Number: 04Series: Original
Published: January 1, 1928
Pages: 214
Written by: Leslie McFarlane
Outline: Edward L. Stratemeyer
Cover art: Walter S. Rogers
Here's a gem: Read the book online for free on Project Gutenberg!
Story:
Chet Morton and Biff Hooper, close friends of the Hardy Boys, are planning a long vacation trip along the coast aboard Biff’s boat, the Envoy. However, just as they set off, a violent storm rolls in. When days pass with no word from them, their families begin to fear the worst—that the boys may have been lost at sea during the storm.
Together with their friends, Frank and Joe set out to search for Chet and Biff, but their efforts yield no results. The story makes the newspapers, and both the Morton and Hooper families are devastated, coming to terms with the heartbreaking likelihood that the boys have drowned.
Meanwhile, Fenton Hardy is in Chicago, pursuing a dangerous bank robber—one who wouldn’t hesitate to kill the detective if given the chance. Back in Bayport, the Hardy family is shocked to receive a threatening letter from the criminal, claiming he has kidnapped Frank and Joe. He demands a ransom and insists that Hardy drop the case against him.
Frank and Joe suspect that the gangsters may have made a mistake and kidnapped Chet and Biff instead of them. Determined to find their missing friends, the Hardy Boys head out to sea once more in a renewed search.
"Of course we won't worry about it!" declared Aunt Gertrude. "Worry is unhealthy. Worry has sent more people to their graves than anything else. Look at me. I never worry. That's why I'm so healthy. I'll live to be a hundred."
"Yes, it would cake quite a lot to kill you, Aunt Gertrude," agreed Frank innocently.
Aunt Gertrude looked up at him suspiciously.
"I don't know just what you mean by that, young man, but I'll warrant there's something behind it! What are you two rascals waiting around here for, anyway? What do yon want?"
"We were just wanting to talk to mother."
"Well, go ahead. Who's stopping you? I won't listen, I'm sure. If it's none of my business you needn't be afraid that I'll listen. Not at all. Not at all. Go right ahead. Talk to your mother if you wish. Of course, if you want to leave your poor old aunt out of everything I'm sure I don't mind. I'm not interested, anyway."
Whereupon Aunt Gertrude indignantly hitched her chair around toward the window and knitted vigorously.
"Go ahead! I'm not listening. Talk away. I won't listen to a word of it," she shrilled.
Mrs. Hardy smiled.
"What is it, boys?"
"I'm not listening," declared Aunt Gertrude.
"We think we've found a new clue about Chet and Biff," said Frank. "We wanted to go on another search for them!"
"What!" shrieked Aunt Gertrude, quite forgetting that she had not been listening. She wheeled about in her chair. "Go on an other search for those two boys! Of all the idiotic ideas! Laura Hardy, if you let these two children go gallivanting out into the ocean again it will be against my advice."
Main characters:
Frank Hardy
Joe Hardy
Chet Morton
Biff Hooper
Regulars:
Fenton Hardy | Laura Hardy | Gertrude Hardy | Tony Prito | Phil Cohen | Jerry Gilroy | Perry Robinson | Iola Morton | Callie Shaw | Mrs. Morton (mentioned) | Mr. Morton (mentioned) | Mrs. Hooper (mentioned) | Mr. Hooper (mentioned)
Guest characters:
Baldy Turk | Red Hawkins | Pete | Nick the Greek | Mike | Bill | Cousin Peter (mentioned)
Locations:
Bayport (Barmet Bay) | Hawk Cove | Rock Harbor | Blacksnake Island
Trivia:
// This is the first book in which Aunt Gertrude appears, and from this point on, she rarely leaves the Hardy household. As seen in the excerpt above, she immediately makes her presence felt in the boys’ lives. The book is full of delightful moments involving Fenton Hardy’s sister, and readers will often find themselves smiling at the unforgettable remarks of the outspoken older lady. The excerpt above is just one of many!
// Biff’s father, inspired by Tony Prito and the Hardy Boys, buys a new motorboat, which Biff and Chet borrow in this story. Biff will go on to use the Envoy frequently in later books.
Review:
The plot itself might not be much to cheer about. The reader quickly realizes that the kidnappers have mistaken Biff and Chet for the Hardy Boys, while Frank and Joe themselves struggle to truly believe that possibility—something that eventually becomes a source of frustration. The setting also feels a bit limited, with much of the story revolving around boat trips in search of the missing friends. But Aunt Gertrude saves this book. McFarlane’s portrayal of the boys’ aunt and her antics is hilarious, and I couldn’t help but laugh out loud at several points throughout the story.REVISED TEXT:
Published: 1962Pages: 175
Written by: James Buechler
Outline: Harriet S. Adams
Cover art: Rudy Nappi
Revision: Drastically Altered
Story:
Police Chief Collig has a job for the Hardy Boys: In Shantytown, a settlement of shacks on the ocean shore north of Bayport, unrest has been brewing lately, and the boys are asked to investigate the cause.
Before they even get started, however, Frank and Joe witness a bank robbery in Bayport. Together with Tony Prito, they try to pursue the robbers, but the criminals vanish out at sea.
As if that weren't enough, Chet Morton and Biff Hooper mysteriously disappear after attending a party at Callie Shaw’s house. The two friends had planned a boating trip the next day, but never returned home.
It’s up to the Hardy Boys and their friends to find their missing companions—who appear to have been kidnapped.
At the same time, Frank and Joe don't give up the investigation in Shantytown. There are increasing signs that the trouble there is strangely linked to both the robbery and the disappearance of their friends.
The search eventually leads them to an island in Barmet Bay, where a wild-eyed hermit chases them—an eerie figure who supposedly died several months earlier.
Frank and Joe departed, and soon after returning home, they were sound asleep. Two hours later the ringing of the telephone jarred the silence of the Hardy home. Frank awoke and picked up the extension phone.
"Hello."
"Frank?" The speaker was Mrs. Morton. "Is Chet there? He hasn't come home yet!"
"No, he isn't here," Frank answered. "He probably went to Biff's."
"I'll try the Hoopers," Mrs. Morton said. "Sorry to have awakened you."
As Frank replaced the telephone, he glanced at his wrist watch. It was two o'clock.
"Funny Chet didn't phone his folks," he thought.
Main characters:
Frank Hardy
Joe Hardy
Chet Morton
Biff Hooper
Regulars:
Ezra Collig | Fenton Hardy | Tony Prito | Jerry Gilroy | Laura Hardy | Gertrude Hardy | Callie Shaw | Iola Morton | Mrs. Shaw | Mrs. Morton | Mrs. Hooper
Guest characters:
Mr. French | Hank Sutton | Alf Lundborg | Lou | Charlie | Lieutenant Parker | Thompson | Løytnant Daley | William Caine | Ben Stark | Fritz Stark | Mr. Moran | Mr. Duke | Pat Muster | Pops | Nick Glaser
Locations:
Bayport (Barmet Bay, Shantytown, Hermit Island, Jagged Reef) | Northport
Review:
Maybe I’m being overly critical, but this book was disappointing. I don’t think I ever read it as a kid, and I was curious to see whether it could hold the same level of suspense as the original. But this just turned out to be a pale imitation. You can see everything coming a mile away, and for the most part, it’s just not engaging. The ending on Hermit Island lifts things a little, but nowhere near enough to make this a good book.
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