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Doc Savage (Bantam) #10
The Phantom City
Arabian thieves led by the diabolically clever Molallet set one fiendish trap after another for Doc Savage and his mighty five. Only "Doc," with his superhuman mental and physical powers, could have withstood this incredible ordeal of endurance which led from the cavern of the crying rock through the pitiless desert of Rub' Al Khali and its Phantom City to a fight to the death against the last of a savage prehistoric race of white-haired beasts.
Original publication in December 1933 by Street & Smith Publications. Double-volume reprint by Sanctum Books, coupled with No Light to Die By, both by Lester Dent under S&S house name, Kenneth Robeson.
Original publication in December 1933 by Street & Smith Publications. Double-volume reprint by Sanctum Books, coupled with No Light to Die By, both by Lester Dent under S&S house name, Kenneth Robeson.
74 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1933
41 people are currently reading
171 people want to read
About the author
Lester Dent
354 books58 followersLester Dent (1904–1959) was born in La Plata, Missouri. In his mid-twenties, he began publishing pulp fiction stories, and moved to New York City, where he developed the successful Doc Savage Magazine with Henry Ralston, head of Street and Smith, a leading pulp publisher. The magazine ran from 1933 until 1949 and included 181 novel-length stories, of which Dent wrote the vast majority under the house name Kenneth Robeson. He also published mystery novels in a variety of genres, including the Chance Molloy series about a self-made airline owner. Dent’s own life was quite adventurous; he prospected for gold in the Southwest, lived aboard a schooner for a few years, hunted treasure in the Caribbean, launched an aerial photography company, and was a member of the Explorer’s Club.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
November 2, 2013
The end of 1933 brought the best adventure to date. Doc and his men take their submarine, the Helldiver, into the middle of the Arabian desert(!) in order to thwart the evil Mohallet and his band from expoiting a peaceful people in their search for . . . well, perhaps you should read it! Mohallet is a tricky enough villain that Doc is fooled a couple times and even walks into a trap or two. He's tricky enough that Doc mutters about needing to be more alert. Tricky, indeed! A real ripsnorter of a story and a great way to end 1933. I'll be taking a break from Doc, but I have all 12 supersagas from 1934 and I'll be reviewing them soon!
December 6, 2022
The Phantom City is a "Doc Savage" novel by Kenneth Robeson. Kenneth Robeson was the house name used by Street and Smith Publications 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 recently came across several of them in a used bookstore and snapped them up. I read about 80%+ of the Doc Savage novels when I was a teenager but that was a very long time ago.
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 fashion adventure and with 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 recently came across several of them in a used bookstore and snapped them up. I read about 80%+ of the Doc Savage novels when I was a teenager but that was a very long time ago.
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 fashion adventure and with 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 22, 2025
Doc Savage is my all time favorite series. I'm rereading these after many years and it is such a nostalgic pleasure. Similar to most in the series, there are obvious disconnects but so what? The rush to get new novels on the shelves in the 1930s caused shortcuts and some sloppy hurried writing but I'm thankful we have around 150 Doc Savage adventures to delight in today. This adventure is good and features Doc and his crew at their best. A submarine journey to an Arabian desert, battles with some very bad dudes, and Doc's skill in science saving the day. Good stuff!!!
July 12, 2014
Wrapping up the first year of the Age of Doc, December 1933 gave us The Phantom City, a high point in the series so far and a prime example of what makes these stories tick.
This is the tenth Doc Savage story, and it has everything: global adventure, a lost civilization (and their ancient enemies), the return of Doc's submarine, the Helldiver. The action is fast-paced and exciting, the villain is tough, and the banter is peppery. The story builds steadily towards a nail-biting climax, one with our heroes in real peril. And of course, there's a beautiful woman who (of course) falls in love with Doc and (of course) cannot reach his heart, so (of course) Ham and Monk fight for her attentions instead. Speaking of Monk, this story introduces his pet hog Habeas Corpus, who will feature in many stories to come.
If you like Doc Savage but aren't crazy enough to read all the novels, make sure you read this one.
This is the tenth Doc Savage story, and it has everything: global adventure, a lost civilization (and their ancient enemies), the return of Doc's submarine, the Helldiver. The action is fast-paced and exciting, the villain is tough, and the banter is peppery. The story builds steadily towards a nail-biting climax, one with our heroes in real peril. And of course, there's a beautiful woman who (of course) falls in love with Doc and (of course) cannot reach his heart, so (of course) Ham and Monk fight for her attentions instead. Speaking of Monk, this story introduces his pet hog Habeas Corpus, who will feature in many stories to come.
If you like Doc Savage but aren't crazy enough to read all the novels, make sure you read this one.
February 8, 2019
This is a fun adventure about Doc Savage and his crew taking on a gang of Arabian thieves who are holding a mysterious young white-haired woman captive. The chase leads them from New York City to the Arabian desert to the phantom city of the title.
August 15, 2013
This is not the first book in the Doc Savage series, but it serves well as an introduction to the Man of Bronze at the apex of his powers. It features nearly all of Doc's "toys," (submarine, dirigible, planes, autogyro, etc), a mystery worthy of his intellect, the assistance of all five of his aides (sadly, in other books, some members were otherwise occupied, and in later volumes his only companions were Ham and Monk), and a journey to a lost city in the midst of the Arabian Desert. It has thrills aplenty and features the writing skills of Lester Dent (the man behind the house name) at full force.
May 14, 2020
It's clear author Lester Dent (Kenneth Robeson) has fully hit his stride with Doc Savage's character. This (10th) novel continues the joy of pure adventure with a stoic main character who fights evil at every turn as we've seen in the last three or four adventures. This Doc and Dent's style are here to stay.
The plot isn't horribly original -- Doc journeys to a lost city and saves its inhabitants from both their native enemy AND villains from the outside world. In fact, it had echoes of an old Tarzan novel. I learned while reading this episode that Dent was a big Edgar Rice Burroughs fan...and it clicked: in many ways, this novel reads as an homage to Burroughs.
Die-hard Doc fans will thrill to the origin of the pig Habeas Corpus, a pet who proved so popular with Depression-era readers that he appears off and on through much of the rest of Doc's adventures. For me, it's always a thrill to discover Dent's wonderful ability to take cutting edge science of his day, employ it in the plot to result in an invention by Doc or his associates, and realize it's something which has come true in the modern world. In addition to infra-red night vision goggles and sonar, in this adventure the villains use a magnetic gun to silently shoot streamlined steel projectiles. 90 years later, the U.S. Navy is trying to perfect this very same technology, calling it a rail gun. What will DARPA lift wholesale from the tales of Doc Savage next?
It's a rollicking good story, but earns only four stars due to a couple of plot holes which could have readily been fixed with a slight rewrite (though considering Dent had to whip out a novel a month in addition to other writing, this is quite understandable!).
The plot isn't horribly original -- Doc journeys to a lost city and saves its inhabitants from both their native enemy AND villains from the outside world. In fact, it had echoes of an old Tarzan novel. I learned while reading this episode that Dent was a big Edgar Rice Burroughs fan...and it clicked: in many ways, this novel reads as an homage to Burroughs.
Die-hard Doc fans will thrill to the origin of the pig Habeas Corpus, a pet who proved so popular with Depression-era readers that he appears off and on through much of the rest of Doc's adventures. For me, it's always a thrill to discover Dent's wonderful ability to take cutting edge science of his day, employ it in the plot to result in an invention by Doc or his associates, and realize it's something which has come true in the modern world. In addition to infra-red night vision goggles and sonar, in this adventure the villains use a magnetic gun to silently shoot streamlined steel projectiles. 90 years later, the U.S. Navy is trying to perfect this very same technology, calling it a rail gun. What will DARPA lift wholesale from the tales of Doc Savage next?
It's a rollicking good story, but earns only four stars due to a couple of plot holes which could have readily been fixed with a slight rewrite (though considering Dent had to whip out a novel a month in addition to other writing, this is quite understandable!).
August 30, 2020
I can only read one or two of these a year. I like the adventure and the outrageous plots
but the misogyny and racism, while not excessive, are annoying.
Women are instantly and desperately attracted to Doc and generally are decorative to the plots.
And any culture that isn't white America is described as lessor.
The writing style is irritating as well.
In this book, rain is described as , "drooling", "leaking", and "sobbing".
Doc likes to ride on the outside of cars and is said to not get wet when it rains.
He also can't get sunburned either.
He (and one or more of his team) are familiar and often fluent in all human languages.
He uses sonar and underwater breathing gear. I later found out that at the time these were written, a form of sonar did exist.
And people had been using underwater breathing gear at least as far back as Jules Verne, so its use here is not surprising.
But the bad guys have a weapon that is clearly a magnetic rail gun and I haven't heard of that tech either existing or used in previous SF&F works.
So, if you like this sort of thing, then this is the sort of thing you will like (Thanks, Don Thompson).
but the misogyny and racism, while not excessive, are annoying.
Women are instantly and desperately attracted to Doc and generally are decorative to the plots.
And any culture that isn't white America is described as lessor.
The writing style is irritating as well.
In this book, rain is described as , "drooling", "leaking", and "sobbing".
Doc likes to ride on the outside of cars and is said to not get wet when it rains.
He also can't get sunburned either.
He (and one or more of his team) are familiar and often fluent in all human languages.
He uses sonar and underwater breathing gear. I later found out that at the time these were written, a form of sonar did exist.
And people had been using underwater breathing gear at least as far back as Jules Verne, so its use here is not surprising.
But the bad guys have a weapon that is clearly a magnetic rail gun and I haven't heard of that tech either existing or used in previous SF&F works.
So, if you like this sort of thing, then this is the sort of thing you will like (Thanks, Don Thompson).
February 12, 2019
After what seems like too many America-bound stories (The Red Skull, The Czar of Fear, Quest of the Spider), this entry is a return to globe-trotting adventure. After being attacked by a group with high-tech weapons (basically rail guns, which was surprising to see in a story this old) Savage is approached by an Arab seeking to hire the Helldiver submarine (last seen in The Polar Treasure) for mysterious reasons.
Put simply, this is the sort of story I read Doc Savage for. It has a brisk pace, world travel, a lost civilization, subhuman savages, advanced technology, and an exotic beauty. It was nice to see the return of the Helldiver submarine, as it seems like gear, treasure, and vehicles acquired in pulp stories and comics all too often evaporates between episodes.
I was starting to lose interest in the series after bland installments like The Red Skull and The Czar of Fear, but this story was a return to form. It looks like the following volume is another story set in America, but hopefully it maintains this level of energy.
Put simply, this is the sort of story I read Doc Savage for. It has a brisk pace, world travel, a lost civilization, subhuman savages, advanced technology, and an exotic beauty. It was nice to see the return of the Helldiver submarine, as it seems like gear, treasure, and vehicles acquired in pulp stories and comics all too often evaporates between episodes.
I was starting to lose interest in the series after bland installments like The Red Skull and The Czar of Fear, but this story was a return to form. It looks like the following volume is another story set in America, but hopefully it maintains this level of energy.
January 4, 2023
The Phantom City was the tenth Doc Savage published during its original run and during it first reprint cycle under Bantam, and both covers have Doc on display without a shirt or with a severely torn shirt respectively, which was one of the classic images Bantam cover artist James Bama highlighted -- and this is actually one of the stories where Doc's shirt is torn apart as he battles ape men during the adventure in the titular city. It also happens to be one of the better stories, as Doc and his aides fight the ape men and Arabian bandits hunting for a priceless treasure. Its success in the Bantam reprints brought Doc close to being made into a movie series, but the vagaries of Hollywood robbed us of that chance.
September 29, 2023
Really solid entry in the series.
Half action adventure through the streets of New York, half ERB lost city story.
All five aides show up and most of them get to do something.
Doc is well written.
And the first appearance of Habeaus Corpus, Monk's pet pig! I'd heard the references to where Monk adopted the pig, but I'd always assumed it happened in-between the books.
Very nice to discover it was an actually story point.
The damsel is decently written, and there are a bunch of great action set pieces.
Only stumbles are the ending is abrupt, the bad guys stop being interesting once we leave NY and we should have spent more time in the Phantom City.
Half action adventure through the streets of New York, half ERB lost city story.
All five aides show up and most of them get to do something.
Doc is well written.
And the first appearance of Habeaus Corpus, Monk's pet pig! I'd heard the references to where Monk adopted the pig, but I'd always assumed it happened in-between the books.
Very nice to discover it was an actually story point.
The damsel is decently written, and there are a bunch of great action set pieces.
Only stumbles are the ending is abrupt, the bad guys stop being interesting once we leave NY and we should have spent more time in the Phantom City.
February 27, 2018
Reading Challenge 2018: favorite prompt from the 2015-2017 reading challenges. Once again, Doc Savage and his five stalwart friends face an evil menace in an Arabian villain and his men. They are determined to steal all of the platinum from a hidden Phantom City in the desert. With lots of action, suspense, the distressed woman, scary white beast men, and a hidden city, Doc discovers that all was in vain as the platinum was only lead. I do not like how the book just ends, with no resolution or return to civilization. There were many Arabic words to look up in the book.
August 24, 2024
early teens to later adulthood
Read the Doc Savage books as a young teen 50+ years ago. They helped start me on a lifetime of reading. As an adult, they seem campy and dated but they are still entertaining! Fun remembering the “old things” in these stories. Running boards on cars!!!
Read the Doc Savage books as a young teen 50+ years ago. They helped start me on a lifetime of reading. As an adult, they seem campy and dated but they are still entertaining! Fun remembering the “old things” in these stories. Running boards on cars!!!
November 29, 2017
Finally got around to reading another Doc Savage novel. This one is ok. Starts off with some mysterious goings on, and then ultimately becomes a chase which reverses into an escape. There are some good moments, but this is not one of the best stories.
March 15, 2018
I really liked this Doc Savage adventure, a mysterious white haired girl, furry beasts, and a lost city. A lot of action and a very interesting story line. Monk finds habeas corpus in this volume. A must read for any Doc fans.
October 4, 2017
Another good Doc adventure that I read back in the 70s.
April 7, 2020
3.5 / 5
January 17, 2024
A pulp novel featuring Doc Savage, originally published in 1933. Doc is coerced into traveling to a lost civilization. Much chaos ensues.
June 3, 2024
Loved it. The origin of Habeus Corpus and Doc is not totally silent like he sometimes is.
September 3, 2024
A terrific adventure!!
November 9, 2024
Rollicking adventure. Well written!
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!
March 9, 2025
Gotta love the Doc! My favorite line in this episode - 'Renny boomed softly: "I don't like this!"'
April 28, 2023
Well there we go, #10 in the books (pun intended)
This adventure gets you from the first few pages and doesn't let go until the end. A quick but extremely entertaining addition to the series.
Plus, it gave us such literary gems as:
"Not here, sons of dumb camels!" (unlike 'Daughters of smart ardvarks")
"Holy cow!" gulped Doc's assailant. "Did we pull a boner!" (Oh, thanks, so that's where I left it)
'Whipping erect, Doc began to circle rapidly.' (Oh man, the jokes write themselves.)
Towards the end it almost seemed like a 3 stooges bit with, "Lets get out of the sub to land..OH NO! They're at the sub! Go back to the sub! Now lets get out of the sub to land..OH NO! They're at the sub again! Go back ot the sub again...."
Oh well, on to the next one....
This adventure gets you from the first few pages and doesn't let go until the end. A quick but extremely entertaining addition to the series.
Plus, it gave us such literary gems as:
"Not here, sons of dumb camels!" (unlike 'Daughters of smart ardvarks")
"Holy cow!" gulped Doc's assailant. "Did we pull a boner!" (Oh, thanks, so that's where I left it)
'Whipping erect, Doc began to circle rapidly.' (Oh man, the jokes write themselves.)
Towards the end it almost seemed like a 3 stooges bit with, "Lets get out of the sub to land..OH NO! They're at the sub! Go back to the sub! Now lets get out of the sub to land..OH NO! They're at the sub again! Go back ot the sub again...."
Oh well, on to the next one....
August 28, 2023
From the the streets of New York City to the sands of Arabia, Doc and his crew chase villains who attacked Doc and kidnapped a white haired woman who speaks a language all her own. Doc and his men warm up their submarine, Helldiver, to follow the villains to Arabia and navigate the treacherous passages of a hidden inland river that course through the mountains of Arabia.
It is in this adventure that Monk purchases his pig while in Arabia. He names him Habeus Corpus so as to get at Ham. Ham of course despises the pig. Or so he claims.
Written by Lester Dent. Published December, 1933.
It is in this adventure that Monk purchases his pig while in Arabia. He names him Habeus Corpus so as to get at Ham. Ham of course despises the pig. Or so he claims.
Written by Lester Dent. Published December, 1933.
February 8, 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.
July 6, 2015
A strange request to hire Doc's submarine leads him through on an adventure that takes him and his gang through a series of deadly traps that concludes in the desert. The first appearance of Monk's pet pig, Habeas Corpus.
August 26, 2015
A fantastic entry: Doc finds a forgotten desert city with silver-haired people, amidst a battle with massive, fur-covered degenerated ape-men.
This story is the very first appearance of Habeas Corpus, Monk's pet pig.
This story is the very first appearance of Habeas Corpus, Monk's pet pig.
June 15, 2022
Apparently Doc Savage is just good at everything. Invents things, surgeries, always gets out of trouble, beats up anyone, punches don’t hurt, yadda yadda. Got old after awhile. Otherwise an okay adventure, probably would be better as a short story.
August 22, 2012
I remember buying this back in 1966 when it first came out in paperback. I was so excited. A new Doc Adventure! After all those years I still remember the ending.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews