THE SHADOW: THE BLACK FALCON/THE SALAMANDERS

THE SHADOW DOUBLE NOVEL #5 (Nostalgia Ventures, 2007) contains two crackerjack adventures of the Knight of Darkness, both from the 1930s.

First up, The Shadow battles the threat of THE BLACK FALCON (from February 1st, 1934). The Falcon is a domino-masked criminal mastermind who kidnaps several wealthy New York businessmen. The Falcon taunts the police (Commissioner Weston and Detective Joe Cardona) with a series of letters, each of which comes with an attached black falcon feather. The Falcon frames a two-bit hood as the real bad guy and it looks like the master villain will succeed in his nefarious scheme, especially when he kidnaps none other than Lamont Cranston, whom the Falcon has divined as the alter ego of The Shadow. With The Shadow among his captives, who can stop the mad fiend?

Well, The Shadow can, for one, since we all know that Lamont Cranston was merely an identity that The Shadow borrowed from time to time. In fact, The Shadow's true visage is revealed to The Black Falcon near the climax of the tale. Author Walter Gibson plays it close to the vest and doesn't reveal much of what the terror stricken crook actually sees but it's hinted at that The Shadows' features are grotesquely mishapen, perhaps from being wounded in combat during World War I?The identity of The Black Falcon is easy to guess and is revealed for everyone midway through the story. Nevertheless, it's a fast paced Shadow adventure in which his fabled autogiro makes an appearance.

That legendary aircraft features prominently in the climax of THE SALAMANDERS (from April 1st, 1936). In this one, The Shadow, aided only by Harry Vincent (who gets captured, rescued and captured again), squares off against The Salamanders, a ruthless gang of arsonists who use fire to cover their crimes of murder and theft. The gang of fire starters, clad in bulky asbestos suits and armed with flame throwing pistols, are after a collection of stocks, bonds and securities that will give them total control over various companies.

THE SALAMANDERS moves like a rocket with several well described action sequences throughout in which The Shadow fights both human foe men and deadly, monstrous flames. The action comes to a blazing climax when The Shadow stages an airborne assault on a burning mansion where he eventually confronts and traps the two evil masterminds behind the crimes.

I liked THE SALAMANDERS better than THE BLACK FALCON but your mileage may vary. Whichever you prefer, they're both a helluva lot of fun to read. Thumbs up and recommended to all pulp fiction and Shadow fans out there. Check it out.