Month: February 2018

My Favorite Shadow Novels (Updated 2/26/18)

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death_towerAs most of you know, I’m a big fan of The Shadow – in fact, I used to host a podcast entitled The Shadow Fan. Today I thought I’d share with you a few of my favorite Shadow novels, so that if you’re looking to jump into the series, you’ll have some recommendations about where to start. These are by no means all the great Shadow stories — it’s just a handful that I really love. In addition, there are still Shadow novels that I haven’t read yet — so I might go back and add to this list as time passes.

To be honest, I think it’s a great idea to simply start with the first story and go forward — but that’s not always possible, I know. So here are my favorites, in order of publication:

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Timeline of My Pulp Adventure Universe (Updated 2/15/2018)

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img_7223Major Events specific to certain stories and novels are included in brackets. Some of this information contains SPOILERS for The Peregrine, Lazarus Gray, Gravedigger and other stories.

~ 800 Viking warrior Grimarr dies of disease but is resurrected as the Sword of Hel. He adventures for some time as Hel’s agent on Earth. [“Dogs of War” and “In the Name of Hel,” Tales of the Norse Gods].

1748 – Johann Adam Weishaupt is born.

1750 – Guan-Yin embarks on a quest to find her lost father, which takes her to Skull Island [Guan-Yin and the Horrors of Skull Island].

1776 – Johann Adam Weishaupt forms The Illuminati. He adopts the guise of the original Lazarus Gray in group meetings, reflecting his “rebirth” and the “moral ambiguity” of the group. In Sovereign City, a Hessian soldier dies in battle, his spirit resurrected as an headless warrior.

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RABBIT HEART goes under the knife!

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rabbit_heart_newRay Bara posted a review of RABBIT HEART on Amazon.com and he gave it a solid 5 star rating! Here’s his full review:

A Different Type of Barry Reese Book But a Great Barry Reese Book Nonetheless!

I have read all of Barry Reese’s New Pulp series, including the Peregrine (who will always be the Rook in my heart), Lazarus Gray, and the Gravedigger. I finally got around to Rabbit Heart and I wish I had read it years ago. While it varied greatly from Reese’s series work, it still had his excellent writing and his New Pulp sensibilities. I enjoyed the change of pace. Rabbit Heart is more violent and sexy than Reese’s series, which he wrote well. I enjoyed the character of Fiona Chapman, an undead killer with a conscience. I liked his use of Ascott Keane, the apparently ageless occult investigator from the days of Pulp. I also liked Reese’s use of his hometown of Milledgeville and the local lore he included in the story. Rabbit Heart was action-packed, full of sex and violence, and loaded with great characters and plotting. That is, Rabbit Heart is everything one would want from a New Pulp book. Reese, as usual, hit the mark with another excellent story. Read it, read it, read it!

Thanks, Ray! Rabbit Heart was always meant to be a departure from my standard fare and I’m glad that people have seemed to enjoy it. I’ve had many readers say it’s actually their favorite work of mine!

I appreciate you taking the time to review it.

Various Things

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OfficeDepot1 copy 2Welcome back to ye olde blog, my friends!

Yesterday I typed THE END on The Adventures of Lazarus Gray Volume 8 and shared the files with my editors and publishers at Pro Se. Volume 8 has five stories in it and will clock in at over 64,000 words. It picks up in December 1939 and wraps up in December 1940 as we continue to push towards America’s entry into World War II.

Now I’m turning my eye towards a novella I’m writing that’s part of a new shared universe project at Pro Se. It’s *not* part of my Reese Unlimited stuff so there won’t be any crossover there. I hope it’s something that all of you will really get wrapped up in, though.

And, yeah, there was a small hint there about what it’s about.

After I’ve finished with this, I’m not 100% sure what I’ll work on. I need to come up with a plot for the next Captain Action book but I’m also tempted to work on something involving some elemental characters that’s been percolating in the back of my brain for ages.

Television-wise, I’m enjoying RIVERDALE, THE ALIENIST, CELEBRITY BIG BROTHER and THE ORVILLE. Great stuff all around!

Our artwork today is of The Peregrine and is by Mitch Ballard.