Anyone read "The Hook" series from the 1980s?

[Brian Sheridan]

I picked up some books from the "Men of Action" series of the early 80's. I'm not sure what the other titles were but the one of interest to Loungers may be "The Hook"by Brad Latham. The series takes place in 1938 and Bill "The Hook" Lockwood is a former prize fighter turned insurance investigator. He wears Brooks Brothers and drives a 1937 Cord convertable. The books are littered with names and events of the era.

There were 5 books in the series and you can find them online for a little as $1 a book. They sure ain't Chandler or Hammett (and the sex is WAY over the top) but they are a fun read. You have to love the title of #3 - "Blood is Thicker Than Hate."

Anyone else ever hear of them? I am also wondering if Brad Latham was a house name, a pen name, or a real name.

 

[The D.A.]

Wow, I haven't thought of those books in years. Somewhere in the dank depths of my parents' basement is a soggy cardboard box full of all of the "Men of Action" books, along with a number of other '80s series. I never read "The Hook," but I did read some of the other "Men of Action" books, including the ones about the OSS unit ("Boxer Unit OSS,", maybe?). My favorite '80s series, though, was "Mac Wingate," about an American special ops-type in World War II.

A friend of mine and I were just lamenting the current lack of men's series fiction. It was kind of the '80s version of the pulp. Most of it was pretty awful, but some of it was fun to read.

 

[Brian Sheridan]

Believe it or not - you can still get the Mac Wingate books.

Here is a link to Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Mac-Wingate-I-II/dp/1584440627

 

[The D.A.]

I'm very tempted to buy a couple of the Mac Wingate books, but I'm afraid that if I did I'd find them as bad as most of the things I liked when I was a kid.

I noticed that it said that "Bryan Swift" is a pen name used by several award-winning authors. I wonder which ones.

 

[fourstarbanner]

I thought you meant this kind of hook!