Read in April 2014.
Wow! It doesn't get much better than this! Barry Reese knows how to write New Pulp. This edition of Lazarus Gray was excellent.
There were only two stories in this volume, but they were both dynamite. First, Lazarus Gray and his team link up with Thunder Jim Wade and his pals for a globetrotting battle with "Leviathan". Of course, the action didn't stop the whole time and Barry brought another great "old pulp" character into the Reeseverse - Thunder Jim Wade - and brought him in with a bang.
Then, in the second story, Barry wraps up a story line he's been developing since Volume 2 by having Lazarus and company tangle with Doctor Satan and Satan's Circus. Other great Reeseverse characters are back here, including the Darkling, Eidolon, and Abigail Cross. Again, this story was action-packed and the fun didn't stop until the end. And was I sad to see it end!
I know Barry has finished Volume 5 of this series. I hope Pro Se Press has the smarts to get it published soon. And I hope you have the smarts to start reading Barry Reese and all his New Pulp goodness.
Thursday, February 26, 2015
Skull Island (Doc Savage) by Will Murray
Read in April 2013.
This book was excellent, but at the same time disappointing. Let's start with the disappointments first, and there are two: One, Will Murray seems to be hell-bent on dispelling the Wold Newton Universe. He makes numerous, seemingly gratuitous references to characters such as Tarzan, Sherlock Holmes, and Nick Carter just to say that these characters are fictional and, thus, cannot be part of a shared universe like the Wold Newton Universe, a universe I particularly enjoy. My problem is not that I really care that Murray wants to keep Doc Savage out of the WNU, but the blatant, obvious manner in which he does so seems childish. It could've been done with more subtlety so that it didn't seem like LL Cool J calling out Kool Moe Dee on an 80's rap album.
My only other complaint, which is very minor, is that Doc's aides played so little a role in this story. I understand that it takes place prior to the aides being the aides. I also understand that some people actually enjoy the focus being placed on Doc without the buffoonery of the aides. I just like to see Monk and Ham verbally fence; to see Renny pound things with his abnormally large fists; to hear Johnny use words I have to look up in an unabridged dictionary; and to see Long Tom fight people even though he looks like he couldn't fight his way out of a paper bag.
Those complaints aside, this book was still pretty awesome. Young Doc is clearly not the Doc we see in The Man of Bronze a decade later: he is more brash, more talkative, more impetuous, and more violence-prone than the Doc we are used to reading. He's also more than a dozen years younger. Nonetheless, he is clearly Doc Savage, with superhuman strength and stamina honed from years of training. We see Doc in his youth, like watching a home movie from a superstar's youth; we see bits and pieces of the man Doc will become.
We also learn of Doc's family. We see his father Clark Sr., long before he is killed in the Empire State Building. He is the austere, hard-ass father who one would expect to push his son to be a superman from birth. He sees Doc as weapon or tool in his battle to right the wrongs of the world. We also see him realize, over the course of the story, that Doc is his flesh and blood, not just a means to an end. Clark Sr. shows, by the end, that he actually loves his son, something that might not have existed in the early chapters.
There is also Doc's grandfather, Stormalong Savage. A giant of a man, and a giant of a person, apparently. He is very old, but has led a full life, even if that last several years have been on Skull Island. Murray uses him as a window into Doc's early life and family tree, as well as inspiration to young Doc to follow for years to come. I wish we could see more of Old Stormy.
Then there is Skull Island. What an island. It's both a pre-historic animal preserve, full of classic dinosaurs and evolved quasi-dinosaurs, and the home to at least two unknown human civilizations. How any humans survive on this island, unless their name is Savage, is beyond me. The island was a character unto itself.
Finally, we meet Kong. He is so much more than just an enormous ape. He is closer to human than one would think and he is, at the same time, godlike. He rules the island with a large, furry fist. The ancient creatures on the island know who is in charge. The humans on the island know he is in charge. Despite his great power, or maybe because of it, the humans seem to adore and worship Kong. Of course, the sea-faring headhunters who are hunting his head throughout the story don't worship him, but everyone else does. Kong is the "king" of Skull Island and he knows it, literally throwing his weight around whenever he needs to exert his power. Murray shows us the grandeur of Kong, but foreshadows his vulnerability too.
This was a wonderful romp showing the early years of Doc Savage with King Kong playing a gigantic supporting role. The Wold Newton Universe barbs aside, Murray nailed this one. Possibly his best Savage story yet.
This book was excellent, but at the same time disappointing. Let's start with the disappointments first, and there are two: One, Will Murray seems to be hell-bent on dispelling the Wold Newton Universe. He makes numerous, seemingly gratuitous references to characters such as Tarzan, Sherlock Holmes, and Nick Carter just to say that these characters are fictional and, thus, cannot be part of a shared universe like the Wold Newton Universe, a universe I particularly enjoy. My problem is not that I really care that Murray wants to keep Doc Savage out of the WNU, but the blatant, obvious manner in which he does so seems childish. It could've been done with more subtlety so that it didn't seem like LL Cool J calling out Kool Moe Dee on an 80's rap album.
My only other complaint, which is very minor, is that Doc's aides played so little a role in this story. I understand that it takes place prior to the aides being the aides. I also understand that some people actually enjoy the focus being placed on Doc without the buffoonery of the aides. I just like to see Monk and Ham verbally fence; to see Renny pound things with his abnormally large fists; to hear Johnny use words I have to look up in an unabridged dictionary; and to see Long Tom fight people even though he looks like he couldn't fight his way out of a paper bag.
Those complaints aside, this book was still pretty awesome. Young Doc is clearly not the Doc we see in The Man of Bronze a decade later: he is more brash, more talkative, more impetuous, and more violence-prone than the Doc we are used to reading. He's also more than a dozen years younger. Nonetheless, he is clearly Doc Savage, with superhuman strength and stamina honed from years of training. We see Doc in his youth, like watching a home movie from a superstar's youth; we see bits and pieces of the man Doc will become.
We also learn of Doc's family. We see his father Clark Sr., long before he is killed in the Empire State Building. He is the austere, hard-ass father who one would expect to push his son to be a superman from birth. He sees Doc as weapon or tool in his battle to right the wrongs of the world. We also see him realize, over the course of the story, that Doc is his flesh and blood, not just a means to an end. Clark Sr. shows, by the end, that he actually loves his son, something that might not have existed in the early chapters.
There is also Doc's grandfather, Stormalong Savage. A giant of a man, and a giant of a person, apparently. He is very old, but has led a full life, even if that last several years have been on Skull Island. Murray uses him as a window into Doc's early life and family tree, as well as inspiration to young Doc to follow for years to come. I wish we could see more of Old Stormy.
Then there is Skull Island. What an island. It's both a pre-historic animal preserve, full of classic dinosaurs and evolved quasi-dinosaurs, and the home to at least two unknown human civilizations. How any humans survive on this island, unless their name is Savage, is beyond me. The island was a character unto itself.
Finally, we meet Kong. He is so much more than just an enormous ape. He is closer to human than one would think and he is, at the same time, godlike. He rules the island with a large, furry fist. The ancient creatures on the island know who is in charge. The humans on the island know he is in charge. Despite his great power, or maybe because of it, the humans seem to adore and worship Kong. Of course, the sea-faring headhunters who are hunting his head throughout the story don't worship him, but everyone else does. Kong is the "king" of Skull Island and he knows it, literally throwing his weight around whenever he needs to exert his power. Murray shows us the grandeur of Kong, but foreshadows his vulnerability too.
This was a wonderful romp showing the early years of Doc Savage with King Kong playing a gigantic supporting role. The Wold Newton Universe barbs aside, Murray nailed this one. Possibly his best Savage story yet.
The Adventures of Gravedigger, Volume 2 by Barry Reese
Another Barry Reese masterpiece. I enjoy the way Barry writes. He writes action well, he writes characters well, he's good with giving new stories that old pulp fiction feel.
I have to admit that when he first introduced the Gravedigger character, I was a little skeptical. He already had the Rook (oops, I mean the Peregrine) and Lazarus Gray in his Sovereign City world. How would the Gravedigger fit into that universe? Well, I loved the first Gravedigger volume, and I loved this current one as well.
Beyond the action and the Sovereign City setting that I really dig, I liked learning more about the Gravedigger's associates in this one. Li Yuchun, Mitchell, Cedric were really filled out in this one. But more importantly, I liked how Mortimer Quinn was a focal point of this story, and that he will play a role in both Gravedigger Volume 3 and the next Lazarus Gray story as well. I like the idea of a former Gravedigger who doesn't age taking a prominent role in these stories.
Barry Reese truly knows how to write. Gravedigger Volume 2 is not a long book; it won't take more than a day or two to read. But that day or two will be great. Get this book and anything else Barry Reese writes!
I have to admit that when he first introduced the Gravedigger character, I was a little skeptical. He already had the Rook (oops, I mean the Peregrine) and Lazarus Gray in his Sovereign City world. How would the Gravedigger fit into that universe? Well, I loved the first Gravedigger volume, and I loved this current one as well.
Beyond the action and the Sovereign City setting that I really dig, I liked learning more about the Gravedigger's associates in this one. Li Yuchun, Mitchell, Cedric were really filled out in this one. But more importantly, I liked how Mortimer Quinn was a focal point of this story, and that he will play a role in both Gravedigger Volume 3 and the next Lazarus Gray story as well. I like the idea of a former Gravedigger who doesn't age taking a prominent role in these stories.
Barry Reese truly knows how to write. Gravedigger Volume 2 is not a long book; it won't take more than a day or two to read. But that day or two will be great. Get this book and anything else Barry Reese writes!
Painted Black by Greg Kihn
This book was a veritable time machine. Greg Kihn brought me back to the 60's and the last days of Rolling Stones founder Brian Jones. The atmosphere of London, Baltimore, Monterrey, and Morrocco felt genuine. Kihn adds in so many real-life cameos - Jimi Hendrix, John Lennon, Janis Joplin, The Who, etc. - that I felt like a rock and roll groupie, hanging out with the best rock acts of the 60's.
Beyond the incredible, realistic atmosphere, the story was well-written, too. Dust Bin Bob, while fictional, feels real, as if Kihn was simply writing a non-fiction account of Brian Jones' downfall. I credit that to good writing. Dust Bin Bob isn't campy or over-the-top; he seems like he simply fits into the tapestry that is the late 1960's.
My only real "problem" with Dust Bin Bob is that there is not enough of him in the book. While he is present for a good amount of the book, there are many scenes told from other characters' points of view. I would have liked Bob to be the lens through which the reader views the story. He needs to be more of a main character, not just a supporting actor.
Knowing that this is a fictional account, I do have a few problems with the content of the story, mostly with the mystical and supernatural aspects of the story. I didn't like the use of a ghost or the whole scene with the enchanted mirror. That is not to say that these parts were poorly written, because they were well-written, but I'm just not a fan of ghosts or things like that. I think the inclusion of this material was a little hokey. However, that's my peccadillo, not everyone's problem. For those readers who enjoy that sort of paranormal content, these aspects may add to the story.
I did like the conspiracy plot that underscores the story, particularly the way that the author blends Brian Jones' paranoia with an actual plot to get rid of him. Don't they say that it's not paranoia if they really are out to get you? Kihn plays on that theme nicely here.
In the 80's, Greg Kihn sang a song about not songwriters not writing them like that any more. Here, Kihn does write like that still. His novel brings you back to the late 60's in a wonderful way, filling the story with the people and places that made the 60's a monumental period in pop culture. I enjoyed the novel immensely and wonder when I'm going to see Dust Bin Bob again and which rock legend he's going to try to save.
Beyond the incredible, realistic atmosphere, the story was well-written, too. Dust Bin Bob, while fictional, feels real, as if Kihn was simply writing a non-fiction account of Brian Jones' downfall. I credit that to good writing. Dust Bin Bob isn't campy or over-the-top; he seems like he simply fits into the tapestry that is the late 1960's.
My only real "problem" with Dust Bin Bob is that there is not enough of him in the book. While he is present for a good amount of the book, there are many scenes told from other characters' points of view. I would have liked Bob to be the lens through which the reader views the story. He needs to be more of a main character, not just a supporting actor.
Knowing that this is a fictional account, I do have a few problems with the content of the story, mostly with the mystical and supernatural aspects of the story. I didn't like the use of a ghost or the whole scene with the enchanted mirror. That is not to say that these parts were poorly written, because they were well-written, but I'm just not a fan of ghosts or things like that. I think the inclusion of this material was a little hokey. However, that's my peccadillo, not everyone's problem. For those readers who enjoy that sort of paranormal content, these aspects may add to the story.
I did like the conspiracy plot that underscores the story, particularly the way that the author blends Brian Jones' paranoia with an actual plot to get rid of him. Don't they say that it's not paranoia if they really are out to get you? Kihn plays on that theme nicely here.
In the 80's, Greg Kihn sang a song about not songwriters not writing them like that any more. Here, Kihn does write like that still. His novel brings you back to the late 60's in a wonderful way, filling the story with the people and places that made the 60's a monumental period in pop culture. I enjoyed the novel immensely and wonder when I'm going to see Dust Bin Bob again and which rock legend he's going to try to save.
Review of War Against the Mafia by Don Pendleton
I first heard of Mack Bolan, the Executioner, about 15 years ago. For some reason, despite the fact that the series sounded interesting, I finally got around to reading my first Executioner story when I saw that the stories were being re-released as e-books. Boy am I sorry I waited so long to read this series!
Maybe this wasn't the first action novel ever written, but it's a damn good one. Mack Bolan didn't want to be a vigilante warring with the Mafia, but he seemingly had no choice after he discovered the Mafia is responsible for the deaths of most of his family. And despite being only one man, he fights quite the war against the Mafia.
Mack Bolan enters this first story already known as the Executioner from his decorated military career in Vietnam, where he was a expert sniper during two tours of duty. He returns to the U.S. to bury his parents and sister after his father, driven to madness by the Mafia, kills the two women and then himself. Bolan is given leave from the military to care for his now-orphaned younger brother. Instead of simply taking a job as an Army recruiter and raising his brother, the Executioner decided to raise hell with the Mafia. That's where the action starts.
Bolan starts by showing off his sniper skills by killing several Mafia members from long range. Then he infiltrates the Mafia by getting a job with the same mobsters that he is trying to eliminate. From the inside, Bolan continues his one-man war. I didn't keep track, but he must've killed about 50 mob men throughout this story.
This is a great beginning to a series that now has some 600+ entries. Of course, the war against the Mafia isn't over by the end of the book, but it's clear that the Executioner is going to continue fighting until he wins the war. And I'm going to be sure to follow his wartime exploits in future volumes. You should too!
Maybe this wasn't the first action novel ever written, but it's a damn good one. Mack Bolan didn't want to be a vigilante warring with the Mafia, but he seemingly had no choice after he discovered the Mafia is responsible for the deaths of most of his family. And despite being only one man, he fights quite the war against the Mafia.
Mack Bolan enters this first story already known as the Executioner from his decorated military career in Vietnam, where he was a expert sniper during two tours of duty. He returns to the U.S. to bury his parents and sister after his father, driven to madness by the Mafia, kills the two women and then himself. Bolan is given leave from the military to care for his now-orphaned younger brother. Instead of simply taking a job as an Army recruiter and raising his brother, the Executioner decided to raise hell with the Mafia. That's where the action starts.
Bolan starts by showing off his sniper skills by killing several Mafia members from long range. Then he infiltrates the Mafia by getting a job with the same mobsters that he is trying to eliminate. From the inside, Bolan continues his one-man war. I didn't keep track, but he must've killed about 50 mob men throughout this story.
This is a great beginning to a series that now has some 600+ entries. Of course, the war against the Mafia isn't over by the end of the book, but it's clear that the Executioner is going to continue fighting until he wins the war. And I'm going to be sure to follow his wartime exploits in future volumes. You should too!
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