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| 53. THE CLUE OF THE HISSING SERPENT |
| FOREWORD |
| Why is a wealthy sportsman so frightened by the serpent design on a mysterious balloon that he begs Frank and Joe Hardy to protect him? And who stole the ancient, life-size chess king which is to be presented to the winner of the world chess championship? These questions and others equally as baffling in this exciting mystery seem to defy explanations. On the ground and in the air Frank and Joe find them- selves the targets of diabolical enemies. An odd clue that they discover leads them across the Pacific to Hong Kong. There the young detectives match wits with their adver- saries. How they help the police smash and international criminal organization provides an electrifying climax to one of the most challenging cases the Hardy boys have ever tackled. |
| FRANK and Joe Hardy are called upon to find a wealthy industrialist's son who has mysteriously disappeared. Did Graham Retson flee from his home because he was at odds with his father, or was he kidnapped? Find- ing the answer turns into something more dangerous and larger in scope than Frank and Joe ever bargained for. The only clue in the case leads the two young detectives to South America, where the intrigues of evil adversaries almost cost them their lives. Involved in this complex mystery are a fierce-looking monkey trained to be a killer, a school of voracious, man-eating piranhas, a ruthless gang of passport thieves, and a cleverly op- erated change-your-identity mill for criminals. Only through their courage and perseverance do the Hardys solve one of the toughest cases they have ever tackled. |
| Danger is the name of the game when the Hardys agree to help their pen pal from Greece, Evan Pandropolos, search for a priceless, ancient Greek helmet. Years ago, Evan's uncle had loaned it to a Hollywood movie company for use in a silent motion picture, but the treasured helmet had been lost. At Hunt College, where Evan, Frank, Joe, and Chet Morton are taking a summer course in film-making, the boys are harassed by enemies who grow more and more vicious. Are gangsters hounding them to force Mr. Hardy to give up his investigation of an inter- national crime syndicate? Or are the boys' sinister foes also seeking the helmet? Clues that the young detectives unearth keep them constantly on the move - from college campus to Cali- fornia and finally to Greece. In a sizzling climax the Hardys, Evan, and Chet match wits with their powerful enemies on the island of Corfu. |
| WHEN the Hardy Boys take a winter vacation in Ja- maica, Joe finds an ancient bronze death mask washed up near their beach house during a violent storm. Did it come from a Portuguese galleon wrecked offshore centuries ago? Why are three treasure hunters de- termined to snatch the relic at any risk? Is it because of the cryptic Arabic words concealed in the mask? Helping the Hardys and their friends in this bizarre mystery is William, a Jamaican boy, who flies to New York with startling news, only to be intercepted and held for ransom - the death mask! How Frank and Joe rescue William, plunge into their father's airline-ticket theft case, and fly into a maze of danger in Africa will hold Hardy Boys fans breathless to the last page of The Mysterious Caravan. |
| There is no time for explanations when Mr. Hardy tele- phones Frank and Joe from the West Coast and sends them flying off to England to help his old friend Pro- fessor Rowbotham. Their stay in East Anglia begins with a weird omen, as they witness the bizarre funeral of an old witchmaster. From then on, strange things happen. They are shad- owed, trapped, sprung upon by a huge black dog, and smitten by an old crone's curse. Who are their enemies? The same people who burglarized the professor's witch museum and robbed him of his life's investment? When the Hardys learn about the strange disappearance of Lord Craighead, the plot deepens. Danger lurks every- where and follows them to Ireland and the Isle of Man. After surviving a shipwreck in the storm-tossed Irish Sea, the clue of a frightened white witch leads them into the torture chamber of a black witches' coven. Frank and Joe barely escape alive in the final struggle with their fanatic adversaries, from whom they finally snatch the telltale Witchmaster's Key! |
| FOREWORD |
| FOREWORD |
| FOREWORD |
| FOREWORD |
| 51. THE MASKED MONKEY |
| 52. THE SHATTERED HELMET |
| 54. THE MYSTERIOUS CARAVAN |
| 55. THE WITCHMASTER'S KEY |
| Editor's Note: The actual author of this book, Vincent Buranelli, inserted himself into Hardy Boys history by naming one of the main characters of the story after his namesake. Dr. Vincent Burelli, dentist, plays a minor role in the beginning, but becomes a more predominant figure in the latter stages of the plot. DFV |