The Removers is the second Matt Helm thriller I read, right on the heels of Murderer's Row. Why not read another in the series right away.
This is the third in the Matt Helm series, there are 27 written over 33 years. If Matt was a gangster, he would be called an Enforcer. Since he is a counter-agent for the US government, he is called a Remover, disposing of various gangsters and enemies of the USA. One of the features of the series is they follow a loose chronological order. This is an earlier time for Matt, and although written within a year of Murderer's Row, I found it less exciting.
Matt has travelled to Reno at the request of his ex-wife Beth, who has remarried an ex-hoodlum. His name is Duke and he used to work for a major gangster Frederick's. Matt is also on the lookout for a Russian gangster, who is posing as Fredericks' bodyguard. He has the phony accent and phony name of Fenn. Matt gets involved with protecting Beth and his kids, as well as Fredericks' horny daughter. Duke (and Beth) are being blackmailed into transporting heroin across the Mexican border in the boot of a Jaguar. Fredericks means business and Duke does the job.
Taking place on the Nevada plains around Reno. It seemed a lot like the set up for a Western novel. The lady in distress, invading bad guys brandishing Winchester rifles and causing trouble. All the conflict builds to the characters having a shoot out in an abandoned cabin in the mountains.
I would read another Matt Helm, they are fast and (I found the first one) exciting. This was an earlier novel, and so in my opinion, Donald Hamilton wasn't in the swing of it yet.
Again, they take place in the 1960's so many sexist references have to be taken with a grain of salt, including his opinions that if a girl is caught and about to be raped, she should just go with it - stop whining, and get it over. The smart ones will give the guy a good show, so he's relaxed when she shoots his head off. Some of the girls think rape is no big deal as well, when they aren't willingly dropping their panties. It's tough writing and if you can't take it, too bad.
The Removers was OK - not as good as the first one, but a fast, tough read.
1961 / Paperback / 231 pages
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