BobQuasit reviewed Marching Sands by Harold Lamb
Classic old-fashioned adventure thriller
3 stars
How did I completely miss Harold Lamb? I can't quite figure it out. He was a prolific writer of adventure stories, novels, and films in the early-to-mid 1900s, yet somehow I only first heard about him last week.
"Marching Sands" (1919), is for some reason the ONLY novel of his on Project Gutenberg, although many more of his works are in the public domain; they just aren't available. That's frustrating, but it means that I'll have something to look for in my favorite used book shops.
In a more fractional rating system, I'd give the book a 3.5. I considered 4 stars, but I'm trying to restrain my enthusiasm a bit; too many high ratings might seem excessive. That said, "Marching Sands" rather reminds me of classic adventure stories such as the Conan and John Carter books. A strong, capable, brave ex-military man (albeit with a mildly endearing shyness …
How did I completely miss Harold Lamb? I can't quite figure it out. He was a prolific writer of adventure stories, novels, and films in the early-to-mid 1900s, yet somehow I only first heard about him last week.
"Marching Sands" (1919), is for some reason the ONLY novel of his on Project Gutenberg, although many more of his works are in the public domain; they just aren't available. That's frustrating, but it means that I'll have something to look for in my favorite used book shops.
In a more fractional rating system, I'd give the book a 3.5. I considered 4 stars, but I'm trying to restrain my enthusiasm a bit; too many high ratings might seem excessive. That said, "Marching Sands" rather reminds me of classic adventure stories such as the Conan and John Carter books. A strong, capable, brave ex-military man (albeit with a mildly endearing shyness around the opposite sex) sets out to the forbidden heart of China to investigate rumors of a lost tribe of occidentals. Meanwhile a villainous cadre of Buddhist priests (yeah, that seemed weird to me too) and a cruel Chinese mandarin will do anything to stop him.
Okay, yes. In modern eyes, there's more than a tinge of racism here. But Lamb was actually quite knowledgeable about China; Asia in general was his area of expertise, and he's actually far more tolerant and open-minded than many of his comparatively ignorant contemporaries.
All in all it's a rousing, entertaining novel that made me wish for a sequel (in vain). And the price (free) can't be beat! www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/65825