Forgotten Classics of Pulp Fiction: ‘The Abyss of Wonders’

The Abyss of Wonders, by Perley Poore Sheehan (1875-1943), is one of Murania Press‘ “Forgotten Classics of Pulp Fiction.” Appearing in The Argosy in 1915, it’s one of several early works by Sheehan that appeared in the Munsey pulps. In addition to the novel, we get a nice introduction on Sheehan and his career by editor/publisher Ed Hulse.

Starting out as a journalist, Sheehan turned next to editing, eventually working for the Munsey pulps before leaving to writing stories, mainly for the Munsey line. Among these early works are a few fantastical works only a few of which have yet to be reprinted, such as “The Copper Princess” (1913) and “The Woman of the Pyramids” (1914). “The Abyss of Wonders” was reprinted in book form, but as a limited edition in 1953. Steeger Books just reprinted “The Woman of the Pyramids,” and Murania will be reprinting “The Copper Princess” in their second series.

Sheehan, like several other pulpsters, left the pulps for a career in Hollywood as a script writer (many of his own works where turned into films) and director before returning to the pulps, now mainly writing for Ned Pines‘ Thrilling line. The works from this period have mainly been reprinted; some that I’ve reviewed include the Captain Trouble series, the Doctor Coffin series, and the Tarzan-like Kwa of the Jungle series.

The Abyss of Wonders is an interesting work that may not appeal to everyone. There is an undercurrent of spiritualism (or maybe Theosophy, which was popular among some people at the time) that may be off-putting to some. The story is pretty simple — to a degree. Three unlikely people become friends in a small Midwestern town. As a young schoolboy, John McGoff meets and befriends a local Chinese man named Charley Ling, who runs the laundry, and an old Russian cobbler named Ivan.

John has visions that he is shaman Shan Makaroff and of a lost city in the Gobi desert named Tuholo or Yekeh-Kuruk, where, among other things, Genghis Khan is buried.

One night after John is grown, the three, calling themselves, the “Sons of the Blue Wolf,” are visited by a mysterious individual from that land, who charges them to travel there, under the leadership of Shan (John). They take different routes, Shan through Iran, Charley through Peking, and Ivan through Urga. All meet up, somehow, in the Gobi after difficulties, though we only see Shan’s trip. Then they make their way to Yekeh-Kuruk.

They find this mythical lost city, which no one returns from. They are accepted and eventually made citizens, and Shan meets and falls in love with the “golden girl” of his visions: Ai-Yaruk. But, as it always seems in these stories, there is trouble in paradise. And it’s in the form of another who wishes to take over and sees Shan and his friends as threats. At the same time, Shan is making plans to return home to his grandmother, his only family.

Tragedy, in the form of this rival, strikes and causes the end of this paradise, with Shan and his friends, along with their brides heading back to their respective homes. Do they make it? You’ll have to read it to find out.

Overall, I found this an interesting early work in the lost-world/lost-race genre that seems largely overlooked. The undercurrents of Theosophy are interesting because I saw the same in his Captain Trouble series. I wonder if this exists in his other fantastical works, and if he was some kind of adherent to that thought, or just added it in?

I know that some critics speak poorly of this work, but I think you have to approach it in the right mindset. As Steeger Books seem set to reprint Sheehan’s early pulp works, hopefully I can get his earlier fantastical works and see how they compare. But if you are a fan of the lost-world/lost-race stories, this is a great addition to this genre.