Lester Dent (and the other Kenneth Robeson’s who penned the Doc Savage super-sagas) was always conscious of a certain atmospheric need in a good story. The culprits always turn out to be humans with a new device or some other rational explanation, but like a good Gothic thriller, you won’t know just what is going on until the end. Goblins, Spooks, Monsters, Terrors all show up in the titles of these Pulps.
So here is my pick of ten Doc Savage novels you can enjoy this Hallowe’en. If you need a little supposed supernatural to dress up your trick-or-treat reading.
Ten – The Goblins (Lester Dent) has Doc caught between gangsters and a race of goblins whose touch is instant death.
Nine – The Pirate’s Ghost (Lester Dent) has a scientist creating a radio for talking to the dead (ala Thomas Edison). A gang of thieves want the device so they can ask a dead pirate where he buried his treasure.
Eight – The Mountain Monster (Harold A. Davis & Lester Dent)is a strange Northern set in Alaska. A monster is haunting a Northern paradise. It’s a giant spider if you go with the artwork cover.
Seven – The Spook of Grandpa Eben (Lester Dent) has a cursed ring and a race to save their necks from the hangman.
Six – The World’s Fair Goblin (William G. Bogart & Lester Dent) – The 1939’s World Fair is being haunted by a goblin who is taking people. Doc and his gang run around the grounds trying to solve the mysterious abductions. (This one is a treat for Science Fiction fans. John W. Campbell had an office next door to the Doc Savage editors and offered advice on this novel.)
Five – Brand of the Werewolf (Lester Dent) is a Strange Northern with Doc and Pat in Canada looking for the man who brands his victims with a werewolf’s head.
Four – The Red Terrors (Harold A. Davis) has creepy creatures from the ocean taking ships. No, it’s not Captain Nemo but this sunken world tale is pretty close to Science Fiction.
Three – The Land of Always Night (Lester Dent & Ryerson Johnson) is an absolute fav with the white-faced Ool and another lost world. James Bama’s cover says it all.
Two- The Monsters (Lester Dent): a creepy castle, criminals transformed into giants, what more do you need? This one reminds me of the comic books like Spider-man and X-Men to come. As Stan Lee said: “Doc Savage and his oddly assorted team might be considered the progenitors of today’s Fantastic Four and many other teams of superheroes.”
One – Hex (William G. Bogart & Lester Dent) is number one because it was especially written for an October issue. Salem witches and curses, and very good Paul Orban art make this one my top pick for a Halloween read.
Conclusion
Those are my Top Ten Doc Savage Novels For Hallowen. It doesn’t really matter which one you pick. There is also The Sea Angel, The Spook Legion, The Sargasso Ogre, The Flaming Falcons, The Running Skeletons, etc. Almost any Doc adventure has some hint of monsters or the occult. The false supernatural is a fun element of Pulp that has a long tradition. Let me know about your favorite supposedly supernatural Doc Savage novels.
Jack Mackenzie continues telling stories in the tradition of Doc Savage with his team of super agents, Wild Inc.
