The Spot of Life

Blind Spot #2

by Austin Hall

The doorway between the worlds -- the mysterous room where two things could occupy the same space -- had been locked forever, or so its scientist-guardian thought. But nobody had reckoned with the cunning brain of the ruler of that Other World. His advisers had also been working on the dimensional mystery, and they were ready at last. To open up the Spot of Life, to plunge through into the heart of a great American city with an army of unearthly terrors. And for them, H-Hour was a matter of minutes away

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction

187 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1932

About the author

Austin Hall (c.1885 – 1933) was an American short story writer and novelist. He began writing when, while working as a cowboy, he was asked to write a story. He wrote westerns, science fiction and fantasy for pulp magazines.

(wikipedia)

Reviews

[Magdelanye · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just to read science fiction written before the 2nd world war is an adventure in itself.

But SoL,published in 1932,offers more than a classical version of the conundrum of parallel worlds and the mystery of their convergence. Behind the action is an agenda,and when we regard the characters in this sparse and action packed adventure,we notice that they are representative of the new scientific rational order. More than individuals,they are archetypes of the new proffessional and ruling class:a detective,a lawyer,a doctor,a mathematician/historian,a telegraph operator and a jeweler.When the riot squad is called in,we have to be ready to cheer them on because they are the ones to hold back the chaos of alternate realities that would entail the end of the world.

The fun I had reading this was somewhat disturbed by the serious conflict that it represents.The ruminations on space and time were excitingly provocative,and the intruiging idea that death is merely another dimension is a keeper;but the underlying message is a debunking of the supernatural while simultaneously appropriating its power.The world is saved by a foreign mathematician who everyone defers to in the crises,one who asserts in his atrocious parody of an accent,that everything adheres to a single natural law,and that Einstein never went far enough. All that occurs can be mathematically measured and everything is accountable in this version of reality. Anything that chooses to operate outside these perameters is a threat.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sequel to The Blind Spot, Austin Hall wrote this book a decade or so after the first book he co-authored with Homer Eon Flint. Sadly and suspiciously, Homer Eon Flint died after The Blind Spot was published. The Spot of Life adroitly continues the story concerning a portal between two worlds. The portal on Earth is in a house at 288 Chatterton Place, San Francisco, U.S.A. The portal leads to a planet in another dimension which follows the spherical shape and the place of the Earth in the solar system.
To avoid spoilers, there will not be a great amount of detail in this review. The book is entertaining, the characters engaging (though basic), and the science is highly speculative, bordering on pseudo-science. Being written in the early 1930s, this book is a glimpse into an era of skepticism and unbridled enthusiasm for science and spirituality both. Highly recommended, but only after reading The Blind Spot.

[BJ Haun · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just got done reading The Spot of Life, and all I can say is...whew.

This book is something of a hot mess. There is always stuff going on and it doesn't always make sense. To certain extent I can forgive this as the workings of the titular Spot a supposed to be enigmatic, however even after the curtain is pulled back it's still a pain to follow. Then things happen! Exclamation marks everywhere! Chaos! Then the end!

As you might imagine from the above, I can't say that I recommend this one.

[Kristy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a story of metaphysical phenomena, multiple dimensions, and the intersection between mathematics, energy, Life and Death, and the regular old San Francisco detective who gets pulled into the mystery. The book is fun, although sometimes a bit uneven. This is actually a sequel to The Blind Spot, a serialized novel that Hall wrote with a friend (who was later killed by gangsters after a botched robbery!), and while it stands alone, much of this book seems to rehash what happens in the first installment. Still, worth reading if you like science-fiction from the 1930s.

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found it hard to follow some of the narrative in this book. At time it felt like transitions and explanations were missing. I'm also not a fan of haunted house as portal to another world as genre. David Mitchell's attempt at it worked for me, this one did not.