For the first time, Dan Cushman’s exotic locale hard-boiled adventure stories are collected in two editions. This volume collects the first six adventures of Armless O’Neil, from 1945-48 issues of Jungle Stories and Action Stories: “Seekers of the Glittering Fetish,” “Black Mahogany,” “Jackal Kill,” “Five Suns to Angola!,” “Dread Safari,” and “Blood-Spoor of the Devil-Stones.”
Seekers of the Glittering Fetish: The Complete Adventures of Armless O’Neil, Volume 1 by Dan Cushman contains the following stories:
- “Seekers of the Glittering Fetish”
- “Black Mahogany”
- “Jackal Kill”
- “Five Suns to Angola!”
- “Dread Safari”
- “Blood-Spoor of the Devil-Stones”
Ron Shiflet –
This is a great collection for anyone who enjoys outright adventure. I purchased the e-book and just finished this volume and have ordered the second. As a fan of Robert E. Howard, I can say that this fits the bill if you’ve read all of his work and need something else to fill the void. My only regret is that I didn’t order this way back when it was first released!
Andrew Salmon –
I absolutely loved this collection! Sure exotic locale pulp abounds, O’Neil’s got a convenient hook (pun intended) with that missing hand but it’s the flat out writing ability of Dan Cushman that takes these stories over the top. Not only does he do an incredible job of creating the setting, but his characterizations are spot on as well. You quickly get a sense of the characters and you’ll be sweating and swatting at mosquitoes by the second paragraph.
O’Neil is also a great anti-hero. Sure he does the right thing in the end, but he’s a bitter man who is hiding from something. We never find out what but his sabotaging of every effort he makes at getting back to “civilization” and self-destructive tendencies make him a fascinating character who stays with you after the last page has been turned.
I devoured this first collection and I want more! It’s a shame O’Neil didn’t last beyond the short run of tales thankfully collected in two volumes by Altus. The stories are fun, engaging, fact-paced reads and I enjoyed them all. I can’t recommend Armless enough. The very epitome of a lost gem. These tales are dynamite!