The Hardy Boys: The Skyfire Puzzle (Hardy Boys Mystery Stories # 85)

I figured it was about time to change things up a bit with the vintage children's series books that I read, and I thought I might take a look at some books set in Florida - starting with one of the Hardy Boys Mystery Stories.  Now, anyone who knows me knows that I have never really been a fan of the Hardy Boys.  Growing up, I preferred Nancy Drew because I felt her books were more mystery and the Hardy Boys' books were more adventure - and I loved the mystery.  Yes, I have read and fairly enjoyed the most recent iteration of the Hardy Boys (Hardy Boys Adventures); but they are a far cry from the original books.  However, if I was going to choose a Hardy Boys to read, I guess one set in my own home state would be a good one to choose - at least, so I thought.

The Skyfire Puzzle was published in 1985 by Simon & Schuster, and was the last Hardy Boys book published before the series was put on hiatus for two-and-a-half years so that S&S could start up the new Hardy Boys Case Files aimed at an older audience.  Written by Neal Barrett, Jr. (who apparently also wrote book 83, The Swamp Monster), the book is definitely a precursor to that Case Files series, as it features some much more adult themes and violence.  The Hardys are bit more intense in this story, they have a lot more high-tech equipment, and there is a level of romance, similar to what I saw in the wo Nancy Drew books that were published at the same time.  

The story actually opens similar to the first reboot series, The Hardy Boys: Undercover Brothers - the boys are smack-dab in the middle of an adventure, and the reader is thrown into the middle of it.  In this instance, Frank and Joe are with their father and Chet in the Georgia swamps, trying to capture some corporate criminals; but these criminals mean business, and they turn the tables on the young detectives, going after them with machine guns and trying to run them down with their cruiser.  It is not until they get back to their hotel that the boys (and the readers!) are introduced to the real mystery.  Harry Stone, head of NASA security at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida (p. 21) has tracked them down, as he needs the Hardys' help.  The upcoming launch of the shuttle, Skyfire, is being plagued with trouble, and Stone's capabilities as head of security is being questioned.  The shuttle is set to launch the very expensive Longeye telescope satellite into space, and if the launch doesn't go off, or worse, if something truly disastrous happens, it could result in a huge financial loss to the company financing it all. Enter: Nat Cramer and Pete McConnel - Cramer is the project specialist for the company that developed the telescope, and McConnel is his own personal security agent.  They are supposed to be working hand-in-hand with Stone, but at every turn, it seems all evidence is pointing to Stone's inability to prevent the sabotage, and McConnel is only too happy to point that out.

The mystery itself is not really that difficult to figure out, even though the author does try to mislead the reader by having Stone, as well as Stone's assistant Lew Gorman, framed for a lot of the problems that are plaguing the shuttle launch.  There is even the red herring of an international agent who is spotted on the scene.  Ultimately, Frank and Joe are invited to go up in the shuttle when a few of the civilians intended to go back out at the last minute (how fortunate for the Hardys, eh?).  It is rather unrealistic how quickly they are "trained" in how to adapt to a space mission like this, although there is a somewhat suspenseful scene when Joe is trapped in a centrifugal force module that is accelerating beyond what a normal body can take (p. 58).  In the big finale, Frank actually has to take a spacewalk in order to confront the villain and get him to confess to what is really going on here.  The last chapter is basically nine pages of dialogue as Frank and Joe give an overly detailed explanation of the villains' plans, how they pulled off what they did, and their ultimate goals in their criminal activity.  

I was hoping there would be more details of Florida and Kennedy Space Center in the book than what there was.  There is a quick mention of Mosquito Lagoon as they drive past it (p. 26) - the lagoon is a part of the Canaveral National Seashore.  As far as the Space Center itself, the boys visit the NASA centrifuge lab (p. 50), tour a detailed mock-up of the shuttle (p. 84), and see the Vehicle Assembly Building (p. 86); but otherwise, there are no accurate descriptions or details about the facility itself, raising questions as to whether the author had actually ever been there or was simply writing the story based on general information gleaned about the Center from research.  The boys do visit a restaurant called "Champs Elysees," named after a famous boulevard in Paris, but there is no real restaurant by that name in Florida; the only French restaurant in the area is Cafe Margaux, which does not match the description of the restaurant in the book.

There are a few interesting tidbits I picked up on while reading the book.  Early in the story, Joe is using a remote controlled airplane to try and spy, and the plane is called Blackhawk.  I smiled at this reference, as the Blackhawks are a team of World War II pilots from Quality Comics, and later DC Comics.  I also thought it odd they indicate Joe's weight as 155 pounds (p. 54).  I'm not sure if I've ever read a Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys book where any of the characters' weight is specifically given.  Finally, one of the astronauts on the plane is named Brett Hilton (p. 133).  The second I saw that name, my mind immediately went to Bret King and Chip Hilton, two series books characters, and I wondered if the author was merely giving a quick nod to the two mostly forgotten names.

 

The book was originally published by Simon & Schuster under the Wanderer imprint, with cover art by Richard Williams.  This book, and the previous one, were the first two to feature the "checkerboard" cover format that lasted for a number of volumes.  This particular cover shows Frank and Joe in the shuttle, apparently when they were using the shuttle's computer to try and gain information about the criminals.  When Simon & Schuster moved away from the Wanderer imprint, the book was re-published with later printings under the Minstrel imprint with new cover art by Paul Bachem.  This second cover art features Joe working the controls, while Frank is outside in space, taken somewhat from the climactic scenes when Frank goes out to confront the villain.  I was fortunate enough a few years back to purchase the original cover art by Bachem, and it's interesting to note the original art has the artist's signature, but when Simon & Schuster used the art, they removed the signature on the actual cover of the book.

I would be remiss if I did not mention the character of Harry Stone.  When he first appears in the story, the author is quick to point out that the Hardys had already met Mr. Stone previously when they assisted him in a previous mystery, Sky Sabotage.  That was only six books previous to this one, being published just two years prior in 1983.  I did not even realize there was another Hardy Boys book set at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and particularly one so close to this one.  I will admit I took a quick run through of that book, and the Florida references are not only more vague than this book, but they are also erroneous in their distance from one place to the other.  In that book, the boys follow a suspect from Kennedy Space Center to Gainesville and then on to "Fantasieworld" (an obvious pseudonym for Disney World) with a chase that only takes them a few hours round trip.  This is wholly unrealistic, as it would take more than two hours from KSC to Gainesville, and then another hour and a half from Gainesville to Disney - and that same amount of time to get back!  I did chuckle, though, at there references to a number of things within the amusement park:  the Outer Space Planet (a/k/a Space Mountain); the Deep Sea Submarine Ride (a/k/a 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea); the Bear Dance (a/k/a the Country Bear Jamboree); the Island Pirates boat ride (a/k/a the Pirates of the Caribbean); and the Haunted House (a/k/a the Haunted Mansion) (p. 107-08).  There is even discussion of the "network of underground tunnels" that the staff use (p. 108), although Disney employees I have known have confirmed it is not really under ground; rather, it is the first story, with the actual park built above it on the second story.  In any event, the book has the boys travel to Lake Okeechobee (p 158), with a brief reference to Stuart, Florida (p. 159), which is on the East Coast of Florida, just east of Lake Okeechobee.  As I only skimmed this book, I can't really say with any certainty whether I would have enjoyed it.

I suppose the fact that I am not a big Hardy Boys fan, my opinion of the book was probably tainted from the beginning.  Did I hate the story?  No, not at all.  Did I enjoy it?  There were moments that I thought were enjoyable.  But did I find it to be a good mystery with a lot of suspense?  I would have to say no.  As I said above, the villains are easy to spot from the moment they first appear, and all of the intense scenes of gunfire and sabotage are sort of dulled by the fact you know the Hardys and their friends are not going to be seriously hurt.  And, of course, I was really hoping for more details about Florida and Kennedy Space Center than what I got.  I guess this just reminds me why I'm not a big fan of the Hardy Boys.

RATING:  5 shiny disks filled with hallucinogenic crystals out of 10 for at least putting Florida and Kennedy Space Center somewhat in the spotlight for the world to read!