What do you think?
Rate this book
The Adventures of Nick & Carter #3
The Rowdy Renegade
Tuesday, February 3, 1970
Production of Monumental's newest TV show, Touch of Rouge, is on the rocks.
The leading man broke his leg...
The show's writer is quitting...
The press is having a field day with the latest changes in the storyline...
And no one quite knows what to make of Nick Williams, the show's newly self-appointed Executive Producer.
Neither does Nick, for that matter.
Meanwhile, he and Carter are trying to live their lives as bodyguards are following them wherever they go.
A group of rogue intelligence agents are out to get them for no good reason anyone can come up with other than the obvious ones: Nick and Carter are too rich and too gay.
Is this the end of our heroes? Don't change that dial! Stay tuned for more of The Adventures of Nick & Carter in The Rowdy Renegade!
Production of Monumental's newest TV show, Touch of Rouge, is on the rocks.
The leading man broke his leg...
The show's writer is quitting...
The press is having a field day with the latest changes in the storyline...
And no one quite knows what to make of Nick Williams, the show's newly self-appointed Executive Producer.
Neither does Nick, for that matter.
Meanwhile, he and Carter are trying to live their lives as bodyguards are following them wherever they go.
A group of rogue intelligence agents are out to get them for no good reason anyone can come up with other than the obvious ones: Nick and Carter are too rich and too gay.
Is this the end of our heroes? Don't change that dial! Stay tuned for more of The Adventures of Nick & Carter in The Rowdy Renegade!
- GenresMystery
466 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 25, 2021
3 people are currently reading
5 people want to read
About the author
Frank W. Butterfield
123 books106 followersFrank W. Butterfield, not an assumed name, loves old movies, wise-cracking smart guys with hearts of gold, and writing for fun.
Although he worships San Francisco, he lives at the beach on another coast.
Born on a windy day in November of 1966, he was elected President of his high school Spanish Club in the spring of 1983.
After moving across these United States like a rapid-fire pinball, he currently makes his home in a hurricane-proof apartment with superior water pressure that was built in 1926.
While he hasn't met any dolphins personally, that invitation is always open.
Although he worships San Francisco, he lives at the beach on another coast.
Born on a windy day in November of 1966, he was elected President of his high school Spanish Club in the spring of 1983.
After moving across these United States like a rapid-fire pinball, he currently makes his home in a hurricane-proof apartment with superior water pressure that was built in 1926.
While he hasn't met any dolphins personally, that invitation is always open.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 30, 2021
A mixed-race romance in a TV show!!! Yes, sure, we had already have the Kirk-Uhura kiss, but this is a full TV show, in which a black woman owns herself and there are sparks flying with a white man. Yeah, you know there will be troubles ahead :P
Not that Nick and Carter aren't already in a lot of trouble, as someone is trying to kill them...
And I must say, as soon as I read about Bruce Bennet I had to went to check his IMDB page, because I loooooove this kind of trivia, and there is so many Perry Mason trivia here :D
And it's so fun to see how a TV show would be filmed if it was done with only creativity in mind, instead of money, fundamentalists of any kind and trying to get everybody and their aunt happy.
But as fun as is producing a TV show, everything gets a bit muddled when there are people shooting at you, even more when there is government involvement and it's not easy to know who they can trust.
Fun, exciting, loving.... as always, a great story :D
Not that Nick and Carter aren't already in a lot of trouble, as someone is trying to kill them...
And I must say, as soon as I read about Bruce Bennet I had to went to check his IMDB page, because I loooooove this kind of trivia, and there is so many Perry Mason trivia here :D
And it's so fun to see how a TV show would be filmed if it was done with only creativity in mind, instead of money, fundamentalists of any kind and trying to get everybody and their aunt happy.
But as fun as is producing a TV show, everything gets a bit muddled when there are people shooting at you, even more when there is government involvement and it's not easy to know who they can trust.
Fun, exciting, loving.... as always, a great story :D
October 29, 2021
Enjoyed the fact that in The Adventures of Nick & Carter we see the more of the day to day activities than we did in Nick Williams Mysteries. In this book Nick is acting as executive producer in a new TV show while battling a hit squad sent by Nixon and the KGB. It was well-written and liked seeing Nick, Carter and the gang in this book along with some new ones. Recommend reading
November 22, 2021
Hmmm, this series is going slightly darker - a little more violence, and a little more sex. Can't wait to see what happens next.
February 24, 2022
The Rowdy Renegade (Adventures of Nick & Carter 3)
By Frank W. Butterfield
Published by the author, 2021
Five stars
The year is 1970. Nick turns 48 and Carter turns 50. This is the follow-up series to the Nick Williams Mysteries. This book follows close on the heels of “The Crying Cowboy,” and takes us deeper into Nick and Carter’s life as they re-integrate themselves into the vast corporate entity they’ve created.
As always, the story-telling is first-rate, and the characters are largely people I love. The weird thing in this new series of books is that I REMEMBER all the cultural references as actual parts of my life. Butterfield’s deft interweaving of history and fiction constantly makes me smile: in this case the efforts to produce a weekly television drama called “A Touch of Rouge” that stars a black woman, Lola Dunbar, who is strong, determined, and stands up to white people both on television and in her real life. She is raised as a counterpoint to Diahann Carol, whose 1960s TV show, “Julia” was one of my favorites as a middle-schooler. Having eliminated one co-star, Nick has hired Rock Hudson to play opposite Lola Dunbar. If you think for a moment, you can imagine where that might go awry.
At this stage in my fandom of Butterfield’s books, I have embraced Nick & Carter as the gay parents I never had—since they’re close in age to my own parents. Thus I found it a little unsettling that the author has decided to delve more deeply into Nick and Carter’s evolving sex life. It’s a great story line, to be sure, but I had to let go of the parental identity I’d endowed them with in favor of “imagine that they were my friends.” Of course, at 15, I was a long way from my own sexuality in 1970. The important point, of course, is that Nick and Carter are still growing as people, and as gay men. It is touching to see them vulnerable and unsure of themselves—except their unshakeable love for each other. Therein lies the strength that keeps them moving forward.
The world of Hollywood (even their San Francisco-based Hollywood, which is hilariously located in the middle of Folsom Street’s leather scene), is just as unpleasant and fascinating as you’d imagine. Racism and homophobia rule the Industry, right alongside cruelty and hypocrisy.
To make things more complicated, Nick and Carter are still lightning rods for the hatred and power plays of…well, really everybody, from the KGB to J. Edgar Hoover. Popular heroes more than ever, their wealth and power drives the Right Wing crazy. And doesn’t that sound familiar? I confess being shocked at the ideas regarding Dick Nixon that are bandied about, but they’re in tune with Ronald Reagan’s own opinions (oh, and what will Nick and Carter do when HE becomes president??). It’s a sordid view of America’s tarnished greatness, which is right in line with the craziness we’ve all lived through these past six years.
I am loving this series because it gives me a way to pretend Nick and Carter were actually part of my life growing up. I do realize that no gay men with their wealth would ever has been as good and kind and generous as they are. But that’s what fantasy is all about.
By Frank W. Butterfield
Published by the author, 2021
Five stars
The year is 1970. Nick turns 48 and Carter turns 50. This is the follow-up series to the Nick Williams Mysteries. This book follows close on the heels of “The Crying Cowboy,” and takes us deeper into Nick and Carter’s life as they re-integrate themselves into the vast corporate entity they’ve created.
As always, the story-telling is first-rate, and the characters are largely people I love. The weird thing in this new series of books is that I REMEMBER all the cultural references as actual parts of my life. Butterfield’s deft interweaving of history and fiction constantly makes me smile: in this case the efforts to produce a weekly television drama called “A Touch of Rouge” that stars a black woman, Lola Dunbar, who is strong, determined, and stands up to white people both on television and in her real life. She is raised as a counterpoint to Diahann Carol, whose 1960s TV show, “Julia” was one of my favorites as a middle-schooler. Having eliminated one co-star, Nick has hired Rock Hudson to play opposite Lola Dunbar. If you think for a moment, you can imagine where that might go awry.
At this stage in my fandom of Butterfield’s books, I have embraced Nick & Carter as the gay parents I never had—since they’re close in age to my own parents. Thus I found it a little unsettling that the author has decided to delve more deeply into Nick and Carter’s evolving sex life. It’s a great story line, to be sure, but I had to let go of the parental identity I’d endowed them with in favor of “imagine that they were my friends.” Of course, at 15, I was a long way from my own sexuality in 1970. The important point, of course, is that Nick and Carter are still growing as people, and as gay men. It is touching to see them vulnerable and unsure of themselves—except their unshakeable love for each other. Therein lies the strength that keeps them moving forward.
The world of Hollywood (even their San Francisco-based Hollywood, which is hilariously located in the middle of Folsom Street’s leather scene), is just as unpleasant and fascinating as you’d imagine. Racism and homophobia rule the Industry, right alongside cruelty and hypocrisy.
To make things more complicated, Nick and Carter are still lightning rods for the hatred and power plays of…well, really everybody, from the KGB to J. Edgar Hoover. Popular heroes more than ever, their wealth and power drives the Right Wing crazy. And doesn’t that sound familiar? I confess being shocked at the ideas regarding Dick Nixon that are bandied about, but they’re in tune with Ronald Reagan’s own opinions (oh, and what will Nick and Carter do when HE becomes president??). It’s a sordid view of America’s tarnished greatness, which is right in line with the craziness we’ve all lived through these past six years.
I am loving this series because it gives me a way to pretend Nick and Carter were actually part of my life growing up. I do realize that no gay men with their wealth would ever has been as good and kind and generous as they are. But that’s what fantasy is all about.
December 9, 2021
Super Beef
While I do enjoy all of your books, the Nick and Carter books are my favorites and this book continues to keep my ardent interest. I love all of the characters, both old and new. It's like a fa ily gathering where everyone can catch up with each other. I was particularly excited to find out that almost everyone likes the burritos from El Faro, which was my goto place for lunch while I was working at 333 Market. I always got the Super Beef.
While I do enjoy all of your books, the Nick and Carter books are my favorites and this book continues to keep my ardent interest. I love all of the characters, both old and new. It's like a fa ily gathering where everyone can catch up with each other. I was particularly excited to find out that almost everyone likes the burritos from El Faro, which was my goto place for lunch while I was working at 333 Market. I always got the Super Beef.
March 17, 2022
It’s OK
The overall storyline is decent but the repeated D/S or M/s themes do nothing for my level of enjoyment. Fairly complicated plots with some rather tenuous or dubious connections. As always the scenarios are well researched and the majority of the story threads are resolved by the end.
The overall storyline is decent but the repeated D/S or M/s themes do nothing for my level of enjoyment. Fairly complicated plots with some rather tenuous or dubious connections. As always the scenarios are well researched and the majority of the story threads are resolved by the end.
November 24, 2021
Reading a Nick and Carter mystery is like slipping on a favorite sweater - with sex and thrills and suspense! This was one of my favorites, very twisty and fun. Excellent series.
December 20, 2022
What an absolute delight! I love the tone and direction of this new series with Nick and Carter. Great story with edge-of-your-seat suspense. Well done, and I'm so looking forward to the next book.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews