March 15, 2012
Galaxy presents another action-packed trio from Hubbard's "Stories from the Golden Age" series. The standout Hell's Legionnaire includes the title story plus the "The Barbarians" and "The Squad That Never Came Back." All released in 1935, these tales chronicle the death match between the French Foreign Legion and the Berbers in Morocco. Hubbard doesn't pull his punches, and the gun battles between the soldiers and the Arabs are hard-core graphic (that means bloody as hell), as are the beheadings and torture--this is solid "guy" stuff. Hurricane (1936) is a bit softer. Here, Captain Spar has escaped from Devil's Island after being wrongly imprisoned for five years. He flees to Martinique to hunt down and kill the mysterious underworld figure "the Saint" who had set him up. Taking a job as skipper aboard a luxury yacht, he soon finds romance among a bunch of upper-crust islanders, but his nemesis is closer than he knows (hint: never trust the snooty Englishman) and may kill him first. Sky Birds Dare (1936) is the most lighthearted of the three. It details the endeavors of glider pilot Breeze Callahan to convince the U.S. Navy that engineless planes can help the war effort. His attempts mostly fall flat, as do his planes, thanks to sabotage by competitor Badger O'Dowell, but Breeze ultimately wins over the navy and the heart of Patty Donegan who's got a thing for flyboys. VERDICT Featuring full casts plus a narrator and heaps of sound effects, these programs burst to life on audio. The sound effects especially propel the action in a way that print can't match. Hubbard (1911-86) researched the technical aspects of his subjects (planes, ships, weapons, etc.), lending an authentic feel to his descriptions. The brevity of the stories also keeps them moving briskly. Overall, these are three solid additions to the ongoing series, which will be enjoyed by fans of pulp writing and old-time action, adventure, and romance. Pure fun and you can't beat the price--grab 'em!--Mike Rogers, Library Journal
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