THE MAN FROM O.R.G.Y. - Ted Mark

O.R.G.Y. WEEK

I learned about this book (and the subsequent series) while reading another book about spy fiction. It is colloquially referred to as 'sleaze fiction' which I think is a poor moniker as it greatly limits the number of people who might ordinarily read it.  The author, Ted Mark, has more than 20 books published (sixteen alone in the O.R.G.Y. series that I have been able to uncover)  and this series was re-published by a different publisher after Lancer Books went out of business.  Publishers don't typically take many risks when publishing books, especially not re-publishing a series unless they can see a profit in it, so let's not be too quick to discount this book, and this series.

Steve Victor is a sex expert.  He's got a degree from a famous university to prove it. And Victor knows that the best way to fund further stud-y is to apply for grants.  But the best grants don't fund individuals, so Steve Victor started his research organization known as "O.R.G.Y." He won't say what the acronym stands for since it tends to raise eyebrows.

Steve Victor is also a spy, and he's not one to get caught with his pants down ... well, actually he does tend to get caught with his pants down.  In this first adventure, Victor is walking a path from Damascus to Baghdad and Calcutta to Tokyo.  He gets involved with a plot by the Chinese to steal nuclear plans from the Russians.  He can probably save the world, but he can definitely try to pick up some new sex experiences along the way.

This book is a fun flip on the James Bond series.  Where Bond is a spy first and has a number of sexual liaisons during his adventures, Victor is first a sexual explorer who does a little spying along way. This is a shining example of the confrontation of the 1960's-70's morals, where the 'free love' movement meets with the 'establishment.'  I can see this being popular to readers of the era.

The plot was just a little bit thin and the sex was slightly more descriptive than I was expecting  - but only slightly more. There is, of course, a great deal of tongue-in-cheek humor throughout as well (this satire along the lines of Catch-22).

I enjoyed this enough to read more in this series.

Looking for a good book? The Man From O.R.G.Y. by Ted Mark is a fun satire of spy novels ala James Bond, with just a little more descriptive sex between the covers.

3 stars

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The Man From O.R.G.Y.

author: Ted Mark

series: The Man From O.R.G.Y. #1

publisher: Lancer

©1965

paperback, 176 pages