The Shadow: Crime Over Casco & The Mother Goose Murders

by Walter B. Gibson

Classic detective story

Genres: Mystery

197 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1979

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

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book pairs two Shadow novels from 1946 issues of the pulp magazine, rather late in his career. It's interesting to note that the author's name on the book is Walter Gibson, not Maxwell Grant as all of the magazine versions were by-lined. He had been writing Shadow novels for fifteen years by the time these appeared, around two hundred (!) of them by then, and The Shadow had gone from a pulp magazine curiosity to a global phenomenon due to the popularity of the radio program. There had been revolutionary advances in technology, and the world had changed radically due to the Second World War. The character in these stories is a bit more reserved and restrained than the crazed vigilante of the early 1930s, or the nemesis of super-villains that prevailed during the War years. He solves much simpler crimes, with more of a standard mystery tone than apocalyptic adventure. They're both good stories; I preferred the Mother Goose Murders, in which The Shadow has to solve crimes based on traditional children's' rhymes. Crime Over Casco is a moodier piece, with the stormy historic Maine Islands serving as backdrop. This volume includes a fascinating introduction by Gibson.

[Ronald · Rating 3 out of 5]

the 3 stars is for Crime over Casco; Mother Goose Murders under another listing

[Duffy Laudick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as other Shadow stories I have read, but not bad either.