Crime Caravan / King of the Black Market

by Walter B. Gibson, Maxwell Grant

"Crime Caravan" is from the April 1944 issue and "King of the Black Market" is from the October 1943 issue of The Shadow Magazine. Also includes the script "The Mine Hunters" broadcast on the week of August 7, 1938. Also includes the article "Interlude".

112 pages, Paperback

Published November 1, 2015

About the author

Walter Brown Gibson (September 12, 1897-December 6, 1985) was an American author and professional magician best known for his work on the pulp fiction character The Shadow. Gibson, under the pen-name Maxwell Grant, wrote "more than 300 novel-length" Shadow stories, writing up to "10,000 words a day" to satisfy public demand during the character's golden age in the 1930s and 1940s.

Reviews

[Kenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

"King of the Black Market" is a great Shadow story. I guessed the villain straight off, but it didn't make the story less enjoyable. While the villain's ID is kept secret until the end, the story is really about Chet, an innocent framed as part of the criminal plot. Chet aggressively tries to uncover the crime boss and foil the caper, but most often gets in The Shadow's way and forces The Shadow to alter his plans to include saving Chet. The black market ring is hurting the war effort, but Chet makes the crimes personal, so Gibson doesn't rely on patriotism to push the plot forward. He has Chet and human problems that The Shadow fights for. Agents help out here, with Jericho being a stand out.

"Crime Caravan" has the same style action plot. It reminds me of an Indiana Jones movie. Harry Vincent helps Rod Ballard, the innocent caught up in the criminal plot.