A pleasant and enjoyable story, that seems to have gotten a little bit out of hand, turns into simply a mystery tale. Instead of becoming a freshman in college Pam goes to spend a year with her aunt in Bermuda and adjust to her father's remarriage and the necessity for growing up. She finds a group of interesting new friends, and a new interest in her aunt's antique business. The routine and drawn-out mystery concerns pirate gold and a secret staircase. One of the many girls will read at this age, and intelligent ones will forget it soon after reading, for Pam's relationship with her new step-mother is unresolved as is the question of her readiness for college the following year.