The Wheel of Death

The Spider #2

by R.T.M. Scott

Mysterious death, suicide, and madness took uncanny toll of New York's most prominent citizens. Only the Spider sensed the presence of the criminal genius whose tentacles were strangling the city—and the Spider was next on the crime monster's death list!

Genres: Pulp, Mystery, Thriller

143 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published November 1, 1933

About the author

Form of name used independently by two Canadian writers, father and son, both christened Reginald Thomas Maitland Scott, though the son was usually called Robert and sometimes wrote simply as Maitland Scott. Scott Senior (1882-1966) had been a much-travelled marine engineer and subsequent soldier during World War One, with the Canadian Expeditionary Force, before settling in the USA and turning to writing. His first story, "Such Bluff as Dreams Are Made Of" (April 1920 Adventure) introduced the character of Aurelius Smith, known as Secret Service Smith, who became Scott's best known character, appearing in many stories and novels, and served partly as the basis for the later creation of Richard Wentworth, the man behind the vigilante hero the Spider in a long series of novel-length stories published in The Spider pulp magazine. The first two Spider novels, "The Spider Strikes" (October 1933 Spider; 1969) and "The Wheel of Death" (November 1933 Spider; 1969) were credited to R T M Scott and have usually been assumed to have been written by the father. However there is sufficient difference between the two that it has been suggested by Will Murray and others that Scott Junior (1909-1945) might have written one of them, probably the second. Scott Senior was not a prolific writer and would have found it difficult to sustain the pace of a novel a month so his son, who had become an editor at Popular Publications which published The Spider, may have helped with the second novel before the character was handed over to pulpsmith Norvell W Page who wrote the novels under the House Name Grant Stockbridge. Whilst the first two novels create the character of Richard Wentworth and his ruthless crime-fighting alter-ego the Spider, neither revel in any of the more fantastic and eccentric plots that Page later created.

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Wheel of Death was the lead story in the second issue of the eponymous pulp magazine which was published monthly for a decade beginning in October of 1933. It's a rather standard pulp action detective story, with a crime lord using women and drugs to seduce wealthy citizens so that he can blackmail them. It has some interesting bits of hidden passageways and derring-do but doesn't incorporate many of the wild elements and crazy plots that were to become the hallmark of the series in later stories. (Though at one point we find that the doors to the illicit gambling house are guarded by a pair of naked women painted silver and gold, and I wondered if that had been the inspiration for the famous scene in Fleming's Goldfinger.) The first two novels were published with the author listed as R.T.M. Scott but are almost surely the work of two different authors, a father and son who both worked in the pulp field and shared the same name. All of the rest of the 118 novels were published with the house name Grant Stockbridge, and the majority were written by Norvell W. Page, who was a great adventure writer. This one is quite different in tone and style from the first one, is much longer than the majority of the later novels and doesn't have nearly the same feel for the characters that Page developed. For example, at one point Wentworth forces a crook to disrobe at gunpoint, ties him to the bed with picture-hanging wire, and proceeds to whip him with a belt until he confesses; Page's Spider would never have been so crude. It's also marred by some very sexist and racist attitudes; Ram Singh is continuously referred to in the text as "the boy," and the women characters frequently faint in the face of unpleasantness. The real Nita Van Sloan was never so frail. We're told on page 128, stated as fact, not as part of the story: "She had plenty of courage, but after all she was a woman, and a woman should not have too much nerve." Huh? Sush attitudes weren't uncommon in the pulp era, but we came to expect better from The Spider. Skip this one and try one of the Stockbridge sagas.

[Leothefox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good sequel! Although Richard Wentworth still doesn't look any different as THE SPIDER, this entry does come closer to what the series would be. "The Wheel of Death" has more shooting, more Nita, and more Ram Singh. The evil conspiracy at work in this adventure is more plausible than usual this time around, although we do get some minor flourishes like secret-passages and trick elevators. Looking forward to "Wings of the Black Death".

[David B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Richard Wentworth matches wits with a criminal kingpin who uses his exclusive nightclub to compromise city officials, making them ripe for blackmail or worse, in his bid to control New York City. I understand that future installments, written by Norvell Page, are superior and feature more outrageous pulp plots. However, I rather enjoyed this crime drama, RTM Scott’s final outing with the character. Mortimer Mack’s den of iniquity features hidden passages and bizarrely decorated rooms where every human sin is available to partake. Some of the descriptions hint at a setting that David Lynch might have dreamed up. This iteration of the Spider is certainly brutal. In addition to enthusiastically shooting his opponents dead, he is not above stripping a gangster naked, tying him down to a bed, and whipping him with his belt! I’m looking forward to future adventures.

[Gilbert Stack · Rating 3 out of 5]

Richard Wentworth makes his second appearance as The Spider in this 1930s novel brought to audio life by narrator Nick Santa Maria. Wentworth is an adrenalin junkie who only feels alive when he is in great danger—not just mortal danger but the danger that comes from exposing his vigilante crime fighting activities. Because of this need for danger and his love of using his wits to get out of trouble, he is constantly taking rather absurd risks for the simple pleasure of forcing himself to find a way out of the resulting problems. Strangely, this need on his part succeeds in creating a fast moving and quite enjoyable adventure.

In this volume, Wentworth finds himself impulsively agreeing to help free a man on death row and in so doing discovers a blackmail scheme that has put New York City into the hands of a criminal mastermind. To make matters worse, a simple mistake early in the book allows the criminals to identify Wentworth as the Spider forcing him to use his cunning not only to expose their schemes, but to get back the evidence that can unmask him. It’s a lot of fun watching him dance his way out of trouble.

In Wheel of Death, author R.T.M. Scott goes to great length to praise the courage, loyalty and intelligence of Wentworth’s girlfriend and manservant from India, but they still come off as inferior to Wentworth specifically because they are female and Indian respectively. In this regard, the novel is very much a product of its time when the attitudes toward women and people of color can generate cringe worthy moments for the modern reader.

If you liked this review, you can find more at www.gilbertstack.com/reviews.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

A better and faster read than the initial Spider adventure. Possibly because the writer -- the little-known R.T.M. Scott -- was more comfortable with his character, Richard Wentworth, and Wentworth's raison d'etre. More likely because the majority of the action takes place across one night in a mysterious mansion apartment.

Since I'm more familiar with the later Spider adventures because of the Sanctum double reprints, I'm looking forward to the next volume, Wings of the Black Death, and the assumption of the Grant Stockbridge pseudonym by Norvell Page. The stories written by Page take the Spider into true pulp territory, where the villains have identities such as the Black Death, the Tarantula, and the Green Hand (the next three stories). This second volume doesn't really have any "wheel" that is easily identifiable as such -- no automobile, no gears -- so the title is a generic attempt to tease readers with something that isn't really there. Like the preceding story, The Spider Strikes, it isn't so much a pulp action-adventure as much as a quick-on-the-trigger detective.

The Spider ran for 118 issues, starting with these late appearances in 1933 and ending in 1943. Thankfully, I know the stories improve. Just as this one is better than The Spider Strikes. Here's hoping it reaches the level of some of the Shadow and Doc Savage adventures.

[Éric Kasprak · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I decided to dive into The Spider novels, it was primarily because of the glowing reviews for Norvell Page. However, since the series started with R.T.M. Scott as the author of the first book, I began there before moving on to Page's contributions.

Having enjoyed both authors' versions of The Spider, I've settled into reading them in publication order. This second adventure (also written by R.T.M. Scott) takes a more subdued approach compared to the typical over-the-top pulp action style. It leans more into a mob/racketeering story, but the writing and pacing remain top-notch, creating tension and dire situations throughout.

Considering this is only the second book in the series, I was pleasantly surprised by how well-established the characters and their relationships already are. We catch glimpses of The Spider doing some minimal preparation before plunging into danger, but he largely embraces a carefree "that's adventure!" attitude. He's decisive in the moment and doesn't hesitate to kill his enemies when necessary.

So, even though R.T.M. Scott portrays a more low-key Spider compared to Norvell Page's version, I found myself enjoying his take just as much.

[Professor · Rating 3 out of 5]

In some ways this was a more enjoyable book than the first-the pulp elements are a little wilder (and racier), there is a race against time element (though it's not fully exploited) and the scheme is less out of a comic book and more akin to the kind of corruption based crimes that characters like the Green Hornet (clearly influenced by The Spider) would battle. Despite all of this, it comes to an abrupt and convenient ending (possibly space limits imposed by the format) that's not quite as satisfying as the one in the last mystery. I'm very curious to see what the Norvell version of the character is like, too, since he changed a lot of things in his run on the title.

[Medio Mutante · Rating 2 out of 5]

ive read about 40 spider pulps, and im glad i didnt start chronologically - because this one is a real stinker and i would have bailed on the series. if you are in doubt just skip ahead a dozen books or so and dive in! the entire contents of this book, and its preoccupation with trick elevators, would have been a single chapter in a Norvell Page story - thats how drastic the pacing difference is between RTM Scott and Page! nonsequitor homoerotic bdsm scene in this one though, if that floats your boat

[Mark Stratton · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was a pretty big “meh”. Bits of action here and there and lots of boring exposition. Oh well, it’s also early days in the series.

[Dale · Rating 3 out of 5]

Volume two in this latest Spider series!

The Spider is Richard Wentworth, a wealthy criminologist. Backed up by his manservant Ram Singh, his old war pal Jackson, and his fiancé Nita van Slone, Wentworth takes on crime at the street level.

The Spider has no scruples about killing. The criminals who cross the Spider die and their foreheads are marked with a scarlet spider.

The Spider is wanted by the police, and his friend Commissioner Kirkpatrick suspects Wentworth. Hardly surprising, as everyone seems to know the Spider’s secret. Proving it is another thing entirely…

The Wheel of Death

This story was originally published in November 1933 in The Spider Magazine.

Someone is trying to control politicians in New York using a variety of vices. From drugs to prostitution to gambling debts to even murder, the pressure is applied to assure the men have no choice but to obey.

A young woman whose father has been framed for murder and scheduled for the electric chair dares to fight back. And Richard Wentworth has vowed to see her father freed and the true killers caught.

Frankly, much of this story tends to drag. Possibly a good bit of the middle could be omitted without much damage to the plot. I also was at a loss for how the title really fitted into the story. It is my opinion that if Scott had continued with the series it, it wouldn’t have lasted as long as it did.
This early story was written before Norvell Page set the standard for writing the Spider novels.

There are a number of problems that would later be retconned. For example, the Spider wears a silk mask to cover his face instead of the iconic disguise Page invented. Ram Singh is unable to speak English well, and there is something cringing about his portrayal. One must remember this story is a product of its time. Scott gets the violence ok, but not up to the series level once Page took over.

I give this story only three stars…

Quoth the Raven…

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

R.T.M Scott's second Spider pulp novel has a less madcap plot than his first, but it's just as good. In The Wheel of Death, Richard Wentworth (the "Spider") goes undercover as a hood and meets a young woman whose father is slated to be executed, but who is--of course--innocent of the crime. Wentworth discovers a nightclub and casino that is only open to New York's wealthy and powerful, and which is run by a criminal mastermind intent on taking over political power in the city through intimidation and blackmail. Would it be a spoiler to say that he saves the day?

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Second Spider story. A slight adventure, but rattles along at a good pace. There are a few twists and turns, but mostly they involve Richard Wentworth repeatedly being caught in a tricky situation and having to get out of it. Sometimes he does it with quick thinking, sometimes he does it by shooting everyone in his way, but I think this would get old if I read much more of it.

Luckily this is the second and last Spider adventure by R.T.M. Scott, and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens when Norvell Page takes over in number 3.

[Randy · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Spider is faced with a mysterious man who wants to control New York City by blackmailing and bribing politicians.

He's also looking to clear a young girl's father of murder before his scheduled execution takes place.

A very different Spider in this early incarnation before Norvell Page came aboard and transformed him to the hero all pulp fans love.

[Hunter · Rating 4 out of 5]

A much faster paced, more exciting outing than the first story in The Spider’s series of violent adventures, which is impressive considering a good chunk of the story takes place over a single night in a villain’s mansion. This is R.T.M Scott’s final word on the character, who is soon to be become less of a wealthy detective and more of a costumed vigilante.

[John Kilgallon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally decided to concentrate on finishing books I started. Richard Wentworth again wins out as the Spider against a mob boss bent on swaying politicians in NYC to his directions. Nita turns in a great performance as an ally and helps keep the Police Commissioner off the Spider's trail.

[Jeff J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairly weak entry in the Spider series, due in large part to it being an early novel before the characters were fully fleshed out.