It’s another collection of some of my favorite brainless reading. If there were ever books I knew going in that not only would deliver in mindless fun, but also be read in no time, it’s definitely the three paperbacks below. Let that soak in before the super-duper spy surprise at the end. Here’s a hint: Sam Jackson is a much better choice than David Hasselhoff.
THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. #7: THE RADIOACTIVE CAMEL AFFAIR by Peter Leslie — I think this might be the last MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. book I own, since my source for these closed a few years ago. That’s kinda sad, because these tie-ins come off as bigger-budget versions of the TV series.
This 1966 installment takes its sweet time to kick in to any sort of high gear. I mean, a third of the book goes by before we get any real action to speak of. Napoleon Solo is sent to desert regions of Africa to track down some stolen Uranium-235, which is being transported by camel, hence the title. Leslie follows a basic approach of your typical agent in danger and about to meet his maker, until being saved by the bell. Then the villain is a sort of low-rent Bond baddie bent on world domination.
Still, AFFAIR flies by at such a clip that once the guns are blazing, you can forgive the tedious build-up. But that does not mean that this novel is some sort of home run in spy thrillers — far from it. It’s a nice diversion with characters you know from the show, so it’s not like you are getting any real development of Solo and Illya. The plot is no great feat, but it’s a bit more believable than usual. And for the record, this is one of the better books in the series, because there are some true stinkers floating around.
PLEASURE ISLAND by Nick Carter — Already the benefits of Brad Mengel’s SERIAL VIGILANTES OF PAPERBACK FICTION is paying off, since I went through all my Nick Carter books to find authors usually featured here. This 1981 entry is Robert J. Randisi’s ghostwritten entry into the world of spy fiction, and it delivers like a poker hand.
This Killmaster adventure is firmly placed in the real-world side of the series. There are no giant monsters, evil lairs or any other type of 007 rip-off. It also deals with something that is barely mentioned in the rest of the series: Nick Carter’s age. The story starts off four years in the past, where Nick is dealing with agents in the midst of training, both of whom are central to the larger plot to come.
That deals with Nick being called upon as backup for a mission that really doesn’t require an agent like him, but he goes along, only to find out that the two agents in charge were those young trainees. Also, Nick has found himself under the shooting eye of a person called the Specialist, who is known to have killed more than 20 agents so far.
There is some information being auctioned off by the owner of an island where a resort has been built. Nothing really new there — it seems these books are populated by rich men who own islands. It becomes very apparent to Nick that these two agents in charge are in way over their heads, so he takes it upon himself to snag the vital info. His in is that the island owner is a major poker player, so if you are not a fan of poker at all, don’t read the book, as the game is crucial to the whole of the plot.
Randisi knows the audience he is writing for and does not disappoint one bit. It’s such a pleasure to see him try another genre besides Westerns. Again, as most people know, Nick comes out of it all in the end. It’s just the way Randisi keeps it all grounded that makes it such a fun read.
THE DESTROYER #130: WASTE NOT, WANT NOT by James Mullaney — Yes, it’s another adventure involving America’s favorite assassin, Remo Williams. This 2003 book was written by fan favorite Jim Mullaney, who soon would be part of the reboot with series creator Warren Murphy. But long before that ill-fated venture, Mullaney was sole writer on the series for quite some time.
During his run, he kept all his stories somewhat connected, in that characters would come back here and there — not so much to throw new readers for a loop, but just enough to make you want to seek out the earlier adventures. This one’s targets are garbage and a version of Jonestown, now called Jamestown.
Remo and Chiun are sent to a small South American country all because of a new device called the Vaporizer, which supposedly makes garbage disappear like a puff of smoke. Of course, Dr. Harold Smith can’t believe it and wants to know it’s for real. Before he can, our Sinanju odd couple is in Korea, since Remo has finally attained the title of Master of Sinanju, which makes Chiun a bit bitter since he doesn’t want to be put out to pasture, as the rules apply. But Remo won’t hear it and drags Chiun along on this new assignment, and they run into some Russians who tried to lure them for work before. This makes for some fun, since one Russian has “I love the USA” tattooed on his head.
Mullaney’s style is totally reminiscent of DESTROYER’s original team of Murphy and Richard Sapir, with the humor and satire you’ve come to expect in full force, plus a great villain behind the whole scheme. My only problem is that I have only two other Mullaney novels. I really need to remedy that situation.
MARVEL MASTERWORKS: NICK FURY: AGENT OF S.H.I.E.L.D. VOLUME 2 by Jim Steranko — The prize piece of my comic collecting is worth every penny I paid. Long before I was reading spy thrillers — be it Nick Carter, James Bond or even Remo Williams — my tastes were shaped by that eyepatch-wearing super-spy of the Marvel universe. And this 2009 collection collects the cream of the crop: the bulk of one Jim Steranko’s tenure on that title.
Words like “cinematic” come to mind when you read this collection. I remember coming across copies of old, beat-up NICK FURY titles and just being blown away by its look. There was no one doing what Steranko was doing, that’s for sure. I know everyone likes to lavish praise onto Will Eisner for creating a new look for comics and breaking all the rules, but it was Steranko who took all that and turned it up to 11.
This MASTERWORKS entry collects the issues that were not only written, but also drawn by Steranko. No more finishing the work of Jack Kirby — it was all Steranko and, wow, does it show.
Nick Fury is the man in charge of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Supreme Headquarters, International Espionage, Law-Enforcement Division), whose enemies usually consisted of Hydra, A.I.M. and the Yellow Claw, all of whom make appearances in these pages. Plus, you get Captain America guest-starring in a few of the stories, with cameos from Reed Richards and Ben Grimm of The Fantastic Four. Once the book moves into the Nick Fury solo comic, Steranko really goes full force with his cinematic approach, especially in the first issue, where the opening has no text at all as Fury enters some secret base in silence.
Here is a major selling point for those who have the old trade paperback from 2000: a six-page Steranko introduction, where he goes into great detail about his process, how Stan Lee did not understand his methods, and how films like RIFIFI influenced that first solo issue. The people who put together these MASTERWORKS books should be commended in giving the due this title so deserves. My only request is to put out VOLUME THREE sooner than later so I can have the whole run.
And if anyone knows Steranko, please tell him “thank you” for putting me on the spy kick at such a young age. I just wish there was a way we could bulk-erase the memory of that awful TV-movie that starred the Hoff. Talk about miscasting. —Bruce Grossman
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF NICK CARTER:
• CODE NAME: WEREWOLF by Nick Carter
• DEADLY DOUBLES by Nick Carter
• DEATH MESSAGE: OIL 74-2 by Nick Carter
• DEEP SEA DEATH by Nick Carter
• THE GOLDEN BULL by Nick Carter
• HIDE AND GO DIE by Nick Carter
• ICE TRAP TERROR by Nick Carter
• THE KOREAN KILL by Nick Carter
• MACAO by Nick Carter
• THE OMEGA TERROR by Nick Carter
• REVENGE OF THE GENERALS by Nick Carter
• STRIKE FORCE TERROR by Nick Carter
• TARGET: DOOMSDAY ISLAND by Nick Carter
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THE DESTROYER SERIES:
• THE BEST OF THE DESTROYER by Warren Murphy and Richard Sapir
• THE DESTROYER #5: DR. QUAKE by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #6: DEATH THERAPY by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #9: MURDER’S SHIELD by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #10: TERROR SQUAD by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #11: KILL OR CURE by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #13: ACID ROCK by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #14: JUDGMENT DAY by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #15: MURDER WARD by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #17: LAST WAR DANCE by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #18: FUNNY MONEY by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #19: HOLY TERROR by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #22: BRAIN DRAIN by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #23: CHILD’S PLAY by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #24: KING’S CURSE by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #26: IN ENEMY HANDS by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #30: MUGGER BLOOD by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #32: KILLER CHROMOSOMES by Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #33: VOODOO DIE by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #38: BAY CITY BLAST by Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #39: MISSING LINK by Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #41: FIRING LINE by Warren Murphy and Richard Sapir
• THE DESTROYER #42: TIMBER LINE by Warren Murphy and William Joy
• THE DESTROYER #45: SPOILS OF WAR by Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #46: NEXT OF KIN by Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #48: PROFIT MOTIVE by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #49: SKIN DEEP by Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #52: FOOL’S GOLD by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #55: MASTER’S CHALLENGE by Will Murray
• THE DESTROYER #56: ENCOUNTER GROUP by Warren Murphy and Will Murray
• THE DESTROYER #67: LOOK INTO MY EYES by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy
• THE DESTROYER #78: BLUE SMOKE AND MIRRORS by Will Murray
• THE DESTROYER #89: DARK HORSE by Will Murray
• THE DESTROYER #104: ANGRY WHITE MAILMEN by Will Murray
• THE DESTROYER #145: DRAGON BONES by Tim Somheil
• THE NEW DESTROYER: CHOKE HOLD by Warren Murphy and James Mullaney
• THE NEW DESTROYER: DEAD RECKONING by Warren Murphy and James Mullaney
• THE NEW DESTROYER: GUARDIAN ANGEL by Warren Murphy and James Mullaney
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. SERIES:
• THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. #2: THE DOOMSDAY AFFAIR by Harry Whittington
• THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. #3: THE COPENHAGEN AFFAIR by John Oram
• THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. #6: THE VAMPIRE AFFAIR by David McDaniel
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF WARREN MURPHY:
• GRANDMASTER by Warren Murphy
• TRACE: GETTING UP WITH FLEAS by Warren Murphy
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF ROBERT J. RANDISI:
• DOUBLE THE BOUNTY by Robert J. Randisi
• GALLOWS by Robert J. Randisi
• THE LAWMAN by Robert J. Randisi
• LONE STAR LAW edited by Robert J. Randisi
• THE GUNSMITH #16: BUCKSKINS AND SIX-GUNS by Robert J. Randisi
• THE GUNSMITH #23: THE RIVERBOAT GANG by Robert J. Randisi
• THE GUNSMITH #44: THE SCARLET GUN by Robert J. Randisi
• THE GUNSMITH #85: WINNER TAKE ALL by J.R. Roberts
• THE GUNSMITH #128: THE CALIENTE GOLD ROBBERY by Robert J. Randisi
• THE PICASSO FLOP by Vince Van Patten and Robert J. Randisi
• SHELTER #2: HANGING MOON by Robert J. Randisi
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I love seeing these old paperbacks, but does anyone out there know if an internet resource for thriller and horror paperbacks of the 1970s and 1980s? Thanks.
For hundreds of covers, go here http://movies.groups.yahoo.com/group/Action_Sixties/
The Group discusses the paperback series from the 1950s through the 1960s, ’70s & 80s, and includes paperback covers.
I recently donated all of my duplicate UNCLE, Nick Carter, etc., to a local library. I was using them for trade, but ran out of room (sigh).
Thanks for the kind words about one of my six Nick Carter books. They were fun to write, a nice departure from all the westerns I was writing back then.
RJR
I wish some publisher would reprint ‘The Final Affair’ by David McDaniel. It was a hypothetical conclusion to the ‘U.N.C.L.E.’ saga.