Pulp Adventures #49 from Bold Venture Press, dated Summer 2026, came out toward the end of June. We get 130 pages of classic and new pulp of various genres (historical fiction, horror, science fiction, intrigue, detective, and more), plus reviews and some nonfiction. The front and back covers are again AI-generated, and that’s fine.
So, first up is an interesting research article by Will Murray, who looks into who might be the author behind the story “The X-Man” from one of Martin Goodman‘s pulps. Was this story a possible inspiration for the later comic-book superheroes, the X-Men? Eh, probably not. The story came out in March 1937 under the name N.V. Romero. An unusual name. And we get Murray’s long research into who this really was. It’s a good example of what sometimes happens when researching the pulps.
Next up is our cover-feature story, which has an introduction by Philip Harbottle on the author, Norman Firth. It’s said that this British author died young in 1949 at age 29 of TB. The story in question, Woman in Danger, only appeared in paperback in the U.K., and I think this is its first reprint since. We get a story of international intrigue and mystery set in India. I do have to wonder about the name of the main character, M’Cfee.
We get works from two other British authors. First up is Edmund Glasby, the son of John S. Glasby. We get “The Grey Ones,” about an exterminator who is called in to deal with a pest issue. But he and his assistant find out there is more to it. Hopefully, they will survive. Next is “The Miniatures” by Sydney J. Bounds (1920–2006), a science fiction tale. A spacecraft is stranded. Will they get help? I think this is its first appearance.
For New Pulp Fiction, we get a trio of tales. From Jack Halliday is the strange little tale “The Man From Nowhere.” A man searching for a place maybe found it, along with a woman and a cat. Wayne Carey gives us another of his Johnny Falco detective tales in “The Fall of Sir Williams,” set in Hong Kong. If you like this, check out one of his Johnny Falco novels from Bold Venture Press. Finally, we get a historical fiction piece by Riley Hogan. An Italian nobleman in England rescues Lord Ruthven from a bandit and is invited to stay at his manor in “Judgment at Ruthven Manor,” but there is much more going on.
Wrapping things up, we get another of James Reasoner‘s “Rough Edges” Western book reviews. First is one of W.C. Tuttle‘s Hashknife Hartley and Sleepy Stevens novels, Shotgun Gold. Next is Hangin’ Pards by Gordon D. Shirreffs.
We also get some interesting comic strips created by publisher Rich Harvey.
This is another great collection of stories. I look forward to the next issue, which will be No. 50. That’s a pretty impressive milestone in this day and age. I look forward to it.
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