Pro Se Press is back with another volume of Thunder Jim Wade, the short-lived Doc Savage clone,. This time it’s a complete novella rather than a collection of short stories.
Frank Schildiner gives us “The Horror of Hyberborea.”
For those who missed my prior postings on Wade, he was created by SF author Henry Kuttner for the Thrilling line of pulps, and lasted five stories, reprinted recently by Altus Press.
He is usually written off as a Doc Savage clone, but he is different enough to warrant a closer look. He was raised by a lost civilization (Minos, a lost colony of Crete in Africa) after his explorer father died. He has various mental and physical abilities, most due to his upbringing. Afterwards, he became a sort of roving troubleshooter, operating out of a secret island in the south Pacific. His main claim to fame his unique vehicle called the Thunderbug (a combination tank, submarine, airplane). It’s built using a special alloy, and hinted that the motor(s) may be atomic.
He is aided by two associates who fill the “Monk–Ham” dynamic: “Red” Argyle” & Dirk Marat. Red is the burly Monk type, and Dirk is a small blond man who likes knives, thus the Ham type.
In this story, they deal with the threat of a Nazi scientist (who is actually the son of a classic fictional character) trying to make use of the power of Hyberborea to possibly rule the world. Here, Hyberborea is a lost civilization that once ruled the world, but was defeated thanks the Minoans. Thunder Jim, being raised by a lost Minoan colony, has the means of stopping this, but will he be able to? Read and find out.
This is a pretty good adventure. This is a good setup for further adventures. Be interesting if this is used.
