Recently, I’ve been re-reading my old Nancy Drew books. The first time I read them (it was, shall we say, a few decades ago?) I did not notice any subliminal messages. I read those books because they were intriguing mysteries, taking me into the land of “What If?” 
As a youngster, I learned many things from Nancy Drew that were not written on the pages. I learned that Nancy was the kind of girl I would like to be.
She had courage. When faced with impossible situations, Nancy did not falter. She had faith. Nancy knew everything would end well. She loved her family which included housekeeper Hannah Gruen.
Although Nancy was a girl of means (she had her own car and didn’t have a job) she never looked down on those less fortunate. 
She was always willing to run errands for Hannah or for her father, Carson Drew, or help Hannah wash dishes. I was not a girl of means, didn’t have my own car but I could dream!
She had an outgoing personality and many friends, her two closest being George and Bess. Loyalty to friends and family was foremost in all Nancy did.
Logic and sensibility were two trademarks of this teenage sleuth. A story of a haunted house or bridge or strange shrieks in the night might terrorize others but not Nancy Drew!
She knew that behind the unearthly strangeness was a very down-to-earth explanation. For a reader with a robust imagination (me) this was reassuring.
Readers absorb more than the storyline; this is especially true of young readers. I’m glad I had the experience, when I was a young girl, of meeting Nancy Drew.
You know most of all what I learned from Nancy, besides learning I wanted to be like her? I learned I wanted to write mystery stories! ♥
So, I grew up and wrote mystery stories, which, by the way, I continue to write. These are stories teenagers today might read if they so choose although my target audience is those over thirty. The sleuths, Darcy and Flora, Ned, are not teenagers but, hey! They were once and they still remember. They do, however, possess a lot of Nancy’s traits. They are positive people, loyal to friends, believe everything will turn out for the best (unless they are having a down day with too little coffee) and they are courageous, usually. I’ll have to confess, not always courageous but they do have determination! Lest you think they are perfect, let me tell you they aren’t. For example, Darcy has a heart problem where Grant and Jake are concerned and in Grave Heritage, I feared at first she was turning completely fickle.
I’m glad to say that all three Darcy and Flora books are in three separate formats: paperback, ebook, and audiobook. The first cozy, The Cemetery Club, is being offered on Amazon for 99 cents and is free from Barnes and Noble as a Nook book. A word of caution: if you order from Barnes and Noble, be sure to order the book with the colorful cover, not the first book with the black and white cover. I like audio books especially when I’m driving. They really help make a long trip un-boring. I mean, who could be bored when your fictional friend is tumbling down Deertrack Hill in her car and it is a steep hill! For those of you familiar with Cherokee County, think Eldon Hill!
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