Shadowed millions: From the Shadow's private annals

The Shadow Pulp #21

by Maxwell Grant, Walter B. Gibson

"Against . . . princes of darkness stood a lone crime fighter. He was a master of stealth and disguise. With revolvers blazing, The Shadow would do battle once again with the forces of evil."

Genres: Pulp, Mystery

142 pages, Unknown Binding

First published December 1, 1932

About the author

Maxwell Grant was a pseudonym often used by Walter B. Gibson to write stories of "The Shadow".

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Shadow has to protect a ten million dollar investment in South America from American businessmen from a pair of criminal geniuses who want to secure the money for their own selfish devices. It's a nice action-packed outing for The Shadow from the December 9, 1932 issue of the magazine. Not as gonzo as The Spider nor as enthralling as Doc Savage, The Shadow was still one of the best pulps, especially for the noir-ish crime fighting fans, and this was a pretty good one. The weed of crime bears bitter fruit... The Shadow Knows!

[Roger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Normally Sunday is Noir Sunday at this reviewer's household. However it seemed a shame to let all these wonderful pulps sit on a shelf unread...so this is now pulp Sunday! I chose Shadowed Millions as the object of my attentions. I have never been as much of a fan of The Shadow as I am of Doc Savage or The Spider, plus I normally find Walter B Gibson's writing to be rather turgid. However "Maxwell Grant" moves things along at a good clip in Shadowed Millions, and the story is chock full of action, intrigue, and that blessed goofiness and mangled syntax that often characterized these novels. In this one a bunch of American investors are purchasing exclusive mineral rights in a relatively unspoiled corner of South American real estate-is it swindle? How to get the investor's money where it is intended to go? Double crosses and murder ensue, and of course The Shadow-along with the usual suspects such as Burbank, Harry Vincent and company-are involved. The question of whether the original investors intentions are moral or legal is never raised, but you really cannot expect that from a pulp story-in the fictional milieu of the 1930's most of the great pulps take place in America may have fallen on some hard times but she was always right, and by extension so were the Captains of Industry. At least in the popular fiction of the day.

[Bruce Kirby · Rating 1 out of 5]

Long, boring, overly drawn out.

[Mh430 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alright, this story isn't in the same category of excellence as say "Zemba" or "Crime Insured," but it's still a very entertaining Shadow adventure with Walter Gibson's inimitable character at the peak of his abilities. The plot involves a $10 million payment promised by New York financiers to the Latin American country of Santander. Of course a sum of money that large (roughly $178,000,000.00 in current figures) is too great a lure for certain grasping parties to leave alone so it's up to The Shadow to stop them. Joe Cardona and a number of Agents make appearances here but The Shadow himself is at the forefront of the struggle throughout. About three-quarters of the way into this novel there is a slam-bang gun battle where, naturally, The Shadow wins out over overwhelming odds even though he's hampered by a drugged and groggy supporting character. Our hero does get a bit of help at one point however, by a person usually associated with more sedentary activities - and no, I don't mean Nero Wolfe.

[Michael Hill · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story was written by Walter B Gibson but was not up to his usual standard. Rich men, including Lamont Cranston agree on a ten million dollar sum (a lot of money in Jan 1933) to help the small South American country of Santander. But such a sum attracts crooks and fraudsters and it is cross and double cross as they each try to grab the money, or at least some of the money, for themselves, only to be foiled by The Shadow.

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

American financiers hand over $10 million to a representative of the new South American country of Santander, to aid in its independence. But some have other plans for the money, so The Shadow must intervene. I didn't like this as much as the previous Shadow books I have read, but it was okay.

[Andy Lind · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the best of The Shadow stories, but still, how could you go wrong? It's The Shadow.

[Little Timmy · Rating 5 out of 5]

When it comes to pulp heroes there are 2 or 3 great standouts and the Shadow is one of those. The stories are fast paced and action filled. The mystery just adds to the excitement. With his army of agents to help the Shadow never lets you down for a great read. Highly recommended