The Mystery of the Silver Star

Reviewed on 4th June 2022

The third book of this mid-eighties new era of Hardy Boys feels like it’s toned things back down a bit. The techno aspects are still there, but supplement the plot rather than steal focus.

There’s still an increased focus on violence, especially a lot of guns, which is uncomfortable.

However there are positive changes too. There are a lot more female characters, including making more of the established women and bringing in women as functional guest characters where previously there would have been just another man. There’s a really notable shift in the narration’s attitude towards Chet too, moving away from body-shaming language entirely.

I also like the relaxed dialogue we’re seeing. The characters feel more like real people in their interactions, and for the first time we see a hint that Fenton and Laura’s relationship is more than just worrying about their children.

The plot of this one is fairly good I think, though not really a solvable mystery, just more of an interesting adventure.