This issue, we have original mysteries by Christina Hoag and Greg Herren (both courtesy of Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken), plus a crime tale by Greg Herren (courtesy of Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman). Our mystery novel is Annihilation by classic American mystery novelist Isabel Ostrander, whose detective fiction was influential in the early 20th century. Of course, there’s a solve-it-yourself puzzler by Hal Charles, too! On the science fiction and fantasy front, we have a real treat—Phyllis Ann Karr has been going through her files and found the previously unpublished short-story version of her novel Wildraith’s Last Battle for us. Plus, we have classics by David Mason, Cordwainer Smith, and Allen K. Lang. Our science-fantasy novel is Lin Carter’s sword-and-planet tale, Under the Green Star (the first of the Green Star series, very much in the Edgar Rice Burroughs tradition). Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure: “Travis and Wilbur,” by Christina Hoag [Michael Bracken Presents short story] “The Antique Caravan Caper,” Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery] “Housecleaning,” by Greg Herren [Barb Goffman Presents short story] “Leonardo,” by R.T. Lawton [Michael Bracken Presents short story] Annihilation, by Isabel Ostrander [novel] Science Fiction & Fantasy: “Wildraith’s Last Battle,” by Phyllis Ann Karr [short story] “Farewell Message,” by David Mason [short story] “Box-Garden,” by Allen K. Lang [short story] “Scanners Live in Vain,” by Cordwainer Smith [short story] Under the Green Star, by Lin Carter [novel]

This issue, we have original mysteries by Albert Tucher (courtesy of Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken) and James Blakey, plus a modern tale by SJ Rozan (courtesy of Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman). For our mystery novel, we have a Golden Age tale set in the Canadian Northwest Territories, The Long Arm of the Mounted, by James French Dorrance. Rounding out the section is a solve-it-yourself puzzler by Hal Charles. We also have one of Norman Spinrad’s occasional “Norman Spinrad at Large” columns—wherein he talks about when (not if) we will find life elsewhere in the universe. On the science fiction & fantasy front, we have an original collaboration by Paul Di Filippo & Claudio Chillemi, a tale by British fantasy master John S. Glasby, and classic space opera by Nelson Bond (“Honeymoon in Bedlam,” which he later rewrote to feature Lancelot Biggs for his novel Lancelot Biggs: Spaceman), plus tales by William Campbell Gault and Edmond Hamilton. Fun stuff! Here’s the complete lineup— Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure: “The Bottle Blonde,” by Albert Tucher [Michael Bracken Presents short story] “The Fatal Founders Day,” by Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery] “New Day Newark,” by SJ Rozan [Barb Goffman Presents short story] “The Five People You Meet in Atlantic City,” by James Blakey [short story] The Long Arm of the Mounted, by James French Dorrance [novel] Nonfiction: “Norman Spinrad at Large: Life As We Don’t Know It?” by Norman Spinrad Science Fiction & Fantasy: “Maximinus Thrax and the Gates of Chaos,” by Paul Di Filippo and Claudio Chillemi [short story] “When Darkness Falls,” by John S. Glasby [short story] “Honeymoon in Bedlam,” by Nelson S. Bond [short story] [short story] “The Woman Obsession,” by William Campbell Gault [short story] The Invisible Master, by Edmond Hamilton [short novel]

This issue, we have five mystery stories, three of which are originals—tales by Tracy Falenwolfe (thanks to Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken), Veronica Leigh, and Teel James Glenn—these last two names should be familiar to regular readers from previous issues. We also have a great modern tale by Jonathan Santlofer (thanks to Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman) and a classic pulp crime story set in the dark world of Las Vegas casinos by Bryce Walton. Plus, of course, a solve-it-yourself puzzler from Hal Charles. On the science fiction end, the Lancelot Biggs space opera series from Nelson Bond continues with “F-O-B Venus.” F-O-B was a more common term in early to mid 20th century. It stands for “Free on Board”—a term used in international shipping to indicate that the seller delivers the goods to a ship at a specified port, and the buyer assumes responsibility once the goods are on board and is responsible for shipping costs, insurance, and other expenses related to transporting the goods to their final destination. Rounding things out are a pair of novels: pulp action-adventure from Edmond Hamilton, then Lester del Rey’s classic tale of an atomic power plant heading toward meltdown. Great stuff. Here’s the complete lineup for #151— Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure: “Jamming at Jollies,” by Tracy Falenwolfe [Michael Bracken Presents short story] “The Case of the Carried-off Coins,” by Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery] “Lola,” by Jonathan Santlofer [Barb Goffman Presents short story] “Divine Discontent,” by Veronica Leigh [short story] “White Face, Blood Red,” by Teel James Glenn [short story] “Murderers Three,” by Bryce Walton [short story] Science Fiction & Fantasy: “F-O-B Venus,” by Nelson S. Bond [short story, Lancelot Biggs series] Outside the Universe, by Edmond Hamilton [novel] Nerves, by Lester del Rey [novel]

Black Cat Weekly continues to present a mix of original, modern, and classic science fiction, fantasy, and mystery fiction. #71 includes 6 short stories, 3 novels, and a solve-it-yourself mystery. Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure: “Friday, February 30th,” by Mark Thielman [Michael Bracken Presents short story] “X Marks the Spot” by Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery] “Secrets in the Snow” by J. M. Taylor [Barb Goffman Presents short story] Ring-a-Ding-Ding, by Frank Kane [novel] The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes, by Arthur Conan Doyle [collection] Science Fiction & Fantasy: “The Giftie Gien,” by Malcolm Jameson [short story] “Space-Can,” by Murray Leinster [short story] “The Knowledge Machine,” by Edmond Hamilton [short story] “The Timeless Tomorrow,” by Manly Wade Wellman [novel] Secret of the Earth Star, by Henry Kuttner [novel]

Our 68th weekly issue has several holiday tales to spice up the season, including an original (“Merry Library Murder,” by N.M. Cedeño, courtesy of Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken) and some modern classics by Heather Critchlow (courtesy of Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman) and one of my own favorite authors, Nina Kiriki Hoffman (she’s amazing!) Cynthia Ward has selected an exciting fantasy from Milton J. Davis, plus we have great tales by Ray Bradbury, Lester del Rey, and James Holding, a Sexton Blake tale by Hal Meredith, and of course a solve-it-yourself puzzler from Hal Charles. It’s a fun issue. Here’s this issue’s lineup: Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure: “Merry Library Murder,” by N.M. Cedeño [Michael Bracken Presents short story] “Where There’s a Will,” by Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery] “Heavenly Peace,” by Heather Critchlow [short story] “The Inquisitive Butcher of Nice,” by James Holding [short story] “The Barton Tunnel Mystery,” by Hal Meredith [short story] Science Fiction & Fantasy: “Wishmas,” by Nina Kiriki Hoffman [short story] “The Gate,” by Milton J. Davis [Cynthia Ward Presents short story] “The Irritated People,” by Ray Bradbury [short story] “Solstice Cakes,” by Nina Kiriki Hoffman [short story] “Unto Him that Hath,” by Lester del Rey [short story]

In 1948, the Australian government banned the production, importation and exhibition of horror films in a move to appease religious communities and entertainment watchdogs. Drawing upon previously unseen government documents, private letters and contemporary newspaper accounts, this book is the first to extensively cover the history of censorship and the early production of horror movies in Australia. Beginning its examination in the late 19th century, the book documents the earliest horror films like Georges Melies' The Haunted Castle (1896), and how Australians enjoyed such films before the ban. The book then explains how certain imports, like 1954's Creature from the Black Lagoon, were able to circumvent the ban while others were not. It also reveals how Australian television, though similarly impacted by government censorship, was occasionally able to broadcast films technically banned from cinematic release. The work concludes with a look at the first Australian horror films produced after the ban was formally lifted in 1969, like Terry Bourke's Night of Fear (1973).

Offering a comprehensive view of the South's literary landscape, past and present, this volume of The New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture celebrates the region's ever-flourishing literary culture and recognizes the ongoing evolution of the southern literary canon. As new writers draw upon and reshape previous traditions, southern literature has broadened and deepened its connections not just to the American literary mainstream but also to world literatures--a development thoughtfully explored in the essays here. Greatly expanding the content of the literature section in the original Encyclopedia, this volume includes 31 thematic essays addressing major genres of literature; theoretical categories, such as regionalism, the southern gothic, and agrarianism; and themes in southern writing, such as food, religion, and sexuality. Most striking is the fivefold increase in the number of biographical entries, which introduce southern novelists, playwrights, poets, and critics. Special attention is given to contemporary writers and other individuals who have not been widely covered in previous scholarship.