Black Cat Weekly 12

Black Cat Weekly #12 presents: Mystery / Suspense: “A Thanksgiving Mystery,” by Hal Charles [A Solve-It-Yourself Mystery] “The Beacon Hill Suicide,” by Shelly Dickson Carr [Barb Goffman Presents short story] “Model for Manslaughter,” by Paul Chadwick [short story] “Big Talk,” by Kris Neville [short story] “The Good Old Summer Crime,” by James MacCreigh [short story] Speak of the Devil, by Elizabeth Sanxay Holding [novel] Science Fiction / Fantasy “Where Dead Men Dream,” by John Glasby [short story] “On the Rocks at Slab’s,” by John Gregory Betancourt [short story] Cosmic Saboteur, by Frank M. Robinson [novel] The Scheme of Things, by Lester del Rey [novel]

The second issue of Black Cat Weekly presents more tales of the mysterious and fantastic—four mystery shorts, a mystery novel, four science fiction stories, and a fantasy novel, by some of the greatest writers of all time. Here are: IT’S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD GIRL! by Jeff Cohen [Barb Goffman Presents - mystery short story] THE MYSTERY OF THE TRUST BUILDER, by Frank Lovell Nelson [Serial story - 2 of 12] ALWAYS READ THE FINE PRINT, by Hal Charles [Solve it yourself mystery!] THE TWISTED INN, by Hugh Walpole [mystery short story] FALSE TO ANY MAN, by Leslie Ford [mystery novel] THE TELL, by David Brin [Paul Di Filippo Presents - sci-fi short story] MRS. PIGAFETTA SWIMS WELL, by Reginald Bretnor [sci-fi short story] THIRTY DAYS HATH SEPTEMBER, by Robert F. Young [sci-fi short story] THE ALIEN DIES AT DAWN, by Randall Garrett and Robert Silverberg [sci-fi short story] THE ENCHANTED CRUSADE, by Geoff St. Reynard [fantasy novel]

The Black Cat web site has been around for almost four years now, serving up a weekly buffet of new and classic mysteries—and more recently science fiction—to thousands of readers each week. Rather than continue to release all these novels and stories as individual ebooks, we have decided to bundle them up into a convenient weekly magazine…which is a lot more fun to work on! So here is Black Cat Weekly #1, for your enjoyment pleasure. To make the first issue memorable, we are including a lot more content than usual—double the usual word count, in fact. This time we have no less than three complete novels and 7 short stories—and even a “true crime” feature by Erle Stanley Gardner, creator of Perry Mason! There’s something here for everyone to enjoy, whether you’re a fan of traditional mysteries, psychic detectives (in the case of Frank Lovell Nelson’s story, a telepathic detective, the first of 12 stories featuring Carlton Clarke from 1908, all of which will run in the Black Cat’s pages). Looking for modern detection? We have that, too. And if your taste runs to the fantastic, we also have adventures across parallel worlds and well into the future. (And monsters. Did I mention monsters?) Included are: REMISSION, by Michael Bracken A KEY FOR REBECCA, by Hal Charles AUROVIA’S FAMOUS LODGE CASE, by Frank Lowell Nelson THE CASE OF THE KNOCKOUT BULLET, by Erle Stanley Gardner HAND IN GLOVE, by James Holding THE SKULL OF THE WALZING CLOWN, by Harry Stephen Keeler HAVER, by Brian Evenson A ZLOOR FOR YOUR TROUBLE, by Mack Reynolds VALLISNERIA MADNESS, by Ralph Milne Farley LAST CALL FOR DOOMSDAY! by S. M. Tenneshaw WORLDS OF THE IMPERIUM, by Keith Laumer

Our 72nd issue is going to please a lot of our mystery readers. Not only do we have an original tale from the greatr Dave Zeltserman, courtesty of Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken, but we havca a terrific tale by Vicki Weisfelt, courtsey of Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman…plus a classic Sexton Blake mystery and the second Charlie Chan novel! (And, of course, a solve-it-yourself mystery from Hal Charles. Science fiction & fantasy fans won’t be disappointed, either. We have a new Count Czarny story from Phyllis Ann Karr, plus classics by John Barrett, Murray Leinster, Theodore Sturgeon, and George O. Smith. Great stuff. Here’s the lineup: Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure: “When Pigs Fly,” by Dave Zeltserman [Michael Bracken Presents short story] “Yard Sale Jitters,” by Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery] “New Energy,” by Vicki Weisfeld [Barb Goffman Presents short story] “A Back-room Mystery,” by Hal Meredith [Sexton Blake short story] The Chinese Parriot, by Earl Derr Biggers [Charlie Chan novel] Science Fiction & Fantasy: “Morning Star,” by Phyllis Ann Karr [short story] “The Long Way Back,” by John Barrett [short story] “The Devil of East Lupton, Vermont,” by Murray Leinster [short story] “Memory,” by Theodore Sturgeon [short story] “Quarantine,” by George O. Smith [novelet]

This issue we have quite an all-star lineup. From modern masters of mystery like Donna Andrews and Andrew Welsh-Huggins to the greatest names in science fiction like Frank Herbert and Robert Silverberg, this is an amazing issue no matter how you look at it. As for our featured novels, we have a Fantômas tale by Pierre Souvestre and Marcel Allain and Metropolis by Thea von Harbou. This might possibly be our best issue ever! Take a look at our contents and see for yourself— Cover: Ron Miller Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure: “A Beauty All Its Own,” by Andrew Welsh-Huggins [Michael Bracken Presents short story] “Death Takes the Stage,” by Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery] “Cold Blue Steel and Sweet Fire,” by Donna Andrews [Barb Goffman Presents short story] “The Murderer,” by Murray Leinster [short story] The Long Arm of Fantômas, by Pierre Souvestre and Marcel Allain [novel, Fantômas series] Science Fiction & Fantasy: “Chowhound” by Mack Reynolds [short novel] “A Kiss for the Conqueror,” by Henry Slesar [short story] “The Mystery of Deneb IV,” by Robert Silverberg [short story] “Try to Remember!” by Frank Herbert [short novel] Metropolis, by Thea von Harbou [novel]

In order to revert back to his regular-sized self, Train sets out to see Dr. Tearju, a woman who bears a striking resemblance to the girl Eve. But before she can help Train return to normal, the Apostles of the Stars come crashing in, with the intent of forcing Dr. Tearju to join their ranks. A mysterious new weapon may be the only hope for keeping the Apostles at bay. -- VIZ Media

Our 59th issue puts us firmly into one of the happiest seasons of the year, Halloween! So fun and frights abound, with extra spooky content—starting with “Ghost Writers in the Sky,” an original tale by Steve Liskow, courtesy of Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken. (It does double-duty as mystery and fantasy, as does Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman’s pick, “Deal Breaker,” by Justin Gustainis.) Alas, we have no selection from Cynthia Ward this time, but hopefully she will be back in short order. I picked up one of my favorite dark fantasies by another Acquiring Editor to fill the hole: “Peeling It Off,” by Darrell Schweitzer. Plus an uncanny tale by A.R. Morlan that would have been at home in Weird Tales, then a Victorian-era occult novel by Marie Corelli round things out. For fans of traditional mysteries, we have a pair of great private detective novels: About Face, by Frank Kane, and a vintage Nick Carter novel from 1903. On the science fiction side, we have contributions by Murray Leinster and a novel by George O. Smith. Overall, this is one of our most eclectic issues, but there is bound to be more than a few tales to suit everyone’s taste. Here’s the complete lineup: Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure: “Ghost Writers in the Sky,” by Steve Liskow [Michael Bracken Presents short story] “Point, Set, Match,” Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery] “Deal Breaker,” by Justin Gustainis [Barb Goffman Presents short story] Toying with Fate, by Nicholas Carter About Face, by Frank Kane [novel] Science Fiction & Fantasy: “Ghost Writers in the Sky,” by Steve Liskow [Michael Bracken Presents short story] “Deal Breaker,” by Justin Gustainis [Barb Goffman Presents short story] “Peeling It Off,” by Darrell Schweitzer [novelet] “The Cat Tracker Lady of Asad Alley,” by A.R. Morlan [short story] “The Nameless Something,” by Murray Leinster [novelet] The Hellflower, by George O. Smith [novel] The Sorrows of Satan, by Marie Corelli [novel]

This issue has been fun to put together. As a Maryland resident, I’ve always been partial to stories set in my home state, and Golden Age mystery author Zenith Brown is here this time with Murder in Maryland, a classic mystery originally published under her “David Frome” pseudonym. (She also wrote as Leslie Ford.) Add to that more mysteries by Hal Charles (another Solve-It-Yourself mystery challenge), Lester Dent (author of the famous Shadow pulp novels), Murray Leinster (whose name most science fiction readers should recognize), plus a great tale by Carolina Garcia-Aguilera (selected by Barb Goffman), and you have a terrific lineup. Alas, I wasn’t able to get to another Frank Lovell Nelson story, but his telepathic detective will be back next week. In the words of TV hucksters, But wait, there’s more! Remember, we also include great science fiction and fantasy in every issue, and here we have a bunch of classics by Lester del Rey (a rare fantasy from John W. Campbell’s Unknown first published in 1940), a devilish fantasy tale by Jerome Bixby, and a science fiction story by Robert Silverberg & Randall Garrett in collaboration. Plus I’m sneaking in one of my own Zelloque fantasies, written when I was reading the Richard Burton translation of The Thousand and One Nights. The influence shows. Our science fiction novel this issue is Get Off My World, by Eando Binder. —John Betancourt, Editor Here’s the complete lineup: Mysteries “This Will Slay You,” by Dale Clark [novelet] “Playing by the Rules,” by Hal Charles [Solve-It-Yourself Mystery] “The Pipeline Juggernaut,” by Lester Dent [short story] “Pink Ears,” by Murray Leinster [short story] “The Right Profile,” by Carolina Garcia-Aguilera [Barb Goffman Presents Mystery] Murder in Maryland, by Zenith Brown [novel] Science Fiction & Fantasy “The Pipes of Pan,” by Lester del Rey [fantasy short story] “The Incomplete Theft,” by Robert Silverberg & Randall Garrett [science fiction short story] “The Last Guardian of Ru Ishtl,” by John Gregory Betancourt [fantasy short story] “The Battle of the Bells,” by Jerome Bixby [fantasy short story] Get Off My World, by Eando Binder [novel]