Tagged: novel

REVIEW: Bad Island

bad-island-300x450-7891215[[[Bad Island]]]
By Doug TenNapel
224 pages, Scholastic Graphix, $10.99

Author/artist Doug TenNapel impressed me last year with his Ghostopolis, a fresh graphic novel for young adult readers. He’s back this month with Bad Island and I am less impressed. He has an ambitious story to tell, actually two stories that parallel and intertwine at times, but the execution leaves a lot to be desired.

The biggest problem I have is that this family of four castaways on a mysterious island react unlike real people, constantly taking me out of the story to scratch my head and wonder how that happened. The family set out on an enforced bonding vacation that the eldest child, teenage Reese objects to. What aspires to be a three hour tour finds the tiny ship tossed by a storm that leaves the shipwrecked and the crew left on a deserted island.

Their efforts at survival are given incredible short-shrift with dad, Lyle, proving fairly inept. There’s an unrealistic calmness among the quartet with way too much focus from younger daughter Janie’s obsession over her pet snake.  That dad allows her to carry the snake corpse around is inexcusable.

When there is evidence that alien life exists on the planet, they accept this way too calmly so there’s a lot of running, screaming and activity without a great deal of rational reason.

On the other hand, the other story involves aliens but it’s still a story about a father and son. The tension between them remains the same as Lyle and Reese, but both are not well-developed enough to make you care.  He gives us an unbelievable human family contrasted with an alien reality that is woefully underdeveloped.

As hinted at on the cover, there island itself is a character in the story but I don’t want to give away some of the book’s obvious fun.

While the writing fails to work this time around, TenNapel’s art and storytelling remains engaging. The color, from Katherine Garner and Josh Kenfield and an army of ten, works exceptionally well, making the graphic novel pleasing to the eye. He and the colorists differentiate the island antics and the outer space thread making it clear to readers where we are and what is happening.

I wanted to like this more than I did, but the poor characterizations and leaps from logic robbed the book of its potential power.

NEW REVIEW COLUMN AT ALL PULP- PULP CLASSIC!

PULP CLASSIC- Reviews by Joshua Pantalleresco
TARZAN OF THE APES by Edgar Rice Burroughs

Ask me to pick my all time Edgar Rice Burroughs creation, and I think most people would say John Carter.  To me, however, Tarzan was Burroughs at his most refined.  There is a level of sophistication in Tarzan that is unsurpassed with any other of Burroughs’ characters.  In fact, I’ll go so far to say that Tarzan of The Apes is probably Edgar Rice Burroughs’ most complex book in terms of character development, as the Tarzan that starts the novel is not the Tarzan that finishes it.  Part origin, part coming of age and part adventure,  I’m amazed with just how layered Tarzan really was, and it makes me realize just why this character is still so popular to this day.

Tarzan of the Apes begins with his parents arriving in to the harsh unforgiving jungle.  Alice and Clayton battle the jungle valiantly, yet ultimately succumb to the harsh terrain, leaving baby Tarzan alone in the jungle, where he is eventually adopted by apes.  The first half of the book is about Tarzan growing up in this environment.  This stuff is among my favorite writing of Burroughs period.  From covering the harsh realities of the jungle, to Tarzan discovering how to use tools, Burroughs does a great job separating Tarzan from a conventional savage and was able to show that Tarzan had a lot of cunning, reason and a little bit of a sense of humor.

One of my favorite scenes is Tarzan discovering his parent’s house and discovering the books in the library.   The fact that he spends his time learning how to read astounded me when I first read it as a kid and still astounds me now.  The thing I tend to hate with Tarzan in most of the television shows is that they make him out to be an above average ape man and nothing more.  I can’t think of anything cooler than the fact that he used a children’s book to teach himself how to read in English.  That’s an incredible feat and I’ve always thought that always having him be the simple ape man he is in most movies and television shows takes away a real important aspect of his character – his desire to become more than he is.

This facet of him is presented best when Jane enters the story.  He sees her and feels an instant attraction.  He starts communicating with her with the English he learns through letters.  He is sprung into action when one of his local enemies captures Jane, which leads to Tarzan rescuing her.  When he attempts to woo her with a very simplistic approach and is rebuked, he takes the first steps into becoming the gentleman English lord he is descended from.  When she leaves, Tarzan seeks her out, learning more how to communicate, act like a man, and all the while making some acute observations about the ways of men he doesn’t approve of.

In the end, he saves Jane from a marriage that would have made her miserable, yet doesn’t walk away with the girl.  All in all, it left me wanting more, just like it did when I first picked up the book years ago.   Tarzan is everything you want in a great story.  Despite the savage setting, there is something we can all relate to in Tarzan in this first book.  It’s one of my favorites.  I can’t recommend it enough.  It’s a solid five out of five stars.

GUEST REVIEW-DAMBALLA MAKES HISTORY AGAIN!

Charles Saunders Makes History—Again!

A review of Damballa, by Charles Saunders.

Guest reviewer Joe Bonadonna
Charles Saunders created Imaro, the first black sword and sorcery hero, over 30 years ago. He made history with that one, folks. Now, with his new novel, Damballa, Saunders has once again made history—giving us the first black crime-fighting superhero in pulp fiction. But this novel is a lot more than an action-adventure story. This one is set in the world of boxing, in 1938 Harlem. It’s film noir and hard-boiled detective, with a wonderful cast of characters. Filled with Nazis, gangsters and jazz, cultural insight, plenty of atmosphere, and a serious subtext dealing with bigotry and racism, this action-packed novel climaxes in one blistering boxing match, and an ending that is both justice served, as well as emotionally satisfying. Saunders knows how to write, how to tell a story and fill it with twists and surprises, and he is an authority on boxing. I highly recommend this novel to anyone who likes a great story with characters who live and breathe. You won’t be disappointed. I guarantee it.

—Joe Bonadonna, author of Mad Shadows: The Weird Tales of Dorgo the Dowser

Reviews from the 86th Floor: Barry Reese looks at The Good, The Bad and The Unknown


The Good, The Bad and The Unknown
Written by Mike Frigon
Art by Verne Anderson
Wild Cat Books
ISBN 0982311680
276 pages, $13.50

This one’s an odd mix: a novel length tale of the Moon Man followed by short stories of Doctor Satan and then Secret Agent X. The Moon Man tale is an epic one and very exciting — it is definitely the standout tale of the bunch. It does lag a bit in the middle and I think the whole thing could have been trimmed a little to make it punchier but there are some great action sequences and the Moon Man and his cast are handled very well.

The Doctor Satan story is fun — it’s hard to get Satan wrong — and I enjoyed the twists and turns the story took.

The Secret Agent X story… eh. I’ve never cared for X so I’m a hard sell here. It’s well written and the notion of an “evil” Secret Agent X is a fun one. I think I honestly enjoyed this story more than any of the old Secret Agent X tales.

The art by Verne Anderson is interesting. It’s very different from traditional pulp artwork but it works here. There are 26 (!) pieces of art and some work far better than others but overall I really liked it. It’s cartoony in places but I don’t think that’s a bad thing at all. It’s fun to see a different take on Moon Man and Doctor Satan in particular.

I give it 3 out of 5 stars.

“Last Blood” To Be First Film From Webcomic?

This is a milestone: it was announced at San Diego Comic-Con that a live-action adaptation of Last Blood, a webcomic first published on Keenspot back in 2006, is in the works with Simon Hunter (The Mutant Chronicles) directing with an anticipated 2012 release. To our knowledge, this is the furthest any webcomic has gone towards being adapted into a feature film.

The premise is amazingly simple: After zombies take over the Earth, vampires must protect the last surviving humans so they can live off their blood. Wackiness, as they say, ensues.

Last Blood will be produced by Ironclad exec producer Christian Arnold-Beutel as well as Red Giant Media’s Aimee Schoof, Isen Robbins and Benny R. Powell, and Chris and Bobby Crosby. The Crosby siblings created the graphic novel with illustrator Owen Gieni, and Bobby Crosby wrote the script with Nick V. Sterling.

AIRSHIP 27 AND CORNERSTONE BRING ON THE END OF A HORROR TRILOGY!

THE HORROR RETURNS

Airship 27 Productions & Cornerstone Book Publishers are thrilled to announce the release of the third and final chapter in Michael Vance’s WEIRD HORROR TALES trilogy. WEIRD HORROR TALES – LIGHT’S END, is an amazing, page turning suspense thriller that is one of this author’s finest works to date and a fantastic culmination to this masterful terror filled series.

Welcome to Light’s End, a small, quaint little fishing town on the rugged coast of Maine.  It’s a quiet place much like many other such communities throughout New England.  And yet there is a presence of evil about the streets and byways of this harmless appearing hamlet. For here, amidst the age old Yankee traditions of its citizens lurks a dark secret, a brooding, religious philosophy which infects every aspect of daily life.

Dare you enter Light’s End and uncover what lies beneath its pleasant, homey façade?  Dare you challenge your sanity and confront the sublime horrors that await you here, in this cursed nexus of dementia.

Award winning author, Michael Vance unleashes his dark imagination in this tense, gripping novel of sheer terror that readers will never forget.  Often compared to the writings of H.P. Lovecraft, Vance’s work is not for the faint of heart, featuring a cover by famed painter Keith Birdsong and ten interior illustrations by Eric York.  Bolt the door, lock the shutters and keep the candle lit, the end is near, Light’s End.

AIRSHIP 27 PRODUCTIONS – PULP FICTION FOR A NEW GENERATION!

ISBN:  1-613420-14-5

ISBN-13 978-1-613420-14-0

Produced by Airship 27

Published by Cornerstone Book Publishers

Release date: 08/05/2011

Retail Price: $21.95

Digital copy available: 07/22/2011 @

(http://homepage.mac.com/robmdavis/Airship27Hangar/index.html)

NEW PULP PARTNERS WITH STAN LEE FOUNDATION

NEW PULP ANNOUNCES ROUND ROBIN TO BENEFIT STAN LEE FOUNDATION

New Pulp, a recently organized Branding Movement to unite creators and publishers of modern Pulp fiction under a collective banner, announces today its first collective New Pulp publication. According to New Pulp founder Tommy Hancock, this project is a twenty chapter novel currently being written in a round robin style, that meaning each chapter is written by a different author. This multiple author narrative, entitled PARIAH AND THE PURPLE PRINCE, is the inaugural project of writers and publishers under the New Pulp Banner.

“New Pulp,” according to Hancock, “is a designation that applies to creators and publishers who, having found their inspiration in the stories and style established by the writers of classic Pulp stories in the early Twentieth Century, are continuing to write, draw, and publish tales of action and adventure in that tradition. New characters, new stories, new ideas, all owing a debt to the Pulp greats, but also written to be the two fisted, high octane adventure stories of today and the New Pulp classics of tomorrow.”

“This current project,” Hancock states, “actually sprouted out of the first New Pulp convention, Pulp Ark, held this past May in Arkansas. Possibly the single largest gathering of New Pulp creators to date, more than 25 creators representing at least nine publishers attended this convention and, of course, many ideas and concepts were discussed and debated. One of those discussions centered around how this collection of writers, artists, and publishers, now standing together under the banner of New Pulp could not only present and produce a unified product, a work representative of all the variety that New Pulp has to offer, but also a way that we could contribute something worthwhile, not just great stories. That desire quickly became an idea for a novel, round robin style.”

PARIAH AND THE PURPLE PRINCE is a novel in progress that started with a bare bones minimalist plot suggested by Hancock. Twenty authors were invited to participate in this project, their names being written individually on single strips of paper. As these names were drawn, each writer was assigned a chapter in the order their name was selected, the first writer getting Chapter 1 and so forth. Each writer gets a month to complete their chapter, although Hancock reports that the fourth writer is nearly done with Chapter Four and the project is just over a month along. “We are all taking this very seriously,” Hancock reports, “not only because we want the world to see what New Pulp is about, but also we are excited about the opportunity to give of ourselves, our time and effort and whatever money this novel might raise to not only a worthy cause, but toward something we all have a stake in-Improving education and literacy.”

All proceeds resulting from the sale of PARIAH AND THE PURPLE PRINCE will go to The Stan Lee Foundation. Founded to carry on the legacy of Stan Lee, the creative genius behind Marvel Comics and creator of a literal universe of iconic characters, the Stan Lee Foundation’s primary goal is to make literacy, education, and involvement in the arts accessible across America. A non-profit organization, The Stan Lee Foundation develops, designs, and sponsors programs and events with the singular purpose of bringing literacy, knowledge, and artistic enrichment to Americans from coast to coast.

“It is an honor,” Hancock states, “for each and every writer and creator involved in this project to be a part of giving something to an organization started by a man that has given us as fans and the world itself so much. The chance to contribute to The Stan Lee Foundation, to help this group further the fantastic efforts into education it has already initiated, to be just a little part of the progress and success that its various endeavors will see, is the best payday any of us could receive. With the opportunity of New Pulp working with the Stan Lee Foundation in other ways in the future also being possible, we truly want to give our best to this novel project and intend for this work to benefit future artists, learners, and readers everywhere.”

PARIAH AND THE PURPLE PRINCE will be published by Pro Se Press, the New Pulp publisher Hancock is a partner in. The writers contributing a chapter each to the novel include Hancock, Joshua Reynolds, Ron Fortier, Barry Reese, Thomas McNulty, Megan Smith, Wayne Skiver, Terry Alexander, Sean Ellis, Van Allen Plexico, Derrick Ferguson, Nancy Hansen, Adam Garcia, Wayne Reinagel, Mike Bullock, Andrew Salmon, Jim Beard, Bill Craig, Rich Steeves, and Tim Byrd. Collectively, these writers represent work in nearly every genre imaginable, from western to science fiction to crime to horror and beyond within New Pulp and as a group have worked with multiple prose and comic publishers producing the finest New Pulp has to offer.

For more information concerning New Pulp or the round robin novel PARIAH AND THE PURPLE PRINCE, contact Hancock at proseproductions@earthlink.net and follow New Pulp on http://www.newpulpfiction.com/.

Review: “Limitless”

What would you do if you could fully tap your brain’s capabilities? Every generation or so, the question is pondered, thanks to the latest breakthroughs or studies in neuroscience. It makes for an interesting discussion and sometimes, brilliant works such as Flowers for Algernon (the great book by Daniel Keyes, and Charly the movie with Cliff Robertson). The most recent addition to this sub-genre of fiction is The Dark Fields, a novel by Alan Glynn, which became the basis for the movie [[[Limitless]]], which was released on DVD this week by Twentieth-Century Fox Home Entertainment.

If you were Eddie Morra, you apparently turn into something unlike yourself. We meet him teetering atop a high-rise as people bang on his security door to enter his apartment fortress. Flashing back, we learn what happened to turn a slacker into a genius. Leslie Dixon’s screenplay, which makes huge changes from the novel, shows us a sad sack, but a sad sack with a novel contract, unable to write. After months of not writing and living like a slob, he meets his book editor girlfriend Lindy only to be dumped.

A chance meeting with the brother of his ex-wife introduces him to the experimental drug NZT-48 which clarifies his thinking, making him hyper-aware of the world around him and focuses his mind, allowing him to accomplish more in a day than he has in six months. We see him write the overdue first chapters and actually hand printed pages to his stunned editor (mostly because editors so rarely see printed anything until the final book, but I digress).

The brother-in-law winds up dead and Eddie locates and steals the remaining supply of the drug and begins using them with increasing regularity to take his newfound powers of concentration and improve his life. He masters the piano, learns multiple languages, can see trends and capitalize on them– and here’s where both book and movie begin to veer off course. Rather than tap the creative energies that led to Eddie’s career, he somehow switches gears to become a day trader to get rich and then moves into the financial world. Meantime, his drug dependency grows and weird things begin to happen to him. (more…)

Reviews from the 86th Floor: Barry Reese Looks At the Chinatown Death Cloud Peril


THE CHINATOWN DEATH CLOUD PERIL
Paul Malmont
ISBN 978-0-7432-8785-2

I realize that I’m coming rather late to this novel, which was published in 2006 and set the pulp world on fire. I’d heard many good things about it but I’d never gotten around to grabbing a copy for myself until now. This book takes the real-life figures of Lester Dent, Walter Gibson, L Ron Hubbard and others and puts them into an adventure that could have been straight out of the pulps they made their living in. The mystery starts with the death of H.P. Lovecraft and soon throws its net a good deal wider than that.

The novel crackles with its scenes that describe the pulp industry of the time, showing the hard life led by the men who were paid pennies per word. Honestly, I could have read an entire book of Gibson, Dent and Hubbard arguing over the proper way to write pulp.

But this isn’t a nonfiction work — there’s fictional elements aplenty at play here and the story ultimately must be judged as both historical fiction and an adventure novel. It’s in that last regard that I feel the book falls a bit flat. Malmont does a wonderful job describing the main characters and their neuroses but the action sequences didn’t have the crackle of old-time pulp and the central villain stopped the narrative every time he appeared. I really could have cared less about him or his motivations.

Special word must be given to the epilogue, which is narrated by a special character that made me smile. I was somewhat surprised by the “revelation” that Lester Dent retired to La Plata to write Doc Savage and Avenger novels “for many years.” Though The Avenger was always credited to Kenneth Robeson (the same pen name that Dent and others used on Doc), The Avenger novels were NOT written by Lester Dent. They were the work of Paul Ernst, a wonderful pulp writer who never seems to get the proper amount of respect.

There are many who will tell you that this book is the best that New Pulp has to offer. I disagree. It is very good and I think it does an admirable job of reaching out to the non-pulp audience, informing them of the field’s past and those who worked in it. But I found myself comparing it to Wayne Reinegal’s books, which also mix real-life figures with adventurous settings. If forced to choose, I’d go with Reinegal, who manages to both inform the reader and create genuinely thrilling action-oriented plots, to boot. Still, this book is well worth your time and if you’re a pulp aficionado, you should look for it ASAP.

I give 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Reviews from the 86th Floor: Barry Reese Reviews Python Isle (Audiobook)


Python Isle
Written by Will Murray, Based on a concept by Lester Dent
Unabridged Audiobook
Radio Archives
ISBN 978-1610814010

Radio Archives has just released an audio version of Will Murray’s classic Doc Savage novel and it’s the same level of high quality that listeners have learned to associate with the company. Production values are top notch and the narrator (Michael McConnohie) does a fine job with story, capturing the essence of each character. The story itself leads Doc and his crew to the titled island, where a mystery that dates back to the Bible awaits. It’s a fine addition to the Doc Savage mythos and “feels” right. The concept was from Lester Dent but Murray does an admirable job remaining true to the overall style while also inserting a few of his own ideas and stylistic choices. I read this novel in book form upon its release but had never gone back to it since: I was pleasantly surprised how much I remembered as the narration carried me through.

Well worth your money!

I give it 5 stars out of 5.