This was the only book that was missing in my collection of the Barney Mysteries. While I had read the book previously after borrowing it from my school library, I also wanted to complete my collection. So I bought it instantly when I finally saw it after all these years. Of course, I had to read it once again before I added it to my Enid Blyton shelf and I found myself once again reading about secret passages.The Barney mysteries are about 4 children; Roger, Diana, Snubby (and his dog named Loony) and Barney (with his pet monkey, Miranda, riding on his shoulders). Roger and Diana are siblings and Snubby is their orphan cousin who divides his time living with all his uncles and aunts. Things get interesting when they befriend a circus boy called Barney who is looking for his birth father. SPOILERS Ahead. Consider yourself warned!!Roger, Diana and Snubby have a bad infection of flu that leaves Snubby's legs feeling "jelly-like". So at the end of vacations, they are sent to a quite village called Ring O' Bells to recuperate so they can join school as soon as possible. Miss Hannah goes with them to take care of the children. Barney sends them a letter and they ask him to join them at Ring O' Bells. But Barney does not arrive alone...he brings along a juicy mystery for them to solve. There is an old castle with towers that has a rich history. The castle has been converted into a museum of sorts. Then there is the legend of bells hanging in the old tower that have rang many times by themselves in the past when the village was under attack by the enemies. Sure enough, the bells will ring when the children are here. One thing about this particular edition, I don't really understand the cover. It shows the children hiding in the bushes while two men come up (or go down) the well to the secret entrance to the underground passage. But only the children knew about this entrance and it is used twice during the events in the book. First when the children explore the well during the absence of Naomi in broad daylight; second is when they lead the police down the well in the middle of the night to rescue the kidnapped Inspector.
