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Post by ripper on Sept 21, 2014 18:41:46 GMT
Black Pool for Hell Maidens by Hal K. Wells (Mystery Tales June 1938)
Larry Kent is searching for his girlfriend, Dorothy, in the swamps of Alabama when he comes across a freakish half-human creature about to devour a couple of corpses it has dug up. Dr Carlin, his thuggish assistant and Larry's girlfriend show up, subdue the creature and forcibly march Larry to Carlin's laboratory deep within the swamp. Dorothy treats Larry as if he were a stranger. Later it transpires that Carlin has a group of men, all amputees, upon which he is experimenting in order to make them grow new limbs using a crayfish-derived serum, only it is actually making them into semi human creatures. He is also fleecing the men, all wealthy, of their money. Dorothy's brother is one of them, but refused to hand over his money, so Carlin gave him more serum, transforming him into a vicious monster kept in a pool in the basement. Larry is locked up and Dorothy, who was pretending not to know Larry so she could get his help, attempts to free him, but Carlin discovers them and threatens to feed them both to the monster of the black pool...
This is great stuff. They just don't write this kind of story anymore. Not quite as lurid as some of these shudder pulps could be, but exciting and fast-paced. Not really too much in the way of character development, but you don't really read something with a title like "Black Pool for Hell Maidens" as a character study. This is a quick, easy read, recommended to anyone who enjoys classic pulps.
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Post by ohthehorror on Nov 7, 2015 20:46:35 GMT
Am on a bit of a pulp mag kick at the moment and have this one lined up next. It's here on pulpgen I was pleased to see. Looks like a good 'un too. |
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Post by ohthehorror on Nov 8, 2015 13:47:56 GMT
Enjoyed this immensely, up to a point! That point being the moment it turned into just another episode of Scooby-doo. Is this what I've seen referred to as a 'shudder pulp'?, and if so, do they mostly tend to be of the 'Scooby-doo' form? I hate to be so hard on it because I really was enjoying it a great deal while it seemed to be about people turning into monsters, and sea monsters at that. What more could a man want? Well, certainly not what I got that's for sure. My heart literally sank, and I'm pretty sure I felt a lump form in my throat for a moment as I realised I'd been had, and that the author had decided to turn the entire story on it's head at the last possible moment. I want my sea-monster god-dammit...!!  |
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Post by Jojo Lapin X on Nov 8, 2015 14:46:45 GMT
Enjoyed this immensely, up to a point! That point being the moment it turned into just another episode of Scooby-doo. Is this what I've seen referred to as a 'shudder pulp'?, and if so, do they mostly tend to be of the 'Scooby-doo' form? Yes. That is part of their peculiar appeal. And since the genre predates Scooby and the gang, it is perhaps more appropriate to refer to Radcliffe. |
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Post by andydecker on Nov 8, 2015 20:56:53 GMT
Enjoyed this immensely, up to a point! That point being the moment it turned into just another episode of Scooby-doo. Is this what I've seen referred to as a 'shudder pulp'?, and if so, do they mostly tend to be of the 'Scooby-doo' form? Yes. That is part of their peculiar appeal. And since the genre predates Scooby and the gang, it is perhaps more appropriate to refer to Radcliffe. But this is also problematic, don't you think? I got a bit burned out by this when reading Doc Savage back then because so many of the fantastic villains and schemes were just a case of the prop department. I have the same problem with the shudder pulps, which I have come to love in all their sleazy weirdness.
In this I thank Seabury Quinn who loved the supernatural. Even if he didn't write shudder pulps. Still.
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Post by Jojo Lapin X on Nov 9, 2015 11:29:33 GMT
I got a bit burned out by this when reading Doc Savage back then because so many of the fantastic villains and schemes were just a case of the prop department. I can imagine burning out on Doc Savage for many reasons, but I do not recall this problem specifically. I seem to remember a prominent Doc Savage villain is an actual resurrected mummy who is thousands of years old! |
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