The Complete John Thunstone

This pulp collection of 16 short stories (the first 11 published in Weird Tales from 1943 to 1945) and two novels follows the supernatural adventures of gentleman investigator John Thunstone, respected and beloved by the good, feared and envied by the bad. In each story Thunstone soundly defeats a supernatural evil (vampires, ghosts, practitioners of black magic) that%E2%80%99s as incompetent and unsophisticated as he is quick-witted and brilliant. Thunstone%E2%80%99s love interest, the lovely Countess Sharon Monteseco, %E2%80%9Clike many women, is not utterly sure what she does want,%E2%80%9D and needs near-constant rescue. Non-Western beliefs are portrayed as inherently evil, such as the voodoo cult in %E2%80%9CThe Third Cry to Legba,%E2%80%9D or a collection of patronizing stereotypes: for just one example, noble, civilized chief Long Spear in %E2%80%9CThe Golden Goblins,%E2%80%9D who like all Indians never refuses a drink, comes from a tribe that once practiced human sacrifice yet showed signs of being %E2%80%9Cconsiderably cultured%E2%80%9D by having a %E2%80%9Chereditary aristocracy.%E2%80%9D Though the writing is fluid and fast-paced, the stock characters and repetitive, clich%C3%A9d stories make reading a tedious chore. The most memorable thing about this collection is the amount of ignorance, prejudice, and appropriation portrayed as sophistication and enlightenment. (Dec.)