The Secret of the Old Mill

Franklin Dixon

Oct 2023 · Sold by Simon and Schuster

About this ebook

Frank and Joe help prevent Ken Blake from getting killed in a cycling accident. The Hardy Boys learn that their friend Chet Morton was swindles when he made change for what turned out to be a counterfeit twenty dollar bill, something that the police later confirm is becoming more common in their town of Bayport.
Later, Joe is awakened by a clattering sound and sees a mysterious figure bicycling away from the his home. While investigating the disturbance a note is found that reads, “Drop the case or else danger for you and your family.” The Hardy boys are not sure if this threat refers to the counterfeiting case that Frank and Joe are investigating or another case their detective dad, Fenton Hardy, is trying to solve, but they’re intent on finding out who’s threatening them. Can they stay alive and solve both cases before danger finds them?

About the author

Franklin W. Dixon Franklin W. Dixon is actually a pseudonym for any number of ghostwriters who have had the distinction of writing stories for the Hardy Boys series. The series was originally created by Edward Stratmeyer in 1926, the same mastermind of the Nancy Drew detective series, Tom Swift, the Rover Boys and other characters. While Stratmeyer created the outlines for the original series, it was Canadian writer Leslie McFarlane who breathed life to the stories and created the persona Franklin W. Dixon. McFarlane wrote for the series for over twenty years and is credited with success of the early collection of stories. As the series became more popular, it was pared down, the format changed and new ghostwriters added their own flavor to the stories. Part of the draw of the Hardy Boys is that as the authors changed, so to did the times and the story lines. While there is no one true author of the series, each ghostwriter can be given credit for enhancing the life of this series and never unveiling that there really is no Franklin W. Dixon.