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Doc Savage (Bantam) #7
The Monsters
The breeding ground was a walled castle completely covered over with a huge electrified net. Inside were the scum of the earth, gathered from the prisons of the world, transformed into invincible giants. Now they were ready to ravage the world--unless Doc Savage and his mighty crew could stop them.
138 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1934
2 people are currently reading
203 people want to read
About the author
Kenneth Robeson
915 books134 followersKenneth Robeson was the house name used by Street and Smith Publications as the author of their popular character Doc Savage and later The Avenger. Though most Doc Savage stories were written by the author Lester Dent, there were many others who contributed to the series, including:
William G. Bogart
Evelyn Coulson
Harold A. Davis
Lawrence Donovan
Alan Hathway
W. Ryerson Johnson
Lester Dent is usually considered to be the creator of Doc Savage. In the 1990s Philip José Farmer wrote a new Doc Savage adventure, but it was published under his own name and not by Robeson. Will Murray has since taken up the pseudonym and continued writing Doc Savage books as Robeson.
All 24 of the original stories featuring The Avenger were written by Paul Ernst, using the Robeson house name. In order to encourage sales Kenneth Robeson was credited on the cover of The Avenger magazine as "the creator of Doc Savage" even though Lester Dent had nothing to do with The Avenger series. In the 1970s, when the series was extended with 12 additional novels, Ron Goulart was hired to become Robeson.
William G. Bogart
Evelyn Coulson
Harold A. Davis
Lawrence Donovan
Alan Hathway
W. Ryerson Johnson
Lester Dent is usually considered to be the creator of Doc Savage. In the 1990s Philip José Farmer wrote a new Doc Savage adventure, but it was published under his own name and not by Robeson. Will Murray has since taken up the pseudonym and continued writing Doc Savage books as Robeson.
All 24 of the original stories featuring The Avenger were written by Paul Ernst, using the Robeson house name. In order to encourage sales Kenneth Robeson was credited on the cover of The Avenger magazine as "the creator of Doc Savage" even though Lester Dent had nothing to do with The Avenger series. In the 1970s, when the series was extended with 12 additional novels, Ron Goulart was hired to become Robeson.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
May 25, 2023
Book #7 of Doc Savage and the gang’s adventures. This time they butt heads with an unseen megalomaniac scientist that has perfected a concoction that makes human beings into giants. And he’s about to unleash them on the cities of Detroit, Cleveland, Chicago and New York, if they don’t pay him the whopping sum on one million dollars each.
“Monsters” has some improvements over the previous installments. First, there’s a slight toning down of the bludgeoning the reader over the head with telling us how great Doc is. When I say slight, I mean a minute fragment. It’s still there, but it seemed fractionally smaller. Also, this one takes a left turn in trying to keep the villain in the shadows. That, along with the demanding a ransom or the world dies-kinda thing, screams of the beginnings of James Bond and his villains. Since this predates Bond by 20-30 years, I have to assume that Ian Fleming read a Doc Savage or two.
Doc Savage is pure pulp, but I’m kinda digging it for what it is. His inventions crack me up. I’m sure they seemed like pure science fiction in the 1930s, but many of these items were invented years later. In this story, it’s the precursor to FaceTime on the iPhone. If there was one thing I could have done without, it would be all the times Robertson used the ejaculation. Maybe that had a different meaning back in the 30s, but it sticks out like a sore thumb in modern day. A quick, fun read.
4 Monsters with Bashed Kneecaps out of 5
“Monsters” has some improvements over the previous installments. First, there’s a slight toning down of the bludgeoning the reader over the head with telling us how great Doc is. When I say slight, I mean a minute fragment. It’s still there, but it seemed fractionally smaller. Also, this one takes a left turn in trying to keep the villain in the shadows. That, along with the demanding a ransom or the world dies-kinda thing, screams of the beginnings of James Bond and his villains. Since this predates Bond by 20-30 years, I have to assume that Ian Fleming read a Doc Savage or two.
Doc Savage is pure pulp, but I’m kinda digging it for what it is. His inventions crack me up. I’m sure they seemed like pure science fiction in the 1930s, but many of these items were invented years later. In this story, it’s the precursor to FaceTime on the iPhone. If there was one thing I could have done without, it would be all the times Robertson used the ejaculation. Maybe that had a different meaning back in the 30s, but it sticks out like a sore thumb in modern day. A quick, fun read.
4 Monsters with Bashed Kneecaps out of 5
August 11, 2016
One of the more fantastic of the Doc Savage novels, this one involves men of enormous size who are to be used to rob and destroy. How they got to be enormous and how they were to be unleashed is part of the story of The Monsters. The Fabulous Five are all present, and for once Renny's skills are put to a practical use, though it means he has to stay behind and be an engineer instead of get in a fight. Monk gets more page time than any of them. Johnny and Long Tom are window dressing. It's clear in this story that Lester Dent may be starting to regret that he gave Doc five aides. Three probably would have been plenty. Anyway, the story is fun though about as far-fetched as any of the Doc Savage stories.
August 25, 2018
A bizarre murder in Doc Savage's office leads him and his compadres first to a strange structure outside of New York City and then to rural Michigan, where somebody is creating monsters. It sounds very comic bookish, and I guess it is, but it is a fun read.
June 30, 2024
On the plus side this is better plotted than some entries in the series and has a pretty awesome female lion tamer. In the deficit column there is some very problematic content and less of the hilarious adulation of Doc Savage and his abilities.
October 11, 2025
Another of this classic series that is attributed to Lester Dent but published under the house name of Kenneth Robeson. This story is a bit far fetched but once again there are several references to devices that did not exist when this was written, a 'television phone' is one. Enjoyable quick read.
August 6, 2025
Oh ho ho! This was an excellent one! While some aspects were a bit dated, the story was a lot of fun, had a great sense of atmosphere, and totally kept me hooked until the last page. I did guess part of the twist at the end, but not enough to be disappointed. All in all, a good read!
July 10, 2020
Oh, I am so mixed in my feelings about this novel.
From a literary standpoint, there are flaws galore...mainly, I suspect, from sloppy editing by the original publisher (Street & Smith). For example, the author once again introduces a strong, smart female counterpart to Doc -- one who we could easily see taking full part in the adventure, and assisting Doc as an equal to any of his Five. Instead, her potential goes nowhere, and she ends up as a convenient plot device in the finale. Some glaring continuity errors pluck the reader out of this works' critical suspension-of-disbelief, too. And, square in the author's corner, blatant racism (and, in this book, ableism) rears its contemporaneous head once again.
Further, the key to enjoying a mystery is NOT figuring out the solution too soon -- and, in "The Monsters," the identity of the secret Big Boss behind the villainy is readily apparent from his very first appearance.
So why are my feelings mixed?
SCIENCE!
This book quite resoundingly springs off real science of the 1930s. A few months before this was written, the scientist who discovered Vitamin E -- Dr. Herbert Evans -- followed up his nutritional coup with the discovery of pituitary growth hormone. He further researched its potential by applying it to various animals, with a notable increase in their growth. (This included some remarkable Dachshunds of Unusual Size.) It seems beyond coincidental that Dent would write a novel about chemical injections which create giant humans mere months after Evans' work was published. Further, Dent thinks through many of the real world effects humans who are two, three, even four times the height of an average person would endure -- including the difficulty of working vocal chords which are a foot or more long.
So while the writing is not up to par, the glimpse into real Depression-era science is fascinating. Skip this novel in the series if you're pressed for time. But if you're bored and can tolerate some blows to your literary and social sensitivities, breeze through "The Monsters" and learn about a world where size DOES matter.
From a literary standpoint, there are flaws galore...mainly, I suspect, from sloppy editing by the original publisher (Street & Smith). For example, the author once again introduces a strong, smart female counterpart to Doc -- one who we could easily see taking full part in the adventure, and assisting Doc as an equal to any of his Five. Instead, her potential goes nowhere, and she ends up as a convenient plot device in the finale. Some glaring continuity errors pluck the reader out of this works' critical suspension-of-disbelief, too. And, square in the author's corner, blatant racism (and, in this book, ableism) rears its contemporaneous head once again.
Further, the key to enjoying a mystery is NOT figuring out the solution too soon -- and, in "The Monsters," the identity of the secret Big Boss behind the villainy is readily apparent from his very first appearance.
So why are my feelings mixed?
SCIENCE!
This book quite resoundingly springs off real science of the 1930s. A few months before this was written, the scientist who discovered Vitamin E -- Dr. Herbert Evans -- followed up his nutritional coup with the discovery of pituitary growth hormone. He further researched its potential by applying it to various animals, with a notable increase in their growth. (This included some remarkable Dachshunds of Unusual Size.) It seems beyond coincidental that Dent would write a novel about chemical injections which create giant humans mere months after Evans' work was published. Further, Dent thinks through many of the real world effects humans who are two, three, even four times the height of an average person would endure -- including the difficulty of working vocal chords which are a foot or more long.
So while the writing is not up to par, the glimpse into real Depression-era science is fascinating. Skip this novel in the series if you're pressed for time. But if you're bored and can tolerate some blows to your literary and social sensitivities, breeze through "The Monsters" and learn about a world where size DOES matter.
October 3, 2024
This Doc Savage novel was, for me, somewhat more fun to read than many. I usually give a 3 for these books, but this had a more complete plot and somewhat better pacing.
Part of the charm of these novels, and one of the reasons I keep reading them, is that they're short--probably half the size of most novels--and so you get a complete story without a huge investment of time. I also like the settings, taking place all over the world in the 1930s, mixed in with some gee-whiz electronics-punk inventions. Another attraction in this one is that the danger is actually a monster, not just a Scooby-Doo fakeout. A number of monsters. That gives it more of a fantasy vibe, which I prefer.
You might wince a little, however. The whole series suffers at times--especially a few places in this title--from thoughtless racism. It's kinda shocking when you hit it, though it's mostly just a line or two, found in a few spots. You wanna ask if grandpa meant to be hurtful, because it doesn't seem like it. It seems more like his unenlightened mindset just leaks out. Intended or not, though, it definitely mars the book, making it hard to recommend to others.
Aside from such flaws, this offers lots of old-fashioned pulp entertainment. Pretty consistent action. And, as always, a cool cover.
Part of the charm of these novels, and one of the reasons I keep reading them, is that they're short--probably half the size of most novels--and so you get a complete story without a huge investment of time. I also like the settings, taking place all over the world in the 1930s, mixed in with some gee-whiz electronics-punk inventions. Another attraction in this one is that the danger is actually a monster, not just a Scooby-Doo fakeout. A number of monsters. That gives it more of a fantasy vibe, which I prefer.
You might wince a little, however. The whole series suffers at times--especially a few places in this title--from thoughtless racism. It's kinda shocking when you hit it, though it's mostly just a line or two, found in a few spots. You wanna ask if grandpa meant to be hurtful, because it doesn't seem like it. It seems more like his unenlightened mindset just leaks out. Intended or not, though, it definitely mars the book, making it hard to recommend to others.
Aside from such flaws, this offers lots of old-fashioned pulp entertainment. Pretty consistent action. And, as always, a cool cover.
March 16, 2024
Kenneth Robeson was the pseudonym adopted by Lester Dent and others to churn out the Doc Savage pulp stories which Bantam reprinted. The Monsters is #7 in that series. The cover was painted by James Bama, who was to Bantam's Doc Savage novels what Basil Gogos was to Famous Monsters of Filmland. The covers make you hopeful for an amazing story inside...
But unfortunately, The Monsters is pretty much part of the Doc Savage formula. In some comic books, cartoons like Johnny Quest, and other adventure novels and films, the hero is either accidentally drawn into intrigue while he is out and about and some ne'er-do-well initiates his or her plot which has nothing to do with the hero, or the hero goes out into the world to help a friend in crisis. In almost every Doc Savage novel I have read, he is sitting pretty in his NYC headquarters with his five, constantly quarreling aides and someone in need is deposited--sometimes alive, sometimes dead--right on his doorstep. The exposition goes a little overboard describing Savage as being a physical and intellectual pinnacle, so that one never doubts that he is going to emerge unscathed; this is so annoying that Doc Savage hasn't a single recurring nemesis. Why bother since he has no Achillies' heel or even a quirk which could be exploited? He's a cold fish, regardless of his bronze skin. The constant combativeness between Ham and Monk, two of his Amazing Five, is distracting and takes the reader out of the story more often than contributing anything of merit.
Those are my general complaints about the whole series. For this novel alone, I cringed a little bit at the casual way some African men with microcephaly are introduced early on as "pinhead savages" and later referred to as "black monsters." Call him Kenneth Robeson or Lester Dent, an @$$hole by any name is still an @$$hole. The plot involving the monsters seems pretty amazing, but like there would be small profit after housing and feeding an army of giants, investing in all of their weapons and technology, and, um, advertising their attacks in newspapers. Strangely, only Doc Savage is able to trace the advertisements back to their source. Weak law-enforcement in this storyworld. There is also no consistent scale for the monsters' height. The illustration on the cover makes them look 50+ feet tall, to hold the 6'2" Savage up like that. However, at one point in the story it seems like they are maybe 15'-ish tall, brushing against equipment mounted low in trees, and in one scene, one of the monsters ducks his head through a doorway to enter a building. Not great.
So why did I mark the book as "okay"? It still succeeds as escapism, distracting from the mediocrity that besets each and every one of us on a daily basis. Robeson/Dent does so in a way that might be campy and childish compared to some more sophisticated writing, but he pulls it off nonetheless.
But unfortunately, The Monsters is pretty much part of the Doc Savage formula. In some comic books, cartoons like Johnny Quest, and other adventure novels and films, the hero is either accidentally drawn into intrigue while he is out and about and some ne'er-do-well initiates his or her plot which has nothing to do with the hero, or the hero goes out into the world to help a friend in crisis. In almost every Doc Savage novel I have read, he is sitting pretty in his NYC headquarters with his five, constantly quarreling aides and someone in need is deposited--sometimes alive, sometimes dead--right on his doorstep. The exposition goes a little overboard describing Savage as being a physical and intellectual pinnacle, so that one never doubts that he is going to emerge unscathed; this is so annoying that Doc Savage hasn't a single recurring nemesis. Why bother since he has no Achillies' heel or even a quirk which could be exploited? He's a cold fish, regardless of his bronze skin. The constant combativeness between Ham and Monk, two of his Amazing Five, is distracting and takes the reader out of the story more often than contributing anything of merit.
Those are my general complaints about the whole series. For this novel alone, I cringed a little bit at the casual way some African men with microcephaly are introduced early on as "pinhead savages" and later referred to as "black monsters." Call him Kenneth Robeson or Lester Dent, an @$$hole by any name is still an @$$hole. The plot involving the monsters seems pretty amazing, but like there would be small profit after housing and feeding an army of giants, investing in all of their weapons and technology, and, um, advertising their attacks in newspapers. Strangely, only Doc Savage is able to trace the advertisements back to their source. Weak law-enforcement in this storyworld. There is also no consistent scale for the monsters' height. The illustration on the cover makes them look 50+ feet tall, to hold the 6'2" Savage up like that. However, at one point in the story it seems like they are maybe 15'-ish tall, brushing against equipment mounted low in trees, and in one scene, one of the monsters ducks his head through a doorway to enter a building. Not great.
So why did I mark the book as "okay"? It still succeeds as escapism, distracting from the mediocrity that besets each and every one of us on a daily basis. Robeson/Dent does so in a way that might be campy and childish compared to some more sophisticated writing, but he pulls it off nonetheless.
October 8, 2023
The Monsters is a "Doc Savage" novel by Kenneth Robeson. Kenneth Robeson was the house name Street and Smith Publications used as the author of their popular Doc Savage novels. Though most Doc Savage stories were written by the author Lester Dent, there were many others who contributed to the series, including:
William G. Bogart
Evelyn Coulson
Harold A. Davis
Lawrence Donovan
Alan Hathway
W. Ryerson Johnson
I love reading these old pulp novels from time to time. I read about 80%+ of the Doc Savage novels when I was a teenager but that was a very long time ago. I have been trying to find them again in the Bantam editions I read in my youth. I have found several of them in used bookstores and have bought several from online aftermarket bookstores.
In this one, Doc Savage and his men are in the thick of it again. The action is classic Doc Savage, filled with good old-fashioned adventure and gadgets that always seem to be there when the hero needs them. You can relax and escape for a little while. A good read in the Doc Savage series.
William G. Bogart
Evelyn Coulson
Harold A. Davis
Lawrence Donovan
Alan Hathway
W. Ryerson Johnson
I love reading these old pulp novels from time to time. I read about 80%+ of the Doc Savage novels when I was a teenager but that was a very long time ago. I have been trying to find them again in the Bantam editions I read in my youth. I have found several of them in used bookstores and have bought several from online aftermarket bookstores.
In this one, Doc Savage and his men are in the thick of it again. The action is classic Doc Savage, filled with good old-fashioned adventure and gadgets that always seem to be there when the hero needs them. You can relax and escape for a little while. A good read in the Doc Savage series.
November 17, 2017
Another adventure with Doc Savage and his five associates. I found this interesting for the mention of pinheads and the breed. Not sure why that needed to be stressed. Another damsel in distress is saved. Lots of shooting, explosions, destruction, and Savage saves the day. Always a fun read, but nothing more than brain candy.
April 18, 2024
I don't care what number they're calling this, it's the 14th adventure in the series (going by when they were published).
As a Doc Savage adventure, all the ingredients are there, but this one fell a touch flat for me. The titular "monsters" were okay, if underutilized, to be honest.
As TV Guide used to say, "an okay time-waster."
As a Doc Savage adventure, all the ingredients are there, but this one fell a touch flat for me. The titular "monsters" were okay, if underutilized, to be honest.
As TV Guide used to say, "an okay time-waster."
September 20, 2024
I haven't read a Doc Savage book since I was a kid. It's still as much fun as I remember. This book finds Doc and his gang trying to solve the mystery of people being murdered by what appears to be giants. Great pulpy fun. I can't wait to read another one.
October 4, 2017
Another good Doc adventure that I read back in the 70s.
March 31, 2019
The man of bronze solves another mystery.
May 4, 2020
3.5 / 5
November 14, 2021
A pulp novel featuring Doc Savage. Doc discovers an evil genius who is transforming criminals into giant monsters. Much chaos ensues.
October 17, 2022
As good as usual
February 9, 2023
This one was a chore to finish, not too sure why. As far as Doc Savage adventures go this one was ok. Looks like Doc created zoom and FaceTime years before anyone!
I was happy to see the return of 'Ejaculated' used to describe yelling. Plus as many times as everyone has to carry the pig around in an emergency why hasn't Doc created some super contraption to do that? Like a baby carrier but for a pig? Chip chop Doc, get one of your five on that huh!?!
Oh well, on to the next one...
I was happy to see the return of 'Ejaculated' used to describe yelling. Plus as many times as everyone has to carry the pig around in an emergency why hasn't Doc created some super contraption to do that? Like a baby carrier but for a pig? Chip chop Doc, get one of your five on that huh!?!
Oh well, on to the next one...
May 10, 2025
rough start but overall readable
June 9, 2025
Solid Doc Savage entry but very much like other entries I've encountered.
September 25, 2016
The first Doc Savage story appeared in 1933 and the series ran in pulp and later digest format into 1949. Bantam reprinted the entire series in paperback with wonderful, iconic covers starting in the 1960's. Doc was arguably the first great modern superhero with a rich background, continuity, and mythos. The characterizations were far richer than was common for the pulps; his five associates and their sometimes-auxiliary, Doc's cousin Pat, and the pets Chemistry and Habeas Corpus, all had very distinctive characteristics and their byplay was frequently more entertaining that the current adventure-of-the-month. The settings were also fascinating: Doc's Fortress of Solitude, the Hidalgo Trading Company (which served as a front for his armada of vehicles), and especially the mysterious 86th floor headquarters all became familiar haunts to the reader, and the far-flung adventures took the intrepid band to exotic and richly-described locations all over the world. The adventures were always fast-paced and exciting, from the early apocalyptic world-saving extravaganzas of the early days to the latter scientific-detective style shorter works of the post-World War Two years. There were always a few points that it was difficult to believe along the way, but there were always more ups than downs, and there was never, ever a dull moment. The Doc Savage books have always been my favorite entertainments... I was always, as Johnny would say, superamalgamated!
November 15, 2014
Hmm... I'm not sure how to rate this one. On one hand, it has a pretty good set up, the kind of outlandish sci-fi menace I love, some creepy set pieces and a good amount of action — mostly gunplay and "things going boom." And yet it never really held my attention. It felt to me like Lester Dent had a smash-bang idea for a story, carefully crafted the first few chapters, then ran out of time and had to finish in a week.
Maybe that's because the identity of the "mystery" villain was never in any doubt, or because this novel, even more than most of the series, appeared to need a copy editor (there's a lot of redundancy, and a few sentences are nearly incomprehensible). Or maybe I just picked the wrong time to read it; I've been awfully busy this week, and could only read this in small chunks.
Anyway, I liked it, but it didn't quite meet expectations for me. Call it 3.5 stars.
Maybe that's because the identity of the "mystery" villain was never in any doubt, or because this novel, even more than most of the series, appeared to need a copy editor (there's a lot of redundancy, and a few sentences are nearly incomprehensible). Or maybe I just picked the wrong time to read it; I've been awfully busy this week, and could only read this in small chunks.
Anyway, I liked it, but it didn't quite meet expectations for me. Call it 3.5 stars.
May 7, 2015
Don't have to really worry about spoilers here. The title, the cover illustration by James Bama of Doc Savage in the grasp of a giant hand, pretty much tells all you need to know. The story starts in the backwoods of northern Michigan when a trapper is crushed and his cabin destroyed. The news says it was a tornado, but the trapper's neighbor knows better. The trapper had asked his neighbor to seek out a detective if he should be killed. And what better detective to seek out than Doc Savage? Another rip-roaring good yarn.
August 26, 2015
Doc, along with the Fabulous Five and a steel-haired woman, battles gigantic genetically-engineered monsters before they could spree terror in major american cities. You know the drill.
A good entry, with eerie scenes and - finally - foes that could make short work of the Man of Bronze. This adventure was adapted in a very famous early Batman story, but Doc faced it all long before Batman existed - so it's like pop culture archeology.
I don't remember Johhnny or Long Tom saying a word in all the book.
A good entry, with eerie scenes and - finally - foes that could make short work of the Man of Bronze. This adventure was adapted in a very famous early Batman story, but Doc faced it all long before Batman existed - so it's like pop culture archeology.
I don't remember Johhnny or Long Tom saying a word in all the book.
November 15, 2022
This was a solid adventure for Doc and his five men. The adventure opens in northern Michigan, reaches to New York City before returning to the scene of the crime in Michigan. Somehow, Monk’s pig, Habeus Corpus is able to keep up with the trek as well as the adventure with Doc and his men. He even plays a significant role at one key point.
This was the fourteenth Doc Savage saga written but is listed as Bantam Book’s seventh Doc Savage book published. It was authored by Lester Dent under the house name Kenneth Robeson. It was published April 1934.
This was the fourteenth Doc Savage saga written but is listed as Bantam Book’s seventh Doc Savage book published. It was authored by Lester Dent under the house name Kenneth Robeson. It was published April 1934.
March 15, 2016
Of all the pulp era heroes few stand out above the crowd, Doc Savage is one of these. With his 5 aides and cousin he adventures across the world. Fighting weird menaces, master criminals and evil scientists Doc and the Fab 5 never let you down for a great read. These stories have all you need; fast paced action, weird mystery, and some humor as the aides spat with each other. My highest recommendation.
April 19, 2016
This was the most memorable of the half dozen Doc Savage books that I read when I was a boy. Doc Savage focused on fine tuning himself every morning and led a team comprised of gifted scientists and intellectuals. The cover illustrations are excellent. The stories are easy to read, action packed, and designed for young readers wanting adventure.
December 25, 2007
read 02.18.85
read 09.05.85
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December 16, 2013Good entry in the series.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews