As always, things get off to an exciting start with Frank and Joe's car forced off the road, shot at and overturned by a low-flying aeroplane in the space of the first chapter. They are on their way home to take on a case for their father, a mystery involving electronics parts going missing from shipments of the Stanwide Mining Equipment Company. Inevitably, in the course of their investigations, they also go hunting for the truth about the plane involved in their earlier close shave and find that the both cases may be closely linked.
Classic stuff, this has been one of my favourites so far; the pace of the introduction almost keeps up all the way through and there are some great action scenes involving several disaster-prone flights. The carefree attitude with which the Hardys will charter a flight to some far-flung destination in search of a clue was always part of the charm of these books for me - what a lifestyle! In this, they're hopping all over the country in all sorts of planes and helicopters and at one point head all the way to the Carribean for an overnight stay. This is the Hardy Boys I remember! ( )