In 1947, YA author Hal Goodwin (aka John Blaine) started writing a series of books about an adventurous teen by the name of Rick Brant, his best friend Scotty, and their east Indian companion, Chada. These books were published as the Rick Brant Electronics Adventure Stories by Grosset and Dunlap until 1968. In the series, teenaged Rick Brant and his ex-Marine pal, Don Scott, live on Spindrift Island off the coast of New Jersey, where Rick's father, Dr. Hartson Brant, heads the scientists of the Spindrift Foundation. In The Rocket's Shadow, Rick Brandt first meets his new friend Don Scott, and investigates the apparent sabotage of the Spindrift Foundation's new experimental rocket, which if successful, will net them a two million dollar grant. The deadline is only a few days away, and confused fingers of guilt point to more than one suspect. But, who can it be? This novel is not only a ripping tale of young adventure, but it is very much a slice of life from the beginning of the cold war and serious experimentation in the U.S. with rockets.