The Spider Strikes by R.T.M. Scott

Richard Wentworth has been on the trail of a master criminal, an expert is disguise, for two years now, chasing him from one city to the next, from the US to France and back again, and now he’s finally getting close. But first he will have to go through a number of adventurous encounters including kidnappings, disguises, police suspicion, and plenty of gunplay before the final confrontation.

This very first novel in the Spider series is not an origin story. In fact, we get the impression that it’s been going on for years prior to this story. First published in October of 1933, this one and the second novel were written by R.T.M. Scott, the well-known creator of “Secret Service Smith” with the idea that his name would bring instant credibility to the new Spider character and drive initial sales. After that the reigns were handed over to “Grant Stockbridge”, a house name that was most often used by prolific pulpster, Norvell W. Page. The Spider character would change a lot over the course of the first several novels before settling into his most recognized persona. Here at the beginning, he is a fairly straightforward millionaire playboy but with a need to pursue justice as a criminologist. His vigilante streak is strong though, often taking the law into his own hands to dispense justice.

Even though the character would change a lot over the first several novels, many of the standards of the series are introduced here in the first book. Characters such as Police Commissioner Stanley Kirkpatrick, faithful servant Ram Singh, and girlfriend Nita Van Sloan are all present as are the Spider’s practice of leaving his mark on the forehead of his dispatched foes.

I enjoyed this one. Despite a rather basic premise, it was a fun romp of pulpy adventure just as I’d hoped. I understand the novels from Norvell Page are even better, as Wentworth morphs into a more interesting character, so it would seem my experiences with this character are just getting started.