The Spider, Master of Men! #8

by Grant Stockbridge

First introduced in 1933, the great action hero returns in two explosive adventures. In The Devil's Paymaster, a vicious gang led by a ghost causes a series of ghastly murders. In Legions of the Accursed Light, a trail of scorched earth sets The Spider on the warpath against a criminal horde bound for Gotham.

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1938

About the author

Pen Name asociated with the pulp hero The Spider.

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a double volume of The Spider, Master of Men. The first story is THE DEVIL'S PAYMASTER (aka THE GOLDEN GHOST) from 1941. It's one of the latter novels of the series, and may be the last appearance of one his aides, Ronald Jackson, who marries the Ghost's half-sister. It starts with spooky radioactive silver dollars and concludes at the Statue of Liberty. The second is LEGIONS OF THE ACCURSED LIGHT from 1938, which features a death ray, an army of criminals, and an all-out attack on New York City. Both are among the strongest of the series, although The Terror's plot seemed to be rather too easily foiled in the second story. Nita is as cool, clever, and plucky as ever, and Ram Singh is strong and loyal to the end. Richard Wentworth will always be right up there with Doc Savage, The Avenger, and The Shadow at the pinnacle of pulp heroes.