The Skull Mountain Affair
Man From UNCLE Fan Fiction
By Jill Thomasson
44 Pages
Price $10.00 Post Paid
Rating 5-Stars
Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin are vacationing in South America when a
local man is murdered by THRUSH agents looking for a map to the fabled lost
city of “Z”, reputed to be a city of gold. When they show up at the scene a
young girl asks for their help in protecting her father who is camped in the
jungle. She had been forced to tell the killers where he was. After splitting
up at the campsite, Illya is captured and taken to a THRUSH prison camp at
Skull Mountain where he is tortured, but Solo arrives in time to save him, of
course.
This is a well-written, entertaining and exciting story that reads as
well as any of the paperbacks and magazine stories in the series. I was very
impressed with the author’s writing ability, and story telling, as well as the
professionally edited manuscript.
My only complaint, and it is a minor one, is the price and publishing
format. With today’s technology of POD, and the availability of professional printers,
a perfect binding is possible that would make a collection of these stories
available in a perfect bound paperback edition for just a few dollars more. The
Skull Mountain Affair is probably 20,000 words, printed on single-sided 8.5 x
11 pages, and inserted in a three-punch folder. A 70,000 word perfect bound
paperback can be printed for $12.00 (cheaper if printed in large runs). I
understand the method used here is to print out each copy as it is ordered,
which does not involve a lot of upfront money and I can certainly understand
that, but I think readers – and purchasers – would appreciate a better looking
product that will fit on their shelf, along with more bang for their buck. Just
saying. Still, without a doubt The Skull Mountain Affair by Jill Thomasson is
well worth the price.
Tom Johnson
Echoes Magazine
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