Phantom Lagoon (Doc Savage)

Phantom Lagoon (Doc Savage)

By Kenneth Robeson (Will Murray/Lester Dent)

ISBN #978-1618271341

Altus  Press www.altuspress.com

291 Pages

Price $24.95

Rating 5-Stars

When adventuress Hornetta Hale is found stranded on an island in the Caribbean, she is brought to New York where she immediately heads for the headquarters of Doc Savage. There, she tries to rent his submarine, but refuses to explain why she wants it, explaining only that it involves something horrible for America if she doesn’t get it. No sooner than she arrives than men invade Doc’s headquarters, and with military procession destroy not only his headquarters but the Hidalgo warehouse as well, and everything inside. Doc and his aides are forced to retreat under such pressure.

Thus begins another exciting tale in The Wild Adventures of Doc Savage. The team is led to the Caribbean where they end up on a mysterious island; encountering weird mermen creatures with vicious claws.

When I first viewed the cover on the Internet I thought I was not going to like it, but when the book arrived I was able to see the cover up close, and all the great detail stood out. I loved it! The story contains a fascinating plot, an exciting new character in the person of Hornetta Hale, and great villains. Will Murray continues to bring us tales as exciting as those by Lester Dent, if not surpassing the original author. The writing is smooth, and the story flows easily, and there is action galore for any Doc Savage lover. I enjoyed seeing Pat Savage back in action in this adventure, and she was evenly matched with Hornetta Hale.

Tom Johnson

Echoes Magazine

The Phantom Detective

Discovered by David Lee Smith, Dixon Hawke, The Phantom Detective, from 1925. Well, gee, Richard Curtis Van Loan might get a bit angry, huh?
Tom

Pulp Reprints For Trade

I’m looking for interesting paperbacks and digest magazines in swap. Do any of you have anything for trade? There are some good pulp stories here.

Tom fadingshadows40@gmail.com 

Pulp Reprints For Trade

Jungle Stories: “White Savage”, Fall ’41 (Hanos Edition)

Jungle Stories “Night of The Wasuli Death” (Hanos Edition)

Jungle Stories (Double Issue): “King of The Jungle” & “The Stolen Empire” (Pulpville Press Edition)

Black Book Detective (The Black Bat): Murder Calls The Black Bat” (Hanos Edition)

Black Book Detective (The Black Bat): “Black Bat’s Crusade” (Hanos Edition)

Black Book Detective (The Black Bat): “Black Bat’s Challenge” (Hanos Edition)

Black Book Detective (The Black Bat): “The Black Bat’s Spy Trail” (Hanos Edition)

Black Book Detective (The Black Bat): “The Black Bat Strikes Again” (Hanos Edition)

The Phantom Detective: “Spector of Death” (Hanos Edition)

The Phantom Detective: “The Jewels of Doom” (Hanos Edition)

The Phantom Detective: “The Trail of Death” (Hanos Edition)

The Phantom Detective: “The Angel of Death” (Hanos Edition)

The Phantom Detective: “The Scarlet Menace” (Hanos Edition)

Captain Satan: “Parole For The Dead” (High Adventure Edition)

The Scorpion: “The Corroding Death” (Weinberg Classics Edition)

Secret Agent X: “Halo of Horror” (Altus Press) New story written by Steve Payne

Champion of Justice and Freedom

Champion of Justice and Freedom (Juvenile)

By Wayne Greenough

ASIN B007d58H71

Musa Publishing

Rating 5-Stars

Young Tate’s grandfather loves old Republic serials, and shows them to his grandson, telling him about heroes and champions of justice in the days of his youth, instilling in the young 7^th Grader the idea of becoming a hero at school, protecting the innocent and punishing evildoers. But to his sad discovery, things always backfire making him into the bad guy. Even when he takes on Mountain, the biggest boy in school as his helper, they still wind up in trouble with the principal and teachers. Especially when the Phantom Marker strikes.

Written in 12 chapters, like the old Saturday Matinee series of Republic Pictures, each chapter ending in something resembling a cliffhanger, the young boys must unmask the evil Phantom Marker before they are blamed for his misdeeds.

This was a fun little novelette featuring children who wanted to be heroes like Spy Smasher, The Lone Ranger, and all the great heroes of radio, comic books and serials. Meant for children, I think adults will also get a kick out of the innocence of hero-worshipping children. Now, if the author would just write a 12-chapter serial for us adults. Highly recommended for ages 7 to 12, and maybe some of us older kids.

Tom Johnson

Detective Mystery Stories

The Ferguson Murder

The Ferguson Murder (Murder Mystery)

By Wayne Greenough

Devine Destinies

ASIN B009199H52

Price $4.99 (Kindle)

Rating 5-Stars

Someone has killed the biggest collector in town, and now other collectors are losing their collections and dying violently. Thanet Blake is an old fashioned private detective in the mold of Sam Spade and Philip Marlow. When a beautiful woman walks into his small office he thinks it’s someone’s joke, until she tells him she’s the daughter of the murdered collector and wants him to find the killer.

This was an interesting yarn with a lot of throwbacks to the old private eye novels of the 1940s, but in a contemporary setting. Collectors of rare comic books, old music, action figures, and serials and B-Westerns, are being murdered and their collections stolen. The author has fun describing the many different collections, and the odd characters that collect them. One individual collects everything to do with Flash Gordon, and calls himself King Voltan, and even dresses and talks the part. Another has become a living B-Western bad guy, and lives the part. An accident destroyed his face, so he had a plastic surgeon rebuild his features as a B-Western star.  Thankfully, no pulp collector named Tom Johnson was killed. I did figure out who the killer was early on, but there were still a few mysteries I had not figured out.

For fans of old private eye yarns, and even readers of modern mysteries, I think you will find this short novel a lot of fun. Highly recommended.

Tom Johnson

Detective Mystery Stories

Merry Christmas

Ginger and I want to wish all of you a Merry Christmas, and please remember our men and women in uniform, wherever they are serving. God Bless America, and peace on earth.

Tom & Ginger

Tom's Top Five Kindle Books In 2013

As we close out the year, I tallied up my Kindle sales for 2013, and wanted to share the top five sales of the year with my readers. Actually, two books tied for 4^th and two books tied for 5^th, so my top five sales actually cover seven books this year.

The Soul Stealers remains in the #1 slot for the third year in a row. It’s not surprising, as I’ve had many private comments about this book.

Bad Moon Rising also comes in second again this year. It has been a favorite among the Vietnam veterans. I’m just not so sure about that fellow on the front cover in Tiger Stripes, though.

The Black Bat’s War slides in at #3 this year, which isn’t surprising either. The Black Bat is a favorite among the pulp readers.

Guns of The Black Ghost continues to be one of my best sellers. Possibly one of the best new pulp heroes ever created, it pulls in readers from around the world.

City of Phantoms ties with Guns of The Black Ghost in 4^th place. This one features both the Phantom Detective and The Black Bat in a new pulp tale.

Lost Land of Jur and Drums of Jur tie for 5^th place. The Jur series has been a big seller for years, and remains popular among the lost land and Jurassic fans.

Why not check out some of these Kindle books and see what is bringing the readers back for more every year? All of Tom’s books can be found on his Amazon Page at http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B008MM81CM