"Other people die of mumps
Or general decay;
Of fevers, chills, or other ills,
But Wilders walk away."

That's the ditty they recite in the town of Wilder's Lane, Vermont to explain the fate of the unfortunate Wilder family. Since Revolutionary times, various family members have "walked away" - vanished without a trace in mysterious circumstances.

Reynold Frame, a freelance photographer on assignment from Life magazine, becomes curious about the mystery when he helps the most recent Wilder walk-away get her suitcase to the bus stop. Ellen Wilder boards the bus, gets off in a few miles at a crossroads, and vanishes.

There are some elements of the plot of the Hound of the Baskervilles, even a bit of Jane Eyre, and a good dash of Hardy Boys' adventures. I enjoyed reading Wilders Walk Away, the first of four books by Herbert Brean featuring photographer Reynold Frame. ( )

Mildly enjoyable '40s mystery set in rural Vermont, concerning a series of mysterious disappearances stretching back to the American Revolution. Opening chapters are the best of it, with setting and legend of the disappearing Wilders being very well done, inviting comparison with some of the better Carrs; after that, it devolves into Hardy Boys territory, with hidden caves, secret passages, and buried treasure. The explanations for most of the disappearances are disappointing. ( )

Jacket blurb: A WALK ON THE WILDERS SIDE -- Other people die of mumps, Or general decay. Of fevers, chills or other ills; But Wilders walk away.

That's the little ditty they all sing in the quaintly picturesque New England village of Wilder's Lane. That's part of the mystery too, of course. You see, from pre-Revolutionary War times on, members of the Wilder family never die; they walk away -- disappear into thin air -- forever. Footprints on a deserted beach may simply stop. A man who enters an office building is never seen again.

Teen-aged Ellen Wilder is waiting for a bus when she walks away. Well, not quite. Reynold Frame, a photojouranlist on assignment from Life, finds a fresh grave with the murdered girl in it.

Frame begins an investigation. And then he too disappears!

One thing is certain. Wilders may wander off as they please, but readers will be riveted by this marvelous tour-de-force. ( )