QUICK SHOTS: Hardy #5: Reunion for Death by Martin Meyers

The Hardy series was one of my first brushes of the Men's Adventure field. Which is pretty funny if you've ever read a Hardy. I stumbled upon the book on the fabled Thrilling Detective website, probably after reading a few Shell Scotts and wanting something similar but different. I do recall that they were some of my first online book purchases from eBay all those years ago. I've only ever seen one Hardy in a bookstore in my travels, which I bought to complete my set. That was luck. They seem pretty scarce, but I don't know what the demand is for them either. 

Patrick Hardy stars in, uh, Hardy #5: Reunion for Death. He's a New York private eye with a business called Trouble Ltd. He loves the ladies, lives with his big dog and has a barber chair in his living room. He used to be a fat guy but after getting shot in the stomach he slimmed down, but his weight issues take up a lot of discussion throughout the series. After he slimmed down, he got drafted but he was a coward, so the Army sent him to get hypnotic training. So, when danger appears his body takes over and he's a master of the fighting arts, even though he's scared out of his mind the whole time. Happened to all of us at one time, right?

This is a real weird series. It has more in common with something like Ted Mark's The Man from ORGY than any sort of hardboiled detective or Men's Adventure fiction. Hardy spends most of the time trying/having sex with various women throughout the books. If he's not sexing he's watching old movies on TV or eating, going to the doctor or thinking about eating or reading TV Guide. Oh, and sometimes he lazily solves a mystery or has a very-brief fistfight. 

I have no idea why I like these so much (I seem to be in the minority on the internet in this regard), but these are fun hang-out novels. I like Hardy, we have similar interests. Are his tales as thrilling or action packed as the wonderful Walter Popp covers suggest? No. No, they are not. I'm sure the bait-and-switch element is working against Hardy here, but I don't care. I like the covers AND the stories. Here Hardy's old college friends pull him into a drug smuggling ring and murders ensue. Hardy hangs out until it's all solved.

Martin Meyers was an actor and one part of Maan Meyers with his wife under which they wrote historical mysteries. He's got a light, bright and funny style. Breezy is a good word for it. Some folks liked Hardy because he popped back up in the 90s in a fun short story in Private Eyes, an anthology edited by none-other-than Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins. High Praise.

Here's a fun video from CBS mornings where they interview Martin and Annette for their collaborations. Hardy even gets a mention, as well as Martin's film work. 

If the Hardy books didn't have all the sex and the under-used "programed fighting" gimmick, settled down to be more engaging mysteries and were published in hardback I bet they would have been more successful. I'm glad they weren't. I like them just the way they are.

Your mileage may vary.