While I’ve never considered Poul Anderson one of my absolute favorite science fiction authors, I realized the other day that I’ve been reading his books off and on for more than forty years, starting with his Flandry series back in the mid-Sixties. I don’t recall ever reading a book of his that I didn’t like, either.
THREE WORLDS TO CONQUER is a non-series novel from 1964 that I’d never read before. It’s set in the Jovian system, on Jupiter itself and on the moon Ganymede, where there’s a mining colony from Earth. Humanity doesn’t have interstellar space travel yet, but there are colonies scattered throughout the solar system. Somewhat to the surprise of the colonists, they’ve made radio contact with a fairly primitive, centaur-like species native to Jupiter’s surface. One of these beings is smart enough to have mastered the radio on one of the scientific instruments sent down to the planet’s surface from Ganymede, and a friendship has sprung up between him and one of the scientists at the mining colony on the moon.
Then things go to hell for both of them. Civil war breaks out back on Earth, and a warship with a captain that’s still loyal to the losing side shows up on Ganymede, where most of the colonists backed the winners. The spaceship captain takes over the moon and plans to use it as a base to launch a counter-revolution. Down on Jupiter, a horde of barbarians have invaded the country of the native being who’s in contact with the mining colony. It’s no surprise that these two storylines intersect, and the two friends from different species wind up helping each other out.
Anderson makes it believable that sentient beings could live on Jupiter’s surface, and those chapters of the book are my favorites because they read almost like a sword-and-planet yarn, what with all the barbarians and fighting with swords and axes and such. Anderson handles all that very well. The political intrigue in the scenes set on Ganymede aren’t as compelling, but at least Anderson keeps the pace moving along swiftly and the reader can’t help but wonder how he’s going to tie everything together . . . which he does, quite neatly.
THREE WORLDS TO CONQUER is a prime example of the sort of adventure science fiction I grew up reading. If you haven’t tried Poul Anderson’s work before, it wouldn’t be a bad place to start. If you’ve read and enjoyed Anderson’s novels but not this one, it’s worth seeking out. Plus it has a decent Jack Gaughan cover.
HUNT AT THE WELL OF ETERNITY has been selected as one of the Top 15 Books of the Year by the website Luke Reviews. You can read about Luke's other picks and comments from some of the authors here. Thanks, Luke. I appreciate being included.
A place where travel brochures play up the "happily ever after" thing big-time, but where "for every happy ending there are fifty miserable ones." Where trouble lurks at the corner of "Easy Street" and the "Boulevard of Broken Dreams". Where the local scandal rag, Storybook Confidential, heralds salacious headlines such as "BO PEEP'S CRIME SCENE SECRET" and "GEORGY PORGY LOVES THE LADIES".
So who is Storybook Land's protector? Its white knight who walks its mean streets, neither tarnished or afraid?
Max Hamm, Fairy Tale Detective...detective...detective...detective...
Your name is Max Hamm. You're a pig who barely makes enough dough to keep you in fresh mud. You run the HAMM AND EGGS DETECTIVE AGENCY. Your partner's a good egg named Humpty Dumpty.
Once upon a time, a mousy little frail named Bo Peep knocks on your door. She needs help. She claims she's lost her sheep. Actually, she claims they were kidnapped, and she's got the ransom note--complete with cut-out letters of different shapes and sizes-- to prove it.
You glance at the note. You fume. You're one Hamm who won't take any baloney. You're going to find the sheepnapping hardboiled yeggs and put the heat on 'till they're scrambled.
But Peep wants to pay the ransom and Dumpty offers to accompany her for protection...
It's after midnight. You're asleep. The phone rings and the cops want you to come to King Cole's Supper Club. It appears Dumpty has had some kind of "accident".
You arrive. You brush aside the "police line" tape in front of the Supper Club and cringe when you see Dumpty lying on the sidewalk, sunny-side up. No kings, no horses, are going to put this egg back together again. "For this one they were gonna need a spatula." You hear witnesses claim Dumpty was soused. You aren't sure what to think. You know Dumpty'd fallen off the wagon before. Still, something smells rotten. And it ain't just the fact that Dumpty was long-past his "sell-by" date.
Your eyes search through the crowd of gawkers, but Peep is nowhere to be seen. You begin to get the feeling you might be getting double-crossed. But nobody double-crosses Max Hamm. It just isn't kosher.
Time to investigate.
Peep works for "The Big G", aka "Ma Goose", aka "Mother Goose". The Big G owns one of the two biggest movie studios in Storybook Land. The other is owned by The Grimm Bros.
You try to get in to see The Big G, but her secretary, a tough broad named Muffett, says Ma's out of town, so come back next week.
You have to think fast. You see a black, fuzzy creature hanging from the ceiling by a thread. "Is that a spider?" you ask.
Muffet screams and runs down the hall, giving you a moment to slip into Ma's office and go through the confidential files on all her stars and starlets. You find Peep's file.
Bingo.
Little Bo's been in trouble before. In her file are at least a dozen baby pictures, showing Miss Peep both shameless and diaperless. "A youthful indiscretion," you think. But one that could provide a solid foundation for blackmail.
You head back to Ol' King Cole's Supper Club. You've done some work for Cole in the past. The fat man owes you a favor.
You ask Cole for the skinny on Peep. Cole tells you she hangs out with a sleazy trumpet player named Eddie "Little Boy" Blue. He give's you Blue's address and warns you to be careful.
You make the scene at Blue's fleabag boarding house. Ironically, Little Boy lives "in a shoe. A perfect place to find a heel." You bust into Blue's roach box as he's starting to climb out the window. You pull a gat and persuade Blue to stay and answer some questions.
You ask Blue about Peep and Dumpty. Blue pulls out some ragged papers. They concern Dumpty. They provide a tragic secret about your partner's past. No wonder the egg cracked up.
Blue pulls out a gat while you peruse the papers. Suddenly his apartment door opens and--
Blam! Blam! Blam!
One holey horn blower bites the dust.
Standing in the doorway is The Big G herself. The barrel of her roscoe is smoking. You know, based on the papers, that Ma Goose played a part in Dumpty's tragic end. You hear the cops, so you let the Goose take a gander at the papers while you scram.
Now there's only one piece of the puzzle missing
Your tires screech as you pull up to Peep's cottage. In the foyer you find packed suitcases, an insurance policy on Bo's sheep, and a one-way ticket on The Queen of Hearts.
You think you've cleared up the case, but then hear a sound from the back room. You head over there, and just as you ease open the door...
*************** Max Hamm, Fairy Tale Detective is a graphic novel by Frank Cammuso. It contains four separate stories: The Big Sheep, and a three-part story called The Long Ever After.
Cammuso does a great job blending classic fairy tales, hardboiled legends, and the classic Hollywood era. This is one of the few comics in black-and-white I've enjoyed. But the drawing style is not just black-and-white; there are plenty of noirish shadows and shades of gray.
The book's raunch factor is much closer to Who Framed Roger Rabbit than Fritz The Cat. More specifically, a number of the fairy tale ladies, especially in The Long Ever After, have ample bosoms, and Max Hamm smokes and drinks. But no sex or four-letter words.
The book is somewhat modeled after those "Little Golden Books" you might have read as a kid. Like The Little Golden Books, on the inside of the front cover is written "This Book Belongs to", and a space is provided where you can sign your name. Unlike The Little Golden Books, that rest of the inside cover is filled with images of knives, guns, bottles of hooch, packs of cigs, and babes in bikinis.
The book is a little longer than 200 pages; each story is told in about 50 pages. I zipped through the book in two sittings. "Volume 1" is printed on the spine and title page, but the book was published in 2005, and at Mr. Cammuso's website, no Volume Two is mentioned. Which is a shame, because this book is successful in every way, in my opinion. It is a great novelty item for fans of hardboiled fiction, and I will proudly place it on the shelf next to my copies of The Maltese Falcon and The Big Sleep. Though I doubt it will stay on the shelf for long. It is the kind of book I can open at any page and just savor fairy tale characters wearing trenchcoats, spouting hardboiled lingo, and getting involved in Confidential-type scandals.
If you want to get a look at the Max Hamm universe, you can find a sample story (one not included in the book) here.
This is an incredibly fun book and one I heartily recommend.
I've been dealing with some minor medical issues the past few days (nothing to worry about, I assure you), and that's why the blog hasn't been updated. But we have a guest blog from Brian Ritt coming up later today if I can get it posted, and I should be back at full speed soon. Until then . . . watch the skies!
Brian Earl Brown posted this list in the comments, and I decided to move it up here to make it easier for people who might be looking for this information to find it. Thanks, Brian!
I've read more than half of these novels and will probably get around to all of them sooner or later.
1.The Torture Trust, Secret Agent X , Feb., 1934 (v1-1) Written by Paul Chadwick) 2. The Spectral Stranglers, Secret Agent X , Mar., 1934(v1-2) Written by Paul Chadwick 3. The Death-Torch Terrors, Secret Agent X , Apr., 1934 (v1-3) Written by Paul Chadwick 4. The Ambassador of Doom, Secret Agent X , May, 1934 (v2-1) Written by Paul Chadwick 5. City of the Living Dead, Secret Agent X , June, 1934(v2-2) Written by Paul Chadwick 6. Hand of Horror, Secret Agent X , Aug., 1934(v2-3) Written by Emile C Tepperman 7. Octopus of Crime, Secret Agent X , Sept., 1934 (v3-1) Written by Paul Chadwick 8. The Hooded Hordes, Secret Agent X , Oct., 1934(v3-2) Written by Paul Chadwick 9. Servants of the Skull, Secret Agent X , Nov., 1934 (v3-3) Written by Emile C Tepperman 10. The Murder Monster, Secret Agent X , Dec., 1934 (v4-1) Written by Emile C Tepperman 11. The Sinister Scourge, Secret Agent X , Jan., 1935 (v4-2) Written by Paul Chadwick 12. Curse of the Waiting Death, Secret Agent X , Feb., 1935 (v4-3) Written by Paul Chadwick 13. Devils of Darkness, Secret Agent X , Mar., 1935 (v5-1) Written by Paul Chadwick 14. Talons of Terror, Secret Agent X , Apr., 1935 (v5-2) Written by Emile C Tepperman 15. The Corpse Cavalcade, Secret Agent X , May, 1935(v5-3) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 16. The Golden Ghoul, Secret Agent X , July, 1935 (v6-1) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 17. The Monarch of Murder, Secret Agent X , Aug., 1935(v6-2) Written by Paul Chadwick 18. Legion of the Living Dead, Secret Agent X , Sept., 1935(v6-3) Written by Paul Chadwick 19. Horde of the Damned, Secret Agent X , Oct., 1935(v7-1) Written by Paul Chadwick 20. Ringmaster of Doom, Secret Agent X , Nov., 1935 (v7-2) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 21. Kingdom of Blue Corpses, Secret Agent X , Dec., 1935(v7-3) Written by Unknown 22. Brand of the Metal Maiden, Secret Agent X , Jan., 1936 (V7-4) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 23. Dividends of Doom, Secret Agent X , Feb., 1936 (v8-1) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 24. The Fear Merchants, Secret Agent X , Mar., 1936 (v8-2) Written by Paul Chadwick 25. The Faceless Fury, Secret Agent X , Apr., 1936 (v8-3) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 26. Subterranean Scourge, Secret Agent X , June, 1936(v8-4) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 27. The Doom Director, Secret Agent X , Aug., 1936 (v9-1) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 28. City of Madness, Secret Agent X , Oct., 1936 (v9-2) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 29. Horror's Handclasp, Secret Agent X , Dec., 1936(9-3) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 30. Death's Frozen Formula, Secret Agent X , Feb., 1937(v9-4) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 31. The Murder Brain, Secret Agent X , Apr., 1937 (v11-1) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 32. Slaves of the Scorpion, Secret Agent X , June, 1937 (v11-2) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 33. Satan's Syndicate, Secret Agent X , Aug., 1937 (v11-3) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 34. The Assassin's League, Secret Agent X , Oct., 1937 (v11-4) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 35. Plague of the Golden Death, Secret Agent X , Dec., 1937 (v12-1) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 36. Curse of the Mandarin's Fan, Secret Agent X , Feb., 1938 (v12-2) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 37. Claws of the Corpse Cult, Secret Agent X , Apr., 1938 (v12-3) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 38. The Corpse That Murdered, Secret Agent X , June, 1938(v12-4) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 39. Curse of the Crimson Horde, Secret Agent X , Sept, 1938 (v13-1) Written by Paul Chadwick 40. Corpse Contraband, Secret Agent X , Dec., 1938 (v123-2) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts 41. Yoke of the Crimson Coterie, Secret Agent X , Mar., 1939(v13-3) Written by G. T. Fleming-Roberts
This movie got a lot of great reviews and wound up on some year’s best lists. I’m sure you know the basic plot: alien mother ship shows up hovering over Johannesburg, South Africa, but the ship seems to be broken down, the aliens are pretty much helpless, and the South Africans take them in, segregating them in a camp known as District 9, where they become a permanent, exploited underclass. Then the South African government decides to relocate the prawn, as the aliens have come to be known, and hire an evil corporation (is there any other kind in movies?) to take care of it. From there, you guessed it, Things Go Hideously Wrong.
When we first started watching this movie, with its oh-so-serious, shaky-cam, mock-documentary style, I thought, “This is just dumb.” I have a hunch that if you really started taking the plot apart, it would still be dumb. But I admit, I got caught up in the story before it was over, although it’s so shamelessly and blatantly manipulative that I never quite got past being irritated by it. I mean, come on, couldn’t they have given the alien kid an alien puppy, too? The filmmakers pushed every other button, didn’t they?
But the acting is excellent, especially the guy who plays the lead, and the action scenes are well-staged. The sight of the mysterious mother ship hovering over Johannesburg is pretty impressive. DISTRICT 9 is a very violent and bloody movie, so much so, in fact, that after a while the violence becomes rather cartoonish and is hard to take seriously.
So mark me down as having mixed emotions on this one. I think there’s enough good stuff in it to make it worth watching, but I also think it has enough serious flaws that it’s nowhere near being one of the year’s best.
From the August 1935 issue of the pulp SECRET AGENT X, this fast-moving yarn opens with the Secret Agent surreptitiously boarding an ocean liner at sea that’s bound for New York. It seems that the Agent has discovered an infamous criminal known only as Dr. Marko is trying to slip into the country so he can take over all the gangs and organize them, as well as using his scientific genius to commit terrible crimes. Unfortunately, Dr. Marko is as much a master of disguise as Secret Agent X himself, so it’s going to be difficult to find him among the hundreds of passengers and crew members.
Approximately the first third of this novel is set on the ocean liner, and it’s an excellent sequence featuring the near-constant switching of disguises, whirlwind action, a couple of grisly murders, and a beautiful damsel in distress (not reporter Betty Dale for a change, although Betty does show up later and play an important part in the plot). After the boat reaches port and the action moves onto land, the story loses a little of its momentum as it turns into a more standard capture-and-escape, foil-the-villain’s-evil-plans pulp adventure. Not that that’s a bad thing, mind you. MONARCH OF MURDER still manages to be pretty entertaining all the way through.
The author behind the Brant House name in this case is Paul Chadwick, the originator of the Secret Agent X character and the primary author of the series early on in its run. With Chadwick’s work, you can usually count on plenty of action and a few scenes that are genuinely creepy, and MONARCH OF MURDER delivers on both counts. The villain’s true identity doesn’t come as a complete surprise, but it’s not telegraphed as blatantly or as early in the story as sometimes happens in these pulp hero novels.
This one is scheduled to be reprinted soon in an inexpensive edition by Beb Books. It’s one of the better Secret Agent X novels I’ve read, and if you’re a fan of the series it’s well worth reading.
I don't take New Year's Day off, so I was upstairs writing as usual most of the day. I wrote about 5000 words, which is a decent start for this year. Now all I have to do is string together 200 more days like that, and I'll have my million words.
And I promise I won't bring that up again unless I actually accomplish that goal.
Speaking of goals, I've never been the sort to make or even think about New Year's resolutions, but for some reason I've come up with several this year. The list is up to ten items, and I have the file open on my writing computer so it'll be the first thing I see every morning when I sit down to work. Most of them are boring, generic stuff like eat less and work out more. Two of them, however, are to read more books and spend less time on the Internet. We'll just see how that works out.
I discovered this morning that I made a mistake in my record-keeping. I actually read 114 books in 2009, not 113. (I know, big freakin' deal, but I'm obsessive enough that if I post something, I want it to be right . . . except for the times when I'm too lazy to worry about it, of course.)
We ushered out 2009 with a couple of movies, and an odd double bill it was, too.
We’d seen all the other Terminator movies (although we gave up on the TV show), so it was inevitable we’d watch this one, too. Christian Bale is top-billed as John Connor, but the movie really belongs to Sam Worthington, playing a convict who’s executed for murder in 2003 but somehow shows up in 2018 in the middle of the resistance’s war against Skynet and the Terminators. (If you haven’t seen any of these films, you have no idea what I’m talking about, and I’m sorry for that. But the back-story is too complicated to summarize here.) TERMINATOR SALVATION has plenty of action, the occasional quieter moment, and a decent plot that sets things up for more sequels. As far as post-apocalyptic, SFX-laden action/adventure movies go, I’d say it’s slightly above average.
BELOW THE BORDER is one of the entries in the Rough Riders series of B-Westerns starring Buck Jones, Colonel Tim McCoy, and Raymond Hatton as a trio of U.S. marshals who work undercover. In this one they’re after a gang of rustlers and jewel thieves who have a hideout just across the Mexican border from Arizona. The plot is standard stuff, but as always, the chemistry between the three heroes is good and the movie also benefits from the presence of veteran heavies Roy Barcroft, Charles King, and Bud Osborne. There’s a pretty good shootout in this one near the end between Buck Jones and Charles King.
By the way, you may be reading about more of these old Westerns here on the blog this year. One of my Christmas presents was a gift card from Half Price Books, and most of it went for a couple of those 50-movie sets of public domain B-Westerns. That’s 100 movies, with no duplication between the two sets, and I’d only seen about ten of them before. So I have lots of B-Western watching to do.
While I’ve never considered Poul Anderson one of my absolute favorite science fiction authors, I realized the other day that I’ve been reading his books off and on for more than forty years, starting with his Flandry series back in the mid-Sixties. I don’t recall ever reading a book of his that I didn’t like, either.
