Category: Reviews

Sherlock Holmes: The Affair of the Chronic Argonaut by Fred Adams Jr./Published by Pro Se Press * 5/5 stars

I feel like a broken record every time I review a Fred Adams Jr. book. But it’s worth saying again: Adams is quite possibly the best writer working in new pulp today. I have yet to read a bad book or story by him.

This short book (142 pages) collects two Sherlock Holmes novellas by Adams. In the first, Holmes and Watson have to solve a locked room mystery with only a piece of yellow paper as a clue. As the murders mount, the two must venture to Limehouse (Chinatown) to solve this weird series of killings.

In the second, the under-construction tunnels of the London Underground are the site of cannibalistic murders, with an odd man delivering advance notice of the killings.

Both are quick, enjoyable reads. A caveat for Holmes fans: I’ve read more non-canon Holmes stories than those by Arthur Conan Doyle. That means I’m not the best judge of how these stories fit in that canon. These stories both rely on the occult and sci-fi elements to explain their mysteries, so if that deviation from Holmes bothers you, these aren’t the stories for you.

That said, if you want a good read and an enjoyable mystery, check out this book.

Veteran pulp and comic writer Ron Fortier has given The Beginner’s Guide to Pulp Fiction a nice review on his site, Pulp Fiction Reviews. Check it out!

The Adventures of Coffin Kirk by Arch Whitehouse/Published by Age of Aces * 5/5 stars

This one is a collection of vintage pulp aviation stories, all published in Flying Aces magazine from 1937 to 1941.

I’ll sum it up in one word: fun. Coffin Kirk is pulpy escapism at its best. Our protagonist is Brian Kirk, who as a child witness the murder of his zookeeper father at the hands of the “Circle of Evil.” He escaped at the time with a trained gorilla, Tank.

Now, Coffin Kirk is an adult and he’s flying across Europe and Asia fighting the Circle of Evil in six stories. Tank is now his tailgunner, with Kirk passing him off as a particularly homely human. (Just go with it!)

Writer Arch Whitehouse does a great job with the aviation scenes and his experience as an RAF veteran shows. The villains offer a nice foil without being over the top. It’s clear Whitehouse was also paying attention to the world situation as we see Germans and Japanese soldiers partnering with the Circle of Evil in the years leading up to World War II.

Finally, Age of Aces did a very nice job putting this collection together, complete with vintage illustrations.

This book is identified on the cover as a PulpFest exclusive, but also appears to be available from Amazon.

Operator #5: The Red Invader * 2016 audiobook by Radio Archives* *3.5/5 stars*

Listened to the Radio Archives audio version (5 CDs) of The Red Invader, the first time I’ve listened to one of the Operator #5 stories as an audiobook, so this review is two-fold: the story and the audio presentation/experience

This classic pulp features a solid story with an impressive female spy as the villain, double crosses and international intrigue that of course only Jimmy Christopher can unravel. To my ear, there was little of the uncomfortable racial/cultural tropes that infect some of the earlier Operator #5 novels. But i could have missed them, and that brings us to item No. 2.

This didn’t work for me as an audiobook. The presentation was professional and the narration by Milton Bagby was solid. In the end, I think I would chalk this up to the story not lending itself well to audio. For me, at least, this is a common problem with action-heavy tales. I’d much prefer to read them than try to follow the story as I navigate traffic and weather in the car. Your mileage may vary!

Story: 4 stars/Presentation: 3 stars