Chase

Using the pseudonym K.R. Dwyer, future horror-fiction superstar Dean Koontz wrote his first suspense novel, Chase (1971), when he was 25 years old. It’s a stalker-serial killer, cat-and-mouse book with no supernatural elements. In 1995, Koontz overhauled and re-released the book for modern audiences to enjoy under his own name.

Our hero is 25 year-old Ben Chase, a legitimate hero freshly returned from Vietnam where an act of bravery won him the Congressional Medal of Honor and made him a local celebrity in his suburban hometown. However, Ben wants nothing to do with fame or awards. He is suffering from severe PTSD and prefers to spend his time in isolation, locked in his rented room drinking whiskey and watching old movies.

One evening, Ben drives his Mustang alone to ruminate at the local lovers lane where teens are copulating in their cars. Ben spots a creepy stalker lurking in the woods watching the teens get busy. Eventually the stalker rips open the door to a vehicle and attacks a teen couple inside with a knife. Ben snaps into action and grabs the stalker in a choke hold. Unfortunately, the stalker killed one of the teens and traumatized the other, and Ben sustains a knife wound that allows the maniac to escape the scene. No one, including Ben, was able to get a good look at the stalker.

Ben’s most recent act of heroism catapults him to the front pages of the local newspaper again as a local hero when all the young vet wants is to be left alone. This leads to Ben receiving phone calls at home from the stalker who explains his motives and tells Ben he’s a marked man. The authorities are no help, so Ben must decide if he wants to wait for the stalker to attack or go on the offensive to eliminate this shadowy enemy.

Having read many of Koontz’s horror novels when he was at the top of his game in the 1980s, it’s cool to read one of his early works. Chase is a pretty basic suspense novel, but it’s also an important rumination on the psychological costs of war and the way we treated our vets returning from Vietnam. The reader cares about Ben’s physical and mental well-being and quickly becomes invested in his success as he matches wits and might against the stalker through the novel’s nightmarish, violent and climactic conclusion.

Chase is a quick read - practically a novella. Koontz eliminated about 25% of the fat from the original K.R. Dwyer manuscript and overhauled the dialog for the 1995 re-release available today. As such, it’s a completely fat-free reading experience, and a pretty great page-turner. It’s admittedly a pretty formulaic suspense story, but it’s a formula that has always worked for me and an easy recommendation for you. Check it out HERE

Steve Holland: The World's Greatest Illustration Art Model

On the Paperback Warrior Podcast, and on this very blog, I've often reminisced about my early childhood and my father's love of 20th century paperbacks. I can still remember summer days walking up our creaky staircase, hoping to discover something new or exciting about my humble, and often very quiet, father. In an unfinished guest bedroom, there were leaning stacks of welding manuals and plastic bins of old bolts. There were also stacks of boxes spilling over with western paperbacks. Occasionally, I would read one just to break up the monotony of Stephen King and Dean Koontz, but sifting through the books was the real pleasure for me at that age. Thumbing through the stacks, I began to think the vivid gun-slinging character depicted on the covers was actually the same hero, but was just calling himself Buchanan, Nevada Jim or some other tough-as-nails sounding name to fit the book. It wasn't until many years later that I discovered it was the same hero, only his real name was Steve Holland.

In a new coffee-table book called Steve Holland: The World's Greatest Illustration Art Model, author Michael Stradford reveals that he had a similar experience in the 1960s when he discovered Doc Savage in a Cleveland book store. In this visual and informative book, Stradford delves into the life and career of Holland, the most iconic male model of 20th century literature. My softcover version weighs in at over 200 pages and features hundreds of paperback covers, exclusive photos, and larger than life paintings that honor the man that launched a thousand paperbacks. 

The book's introduction is written by Jason Savas, a friend of mine that inherited Holland's crown in the 1980s. Savas, a former model employed by the esteemed Wilhelmina Model Agency, has been featured on a 1,000 book covers himself. Savas details his experiences in the industry working with Holland, a man he deemed “the consummate pro.” Stradford includes a biography of Savas, featuring a handful of stirring, action-adventure book cover scans as well as the beautiful Steve Assel painting The Iron Marshall (Louis L'Amour) that Savas posed for. 

Stradford's layout is divided into sections dedicated to various eras of Holland's career. For example, numerous pages detailing his paperback career are divided into genres like action, adventure, romance, western, sci-fi, etc. There is a complete section focusing on just the men's adventure magazine paintings, the Doc Savage era, and various advertisements featuring Holland's face or likeness. There is a biography on Holland, and a detailed interview with Holland's daughter Nicole and third wife Jean. Also, author Will Murray's expanded interview with Holland from Starlog is expanded and exclusively included. Murray has been the primary contributor to the Doc Savage series for decades. 

I really enjoyed artists Bob Larkin (Conan, Iron Fist, Hulk) and Bob Caras (The Avenger) discussing their experiences painting Holland. There are so many amazing artists and photographers interviewed for the book, including Alex Ross, Frank Reilly, Joe DeVito, Robert Osonitsch, and Jack Faragasso. It was personally rewarding to learn how humble and kind Holland was as described by his peers, friends and family. I never needed validity, but the real life Holland seemed to parallel the admirable, heroic characters he became on canvas.

Steve Hollad: The World's Greatest Illustration Art Model is absolutely a mandatory reference for anyone fascinated by 20th century paperbacks, magazines and male-oriented advertisements. I was enthralled for days just researching the paperbacks and building my shopping list based on these incredibly vivid covers. More than 20 years after his death, Holland's face is still selling publications. That is a testament to his phenomenal physique, likable face and ability to provide the perfect likeness for all of these amazing visuals. Stradford has honored Holland in such a beautiful way and I can't thank him enough for his labors in creating it. 

Get the book HERE

Secret Santa

Andrew Shaffer studied writing at Chicago's The Second City and is now a columnist for Huffington Post and RT Book Reviews. He created an atheist seasonal card company that was featured on The Colbert Report and co-owns the independent publisher 8th Circle Press. Shaffer became a NY Times bestselling author with humorous works like Fifty Shames of Earl Grey and How to Survive a Sharknado and Other Unnatural Disasters. I was searching for a holiday read and stumbled on his 2020 horror comedy Secret Santa. It was published by Quirk Books and is available in physical, digital, audio formats.

The novel takes place in 1980s New York and stars a spunky publishing editor named Lussi Meyer (and a hideous Nazi Devil Doll). Lussi's career has mostly consisted of publishing horror, but most recently she lost her editing job and has joined the ranks of the woefully unemployed. Desperate to pay the rent, Lussi's final attempt as an editor leads her to a prestigious publisher called Blackwood-Patterson. The building is old, the publisher has lost its way, and Lussi dreads working for this snooty “hardback” company. 

During the job interview, Lussi reminds the owner that Blackwood-Patterson hasn't produced a bestselling novel in over a decade. There's some banter back and forth on horror novels and the owner's idea that it's a distasteful genre. Rudely, she's asked to leave. But, before her departure, Lussi spots an old German doll (the hideous Nazi Devil Doll) in the owner's office. While handling the creepy toy, the owner has a heart attack and dies.

The owner's son has distanced himself from the publisher and isn't enthralled with the idea of running the company. After talking with Lussi, he requests that she work for him to reverse the publisher's declining sales performance. In doing so, Lussi introduces the concept of genre publishing and focuses on horror manuscripts that have been rejected. But, they haven't just been rejected. They have been placed in the building's dark and dusty basement to rot with rat feces and mildew. Needless to say, the publisher really hates genres (and would despise Paperback Warrior).

Lussi spends her time reading some good horror manuscripts and pissing off the charismatic chief editor nicknamed The Raven. But, at the annual office Christmas party, Lussi involuntarily takes part in a Secret Santa game where inebriated employees receive gifts from anonymous co-workers. Lussi's gift ends up being the creepy, disturbing Nazi Devil Doll from the former owner's office. Soon, Lussi realizes that her co-workers are being injured or killed based on the murderous magic of this ancient relic.

Secret Santa works as an average horror comedy. It's gross in all the right places and contains the obligatory funny dialogue to glue it together. I enjoyed the 1980s publishing lingo and Lussi's quest to find the next Stephen King, Dean Koontz or Peter Straub (the trinity of modern horror). Lussi is a lovable protagonist and the assembly of characters made it enjoyable. In terms of horror, I liken it to Grady Hendrix's Horrorstor - a new employee takes on a difficult assignment while battling workplace horror. If that's your thing, then Secret Santa is a wonderful gift. Buy a copy HERE

House of Evil

A lot of publishers were quick to embrace the new concept of paperback originals in the 1940s and 1950s. Houses like Pocket Book, Dell, Ace, Popular Library and our cherished Fawcett Gold Medal were all competing as the leader of this new publishing trend. They all created an identifiable marketing niche. Ace did doubles (for a dime more), Avon tried appealing art and Fawcett attracted authors with up front cash. It resulted in a massive catalog of titles. But in the midst of this publishing competition came a multitude of smaller publishers that just didn't make it. Zenith, Hillman, Quick Reader, etc. One of those publishers, Lion Books, only lasted nine years, 1949 to 1957, but released an abundance of noir fiction in their 223 offerings. In fact, some of the genre's leading pioneers contributed books to Lion. Stalwarts like Jim Thompson, Day Keene, Robert Bloch, David Goodis and Richard Matheson. Regardless of the short life span, that's an incredible offering. 

Lion Books would later fold, due in large part to it's founder, Martin Goodman, owning Timely Comics, which by 1960 would be a little 'ole comic company called Marvel. Needless to say, Goodman made bank, sold it and retired. All of this information, and detailed backstory on Lion Books' development and demise, is culled from Stark House's 2016 reprinting of three “sleeper” noir titles released by Lion - “Hero's Lust” (1953) by Kermit Jaediker, “The Man I Killed” (1952) by Shel Walker and the subject of this review, “HOUSE OF EVIL” (1954) by Clayre and Michael Lipman. Included as a bonus is an introduction and “skim” review of these books by Gary Lovisi, the author/collector behind genre zine the Paperback Parade. 

To say that “House of Evil” is bleak is an understatement. It's as dark as a mortuary drape and profoundly lives up to its name. The opening sentence ushers us into a world of depravity, grime and ultimately...death: “The girl at The Red Parrot was a slut”. And we quickly learn about her. 

Nina Valjean is a prostitute, peddling her washed up goods at the Red Parrot, where Bennie the bartender is pimping and Vernie is flashing a different kind of shot in the corner. Nina's arms prove she's a prisoner of Hell, and she's over 24-hours removed from her last fix. She doubles her asking price for “Smith”, a rough customer she's rode before. Hesitantly, she takes the cash, gets her fix and then gets in another fix a few hours later – strangled to death in an empty apartment.   

Our protagonist Roman is then introduced. He's a swell town guy, working as an engineer and climbing the ranks at a local firm. His girl, Joyce, is out of town for a reason. They have reached the crossroads and Joyce is ready to move on. Roman doesn't want her to, and it's that gloomy depression that envelopes Roman, the book and the reader. After Roman stops by Joyce's empty apartment for a suitcase, he finds the strangled stranger (which we know is Nina) and becomes paranoid that the authorities will suspect him as the killer. Refusing to report the crime, Roman heads out as a solo gumshoe, converting the book from thriller to whodunit and back to thriller when the killer strikes again. 

As the mystery thickens, the authors present a weird dreamlike delivery of the killer's thoughts. It's an abysmal, terrifying portrait of dead babies, bodies on meat-hooks and books of blood. It's Lovecraft on absinthe. We know the killer's thoughts and eventually who the next target is. While we wrestle with the killer's true identity, Roman and a stripper named Cecille team up to stop the killer before Joyce becomes the next victim. 

“House of Evil” presents everything we love about noir fiction. It's the dark suspense that Richard Matheson, Robert Bloch, Richard Laymon and even today's masters like Dean Koontz feed on. At about 150-pages, it's a short read that utilizes a slow reveal to the end. I read it in one fell swoop and was thoroughly invested. Oddly, these married authors never wrote another book. The two did write a 1943 play and six shorts that appeared in various zines like 'Ellery Queen'. It's a shame because the strength of the story-telling would have warranted a potentially good career. But, as they always say, everyone has at least one book in them. It's that second effort that's so allusive.

You can obtain a copy of the Stark House book here. 

Devil Wind

It’s 1985ish and I’m a young adolescent walking around our local K-Mart department store with my $5 allowance for the week. I’m typically scoping out the latest Hardy Boys installment, those cool “modern” ones with the explosive painted covers, or an R-rated movie novelization (living in the bible-belt, R-rated flicks were off the table, so my only option was to read the novelizations). But today…I see the incredible covers for a series of young-adult horror paperbacks called Dark Forces. I snag Devil Wind, the fourth installment, and camp out in my porch rocker to consume black magic, the occult, and the Dark Forces. I don’t recall the quality of the book, but I do remember enjoying it and picking up a few other books in the series before moving on to Stephen King, John Saul, and Dean Koontz.

 
Bantam published 15 Dark Forces young-adult paperbacks from 1983-1984. These were all stand-alone novels - roughly 160 pages – that challenged for market superiority among the crowded ranks of Point Horror, Goosebumps, Private School, and prolific author Christopher Pike (Kevin McFadden). That guy was everywhere. The series was authored by a rotating blend of writers including Scott Siegel, Les Logan, Bruce Coville, and Jane Polcovar. The collaboration of Paul Alexander and Laurie Bridges produced three series installments - Magic Show, Devil Wind, and Swamp Witch. 

For funsies, I tracked down a copy of Devil Wind and gave it an adult spin nearly 40 years removed from my first experience with the book.

 
The novel stars Peter Wardwell, a high schooler living in the small coastal New England town of Northport Bay. In the book’s opening pages, readers learn that a dilapidated house was recently demolished, and Peter found an old whistle in the rubble. With his new whistle, and his family’s boat, he takes his sweetheart Mary Jane (human not plant) to a small, hidden cove he discovers down the coast. Mary Jane immediately gets the creeps there and the place reeks of rotted flesh. But Peter insists they stick around and soon pulls out his whistle and takes a blow. A thick fog rolls in and the two become separated. Peter falls into a deep slumber and Mary Jane is rescued by a salty sailor. The two soon find Peter and bring him back home. Only, this isn't really Peter.

 
Over the course of the book readers experience Peter’s transformation from a kind American boy into a Satanic warlock from the 1700s. You see Northport Bay experienced a curse from Simon Wardwell, Peter’s great-great-gr….you get the point. Simon died in the little cove, along with his sadistic followers. But, when Peter blew the whistle, his body was possessed by this creepy Satan-worshiper. Between Mary Jane, the salty sailor, and a wise old woman in town, they must stop Peter from raising Hell on Northport Bay on Halloween.

As a breezy horror paperback, Devil Wind is a lot of fun to read. The four key characters made a great team-up to fight the forces of evil, complimented by the authors' emphasis on character development (despite the short page count). It's a young-adult novel, so don't expect any Jack Ketchum or Bryan Smith slaughterhouse action. Instead, the storyline is your classic small-town horror that places average people into extreme situations. I got the vibe of John Carpenter's excellent The Fog, so if that's your palette, then this should please any age group. 

Buy a copy of this book HERE

Dead Low Tide

“Dead Low Tide” was John D. MacDonald’s sixth published novel. The 1953 Fawcett Gold Medal release is a tasty bit of Florida noir that predates his iconic Travis McGee series by over a decade and remains a fresh and exciting crime thriller 66 years later. The book is still in print currently with a loving introduction by Dean R. Koontz.

The narrator of “Dead Low Tide” is the extremely likable Andy McClintock, an over-qualified clerk with a business degree from Syracuse working for a Florida gulf-coast home-builder named John Long. One night, Andy is visited by his boss’ wife at home. Mrs. Long is concerned that her husband has recently been behaving strangely and asks Andy to snoop around and determine what’s happening. Andy is taken aback by both the visit but reluctantly gets roped into helping her.

The paperback’s back-cover synopsis reveals that Mr. Long is murdered with Andy as the primary suspect. Of course, it falls upon Andy to solve the crime and save his own hide. It’s a setup you’ve read before, and the author’s execution of the basic murder mystery format is predictably solid. The appeal of this vintage paperback is that MacDonald’s writing is top-notch, and the reader really gets to know and love Andy through the first-person narration. MacDonald touches on many of the themes he explores decades later in the Travis McGee books - most notably the ins-and-outs of real estate development on Florida’s coasts. Moreover, he makes it interesting, and you walk away knowing a thing or two you didn’t know before.

MacDonald creates a vivid supporting cast particularly in the form of Andy’s buxom neighbor with whom he used to sleep before they decided to just be friends and confidantes. The hapless police chief, the intrepid local reporter, and the clever town attorney are also examples of superior characterization in this thin, fast-moving novel.

I’ve been working my way through MacDonald’s stand-alone novels and the quality varies wildly. “Dead Low Tide”’ is a definite winner in the bunch - perhaps the best I’ve read thus far. The central mystery is compelling but not groundbreaking. However, the writing is so good that you won’t want it to end. Highly recommended.

Buy a copy of this book HERE

Blood Oath

Canadian-American author David Morrell wrote First Blood in 1972 as his first published novel. The book was adapted into the blockbuster film launching the successful Rambo film franchise. With nearly 30 novels to his credit, Morrell has practiced in multiple genres including horror, action-adventure, mystery and even comics. I've always enjoyed his work and have owned his 1982 novel Blood Oath for awhile. The back cover features a Stephen King blurb that says he defies readers not to finish this novel in a single sitting. Taking the horror icon's challenge, I opened to the first page.

Peter Houston is a successful novelist and college professor. As a child, his father lost his life in a French battlefield during WW2. Pete's mother insisted that his father was a great man who gave everything for his country. After his mother passes away, Pete and his wife Jan journey to France to visit his father's battlefield grave for the first time. But, after asking the cemetery's U.S. military administration about his father's grave, they have no record of it existing.

When probing various U.S. diplomatic correspondents, Pete receives no helpful information about his father’s final resting place. As this odd mystery begins to unfold, Pete begins to imagine that maybe his father was never killed in the battle and is possibly still alive. The only clue may lie with the name Pierre de St. Laurent, a French soldier who promised Pete's mother that he would always be the caregiver for his father's grave. When speaking with the French residents in and around the battlefield site, the locals nearly run in horror at the mention of St. Laurent's name. After Pete and Jan are attacked multiple times, their luck finally runs out and Jan is murdered by an unknown assailant. Knowing her murder is linked to the mystery, Pete sets  out to find his wife's killer and to locate the real history about his father.

Blood Oath is like this fantasy marriage of Hammond Innes and Dean R. Koontz. It mixes in WW2 history, Nazi gold, high-altitude adventure and the idea of the average citizen on the run from strange and shadowy government operatives. The action moves at a breakneck speed with very little time for dialogue or discussion. The bad guys (no spoiler here) send waves of assassins after Pete and force him to utilize the training and expertise he's acquired while researching his own novels. It parallels Morrell's own expertise in firearms, evasive driving, outdoor survival, crisis negotiation - all skills acquired by the author during his research. I thought the pacing, character development and story progress were superb, but the ending was a real letdown with its indulgent castle setting and stereotypical villain.

If you are looking for a high speed, high adventure yarn, Blood Oath is certainly entertaining. Morrell has better books (Creepers for example) and whether or not this is a mandatory read is going to depend on how deep of a fanboy you are for this author. As to Stephen King's challenge, this one took me two days and wasn't the same enthralling experience he predicted.

Buy a copy of this book HERE

Out of the Night

Author Patrick Whalen is a former Army paratrooper and social worker. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Whalen authored four classic horror paperbacks for Pocket Books - Monastery (1988), Out of the Night (1990), Night Thirst (1991), and Death Walker (1992). Thankfully, these out-of-print books were resurrected by Cemetery Dance and now exist as affordable ebooks. My first experience with the books is Out of the Night.

The book begins by introducing all of the key players that will play a prominent role in this supernatural narrative. First is Sheriff Henry Sutton, a capable hero that is a former Chicago police officer. The small town of Ravina, California placed their trust in Sutton to keep their streets safe and it is a vow that Sutton doesn't take lightly. Second is a man named Cable, who just happened to stop off in Ravina during the city's worst week ever. He's a newly divorced archaeologist on his way to meet a longtime friend and industry associate named Larchmont. Rounding out the cast of characters is the town doctor, an Air Force coroner, and several of Sutton's deputies.

So, what does Ravina have to offer this diverse group of people? Zombies. Demons. Unholy minions from Hell. Oh, and twin little people that run the town's graveyard and are responsible for bringing an ancient order of Old Gods into our universe for death and total destruction, likeStranger Things. 

Out of the Night was a mesmerizing, barbaric reading experience that left me cringing after every blood-soaked page. Whalen's writing smoothly enveloped the chapters with an addictive, plot-propulsive story that incorporated Middle Eastern mythology, small-town Americanism, the heavy burden of responsibility, and the more intimate details of love and love lost. It was a wonderful blend of various storylines, mixed with a fantastic selection of characters, that made this such a treat to read. But, it isn't for the weak. The graphic violence, gore, and stark supernatural terror required a somewhat strong stomach. But, if you enjoy other authors of Whalen's era, like Dean R. Koontz, Dan Simmons, John Saul (he’s way more tame), and Rick Hautala, then Out of the Night has to be your next read.

Buy a copy of this book HERE

Paperback Warrior Podcast - Episode 63

Today’s Paperback Warrior Podcast explores the life and work of sleaze-fiction author Orrie Hitt. Also this week: Chiefland, Florida! Quilting Babes! Andre Norton! Dean R. Koontz! Dial M for Man! Edward S. Aarons! The Net! And much more! Listen on your favorite podcast app or www.paperbackwarrior.com, or download directly HERE 

Listen to "Episode 63: Orrie Hitt" on Spreaker.