The Disappearing Floor

 The Disappearing Floor (1940; original text) by Franklin W. Dixon

Frank and Joe Hardy and their best bud Chet are headed to the woods for a little camping trip. Just by chance there is a scorched envelope in their first night's fire pit with the name "Harry Tanwick" on it and a hundred dollar bill inside. [Will the mystery in this story have anything to do with Harry or the envelope? Not a whole lot. Sorry, if that spoils things too much.] Then...that night Frank wakes to find someone rummaging about their campsite [Maybe looking for the envelope? That's never made clear.] When the boys give chase, they manage to crash down into a cave. Where they find a sack of money....and, of all people, Fenton Hardy. Who just happens to be hanging out in the very cave near their campsite and who is hunting bank robbers. Fenton enlists the boys' help in checking out the cave and finding out all they can about the men who seem to use it as a meeting place. Winds up that it's the hide-out for Beeson (a big bank robber) and his gang. Before we know it, Frank and Joe are hot on the trail which leads to a creepy old house where a crazy scientist lives and the robbers (for reasons known to themselves) take a fancy to the house. Fenton Hardy posts guards; the boys get caught and escape just in time to rescue their dad, get the guards to round up the baddies, bring the crazy scientist (who apparently has amnesia or something) back to his senses, and save the day.

This is one of the Hardy Boy Books that I have the fondest memories of. But I have to say that all of my nostalgia is for the revised text version--which is one of the first Hardy Boys books I read--and the 1977 episode on the Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries. Neither of which bears much resemblance to this absolutely crazy original story. Is there a weird house with crazy rooms that aren't quite what they seem and a scientist? Sure. But...the Stratemeyer ghost writer who penned the original story also gave us bank robbers, two murders of bank employees, a cave with crazy rooms that aren't quite what they seem as well, hidden money and jewels, a tough guy gang leader who masquerades as an Indian prince in a weird cult for no apparent reason other than he can, a taxi driver who tries to drown Frank and Joe in his taxi, and an apparently insane scientist who has come up with ways to put fire out by electrical "vibrations" and, instead of the standard death ray, a ray gun device that can put people into deep-freeze. Oh...and we have world-renowned detective Fenton Hardy attacked, knocked out, tied up, given the deep-freeze treatment, and rescued more times by his boys than you can shake a stick at. Given his performance in this outing one has to wonder how he makes a living as a detective.

But...if you're a kid, you'll probably enjoy the non-stop action and the ways the boys get the better of the adults. iI you're an adult looking for unintentional humor, a lot of action, and don't mind the weird, over-stuffed plot, then this could be for you as well. If you're looking for a mystery to solve yourself, then I'm afraid that's a non-starter. As soon as Fenton Hardy shows up the first time, you know who the bad guys are. The only real mystery is whether the mad scientist is a willing participant in their plots. Still, and enjoyable day's read, though not quite as strong as I would have liked. ★★ and 3/4

First line: A splintering crash resounded over the bustling platform of Bayport's railroad station.

Last line: Aunt Gertrude frowned, while her nephews smiled significantly at each other.
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Deaths = 2 shot