The Blood Ogre: The Hellish Menace Beneath the House Doc Savage Built by Craig McDonald – Review

There are few figures in American literary life who know more about the history of pulp fiction than Craig McDonald. In his series of novels featuring Hector Lassiter, McDonald created an extraordinary pulp history of the twentieth century, mixing fictional characters with historical events and real-life figures in the world of literature, showbiz and politics.

In his new novel The Blood Ogre, McDonald is on familiar territory, but he adds a supernatural twist and the results are devilishly good. Indeed, there are moments here that evoke vintage Clive Barker.

The story revolves around the reputation of two remarkably prolific writers, Lester Dent and Walter B. Gibson. Dent suffered a nervous breakdown and early death in 1959, perhaps brought on by the impossible schedule of churning out Doc Savage novels by the dozen and averaging two million words a year on his typewriter. In his final days, Dent had hallucinations in which he would see and interact with Doc Savage characters. In 1965, Doc Savage and The Shadow novels are enjoying renewed popularity. The Shadow author Walter B. Gibson has a knack for publicity rooted in his parallel career as a magician. People start witnessing a black-clad figure looming around the Greenwich Village house where Gibson penned the final Shadow novel in 1949. Gibson claims it is a ‘living mind-projection’ of The Shadow. But if a hero can rise from the pages of an authors literary output, then what other, more sinister, characters will follow him?

McDonald’s knowledge of this material is unsurpassed, and he seamlessly merges Doc Savage and The Shadow-like narratives into The Blood Ogre, in a story that still feels bracingly original. As a metafictional text, there is some discussion of the mechanics of a pulp story. But it is never done in a dry or distant manner. Rather, McDonald invites the reader to ponder why we love these stories. How they remind us of childhood dreams and fading generations, and how the stories evolved over the decades to reflect changes in American culture.

The Blood Ogre is an affectionate tribute to a bygone era which might just earn a place in readers’ hearts so that is talked about long after the present generation has gone. No author can ask for more.