Drew games are also available through STEAM for cloud based play on your home computer.

Happy Birthday Nancy Drew! Thank you for being an inspiration for so many years and wishing you many more adventures in your future.

Papercutz announces partnership with Nickelodeon

One of our family's favorite publishers is a company called Papercutz which specializes in producing graphic novels aimed for children and teens.  Whether you have a preschooler or a high schooler at home, Papercutz has something of interest to kids of all ages with titles ranging from Disney Fairies and Dinosaurs for younger children to The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew Diaries for older ones.  So we were excited to hear that Papercutz is expanding its offerings through a new partnership with Nickelodeon.

The partnership will give Papercutz the first option to adapt all new Nickelodeon original properties into comics and graphic novels.  The new partnership will allow Papercutz to work with Nickelodeon at the earliest stages of a show's development, ensuring that the graphic novels based on these new programs are as faithful to the original look and spirit of the series as possible. This arrangement will also allow Papercutz to make graphic novels available to book and comic stores closer to the debut of new animated series on Nickelodeon then previously possible.  Under this deal, Papercutz already has plans for publishing two new series titles in 2015 and two more graphic novel series beginning in 2016.  Plus beginning in June 2015, Papercutz will also begin publishing an all new Nickelodeon Magazine which will preview the comics content that will be featured in the graphic novels, debut new properties in comics form and also feature a variety of games, puzzles and other activities for kids.

The first two Nickelodeon-based titles to be launched by Papercutz will be SANJAY AND CRAIG debuting in September 2015 and BREADWINNERS which will debut in October 2015.

SANJAY AND CRAIG is the story of an adventurous 12-year-old boy who proves the old adage: there's nothing you can't accomplish (or destroy) as long as your best friend is a talking snake. The adventures of this dude-snake duo have been a ratings smash for Nickelodeon with the series ranking as the #2 animated show across all TV among kids 2 to 11.  The first SANJAY AND CRAIG graphic novel is set to debut just in time for the premiere of the series’ third season on Nickelodeon.

BREADWINNERS features the adventures of SwaySway and Buhdeuce, two carefree ducks who fly around in a super sweet rocket van, delivering bread to hungry beaks everywhere. Like SANJAY AND CRAIG, BREADWINNERS has been a popular program on the Nickelodeon's cable television lineup.

"Papercutz's strong track record with licensed properties for kids made them our ideal choice for a publishing partner,” stated  Linda Lee, VP of Nickelodeon Domestic Publishing, in a press release sent to A Geek Daddy Blog. "As we grow our stable of original animated properties, we wanted to work with a company that could reach the broadest possible audience. We're excited to work with the Papercutz team and we look forward to adding the Nickelodeon characters to one of the most diverse lists offered by any children's publisher."

For more information about Papercutz's graphic novel offerings, visit www.papercutz.com.