“What could have been” is what really came to mind after finishing HONEY IN HIS MOUTH, the lost book from Lester Dent, best known as the creator of Doc Savage, aka Kenneth Robeson. As this book proves, he was more than just some pulp author. This crime novel would have been looked upon as a classic if it came out back in 1956, when it was originally written.
The Hard Case Crime release has everything going for it, starting with a main character who most readers would think is a world-class jerk, yet are drawn to him like a moth to a flame. He’s a down-on-his-luck grifter named Walter Harsh, who at the start is trying to avoid someone he owes money to, and ends up laid up in a hospital, with an inquisitive cop who wants answers.
Someone has been snooping around about Marsh, because he’s the exact duplicate of a South American dictator named El Presidente. (Okay, not the most original name, but remember, this was written in the ’50s.) It seems that they need Marsh to impersonate the strongman. They don’t explain the reasons to Marsh, just that he will be paid handsomely and they will make a few problems go away.
It’s when Marsh is taken from the hospital to a secret house far away that he thinks about not only taking the money and running away, but also taking El Presidente’s mistress with him.
Now this is straight up Gold Medal material, with Dent doing a bang-up job. Marsh truly is one of the biggest pricks you will have the pleasure of discovering. There is nothing that would make you ever want to meet this person, but you won’t be able to put the book down, either.
As the story progresses, Dent throws a massive monkey wrench into the giant scheme, followed by a few more tools along the way, closing it out with a great ending that should not be ruined by anyone. HONEY shows that Dent could have gone toe to toe with his writing compatriots of the time, and shows him in a new light. The reasons why this never saw publication until now is anyone’s guess. —Bruce Grossman
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF LESTER DENT:
• DOC SAVAGE: FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE / THE DEVIL GENGHIS by Kenneth Robeson
• DOC SAVAGE #10: THE PHANTOM CITY by Kenneth Robeson
• DOC SAVAGE #19: PIRATE OF THE PACIFIC by Kenneth Robeson
• DOC SAVAGE: THE CZAR OF FEAR by Kenneth Robeson
• DOC SAVAGE: THE SPOOK LEGION by Kenneth Robeson
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This is certainly on my “to read” list. It’s on order, and will be put on the stack waiting my attention!