Book Review: The Further Adventures of Solar Pons

Book Review: The Further Adventures of Solar Pons by Basil Copper Wisconsin teenager August Derleth was a huge Sherlock Holmes fan. When he learned that there would apparently be no further Holmes stories forthcoming from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, he wrote a letter to the great man asking if he could write the stories from… Continue reading Book Review: The Further Adventures of Solar Pons

Book Review: The Butchering Art

Book Review: The Butchering Art by Lindsey Fitzharris It was not that long ago that surgeons and surgery were to be feared. Without anesthetics, the pain and shock of having your body cut into would often kill the patient. And if they survived that, the chances were good that infection would set in. A combination… Continue reading Book Review: The Butchering Art

Book Review: The Last Séance

Book Review: The Last Séance by Agatha Christie Agatha Christie is best remembered for her tales of mystery and detection, but she didn’t confine herself to that field. She also wrote stories with elements of the supernatural, and this new volume collects twenty of them in one place, rather than in scattered anthologies. The title… Continue reading Book Review: The Last Séance

TV Review: The Untamed

Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian enjoy a quiet moment between tragedies.

TV Review: The Untamed At the beginning, Wei Wuxian (Zhan Xiao) dies. The cultivation clans have banded together at Nightless City to battle the Yiling Patriarch, master of the dark arts. Wei Wuxian is confronted by his adoptive brother Jiang Cheng (Zhuocheng Wang) and best friend Lan Wangji (Yibo Wang). Wei winds up plummeting off… Continue reading TV Review: The Untamed

Book Review: Detectives Inc.

Book Review: Detectives Inc. by William Heyliger Dr. David Stone was once a police surgeon until he lost his sight. But he did not lose his keen mystery-solving instincts. Now he and his faithful seeing eye* dog Lady take on mysterious incidents in their New Jersey small town, aided by Dr. Stone’s young nephew Joe… Continue reading Book Review: Detectives Inc.

Magazine Review: Strange Fantasy Spring 1970

The stories illustrated on the cover are, from left, "The Shrine of Temptation", "Sword of Flowers" and "Planet of Change".

Magazine Review: Strange Fantasy Spring 1970 “Strange Fantasy” was a short-lived reprint digest-sized magazine from Ultimate Publishing. This issue’s stories were originally published between 1959 and 1964, which somewhat belies the cover text. “The Shrine of Temptation” by Judith Merril starts us off with an anthropologist’s tale of a mysterious shrine on an isolated island.… Continue reading Magazine Review: Strange Fantasy Spring 1970

Movie Review: The Brain that Wouldn’t Die

The Doctors Cortner and Jan shortly before things start going horribly wrong.

Movie Review: The Brain that Wouldn’t Die (1962) directed by Joseph Green The father/son surgical team of Dr. Cortner (Bruce Brightner) and Dr. Bill Cortner (Jason Evers) has just saved a patient with a radical technique involving direct brain stimulation, but this does not sit well with the older Cortner. He disapproves of human experimentation, wanting… Continue reading Movie Review: The Brain that Wouldn’t Die

Magazine Review: Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine June 1953

Magazine Review: Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine June 1953 edited by Ellery Queen Since this has floated to the top of my TBR pile, let’s look at another vintage issue of this classic mystery magazine. The cover depicting an aerialist falling to presumed death after being stuck with a dart has nothing to do with any… Continue reading Magazine Review: Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine June 1953

Movie Review: Adventures of Gallant Bess

Bess gives Ted his marching orders.

Movie Review: Adventures of Gallant Bess (1948) directed by Lew Landers Ted Daniels (Cameron Mitchell) and his pal Woody (Fuzzy Knight) have been sent out to capture a wild horse for their boss Bud Millerick (James Millican) for display in Millerick’s rodeo. Ted finds and manages to capture a magnificent chestnut mare he names Bess (Bess).… Continue reading Movie Review: Adventures of Gallant Bess

Comic Book Review: Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Heroes 1

Comic Book Review: Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Heroes 1 edited by Cory Sedlmeier As has been mentioned on this blog before, by the late 1940s, superheroes had become passe in comic books. A handful continued to be published over at National Publications (DC) on a regular basis, and there was the odd minor publisher title,… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Heroes 1