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The Wild Adventures of the Spider #3
The Spider: Scourge of the Scorpion
Men called the Scorpion the "Deathless One." Rumored to be immortal, he controlled the Order of the Purple Eyes, a slave army of purple-eyed criminals who periodically emerged to wreak havoc on mankind during times of social upheaval. His To bring New York City under scorpionic subjugation.
When a mysterious comatose patient is abducted from his hospital room, a baffling chain of events is triggered, one that brings millionaire criminologist Richard Wentworth into the case—and in conflict with the Scorpion's old nemesis—The Skull Killer!
Will the Deathless One succeed in erecting his barbaric City of the Scorpion upon the smoking ruins of modern Manhattan?
Not if The Spider has any say in the struggle. But how can the Master of Men fight the Purple Eyes Cult when his beloved Nita van Sloan has been turned against him while his chief aides lie stricken with incurable lockjaw––victims of the lethal sting of the Scorpion?
When a mysterious comatose patient is abducted from his hospital room, a baffling chain of events is triggered, one that brings millionaire criminologist Richard Wentworth into the case—and in conflict with the Scorpion's old nemesis—The Skull Killer!
Will the Deathless One succeed in erecting his barbaric City of the Scorpion upon the smoking ruins of modern Manhattan?
Not if The Spider has any say in the struggle. But how can the Master of Men fight the Purple Eyes Cult when his beloved Nita van Sloan has been turned against him while his chief aides lie stricken with incurable lockjaw––victims of the lethal sting of the Scorpion?
303 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 31, 2022
About the author
Will Murray
696 books76 followersWill Murray is an American novelist, journalist, and short-story and comic-book writer. Much of his fiction has been published under pseudonyms. Will is the author of over 50 novels in popular series ranging from “The Destroyer” to “Mars Attacks”. Collaborating posthumously with the legendary Lester Dent, he has written to date nine Doc Savage novels, with “Desert Demons” and “Horror in Gold” now available. For National Public Radio, Murray adapted “The Thousand-Headed Man” for “The Adventures of Doc Savage” in 1985, and recently edited “Doc Savage: The Lost Radio Scripts of Lester Dent” for Moonstone Books. He is versed in all things pulp.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
July 12, 2022
Will Murray’s new thrill-packed adventure of the Spider will be different things to different people—and a kick in the pants for them all.
If you’ve read the classic pulp novels of the Octopus and the Scorpion, you’ll be one big step ahead of the Spider as he struggles to solve the mysteries of who’s who and what roles they play in the latest plague threatening to engulf New York City.
If you haven’t read those oldies, no problem! You and the Spider will starting fresh, discovering everything you need to know about everyone involved, and be surprised at a few plot twists those in the first group will be expecting.
Either way, there are plenty of other surprises, and other mysteries to solve. And you can rely upon the Spider—and Mr. Will Murray—to solve them with blazing hot .45s.
It’s bad news for the Big Apple when the centuries-old Cult of the Purple Eyes rises again, turning citizens into madmen intent on tearing each other limb from limb. As Richard Wentworth’s closest associates—Nita Van Sloan, the deadly Ram Singh and faithful servant Jackson—are drawn into this growing peril, he must fight to save their lives, along with millions of others.
Into the mix come a fellow socialite named Jeffrey Fairchild, a sketchy old man called Dr. Skull, a ruthless vigilante knows as the Skull-Killer, and a criminal mastermind calling himself the Scorpion. Who can Wentworth trust? Who’s hiding things from him, and why? What does the Scorpion hope to accomplish from all this death and destruction?
Will Murray is in fine form on this one. Here are a few of the many great lines that caught my eye:
Beneath a hatchet nose, lips split in a rictus of death, revealing gleaming white canines that would have given Count Dracula an exquisite stab of envy.
Two guns blasted in unison, turning the man’s rib cage into something found on the floor of a slaughterhouse.
Fairchild’s automatic barked and turned another half around before he collapsed into a sagging pile of meat.
Like dropped leather gloves, dead bats lay everywhere.
The powerful weapons bucked and smoked. Tongues of fire leapt from the steel muzzles. First one, ten the other of the riflemen were knocked off their feet and hurled into eternity.
[Ram Singh] took out a handkerchief and used it to polish the kirpan’s blade, taking care to avoid the edge, whose sharpness was such that if a butterfly were to alight upon it, the insect would unwittingly bisect itself…
Who can resist stuff like that? Nobody! Get yourself a copy of Scourge of the Scorpion, and help the Spider save the day—again!
If you’ve read the classic pulp novels of the Octopus and the Scorpion, you’ll be one big step ahead of the Spider as he struggles to solve the mysteries of who’s who and what roles they play in the latest plague threatening to engulf New York City.
If you haven’t read those oldies, no problem! You and the Spider will starting fresh, discovering everything you need to know about everyone involved, and be surprised at a few plot twists those in the first group will be expecting.
Either way, there are plenty of other surprises, and other mysteries to solve. And you can rely upon the Spider—and Mr. Will Murray—to solve them with blazing hot .45s.
It’s bad news for the Big Apple when the centuries-old Cult of the Purple Eyes rises again, turning citizens into madmen intent on tearing each other limb from limb. As Richard Wentworth’s closest associates—Nita Van Sloan, the deadly Ram Singh and faithful servant Jackson—are drawn into this growing peril, he must fight to save their lives, along with millions of others.
Into the mix come a fellow socialite named Jeffrey Fairchild, a sketchy old man called Dr. Skull, a ruthless vigilante knows as the Skull-Killer, and a criminal mastermind calling himself the Scorpion. Who can Wentworth trust? Who’s hiding things from him, and why? What does the Scorpion hope to accomplish from all this death and destruction?
Will Murray is in fine form on this one. Here are a few of the many great lines that caught my eye:
Beneath a hatchet nose, lips split in a rictus of death, revealing gleaming white canines that would have given Count Dracula an exquisite stab of envy.
Two guns blasted in unison, turning the man’s rib cage into something found on the floor of a slaughterhouse.
Fairchild’s automatic barked and turned another half around before he collapsed into a sagging pile of meat.
Like dropped leather gloves, dead bats lay everywhere.
The powerful weapons bucked and smoked. Tongues of fire leapt from the steel muzzles. First one, ten the other of the riflemen were knocked off their feet and hurled into eternity.
[Ram Singh] took out a handkerchief and used it to polish the kirpan’s blade, taking care to avoid the edge, whose sharpness was such that if a butterfly were to alight upon it, the insect would unwittingly bisect itself…
Who can resist stuff like that? Nobody! Get yourself a copy of Scourge of the Scorpion, and help the Spider save the day—again!
July 7, 2022
This is another excellent pastiche by Will Murray. Murray recreates The Spider in the language and atmosphere of the old pulps. This is his third Spider tale, but this story is independent and can be enjoyed on its own. If you aren't familiar with the Spider, he is a higher octane version of Doc Savage or The Shadow who has no reservations about blowing evil-doers away with his pistols at the slightest excuse. He is frankly crazy, though in a good way, knocking off criminals and evil masterminds, though at the same time always on the verge of being caught by the police for taking the law in his own hands. The original Spider stories were non-stop mayhem, filled with apocalyptic threats, and Murray is able to recreate the same atmosphere while throwing in a few cross-overs as a treat. The plot is complex, but Murray juggles the characters and scenes very deftly. No spoilers here. If you enjoy the old pulps, this is right up your alley.
September 26, 2022
Excellent pastiche of the old Spider novels published in "Spider Magazine" during the 1930s and 1940s.
July 22, 2023
A pulp novel featuring the Spider and the Skull Killer. The Scorpion tries to takeover New York City. Much chaos ensues.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews