"Murder in the Void"

"Murder in the Void."

By Edmond Hamilton (1904-77).

Thrilling Wonder Stories, June 1938.

Online at Archive.org HERE.

Crane's bronzed, aquiline face tensed as he crouched for a moment beside a stiff, grotesque shrub. As a member of the Terrestrial Secret Service he had been sent by the TSS to get Doctor Alph's secret weapon and he'd do it or die trying.

Rab Crane of the TSS is on the trail of an unidentified brain thief who likes to snap necks; trouble is, the brain thief knows it only too well and won't hesitate to kill anyone in his way. Let's be honest here: as an agent Crane is no James Bond. As for the plot, it reads like a mashup of a couple of Bond films, Dr. No and Moonraker, with a weak mystery tossed in. In subject matter and style (lots of exclamation marks!!!!!) this one just oozes pulp.

Resources:

- Wikipedia's article about space opera maven Edmond Hamilton is HERE, and his ISFDb bibliography is HERE.

Category: Science fiction (interplanetary spy division)