Fear Cay

Doc Savage (Bantam) #11

by Kenneth Robeson (House Name)

It was all a great mystery. Who was this man called Dan Thunden who claimed he was one hundred and thirty years old? Did he really have the secret of the fountain of youth? What was this island called Fear Cay that spelled horror and death? What was the strange thing that turned men to bone? These were the mysteries that Doc Savage and his fearless crew had to solve at peril of their very lives.

First published in DOC SAVAGE magazine in 1934 and then republished by Bantam

Genres: Adventure, Pulp, Science Fiction, Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery, Pulp Adventure

138 pages, Paperback

First published July 28, 2012

About the author

Kenneth Robeson was the house name used by Street and Smith Publications as the author of their popular character Doc Savage and later The Avenger. 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

Lester Dent is usually considered to be the creator of Doc Savage. In the 1990s Philip José Farmer wrote a new Doc Savage adventure, but it was published under his own name and not by Robeson. Will Murray has since taken up the pseudonym and continued writing Doc Savage books as Robeson.

All 24 of the original stories featuring The Avenger were written by Paul Ernst, using the Robeson house name. In order to encourage sales Kenneth Robeson was credited on the cover of The Avenger magazine as "the creator of Doc Savage" even though Lester Dent had nothing to do with The Avenger series. In the 1970s, when the series was extended with 12 additional novels, Ron Goulart was hired to become Robeson.

Reviews

[brian annan · Rating 2 out of 5]

a wonderful sloppy mess. not good literature by any stretch but i can't get enough Doc Savage into my brainball.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kenneth Robeson was the house name used by Street and Smith Publications as the author of their popular Doc Savage series. Though most Doc Savage stories were written by the author Lester Dent, there were many others who contributed to the series. I read most of these books many years ago and had most of them in my collection at that time. A collection that I let get away from me long ago. At that time they were very common to find in used book stores and thrift shops for $1.00 and sometimes .50¢. Now it is very rare to see them and I always buy them when I do and re-read them.
In this one, a man called Dan Thunden who claims to be one hundred and thirty years old sends his great-great grandaughter a mysterious package. Someone tries to kidnap her so she endeavors to contact Doc Savage and procure his help. Doc and his crew are attacked several times and end up flying to a remote island called Fear Cay. There they discover freshly dead bodies that have mysteriously turned to skeletons and a substance that might possibly be the secret of the fountain of youth. What was is on this island called Fear Cay that spells horror and death? What is the strange thing that turns men to bone? These are the mysteries that Doc Savage and his fearless crew had to solve at peril of their very lives. Doc's entire crew consisting of Monk, Ham, Johnny, Renny, and Long Tom are involved. Pat Savage, Doc's Cousin, and Monk's pet pig, Habeas Corpus are also in this one.

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Doc Savage and his crew encounter a gang that goes by the name of Fountain of Youth, Inc., as well as a strange man who claims to be 131 years old, who seems to be working against the gang, but also against Doc. This adventure takes them to a cay south of Florida where they might just find the secret of eternal life. This is a pretty entertaining adventure, and it was nice to have another appearance by Doc's female cousin, Pat Savage, who appeared in an earlier book.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fear Cay marks the second appearance of Doc's cousin Pat. Unlike many stories from this era, Doc does not automatically tell Pat she can't go on the adventure because she is female. I doubt Pat would put up with it. Besides, she's a Savage and can handle herself. When a submachine gun makes itself available during the story, she scoops it up and blazes away, though always over the heads of the villains since she respects Doc's desire not to take lives needlessly. This is a great story, starting in NYC and then travelling to the mysterious island Fear Cay, with underground tunnels and a sinister menace that turns men into skeletons in seconds. All the Fabulous Five get a moment here, and Doc does some pretty incredible things. An excellent read.

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

To be honest I read awhile ago but remember little of it. Not a mystery more an adventure tale.

[Michael Emond · Rating 3 out of 5]

My first Doc Savage novel - so I am rounding my 2,5 review to 3 stars because it was all new to me. Now I do know a little about Doc Savage from a bad movie I watched this year with him in it and a nice collection of Pulp Fiction covers which gave me the general idea of the character. He is "the perfect man". Strong, smart, courageous, noble, a leader and anything else you need him to be. The author kept calling him "metallic man" and saying he had "skin of bronze" so I was confused but I read online that yes - he was a man and not an actual man of bronze. But trust me - the author refers to him that way so many times you will end up picturing a robot man of bronze. Besides Doc there are five men on his team. They start to blend together after a while - but they are all geniuses. Experts in the fields of engineering, archaeology, chemistry and electricity. And I missed one but no matter - they never are called on to display their intelligence or their expertise in their field. Partly because the story didn't need them to but mostly because Doc is as smart as all of them combined so they feel a bit redundant. They were obviously added for extra comedy/dialogue/to get captured/so Doc has someone to explain things to. It's a big weakness of the novel. The author does try to give them distinct personalities - Monk is gruff and short, Ham dresses nice and likes to verbally spar with Monk, Long Tom is skinny, Jonny uses big words (when the author feels like it) and Remy...has big hands. Yikes. Yeah - if the team served more of a purpose and had more personality it would all work better.

What about the story? Well it was short and action packed like you would hope a pulp novel from the 30/40's would be. Was it confusing and a little disjointed and illogical at times? You bet. They were churning them out, one a month (week?) so no time for clever plotting. Get your hook and run with it. The hook of this one was "fountain of youth" (really healing plants) on a forgotten island off the coast of Florida. How does Doc get involved? Don't think about it too hard. As I said - this isn't a novel you should revisit and marvel over the twists and turns just pay your 50 cents and have fun.

Overall - it was very interesting. And I liked how you could see how Doc was a template for some later super heroes (like Superman and Batman and I have no doubt Alan Moore used him as a template for Tom Strong) but also a very unique character. Like The Shadow - I wonder if a clever writer could modernize them and make them into a good TV series or movie. Or do you keep them in their original time period "pre WWII"? Or maybe they are a product of their time and as popular as they were as pulp heroes they just will never appeal to modern audiences? Just some things I think about.

I'll be reading more of these I got from a used book store and we'll see if they hold my interest or fall into a boring formula too fast.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure if my rating would have been higher if I had rated this when I first read it or not. As it happened, I realized half way through this time that I had read it before and, while I couldn't remember a lot of it, I did know the "punch line" before finishing. This is one of the books that features Pat Savage (his cousin) and it's remarkable how Dent/Robeson was so progressive in his portrayal of her! I love the crew but honestly have a hard time keeping the names straight. These books are the best of pulp fiction and more exciting and gadget-filled than any Bond movie. I love how many fantastical devices exist in the books that weren't "discovered" or invented for many years to come. Fun as always!

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading Challenge 2018: book you meant to read in 2017 but didn't get to. Once again, Doc Savage and his five comrades are off on an adventure. This time, Doc's cousin Pat joins in the adventure. Italian villains, lost islands, a medicinal herb that cures, flesh-eating ants, a hidden traitor, and a damsel in distress. Oh, and Doc's men getting caught. I am unsure of the reason for the title, other than the fear of the fire ants on the cay, which is in the Caribbean. There is a connection to ancient Roman history and the Fountain of Youth, the latter being unfounded. Pat Savage is like the guest super hero that shows up for the episode and then disappears. The ending is quickly wrapped up and the reader is left to wonder how the group gets home.

[David Chess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mediocre scan of a great classic pulp

Classic Doc Savage! Action! Adventure! Many plant species mentioned in a very masculine way! Advanced technology like radio-telephones and instantly effective knockout gas! Confident reminders of how weirdly bronze-colored Doc is!

One star knocked off because the Kindle edition is a rather careless digitization. The first page is the worst, and no important text seems to be missing, but there are enough extra blanks splitting up words and so on that one wishes they had proofread. One also wonders if the edition is authorized / legal. But surely Amazon has checked!

[Dennis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting saga. Finally, Pat returns to the Doc Savage stories. However, she is held captive for much of the story and so is in the background for much of the book. Doc and his crew are chased around New York City by a nefarious gang seeking to stop him from becoming the herb that the Fountain of Youth, Inc is attempting to sell to wealthy men. Add into the mix a 131 year old man who seems the equal in strength and vigor to both Doc and his men. One minor complaint of mine, the profuse use of the term “old-young man when mentioning Thundun.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

From 1934, hands-down the greatest year of Doc Savage adventures, "Fear Cay" has everything going for it. The 19th printed Doc is among the top dozen in the entire series. It features the second appearance by Doc's beautiful cousin Pat, an apparent Fountain of Youth formula, a movie star, a menace that strips people of their flesh, a man who claims to be 130 years old and gives Doc a tough fight (see the Bantam cover) and an exotic island setting. Main series writer Lester Dent was really on a roll by this time. It's no wonder Bantam chose to reprint this one so early, No. 11 in its series.

[Kurt Reichenbaugh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Goofy pulp adventure for Halloween. This story originally appeared in Doc Savage Magazine September 1934. It's a hellzapoppin plot featuring underground caverns, flesh-eating ants, gangsters and a plant that promises immortality. The story is fun, but the writing is clunky. This one, like a few others I've read, also features Doc's beautiful cousin Pat Savage. Pat Savage is your classic pulp gal that you want to have on your side when the shit hits the fan, which happens a lot in these old yarns.

[Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good Doc adventure that I read back in the 70s.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

These books bring back a lot of nostalgia because I read them as a kid. They are still as much fun now.

[Devin Coryell · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 / 5

[Jeff J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pulp novel featuring Doc Savage. Mystery in the Caribbean.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

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!

[Duane Olds · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a bad quick mystery/adventure read. It seems that back in the day the place to be was an island, because out of the 11 Doc Savage books i've gone through so far, 8 of them were about islands with gold or diamonds or platinum or the fountain of youth or pirate gold hidden on/near/around/under them. Also the island has a spooky name like Fear Cay, Mysterious Island, Terror Reef, Heebie-Jeebie coast, Holy crap that's frightening isle, Oooga-Booga Inlet and so on.

Plus you can't go wrong with a read that gives us literary gems like:

'The moneybags had the jowls of a bulldog, the eyes of a lizard and the body of a pelican along with the pelican's neck.' (he gets the lizard body from his dad and the pelican neck from a pelican)

"Nature had sure run out of brains when she got around to equipping you!" (Brains was the toilet paper of the 1930s, there was a depression and BOOM, all sold out of brains)

"You may buffalo some people, but you won't get to first base with me!" (Woah! Lets just start with dinner and a movie and see what happens?"

Also, as a new service to the Doc Savage public, I have started counting how many times 'superamalgamated' is said in each adventure - In todays adventure it was said 6 times. No really, I counted.

Oh well, on to the next one...

[Forrest · Rating 4 out of 5]

Original publication order: #19 (September 1934)
Bantam reprint order: #11

Fear Cay is a highly enjoyable Doc Savage adventure, packed to the gills with improbable action. In a frantic chase from New York to the Caribbean, Doc and his crew meet a movie star, a sailor who just might be immortal, an eerie menace that transforms men into skeletons, and a worthy pack of villains who actually manage to outmaneuver Doc for most of the book. That's one heck of a combination, and at several points Doc actually seems to be worried, nervous, or even creeped out, losing his usual air of invincibility.

The book also marks the welcome return of Patricia Savage, Doc's scrappy cousin. Pat is beautiful, whip-smart, and likes action just as much as Doc and his men—two gun battles in less than an hour would make a wreck out of most people, but for Pat it's the best day ever. I really wish Pat had become a regular character in the series, or even maintained that level of participation throughout the book, but unfortunately she fades into the background in the later chapters. On the other hand, the oft-underused Johnny gets several excellent POV scenes that really show us what he's made of.

Overall, Fear Cay is good mindless fun.

[Stewart Sternberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I give a rating it takes into account the genre and other considerations. A three star rating for a pulp action book from the thirties is a whole other animal from the review I give work of literary fiction, or something more conventional. That being said, this is enormous pulpy fun. if you don't like comic book action or improbable characters, turn away. This is the stuff of Saturday morning matinee.

[Little Timmy · Rating 5 out of 5]

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 meances, 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.

[Michael Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember buying this (and Phantom City) when they came out in England. The fantastic Bama covers and the even more fantastic stories, I was instantly a Doc Savage fan. A very active 131 year old man has the secret of eternal youth, and crooks want it. Doc, his men and Pat go after it and have numerous scrapes with killers before finally sorting things out and finding out what it is that turns people into skeletons in seconds.

[Fraser Sherman · Rating 2 out of 5]

A mysterious group called Fountain of Youth, Inc. tries to take out Doc before he can get embroiled in a mystery involving the title island, a pretty actress and Dan Thunden, who claims to be 130 years old. Bland villains except for Thunden and a fairly obvious secret behind it drag this one down, though having Doc's excitement-happy cousin Pat return is a pleasure.

[Ed Wyrd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Doc's cousin, Patricia, makes an unexpected appearance and looking for action, finds herself neck deep in a mystery as a gang called Fountain of Youth Inc. mistakes her for a movie actress and kidnaps her. The mystery, which seemed pretty obvious, stumps Doc and his gang until the end. Not the best in the series and makes me wonder if it was written in a hurry by a house writer.

[Luke Schwiebert · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to say, this was a much better book than I anticipated. I expected, from Doc Savage's reputation, a poorly-written potboiler that would be good for a laugh, but in fact this was a really great adventure, with a fun, fast pace, entertaining characters, and an intriguing mystery at its core. To be sure, it begins quickly and ends quickly, but that's just what you want out of a 5-cent pulp!

[Travis · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite of the Doc Savage books.
A hidden treasure, a tropical island, a good bunch of bad guys and a possibly immortal pirate.

Lots of action and adventure and elements from this book have been used in Philip Jose Farmer's 'Doc' books as well as a couple of the comics.

[Marilyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a nother favorite that I often re read.

[Rick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Average Doc Savage. OK, but not my favorite. Doc was too ineffectual at times.

[Kevin Driskill · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoy a mystery that I don't figure out early and Robeson kept me going until the end of this one. It is not deep reading but very entertaining. Doc is the man.

[Dale Rosso · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed the story and also enjoyed listening to the old time radio dramatization of the story.