Who can the Crown call when a hideous curse has been caste on a nobleman in Regency England? Who will throw down the gauntlet when the fog bound Victorian streets of Whitechapel are the hunting ground for a subhuman, monster? Who can stand and fight when a bloodthirsty vampire rises from the tomb in the Kentish Marshes? Doctor Augustus Argent, Sorcerer Supreme and Agent without portfolio for the Crown that's who! Since Elizabeth the Great had a secret cabal of witches create the Solomon Document to protect England from invasion, the forces of evil conspiracies and the horrors of Alchemists have threatened the sceptered Isle. Join Doctor Argent and his swashbuckling aid Jack Stone as they protect the empire of England from the forces of darkness in pulse pounding, pulp-style action and romance.

The Escape Artist is a "How-will-he-get-out-of-it" Thriller, with a touch of the supernatural, gangsters, Houdini's Ghost, Japanese killers, Voodoo, a love triangle and six (count 'em: six) impossible death traps that challenge Timothy Locke, the pacifist/loner hero of the book.On the eve of the millennium, someone tries to kill Locke during an escape from between the Twin Towers. In hunting the assassin, he is drawn into the world of voodoo from his past and a conspiracy that goes back to his time as a prisoner in Vietnam.The book is solidly in the Eric Van Lusbader/Robert Ludlum tradition, with the action scenes, the stage magic and the voodoo sequences meticulously researched by an author who had literally written the book on action scenes!

Once the Fae and mortal worlds lived side by side, then Queen Morgana became unhappy with a mortal hero and closed the passage between the worlds. For many years the worlds of man and fae could be breached only in dreams or where dreams lived in the daylight: Renaissance Faires! Then the barriers were opened again and the two worlds became as one—that was when things got interesting! Now gods and ogres, jinn and demons cross into the world of mortal man with alarming regularity. In this brave new world, a farmer makes a wish and his deal with a Leprechaun is not what he bargained for; an Englishman attends a party and accepts a terrible gift; a Manhattan bar bouncer throws the wrong little folk out of his pub and an actuary falls in love with a beautiful jinn princess. Humans beware, when Renfairies attack, danger follows!

Join professional fight choreographer Teel James Glenn as he takes you on a journey through the process of creating believable and dramatic action scenes in every kind offiction. Using wit and personal experience, he dissects action scenes for the keys to what makes them work. Readers benefit from his combat experience, including eastern martial arts, the physiology and kinetics of weight training and the dramatic story telling from film and stage acting. From fantasy swordfights, barroom brawls, comic combat to martial arts knockabouts, he not only outlines and explains the whys and wherefores of literary violence, he also explores techniques that allow you to create them yourself with a series of fun and easy to do exercises. He takes the mystery out of writing action, but not the excitement!

When the Exceptionals uncover a deadly gladiatorial combat that has been televised worldwide, they make an even more horrifying discovery: one of their own, the techninja Temper, is a participant and fighting for her life.Conner Le-Shott is convicted of murder and then escapes jail only to find himself embroiled in the deadly games. He meets the young girl, Jester, who badly needs his help and finds his interest is more than professional.Can the Bodyguard discover where the games are and stop mad man Caligula's plans for world nuclear destruction before Le'Schott loses his life—or his heart? EPPIE Award Finalist!

Welcome to the world of Altiva where young Lord Erique Shoutte has become a divinity student at the Academy Kova. Here the young man embarks on a lifelong adventure to serve his people, forming strong friendships and fighting terrible odds to bring justice to his flock. The tales follow Erique as he progresses from callow youth to mature man on quests for love, knowledge and martial perfection. With him on that journey is the pint-sized spitfire-swordswoman Dame Arinna Cabal, the bawdy herbalist Sister Ada and Myrran his ladylove. Along the way he fights crystal killers who murder with a song, a Vampyr family curse that leaves the victims drained of blood, mad dictators, a masked mystery man, demons and damsels that are more deadly than in distress. These tales range from the heroic, to the mysterious to swashbuckling adventure. In the classic tradition of Conan, Zorro and Captain Blood!

Queen Morgana will not allow free passage between the realms of the Fae and of humans. Because of this, both realms are dying. The only bridge between the worlds is the place where dreams live in the daylight: Renaissance Faires! A group of humans stumbles through the portal: a cocky movie make-up man who hits on the wrong woman, a Vietnam vet whose nightmares make living a chore, a private detective on the strangest case of his career, a crippled cop and a burger store manager who loves to go LARPing. One of them has to show the Queen of the Fae what true love is or they will perish in the greater darkness that is growing day by day. Oh, and in the process, they have to try and figure out who the strange guy in the Viking helmet is and why he is giggling all the time...

A millionaire haunted by a demon consults a fortuneteller, a sideshow performer is captured in a horrible spell, a Hollywood producer cheats the wrong man, a cuckolded husband is invited to an odd dance and then there is that strange clown by the side of the road in Kansas... To many people, the experience of theatre is akin to the mystical experience of religion—the transformation of the human being into a deity—all occur as much with the smell of greasepaint in one's nostrils as with incense. This collection of stories runs the range from love stories to horror tales, from trickster demons to wizards who warp human form for their own purpose. And in each tale, the smell of greasepaint and the sulphurous odor of the other side combine to make a heady mix of fable, fantasy and fright....

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]

Welcome to our 150th issue. This time, we have terrific original tales by Neil S. Plakcy, Britin Haller & Shane Gericke, Bob Tippee, and Teel James Glenn ... plus novels by Natalie Sumner Lincoln and Gans T. Field, and classic stories by Jack Williamson, Nelson S. Bond, Jack Sharkey, and Larry Tritten ... plus a solve-it-yourself mystery by Hal Charles ... all jam-packed into 521 pages! Hours of great reading await. Here's the lineup: Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure: “The Shandiclere,” by Neil S. Plakcy [Michael Bracken Presents short story] “The Campground Caper,” by Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery] “So Many Shores in Crookland,” by Britin Haller & Shane Gericke [Barb Goffman Presents short story] “Private Equity,” by Bob Tippee [short story] The Three Strings, by Natalie Sumner Lincoln [novel] Science Fiction & Fantasy: “Shadow Hunt,” by Teel James Glenn [short story] “The Bird of Time,” by Larry Tritten [short story] “The Second Shell,” by Jack Williamson [short story] “The Madness of Lancelot Biggs,” by Nelson S. Bond [short story] “The Man Who Was Pale” by Jack Sharkey [short story] The Pale Ones Shall Dance, by Gans T. Field [novel]