FROM THE SHADOWS (Heroic Pulp Fantasy)
By Patrick Thomas & John French
ISBN #978-1-937051-22-8
Published by Dark Quest, LLC www.darkquestbooks.com
137 Pages
Price $12.95
Rating 5-Stars
Set in the 1930s, there is a brotherhood of crime fighters dedicated to fighting crime and protecting the innocent. The authors present three such cloaked heroes in three novelettes in this exciting new pulp action series from Dark Quest Books. Published under the Mystic Investigators series, we meet Michael Shaw, alias Nightmare, who wears a black fedora and matching trench coat, and carries twin .45 automatics. The second crime fighter is Kaye Chandler, alias The Pink Reaper, who wears sexy pink with a black cape – also pink inside; she carries numerous interesting weapons and gadgets not only to fight crime but the supernatural elements. Our third heroine is Nemesis, a goddess with supernatural powers who needs no weapons but her mystic powers.
Starting with a fantastic cover by author Patrick Thomas, the first story, “The Woman In Black” is not credited, but appears to have been written by Patrick Thomas, and features Nemesis and Nightmare. The second story, “A Nasty Business”, though not credited, reads like John French, and features Nightmare and The Pink Reaper. The third and final story, also not credited, may actually be a collaboration between Patrick Thomas and John French, and features Nemesis, The Pink Reaper and Nightmare in “Defying The Odds”.
Although there are some editing problems, and the stories are a bit short, the writing is top notch, the plots exciting, and the characters are fun. This is the best new pulp I’ve read in years, and hope the authors return with these characters in more adventures.
