- Title: The Secret of the Old Clock
- wiki: link
Throwback Tuesday takes us back to River Heights, Illinois and the first ever mystery solved by teenage detective Nancy Drew. Taking in upon herself to find a missing will of the recently-deceased eccentric Josiah Crowley that friends and family believe he left before his death, rather than see his estate go to the snobbish Topham family, young Nancy takes the case. Learning a bit about Josiah Crowley from the man’s friends, Nancy becomes convinced a new will exists leading to an encounter with thieves after sneaking away from a summer camp and the discovery of an old clock which holds the truth Nancy seeks.
The first novel of the Nancy Drew series saw a bit of changes in later editions (making her a bit more compassionate to the Turners and the Crowleys and bit less competitive with the Tophams) but the crux of the character was here from the beginning presenting Nancy as a smart, caring, inquisitive and impulsive young woman with a bit of a competitive streak and a strong sense of justice (passed down from her widowed father).
Successful in her first case, Nancy would go on to solve 55 more mysteries throughout the original series and more than 100 more in later years while also finding herself adapted to in comics, television (including being one of the inspirations for Veronica Mars), and movies (perhaps best portrayed by Emma Roberts in the 2007 film).