I'll have more to say about these books later, but for now I'll just share a quick tip: I'm really enjoying the recently back in print (thanks to Brash Books) Hardman series by Ralph Dennis. Originally marketed in a cheap fashion to the men's adventure market in the 70's (via gaudy paperbacks for drugstore spinner racks, newsstands, and so forth), this series nevertheless eventually gained a reputation for quality storytelling and decent characters among genre devotees.
The main character is sort-of P.I. (and ex-cop) Jim Hardman and his co-lead (and extra muscle) is ex-NFL player Hump Evans. Hardman and Evans sort of remind me of Robert Parker's Spenser and Hawk, before Spenser and Hawk started to talk about art and literature a lot. But they only sort of remind me of those more famous characters; Hardman and Hump definitely cut their own swath in their own style through the Atlanta underworld.
I'm now on the fourth book in the newly re-issued (and with nicer covers) series, and still thoroughly enjoying the ride. While never straying far from the action/thriller/P.I. genre, we are nevertheless treated to sharp writing, sensitive and intelligent observations about the issues that cross Hardman's and Hump's paths, and plots that are more clever and imaginative than author Ralph Dennis probably needed to make them to collect his checks.
The series is about a dozen entries long and most of the tiles are currently available on Amazon, with the Kindle editions being a particular good deal. Check out the first book in the series, Atlanta Deathwatch, and see if you agree with me that this previously lost-for-decades series is a real discovery, and definite treat, for modern-day thriller fans.
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