Apart from the Boysie Oakes series and continuing the James Bond saga, John Gardner wrote a 5 book series about a spy called Herbie Kruger. German born, he is an orphaned teenager at the end of WW2 who the Americans use as an informer before passing him to the British. He is offered citizenship if he works as a spy as a double agent. The series begins at the end of the 1970's and Kruger portrays himself as a shy rather confused, ineffectual ageing spy which is all part of the act to make everyone discount him. This is no pulp action series this is serious and dark and intelligent fiction laying bare the deceit of the spy world. 5 books were published from 1979 to 1995 and a younger Kruger also makes an appearance in the third book of another John Gardner series called The Secret Trilogy where we learn important information about the character. Highly recommended and the books can be picked up extremely cheaply, well worth a look. The titles were THE NOSTRADAMUS TRAITOR, THE GARDEN OF WEAPONS, THE QUIET DOGS, MAESTRO and CONFESSOR.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
Agent MATT HELM is probably best known for a 4 movie series in the '60's starring Dean Martin as a laid back and often laid, suave and slightly overweight secret agent. The movies were great fun with OTT villains and sly digs at the movie spy world.
But the 27 book series took another slant and Matt Helm is a hard boiled, tall, slim, sure-shot agent within US Intelligence. Written by Donald Hamilton these books are terrific entertainment encompassing everything good about espionage. Published between 1960 and 1993 they had great titles like THE RAVAGERS, THE DEVASTATORS, THE REVENGERS and culminating with THE DAMAGERS. Fawcett were the US publishers and Coronet published some of the novels in the UK. Prices vary largely between very cheap and highly expensive depending on condition and scarcity. Hamilton also wrote many westerns including THE BIG COUNTRY which was turned into a popular movie.
A shortened season of 14 episodes of a Matt Helm TV series was made in 1975 starring Anthony Franciosa which had Helm as a detective but it was not successful.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
The novels stopped being published in the UK sometime in the 70s/80s, and it took me some time before I realised that they were still being published in the USA. I have of late been collecting those later editions and having a total ball reading them. Donald Hamilton is a gifted writer and Helm is one of the great characters of spy fiction- those who only know Dean Martin's film characterisation are missing out.
For many years, one particular Matt Helm novel ("The Wrecking Crew") eluded my grasp and I was delighted to finally obtain a copy in a second-hand book store on the Isle Of Man. Today, it has been reissued and is easily bought from Amazon or eBay.
I've only read Murderes Row, ( Film tie in, with stills on the paperback cover) so long ago
I can't remember too much about it. Except Helm complaining that Jeans had become
everyday clothing. It's odd what you remember.
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
The US editions had more movie poster style covers whilst the UK editions had semi naked photos of women as far as I can remember - the movie tie-in editions of all books were hugely popular in my shop and I specialised in those and character series - I was always after the committed collector as my customer base .
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
Silhouette ManThe last refuge of a scoundrelPosts: 8,865MI6 Agent
edited February 2019
I've just bought up all of the Dr Jason Love novels by James Leasor that I didn't have from eBay and Amazon. This is a great thread indeed and I need to contribute to it more.
Keep up the great work, CHB. Many of these spy novels series I've never even heard tell of before! -{
"The tough man of the world. The Secret Agent. The man who was only a silhouette." - Ian Fleming, Moonraker (1955).
Mickey Spillane was best known for his pulp fiction output starring Mike Hammer as a private detective. However from 1964-1966 he wrote a 4-book series TIGER MANN about an ex OSS operative who turns secret agent for a private organisation. Mann goes behind the Iron Curtain, into the Middle East and battles a mad scientist who has invented a miniaturisation machine in the short lived series. By all accounts Spillane was badgered into writing this series by his agent who wanted to cash in on the spy craze and Tiger Mann (his real birth name) is really just Mike Hammer in disguise as a secret agent. The action is fast and furious and as long as you are not after anything too serious this is an ok series to collect. Published by New American Library in the US and Corgi in the UK they can be purchased for about 1 GBP each and are readily available through online secondhand bookshops.
Mickey Spillane also appeared in a Columbo episode as a writer and played his own creation Mike Hammer in the 1963 movie The Girl Hunters.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
Although VALENTINE FLYNN is not a real spy as he is an industrial security consultant he does get involved in espionage and international intrigue. His fees are high seeing this is the '60's as he charges a 1000 dollars upfront and a 100 dollars an hour expenses. He is employed to seek out industrial espionage and often the beautiful Baroness Ogden-Stutt is behind the problems he faces. Published by Belmont from 1966-1968, 6 pretty decent adventures ensued with Flynn seducing many lovely ladies along the way. The covers of the first 5 are fabulous movie style paintings echoing the Derek Flint movies but the 6th and final book is a disappointing photo cover. Credited to Sean O'Shea which was a pen name for prolific author Robert Tralins who wrote over 250 books under many different names, some of the titles are WHAT A WAY TO GO!, WIN WITH SIN and THE NYMPH ISLAND AFFAIR. The plots are reasonable and a nice lot of sex to go with it! These were only published in the USA but again I imported lots of them and they sold for many times the price you can pay today (around 10 GBP each) during pre-internet days.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
Gil Davis (probably a pen name) wrote a 3 book series all published in 1967 about a freelance CIA agent called DAN WALKER. Walker is called upon by his ex-boss in Naval Intelligence after working for ten years as an art director to take on an assignment in Mexico in the first book called VALLEY OF THE DOLES. A gang is smuggling drugs, porn and snuff movies and Walker is sent to stop them. The follow up books were ASSIGNMENT TOKYO and MISSILE ISLAND where Walker comes up against the Red Chinese. The books are full of fun action and sex and surprisingly didn't sell that well but the market in those days was saturated with Bond clones and only a few survived into double figures worth of adventures. The books were published by PEC in the USA only and all three have great painted covers. They are not too easily obtainable over in the UK but they are available from some online booksellers for between 10 - 25 GBP each. I think they are a worthwhile read.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
The really well written spy series are well known, Boysie Oakes, Matt Helm, Harry Palmer amongst them but one of the greatest of all is scarcely known and Messrs. Dingle and Jones deserve a far wider audience. Written by Geoffrey Osborne and published by Robert Hale from 1968 - 1974. The two agents who are employed by the SSOS (Special Security Operations Section) and sound like a department store had 6 great adventures titled THE POWER BUG, BALANCEOF FEAR, CHECKMATE FOR CHINA, TRAITOR'S GAIT, DEATH'S NO ANTIDOTE and A TIME FOR VENGEANCE. Plots involving defecting scientists, hi-jacked cargo ships, disappearing scientists from planes inflight and blackmailed diplomats set in locations like the Himilaya's, Russia, China and Berlin are deftly written in a likable and clear style. The two agents begin by disliking each other but through various dangerous situations which are excitingly and knowledgably detailed they become a formidable partnership.
Most of the books are very scarce and few come onto the market at a reasonable price but a couple are available through ABE and AMAZON and I cannot stress how hugely enjoyable this series was and for my money they are worth paying a big, big price for.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
Peter O'Donnell created one of the greatest spies in a 13 book series about MODESTY BLAISE. Modesty began as a newspaper strip cartoon within the pages of the London Evening Standard to rival the Daily Express who were publishing the James Bond books in the same manner. As the spy craze fuelled into meltdown O'Donnell was contracted to write a movie screenplay in which he duly delivered and a first novel based upon it. For some strange reason the screenplay was rewritten and virtually none of it appears on screen. But the book series began and terrific plots merged with well written characters ensured Modesty holds a place dear in all spy-fi fans hearts. If you have never read any then I urge you to get them because they are simply superb. For sheer entertainment value they are rarely equalled. Published by Pan some of the tiles are: MODESTY BLAISE, SABRE-TOOTH, THE IMPOSSIBLE VIRGIN, DRAGON'S CLAW and the final entry COBRA TRAP which is 5 short stories which span the entire adult life of Modesty including possibly the greatest ending to a spy's career ever written. They are available at very modest(y) prices through online booksellers.
The film released in 1966 was a complete mess which was a shame because filmed properly it could have gone on for a long time. A TV pilot was made in 1982 starring Ann Turkel but it failed to make it into a series and a prequel to Modesty's career was released in 1988 to little acclaim.
Almost 100 adventures were printed in the comic strips and Titan Books have released some of these as graphic novels and some of the early prints exchange hands for several hundreds of pounds each.
This will be the last post on this thread for several weeks as I am back to the UK shortly and will resume with some more hopefully unknown gems when I return here on Mactan island.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
Watching the old 60s show Department S, with a character Jason King as a writer
once described as " The poor man's Ian Fleming" in one episode, who as well as
solving mysteries, is a best selling author of the "Mark Caine" series of thrillers.
If it had been made today, there would be a series of Mark Caine books. So I
was wondering if any books were released ?
One title often mentioned was " Index finger, left hand "
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
Hi TP, as far as I know there were no Mark Caine novels but there were 2 Jason King paperbacks published by Pan Books. They can be picked up for about a tenner each.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
Thanks CHB, I just wondered if they might have published a few. Some tie in novels can be
Very interesting. Believe it or not, the first time ( as a boy) I read about necrophilia, was in a
New Avengers Book I'm sure most parents wouldn't have expected that. )
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
I'm back from my vacation so now I will resume this guide. I thought it may be a nice idea to start with a series from 1973 which is when I first started trading at the ripe old age of 17 and then pick one series for each year to 2013 when I retired.
1973 was of course the year that Roger Moore debuted as James Bond and the UK first joined the EEC as it was called then. Skylab was launched into space and the average house price in the UK was under 10k 8-)
1973 also launched the career of Dirk Pitt. Whilst not strictly a spy he was involved in many Bond like adventures and I think he deserves his place in this guide. Written by Clive Cussler, 22 books have been published about the man from NUMA (National Underwater and Marine Agency). His adventures would encompass finding ships encased in an iceberg, raising the Titanic, hunting for lost treasures and loads of other fun plots. Well written and exciting stories make this a series that deserves to be read. Two movies have been produced - Raise The Titanic and Sahara both to little effect. In fact it was said of Raise The Titanic that it would have been cheaper to lower the Atlantic )
They are readily available at cheap prices.
1974 will be next.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
I love Clive Cussler's books, haven't read them all, but plenty. I love how he always links
An historical event to some modern political problem!, Plenty of good adventures there.
His book Night Probe also features James Bond, well an agent who's suspicious like
Bond anyway )
It is odd, that the books are so good but have never translated well to the big screen.
My personal opinion is that they are more suited to Television. As in a short explosive
Series over maybe five or six episodes. As anyone who has read " Sahara" knows only
about one third of the book made it on to film.
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
I have only read a couple of them myself and most of my knowledge comes from my customers feedback so I had no idea that Bond may have appeared in Night Probe. I have been trying to catch up on my reading since retirement but I seem to be busier than ever )
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
I was lucky to find that book "Night probe" on holiday in Portugal, in a used book shop.
( no all night drinking, in casinos or sexy clubs for me)
After learning ( possibly from Barbel ) that at the time if Cussler's publishers had paid
the £10,000 to IFP, he could have actually used the name James Bond. So it's worth a
read for a Bond fan, if only for that reason.
"I've been informed that there ARE a couple of QAnon supporters who are fairly regular posters in AJB."
1974 was the year of Roger Moore's second outing as Bond in TMWTGG. President Nixon resigned, the IRA bombed London, India became a nuclear nation, the pocket calculator first went on general sale and The Towering Inferno set fire to the box office. Business was good for me and when the stall next to me became vacant at the indoor market I took it on doubling my sales space.
It was also the year that Brandy French began an 8 book run. Brandy was an agent for SCREW (Special Centre for Retaliation espionage and Warfare) - I just love these acronyms . Written by Kevin Blake (a pen name) and published by Eros Books they were lurid sex and action fare with titles like A LESSON IN FRENCH, THE DOOMSDAY CLIMAX, THE FOREPLAY FORAY and THE COCKED CONNECTION. They were pretty dismal to be fair but the covers were great and they are quite rare on the marketplace reaching at least 100 GBP each. Two of the organisations that she comes up against are SPURT and Followers of the Unholy Church of the Kingdom of Satan so you know what to expect.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
1975 saw Jaws make people afraid to take a bath, Nicholson entered the Cuckoo's Nest, Franco died, the Suez Canal reopened and the US pulled out of Cambodia. My business was going from strength to strength and I hired my first employee as I was finding it hard to cope on my own. He was a couple of years older than me and he stayed with me until I retired. He bought the stock when I retired and when I saw him and his lovely wife a couple of weeks ago for dinner when I was in London he told me things were going very well at the book fairs which he did almost every weekend.
1975 was a thin year for spy series start-ups but THE HUNTER just about fits the bill. Ralph Hayes wrote a 5 book series about John Yard an adventurer who stood up for the oppressed against the evil forces in Africa. They were all released in the same year and published by Leisure Books. Hayes was a prolific author who wrote for the Nick Carter series, westerns and many more books. This is standard action fare but perfect for the beach or the airport. NIGHT OF THE JACKALS and THE DEADLY PREY are two of the titles.
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.
Comments
But the 27 book series took another slant and Matt Helm is a hard boiled, tall, slim, sure-shot agent within US Intelligence. Written by Donald Hamilton these books are terrific entertainment encompassing everything good about espionage. Published between 1960 and 1993 they had great titles like THE RAVAGERS, THE DEVASTATORS, THE REVENGERS and culminating with THE DAMAGERS. Fawcett were the US publishers and Coronet published some of the novels in the UK. Prices vary largely between very cheap and highly expensive depending on condition and scarcity. Hamilton also wrote many westerns including THE BIG COUNTRY which was turned into a popular movie.
A shortened season of 14 episodes of a Matt Helm TV series was made in 1975 starring Anthony Franciosa which had Helm as a detective but it was not successful.
http://www.ajb007.co.uk/topic/46144/the-60s-james-bond-rivals-1-matt-helm/
The novels stopped being published in the UK sometime in the 70s/80s, and it took me some time before I realised that they were still being published in the USA. I have of late been collecting those later editions and having a total ball reading them. Donald Hamilton is a gifted writer and Helm is one of the great characters of spy fiction- those who only know Dean Martin's film characterisation are missing out.
{[]
For many years, one particular Matt Helm novel ("The Wrecking Crew") eluded my grasp and I was delighted to finally obtain a copy in a second-hand book store on the Isle Of Man. Today, it has been reissued and is easily bought from Amazon or eBay.
I can't remember too much about it. Except Helm complaining that Jeans had become
everyday clothing. It's odd what you remember.
Happy collecting, Stag {[]
Keep up the great work, CHB. Many of these spy novels series I've never even heard tell of before!
Mickey Spillane also appeared in a Columbo episode as a writer and played his own creation Mike Hammer in the 1963 movie The Girl Hunters.
Well done, Stag! That would have been at least a fiver at my shop
Most of the books are very scarce and few come onto the market at a reasonable price but a couple are available through ABE and AMAZON and I cannot stress how hugely enjoyable this series was and for my money they are worth paying a big, big price for.
The film released in 1966 was a complete mess which was a shame because filmed properly it could have gone on for a long time. A TV pilot was made in 1982 starring Ann Turkel but it failed to make it into a series and a prequel to Modesty's career was released in 1988 to little acclaim.
Almost 100 adventures were printed in the comic strips and Titan Books have released some of these as graphic novels and some of the early prints exchange hands for several hundreds of pounds each.
This will be the last post on this thread for several weeks as I am back to the UK shortly and will resume with some more hopefully unknown gems when I return here on Mactan island.
Re Modesty Blaise: these earlier topics may be of interest.
http://www.ajb007.co.uk/topic/21372/modesty-blaise/
http://www.ajb007.co.uk/topic/28715/modesty-blaise-film/
http://www.ajb007.co.uk/topic/30791/quiller-and-modesty-blaise-books/
http://www.ajb007.co.uk/topic/35902/dream-casting-modesty-blaise/
Why am I now picturing you in a white suit with a midget assistant
welcoming holiday makers for a "Fantasy " Holiday.
once described as " The poor man's Ian Fleming" in one episode, who as well as
solving mysteries, is a best selling author of the "Mark Caine" series of thrillers.
If it had been made today, there would be a series of Mark Caine books. So I
was wondering if any books were released ?
One title often mentioned was " Index finger, left hand "
Very interesting. Believe it or not, the first time ( as a boy) I read about necrophilia, was in a
New Avengers Book
1973 was of course the year that Roger Moore debuted as James Bond and the UK first joined the EEC as it was called then. Skylab was launched into space and the average house price in the UK was under 10k 8-)
1973 also launched the career of Dirk Pitt. Whilst not strictly a spy he was involved in many Bond like adventures and I think he deserves his place in this guide. Written by Clive Cussler, 22 books have been published about the man from NUMA (National Underwater and Marine Agency). His adventures would encompass finding ships encased in an iceberg, raising the Titanic, hunting for lost treasures and loads of other fun plots. Well written and exciting stories make this a series that deserves to be read. Two movies have been produced - Raise The Titanic and Sahara both to little effect. In fact it was said of Raise The Titanic that it would have been cheaper to lower the Atlantic
They are readily available at cheap prices.
1974 will be next.
An historical event to some modern political problem!, Plenty of good adventures there.
His book Night Probe also features James Bond, well an agent who's suspicious like
Bond anyway
It is odd, that the books are so good but have never translated well to the big screen.
My personal opinion is that they are more suited to Television. As in a short explosive
Series over maybe five or six episodes. As anyone who has read " Sahara" knows only
about one third of the book made it on to film.
( no all night drinking, in casinos or sexy clubs for me)
After learning ( possibly from Barbel ) that at the time if Cussler's publishers had paid
the £10,000 to IFP, he could have actually used the name James Bond. So it's worth a
read for a Bond fan, if only for that reason.
It was also the year that Brandy French began an 8 book run. Brandy was an agent for SCREW (Special Centre for Retaliation espionage and Warfare) - I just love these acronyms
1975 was a thin year for spy series start-ups but THE HUNTER just about fits the bill. Ralph Hayes wrote a 5 book series about John Yard an adventurer who stood up for the oppressed against the evil forces in Africa. They were all released in the same year and published by Leisure Books. Hayes was a prolific author who wrote for the Nick Carter series, westerns and many more books. This is standard action fare but perfect for the beach or the airport. NIGHT OF THE JACKALS and THE DEADLY PREY are two of the titles.