Night Boat to Paris

I've really enjoyed Stark House Press's recent spotlight on author Richard Jessup. He wrote over 60 novels, including the excellent five-book series of spy adventures starring Monty Nash. Additionally, Jessup experienced success with his western, The Cincinnati Kid, which was adapted into a Steve McQueen-led film. Along with reprinting Jessup's Port Angelique and Wolf Cop, Stark House Press also released the author's 1956 Dell paperback Night Boat to Paris as a Black Gat Book. 

Jessup's formula uses a familiar setup, often found in westerns, to drive the plot. The concept is the retired gunfighter, bandit, or bounty hunter wrangled back into “one more job”. By the mid 20th century, imaginative authors had transformed the idea into a more contemporary setting, often in crime fiction, as con-artists, heist specialists, and other seedy fellows are convinced “one more job” will score the grandest prize of all. Under the hands of thrilling writers like Lionel White and Dan J. Marlowe, those novels thrived with threads of desperation and treachery while the anti-hero judged his self-perception and worth.

Night Boat to Paris is unique in that it combines this same concept, the retired gunman back on the trail, with a sweeping European spy chase. Jessup's superb plot, melding heist and espionage, recalls the high-adventure cornerstones like Jack Higgins and Hammond Innes. Yet his prose is comparable to the conversational tone of Donald Hamilton's memorable Matt Helm novels. 

In the book's opener, Reece, a former British secret agent, is minding his own business running a small bar in England. His former boss calls him back into action to chase down a microfilm that every country in the world is clamoring for. While the details of the microfilm, its current owner, and the nefarious parties involved are all dense and too specific, the mission is simple: knock over a highly influential dinner party and steal the microfilm from the Russian. 

Reece and intelligence design a heist operation, one that is disguised as a simple hit and run, stealing money and jewelry from all the suits and ties. Under this operation, Reece hits the streets to recruit the best heist guys in the business. The lucrative payout is enticing, and soon Reece and his gang of thieves are training at a farmhouse in France. This is the best part of heist novels for me – the organization of who does what and where. I just love how these jobs come together in vintage paperbacks. Any author worth his salt can infuse so much characterization and subplots into this portion of the heist build-up. Jessup introduces a clever rivalry between the men and two Italian specialists. This will pay dividends in the book's stirring finale. 

Soon, Reece and the men are in full-swing and begin the heist. As always, complications ensue, and changes are made on the fly. The book's second half morphs into getaway mode as the team escapes into the French countryside to avoid the law. It's here that Jessup plays a few more wild cards by introducing a female character who will play a hand in Reece's escape strategy. Additionally, a surprise twist reveals that one of the men is a secret Russian operative.

Night Boat to Paris is the best book I've read thus far in 2026. Jessup was just a phenomenal storyteller, and his stand-alone crime-fiction, spy, and heist novels are top-shelf entertainment. This is an easy recommendation. Get on this Night Boat to Paris as soon as possible. 

Get the book HERE.

Earth vs The Lava Spiders

In 2022, authors Candace Nola, Lucas Mangum, and Judith Sonnet contributed horror novellas to a trilogy series titled Earth Vs, a homage to the 1950s drive-in movie culture. Mangum's was Earth vs The Star Mummy, Sonnet's was Earth vs The Nudist Camp Freaks, and Nola's was Earth vs The Lava Spiders. The covers for all three books were created by Christy Aldridge of Grim Poppy Design. A friend let me borrow Nola's novella, which was my first experience with the series and the author. The book was published by Nola's own Uncomfortably Dark Horror and edited by both Nola and Mort Stone. 

Earth vs The Lava Spiders is set in Pine Grove, California, in 1958. Teenagers are making out in the car when they see strange lights over the bay. Soon, the landscape is glowing as fireballs erupt from the nearby mountainside. As a volcano erupts, the teens realize that the embers and lava aren't the only thing pouring from the mountain – there are also flaming spiders ready to pounce on human flesh! Then, the feast begins.

Each chapter of the book features a 1950s song title, like "Jailhouse Rock", "Blueberry Hill", and "Oh, What a Night!". Nola uses each of these early chapters to focus on one character or set of characters who are experiencing the spiders. These attacks occur in the suburbs, on the highway, at a nearby prison, and at a police station. By the sixth chapter, a story arc develops as an elderly man named Jonas escapes prison and begins a lively escape from the burning arachnids. 

Nola candidly admits on her website that Earth Vs The Lava Spiders isn't great. But, she explains, “it is a good story that is meant to be funny, wild, fast-paced, and corny.” She definitely achieves that in this 50-page novella. It is never too serious, and it hearkens back to the day when horror didn't have to say or mean anything. It's just a fun distraction from life's everyday horrors – mortgages, jobs, social angst, etc. I also borrowed Nola's book Bishop: Man vs Monster, and I am now anxious to read it too. 

Get Candace Nola's books HERE.

The Last Snow

Nine years before his retirement, Jon Messmann (Revenger, Nick Carter: Killmaster) authored a stand-alone western titled The Last Snow. The book was published as a paperback in 1989 by Random House using Messmann's real name. It's odd that Messmann, a lifelong New Yorker, wrote the novel, considering he was ultra-productive in the 1980s with his tremendously successful adult-western series The Trailsman. By 1989, Messmann, writing as Jon Sharpe, had completed 84 installments of that series for his publisher Signet. In true pulp fashion, these novels were published nearly every month on a firm schedule. Additionally, Messmann was also writing the Canyon 'O Grady series, again as Jon Sharpe. The Last Snow is one of only two stand-alone novels that Messmann wrote in the 1980s, the other being Jogger's Moon (aka To Kill a Jogger) in 1980 for Penguin.

The Last Snow is presented in an epistolary style with 19 journal entries ranging from October 1846 through April 1847. The opening pages of the novel advise readers that these documents were found among the family possessions of Daniel Culver by his granddaughter. It's an old-school storytelling approach that has been used by the likes of Bram Stoker, Edgar Rice Burroughs, and Stephen King. 

Culver is a thirty-something mountain man who makes a living as a trail guide, but has been known to gamble, gunfight, and perform as a type of mercenary. He's the proverbial “everyman”, yet Messmann rarely places Culver in action scenes. Instead, Culver is more of a messenger or consultant. When he arrives in the frontier town of Stoddard, he discovers families brutally massacred in their cabins. Citing the work of the Cheyenne, Culver enters the city to warn the settlers of a coming invasion. His cries fall on deaf ears.

In Stoddard, the U.S. Calvary has a small encampment of 200 soldiers led by a half-dozen officers. The town feels safe and immortal despite Culver's pleas. As the snow begins to fall, Culver realizes the town will be cut off with no way to cross Snowshoe Pass, the only passage through the harsh mountainside. As Culver jockeys as a mouthpiece for the town, he also rediscovers an old relationship he once had with a widow and her son. Further, Culver begins a romance with the daughter of one of the officers.

As the snowfall begins, Culver risks staying with the town in an effort to fortify it from attack. Unfortunately, the military doesn't take his efforts seriously until it is too late. As Cheyenne and other factions begin the invasion, Messmann cranks up the action with gritty violence, savage acts of murder, and the familiar bloodshed of battle. 

The Last Snow is an unusual western, brimming with non-formulaic traits from the protagonist. Culver is a sensible, no-nonsense adventurer, but realizes his efforts to fight the Cheyenne are pointless. The town is ripe for slaughter, the military's strategy is lacking, and the town's chief politicians are clueless. In many ways, Messmann exercises a liberal political fusion of words versus action as this tiny frontier town collapses from internal and external pressures.  

Thankfully, Cutting Edge Books has made The Last Snow available in a new paperback and digital edition. The book is also included in the publisher's western omnibus The Big Bold West #12, featuring novels by James Warner Bellah, Michael Carder, and Riley Ryan. If you enjoy Messmann's writing, Cutting Edge has also made available the author's Logan series, originally written as Alan Joseph, and his gothic-romance novels, originally written as Claudette Nicole. 

Get The Last Snow HERE.

Tom Corbett, Space Cadet #01 - Stand by for Mars!

According to the Tom Corbett Website, Grosset & Dunlap began publishing the Tom Corbett Space Cadet juvenile novels in 1952. These were a tie-in to the established television character and the Rockhill Radio IP. There were eight books in the published series from 1952 to 1955, all using the house name Carey Rockwell. There has never been a definitive answer on who actually wrote the books, but speculation is that it could have been Richard Jessup or G&D editor Joe Green.

Tom Corbett first appeared on CBS television in 1950 before moving to ABC in 1951. The show remained on air, with various networks, through 1955. Corbett also appeared on the radio in 1952, in 14 Dell comics from 1952-1955, and in Sunday newspaper strips between 1951 to 1953. My only experience with the character, like most readers, is the G&D books, which I still see from time to time in used bookstores. 

I decided to try the character out with the series debut, Stand by for Mars!, originally published in 1952. 

The setting for the series is the 24th century, 2350. All of the inner planets have been colonized by humans. Earth is a commonwealth shared by Mars and Venus. Solar Guard units are stationed in different parts of the universe, each monitoring shipping and passenger commutes while conducting various experiments. Somewhere in the North American Midwest, there's an academy to train men and women vowing to join the Solar Guard. This is where we first meet Tom, on day one of his training as a cadet. 

Roger Manning, like Tom, is from Earth. As a fellow cadet, Roger is consistently tormenting Tom and a man from Venus named Astro. This conflict is the central plot of the book – the trio's ability to work together cohesively through training and actual operations. Roger seems to have a great burden on his shoulders, one that he distributes emotionally and physically to his cadet mates. At one point, Tom and Roger have a fistfight in the facility gym. Awkwardly, Roger strives for companionship, but simply doesn't know how to coexist with his teammates. This is a mystery that permeates the book's second half – Roger's secret. Fortunately, the reveal pays off in the book's emotional finale.

As I was reading Stand by for Mars!, I kept thinking of other series titles that shared similarities with the book. The trials and tribulations heaped on Tom during training reminded me of R.A. Salvatore's The Legend of Drizzt series of Forgotten Realms novels. That character is forced to make alliances while also combating other students during his training. The debut, Homeland, featured Drizzt's time in the Academy. Another similar title is the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, complete with the alliances and rivalries forged at Hogwarts, a school of magic. Like Stand by for Mars!, that series features a combat sport in which the students must rely on each other to score goals and win for their team (or house). 

Most of Stand by for Mars! features Tom, Roger, and Astro working as a trio to overcome mathematical and engineering problems during their training classes and final. However, their education pays off when they are thrust into a real scenario of answering a rescue beacon from another ship. The action also includes a shipwreck, an 8-day survival quest through a hot desert, and some intense battle planning as the trio is forced to make quick decisions to defend a faux invasion. 

Overall, this Tom Corbett debut was highly entertaining. I connected to the character, enjoyed Astro's comical scenes, and found Roger detestable. All three characters, and their emotional baggage, helped elevate the storytelling. I'm all in. Stand by for the next installment!

Get Stand by for Mars! HERE

Gil Cohen: Inside/Out - The Archive Collection

I've covered countless books and stories here at Paperback Warrior that feature artwork created by the legendary Gil Cohen. My first experience with the Philadelphia native was his exceptional paperback covers for The Executioner series, created by Don Pendleton. His detailed brushstrokes defined the imagery for Mack Bolan for several decades, including the spin-off titles associated with the character's rich history. 

In 2020, Robert Deis and Wyatt Doyle collaborated on a visual collection of paperback covers, One Man Army, featuring hundreds of Cohen paintings, most central to The Executioner and Mack Bolan mythos. That book, which was available in hard and soft covers from New Texture, focused solely on Cohen's paperback artistry. However, Cohen was extremely prolific in the pages of men's action-adventure magazines, often referred to as MAMs. 

There isn't a duo on Earth more skilled in telling the history of the MAM era than Deis and Doyle. Both have made it their mission to highlight and document this unique, storied tradition of vintage magazines. Both have excelled in presenting coffee table, awe-inspiring volumes that capture the essence of the MAM. Books like Weasels Ripped My Flesh!, He-Men, Bag Men, & Nymphos, Barbarians on Bikes, and artist portfolios including legends like George Gross, Mort Kunstler, and Samson Pollen.

The two have once again created a beautiful coffee table book titled Gil Cohen: Inside/Out - The Archive Collection. This is a deluxe, full-color hardcover (150ish pages) featuring Cohen's magazine covers and interior illustrations found in MAMs from the 1950s through the 1970s. I haven't counted them all yet, but according to MensPulpMags.com, there are 160 high-resolution images. Considering MAMs are very rare, this may be one of the only times a casual fan and reader will even see these paintings. 

My favorites include the book bonus artwork, including Force 10 from Navarone (Alistair MacLean, Male 1970), The Executioner (Don Pendleton, For Men Only 1969), and Thunderball (Ian Fleming, Argosy 1961). I also enjoyed reading Deis's foreword on Cohen's legacy as an artist and his contributions to Martin Goodman's Magazine Management Company, arguably the birthplace of Marvel Comics. 

Deis and Doyle promise that this book is the first in a planned four-volume series showcasing Gil Cohen's MAM art. Based on the quality of this volume, I can't wait to see more. 

Get your copy of this fantastic book HERE.

Cavern of Rage

African-American author W. Warner Jackson was born in Spur, Texas, and worked as a railroad porter, painter, mail carrier, machinist, and cook, among other jobs. He spent most of his life in Kansas City, although no other details are really known about him. Jackson wrote three novels, beginning with The Birth of the Martyr's Ghost, a 1957 hardcover published by Comet Press. He followed with the paperback Lust for Youth (1960), and Cavern of Rage (1961). Cutting Edge Books has all three of Jackson's novels available in new paperback and digital editions. As a newcomer to the author, I decided to read Cavern of Rage. It was originally published by Newsstand Library with cover art by Robert Bonfils. 

The book, set in Kansas City, features the common tropes of sleaze fiction – adultery, greed, and guilt. David and Nora have experienced six years of marriage, highlighted by their elevated social status in the community. Yet David's work has suffered a tremendous collapse, leading the couple to financial ruin. As the novel begins, Nora is hosting one more extravagant party to cement their status as pillars of the community. David knows this is the last grand event before things spiral into ruin.

The party featured a performance dancer, Peggy, that has eyes for David. In his weakened state as both a husband and provider, David is enthralled with Peggy. The two leave the event, exploring each other's bodies in David's car. Meanwhile, as the party ends, Nora is flirting with the band leader, a vile individual named Vincent. He drugs Nora's drink and rapes her, but already has plans to violate one of Nora's friends that he met earlier in the evening.

The book's second half is a roller-coaster of events that thrust these four individuals into some very dark places. Readers learn that Vincent is a serial rapist and killer, a revelation that Jackson twists and turns as Nora is held in torturous captivity. It is this aspect of the book that really elevates the anxiety and tension – will Nora submit to this maniac or fight back? Also, there is a flood that isolates both David and Peggy in a cave, forced to fight for their own survival. This leaves time for David to contemplate his life. Continue with Peggy? Return to Nora? It's a balance beam of emotion for both the character and the reader.

I wish I knew more about Jackson, because his literary work certainly deserves more recognition. Cavern of Rage is an excellent crime-noir that reveals humanity's eternal desires – sex, money, and power. Jackson's ability to shift perspectives allows readers to view these seedy quests from different communities and financial platforms – the criminal, the underfed, and the powerful. It's clever storytelling that exposes these morally bankrupt characters and their motives. It's also highly entertaining. Cavern of Rage gets a strong recommendation.

Get this book and the other Jackson novels HERE.

The House of the Nightmare

Edward Lucas White (1866-1934), who was educated at Johns Hopkins University, worked as a teacher at University School for Boys in Baltimore for nearly his entire life. While teaching, White was committed to being a writer. He authored short stories, novels, and poetry, some of which have been celebrated in countless horror and mystery anthologies. My experience with White is his beloved ghost story, “The House of the Nightmare”. It was first printed in The Thrill Book in 1919. Later, it was included in White's collection, Lukundoo and Other Stories.

This story uses the “roadside ghost” that is often affiliated with the dark traveler or dead hitchhiker shtick. We've all heard the campfire stories, or watched one of many horror films use the concept of an average person traveling a dark road and finding solace with a mysterious stranger. In some cases, the traveler will pick up a girl hitchhiking, only to later learn at a local truck stop or diner that the girl had previously died in a tragic accident and now exists as an apparition left to wander the highway for eternity. 

This idea spills into songs like Alan Jackson's (w/ Don Sampson) “Midnight in Montgomery” or David Allan Coe's “The Ride” (written by John Blayne Detterline, Jr. and Gary Gentry). The concept is often called the phantom hitchhiker, but it can be used for other occurrences, too. In White's case, it concerns a traveler meeting a young boy on a dark roadside.

The story is told in first-person by an unnamed narrator. He is traveling through the mountainous countryside when he spots an anomaly in the road. Ahead of him, he sees a large stone on the right side of the lane, yet as he gets nearer, it seems to have changed location to the left. As he struggles to understand this strange positioning, he runs off the road and into a tree. A young boy arrives and offers to assist the man, but is hesitant to shelter him.

After some back-and-forth, the man convinces the boy to allow him to sleep at his house overnight. The boy confesses that the home is messy, his mother is dead, and his father hasn't been home in months. There's very little food, and plenty of other excuses for the man to avoid this house. But he insists, and the boy welcomes him inside. The boy warns the traveler that he experiences nightmares concerning a large pig that is devouring him. That night, the man has the same nightmare and flees the house. Down the road, he learns the awful truth about the boy and the haunted house.

This was a familiar setup for me, but I still enjoyed White's storytelling. He adds a few clues throughout the short narrative about the boy and his living conditions. The cool, dark house offers plenty of eerie atmosphere, and there's a mystery about the boy's family that begs for answers. The nightmare scene was told vividly, with enough fright to warrant the character's quick departure.

I loved this story, and I often enjoy these phantom formulas. One of my favorites is an episode of the CBC radio show Nightfall. It's called “Windchill”, and it was written by David McCaughna and aired on September 19, 1980. You can listen to that audio presentation HERE.