The Mystery of the Vanishing Lady
Detective Fiction Juvenile Mystery Middle-Grade Mystery Boys' Adventure Vintage Series Fiction Suspense Collectible Children's Literature
First-edition hardcover of Mel Lyle’s “The Mystery of the Vanishing Lady,” the scarce 1967 entry in the cult-favorite Power Boys Adventure series. This boys’ mystery—long out of print and rarely seen in its original 1960s jacket—delivers a classic vanishing-person puzzle that hooks middle-grade readers while supplying nostalgic charm for adult collectors of youth-series fiction.
The book is a genuine first printing, not a modern reprint, and it still carries the original illustrated endpapers and line drawings that were dropped from later paperback editions. A single neat gift inscription on the front flyleaf is the only interior marking; pages are un-dog-eared and the binding is square and solid, making it an attractive shelf piece for both reading and display.
Collectors prize the Power Boys titles because the short-run hardcovers were printed on cheap, high-acid paper that seldom survives this cleanly. Finding a 1967 copy with cover art intact and no library stamps is increasingly difficult, especially in the U.S. where most copies were library discards. For fans of Hardy Boys, Ken Holt, or Brains Benton, this volume fills a key gap in a vintage boys’ mystery run and is ready to read, gift, or archive.
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