his first book, "atlanta deathwatch", was published as a paperback original in april 1974, and was quickly followed by six other hardman books that same year. he published five additional hardman novels in 1976-77. the series featured an unlicensed private investigator named jim hardman, a white ex-cop who works with a black partner, hump evans, a former pro football player. the books have been described as hardboiled fiction.