Showing results for "Jj" in Thrillers & Suspense

The Electronic Mind Reader, the 12th Rick Brant novel, was published in 1957 and is another JANIG-based adventure with government spook Steve Ames as one of the main characters. The story involves foreign espionage against a secret government missile project based in Washington. Steve Ames comes for help from the Spindrift Foundation after several project scientists are struck down by a mysterious neural malady that seems to cause severe aphasia and inability to communicate.

Rick Brant, Don Scott, Dr. Tony Briotti, and Dr. Hobart Zircon travel down to the Virgin Islands on what is planned to be a pleasure trip. The boys’ only goal is to unearth a possible sunken shipwreck and find a golden Spanish statue lost centuries before to pirates. Archaeologist Tony plans to look for submerged Native American artifacts, while physicist Zircon expects to spend time just fishing. Soon after they reach Charlotte Amalie, the boys run across JANIG security agent Steve Ames in a chance encounter on the street.

All the Spindrifters want to do is to locate, quietly dig up and study some ancient native artifacts, including a full-sized, solid-gold skull that is sacred to the Filipino natives. Unfortunately, corrupt government officials want to steal it to sell on the black market, and head-hunting natives want to stop them because unearthing it will desecrate their lands.

Barby Brant finally gets to leave Spindrift Island and accompany Rick and Scotty on an adventure. The three Spindrifters and Chahda meet their friends, the Warners, on the trawler Tarpon and head off to map fishing grounds in the exotic South Pacific. They soon run head long into a mystery concerning a mysterious individual called the Phantom Shark, who sells the best pearls to be be found anywhere and has a reputation for being a dangerous person to cross.