In the first of the Bulldog Drummond stories, the wealthy former WWI
officer looks for adventure as a private detective ""Demobilized
officer, finding peace incredibly tedious, would welcome diversion.
Legitimate, if possible; but crime, if of a comparatively humorous
description, no objection. Excitement essential . . . Reply at once Box
X10."" When the formidable Captain Hugh "Bulldog" Drummond places this
newspaper advertisement, hungry for adventure after the end of World War
I, he embarks on a career as the invincible guardian of his country. His
first reply comes from a beautiful young woman who sends him to
investigate what at first looks like blackmail, but turns out to be far
more complicated and dangerous. The rescue of a kidnapped millionaire,
later found with his thumbs horribly mangled, leads Drummond to uncover
a political conspiracy of awesome scope and villainy, masterminded by
the ruthless Carl Peterson. Originally published in 1920, "Bulldog
Drummond" set the standard: as Ian Fleming himself confessed, James Bond
was Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer from the waist down, but Bulldog
Drummond from the waist up.