A Whirl Through the Indiana Jones Adult Novels

[Pieter Boelen]

Who is your favourite Indiana Jones novel author?
And why is it Wolfgang Hohlbein?

Originally asked on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group
View attachment 42638

These are all the original novelists:
- Wolfgang Hohlbein (1990-1993)
- Rob MacGregor (1991-1992 + 2009)
- Martin Caidin (1993-1994)
- Max McCoy (1995-1999)
- Steve Perry (2009)

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Peril at Delphi - Rob McGregor (1991)

Spoiler

Originally posted 15 April 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Boredom, be gone!

I'm getting tired of television, so I started re-reading my Indiana Jones book collection.

Just finished "Peril at Delphi" last night.

Youngest and least experienced Indy I ever read about.
Still recognisable as our hero-to-be though.

Some nice subtle nods to Raiders and Last Crusade in there.
I wonder if there's some to The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles too? I'm not familiar enough to catch any...

Interesting history. Interesting characters.

And LOTS of characters too!

So tell me... how do you guys and gals like this one?

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Dance of the Giants - Rob McGregor (1991)

Spoiler

Originally posted 18 April 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Second book of the series.
It's a bit weird and I can't decide if I like it.

Spiders in a chocolate box.
Going from meeting a girl to wanting to marry her insanely fast.
Finding the new artefact (Golden Scrolls) by accident without even trying.

Also, a fairly mundane, non-exotic setting.
And a mythology that seems to go a bit far with Merlin and Greece.

Still, Stonehenge IS a cool setting.
I like the reference to Marcus Brody.
And it's nice to have a returning character in Jack Shannon.

All in all... a bit of a mixed bag for me.
What do you people think?

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Seven Veils - Rob McGregor (1991)

Spoiler

Originally posted 2 May 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Third book in the series.
Took me a while to get through.
Usually I like jungle adventures.
But this was a weird one.

Indy gets married.
The witness was a black man, who they were kind enough to choose despite the racism of the time, but who turned out to be one of the bad guys.

Then there's magic and dreaming.
Life and death.
And surviving a massive adventure before it all came crashing down, killing both a famous historical character and Indy's brand new wife in the process.
They never even had much chance to enjoy their time together.
REALLY wasn't meant to be, was it?

Did Marcus Brody also have to be willing to believe *every* way-out-there myth to the point of becoming the laughing stock of the archeologocal community? I thought the guy was quite the kindly professional myself...

And why did those Ceibans have to go through so much trouble to trick people to come over and bring in new blood? Couldn't they just advertise in the local newspaper with "Swap out your old life for a tropical paradise with plenty of beautiful women!"
Surely they would've found a couple of people who'd jump at the opportunity?

I mostly like the part where Indy learns to fly an airplane.
But not land one; obviously.

And also "The adventurer had simply refused to give up his quest, even when others told him it was impossible. The man's unrelenting determination was something worth emulating".
Indeed while that referred to Percy Fawcett there, it perfectly describes the character Indy grew into himself and why I admire him so much.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Genesis Deluge - Rob McGregor (1992)

Spoiler

Originally posted 14 May 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Fourth book in the series.
I like it.
Much less weirdness than the previous two.

It does take a while to get started.
Halfway in and they haven't left the US yet.

There's some interesting scenes in Cappadocia, Turkey.
Though I don't quite comprehend how that makes sense.
Labyrinthine cities underground, which I assume exist in real life.
But then corridors with multiple levels; with a vantage point from where you can see all that's going on?
How do these guys manage to see through solid rock??

The finale also feels a bit rushed.
Revelation by a "good" guy who then immediately gets killed.
Then the second group of bad guys kills the first half.
Find the Ark. Poof, avalanche.
Rapid and sudden magical Merlin scene.
Woops, back in the US, adventure already over.

The main thing I like is Indy and his best friend Shannon getting to spend some time together.
The back-and-forth on religious interpretations are pretty interesting and lifelike too.

Between Russian royalists, Communists, Atheists and various groups of strict and not-so-strict Christians and Muslims, plenty of different viewpoints pass by, with the main difference between the good and the bad guys being not their faith (or lack thereof), but their open-mindedness and critical thinking skills.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Unicorn's Legacy - Rob McGregor (1992)

Spoiler

Originally posted 20 May 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Time for the fifth book.

I know I read it in the past, but apparently it made ZERO impression on me as I had no memory of much of anything that happened in there.

At the start I was confused for a bit, thinking it was actually the second book and I had miscounted. But turned out that was just the pre-opening bit.

I quite liked the palaeolithical opening and was a bit disappointed that was dropped afterwards. Instead it switched to the American Indians, which are also cool, but didn't get much attention because the main deal was the Horn of the Unicorn.

At some point an entire chapter is spent on describing the history of that particular item, which seemed to me a bit over-the-top since it's not a true artefact in real life and most of those details end up not mattering a whole lot.

The Indy-girl seems a bit like a proto-Elsa Schneider. Very beautiful. Blonde. Bright with an interest in arts. Bit on the loose and flirty side. And with her own agenda where she seems to not know very well what side she wants to be on.

As for bad-guys, there is a bit of a relay race going on. A character from Indy's past (read: the prologue) returns after being thought dead. He makes things complicated for our hero. But in the end, he dies halfway into the book and gets replaced by another one. Who (likely?) dies at the end.

Then there's the intermediate guy who's helping Indy along, only to turn out he'd been working for the bad guy too. And the girl did as well. But they didn't know it of each other. So it seems like they're all suffering from Chronic Backstabbing Disorder. Why did anything happen the way that it did in this story? Honestly... I couldn't figure that one out.

My favourite part was Aguila, the mysterious Indian. Interesting character! You never know where you stand with this guy. He might seem untrustworthy; perhaps even dangerous. But in the end, I had the impression he was one of the truly good guys.

(And, more likely than not, he was another incarnation of Merlin. Because of course he is!

)

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Interior World - Rob McGregor (1992)

Spoiler

Originally posted 26 May 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Just finished the final of the six McGregor books.
I remembered it as the worst of the bunch.
And really... it was.

Too bad really, as it did have quite a promising start.
The opening on Easter Island had a lot of links to its true history.
And it was fascinating to see the overlap between this story and the National Geographic documentary about it.
Clearly McGregor has done his research!

Similarly, when the story moves to Chile, the myth of the Caleuche ghost ship matches very well with the details on its Wikipedia page.
And has more than a passing resemblance to the "Flying Dutchman" in the Pirates of the Caribbean films.
Bit of an odd move to have this in the same story; but so far, so good.

That's when the plot rapidly turns into complete and utter fantasy.
Suspension of disbelieve is stretched to the breaking point.
And it gets less Indiana Jones with each passing chapter.

It's curious how there's a link with the earlier stories.
Especially Seven Veils.
But not as much is made of that as could've been done.
And the climax does not feel particularly exciting.

I do like the ambiguity of the ending.
What was real? What was not?
There's truly no telling.
And given how Indy feels about the supernatural in Temple and Raiders, it looks like his critical mind won out in the end.

Altogether, this series was a mixed bag.
My main favourites were 'Peril at Delphi' and 'Genesis Deluge', which made sense for the most part.
They might've made passable films, even.

But ultimately the big question I'm left with is simply this:
What happened to Merlin???

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Sky Pirates - Martin Caidin (1993)

Spoiler

Originally posted 31 May 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Martin Caidin takes over the Indy book series from McGregor with the SKY PIRATES!

First, I have to commend him for referencing the events from the prior books; and even having some of their characters return. Not everyone would've done that.

That said, this is a truly strange story. On par with Interior World; which is saying something!

Where Indy was struggling to get his career off the ground (hehe) under McGregor, suddenly now he's in charge of leading an international team of absolute experts; backed by the politicians and military of all the great (and some small) countries.

The world as we know it is under threat from what are effectively flying saucers. Even Roswell and a crystal skull get a mention. And yet for all the sci-fi elements there, the story reads more like James Bond secret agent with an evil organisation of massive proportions; appropriately named EVIL.

Despite his name being in the title, Indy does not read as being the main character. We don't really spend any time in his head; and he spends most of the book being mysterious to his team and being... surprisingly short-tempered and not particularly likeable.

Instead, the various members of the team get elaborate introductions on how special and top-of-the-crop they are; though most of those details never seem to lead to much character development.

It's a strange read. There are many interesting thoughts and ideas floating around. History, psychology and social sciences on a massive scale are all involved; in an odd mix that doesn't seem to know what it wants to be.

I'm sure there's much more to be said, but that's what the comment section is for.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The White Witch - Martin Caidin (1990)

Spoiler

Originally posted 1 June 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Rushed right into the second Caidin book; just to get it out of the way.

Truth be told, White Witch is a step up from Sky Pirates. With a smaller scale and less characters, it feels a bit more personal this time.
And where the prior book had zero supernatural elements, here it is back with a vengeance.
There are plenty attempts to explain how the magic can be real, but in the end it's still magic; plain and simple.

The integration of Caidin's enthusiasm for aviation is also more subtle here. The book starts with Indy taking flying lessons, which are dramatically cut short, explaining the famous "Fly? Yes. Land? No!" saying from Last Crusade.
And the section where the main characters travel with the Graf Zepellin across the Northern Atlantic paints a vivid picture of what that must've been like in real life.
But a lot of the story actually takes places on solid ground, with history and myth being much more integrated into the plot.

That being said, it's still a thoroughly odd story. The bad guys from the previous book return, though you really need to pay attention to notice their names are the same. Certainly their EVIL organisation appears thoroughly downsized this time around.
And while the start deals with Merlin, somehow it also links to the American Civil War; which makes for quite the unexpected combination.

The ending is also massively contrived; with plenty of random chance required for it to play out the way it does. Also, Indy actually GETS THE TREASURE! And it's a big one too. The governments of the world were well pleased with him. Especially The Vatican! For some reason...

As a character, our hero is still not particularly likeable. He's often angry and short-tempered; likes to tease people in ways that strike me as quite mean; and keeps his companions in the dark about his intentions.
Also, did you know he is actually an expert fencer?
Didn't see that one coming!

The female lead from the previous book returns, but as before, she's mostly 'just there'. She likes Indy, but nothing ever comes from it to the point that I wonder why that was even part of the story at all. At the end, she basically vanishes to South America; apparently because she doesn't want to get between Indy and the *other* female lead.
I actually feel sorry for her. She seemed pretty great.

Actually, just like the book before, the ending is quite sudden. There is a bit more of an epilogue here, but it also seems to try and set up something new while mentioning absolutely nothing about what it is supposed to be.

Really, this writer likes his mysteries!

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Feathered Serpent - Wolfgang Hohlbein (1995)

Spoiler

Originally posted 5 June 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Wolfgang Hohlbein.
200+ books in German! 8 Indy.
3 official translations to English. 0 Indy.

Just finished reading his chronological first Indiana Jones one, set in 1929-1932.
I'm lucky to have all his books in Dutch, but I just discovered *this* one was translated to ENGLISH; on the 22nd of March this year!

Compared to McGregor, there is a lot less historical detail involved. And it's less philosophical than Caidin too.

What it IS, is a straightforward adventure; with a very human hero. Indy gets beat up (a lot!!) and gets scared as well.
But just as we know and love him, he perseveres all the same and comes out on top in the end.
Somehow.

The writing (in Dutch) is very entertaining.
There's a sense of humour consisting of plenty exaggerations and sarcastic descriptions.
It had me regularly laughing out loud.

At the same time, it's not a comedy. In fact, the level of gruesomeness can be on par with Temple of Doom.
The finale even takes more than a little bit of inspiration from that film!

While this isn't my favourite of the Hohlbein books (that honour belongs to Labyrinth of Horus),
it's certainly one of the better ones in general. I definitely recommend it.

Since its available in English now, I won't spoil any further details.
Have a look yourself!
And let's have some shared fun in the comments.
[/QUOTE[

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Philosopher's Stone - Max McCoy (1995)

Spoiler

Originally posted 7 June 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

McCoy's first Indiana Jones book is a pretty good one. While I didn't remember it well at first, a sense of familiarity quickly crept up on me. Largely because I read the book at least once before; but also as various story beats are clearly inspired on the film trilogy.

The opening scene, set in a jungle temple, with an Indian guide, an idol (crystal skull, this time!) and the main antagonist for the film (oops, I meant 'book'!) one-upping our hero, is followed by a museum and college setting with our dear friend Marcus Brody (played by Denholm Elliot, to whom the book is dedicated; though, oddly, is not featured on the front cover) and several government agents. It's all very Raiders, though there is also a dirigible (NOT a Zeppelin!) scene as in Last Crusade and certainly the finale had a bit of a Grail Temple feel to it. Likewise, Sallah returns and even utters his famous words about a "steel beast".

That said, there is enough of a unique spin on things to make it different. For example, in a clever twist, the bad guys this time are Italian fascists and followers of Mussolini. The true historical person of Italo Bilbo (sorry, Balbo) makes an appearance and much of the setting is inspired on actual events of the times. The bizarre seaplane described even turns out to exist in real life:

Savoia-Marchetti S.55 - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

As his predecessors McGregor and Caidin, clearly McCoy did his homework!

Of course the main story revolves around alchemy, the Voynich manuscript and the titular Philosopher's Stone. I especially appreciated the cameo appearance of a named character from the first Harry Potter book. The appearance is short, mysterious and nothing much is made of it. It's only for the attentive readers to realise the connection that is made.

It was fun to read this right on the tail of Wolfgang's Feathered Serpent. Chronologically, the two are set shortly after each other; and while I'm pretty sure McCoy did not read the book before, both deal with Central America at the start, making for a surprisingly smooth transition. Indy's recent experiences with Quetzalcoatl also explain why he does *not* take the curse on the idol lightly this time; despite our hero's usual cynicism and critical mind.

In another surprise similarity, BOTH books feature one of the female characters performing what can effectively only be described as *a JEDI mind trick* on a soldier. The Hohlbein one was a bit more obvious, but either way it is a fun little nod to Harrison's other famous franchise.

Plenty more could be said, but this here blurb is long enough and we still have a comment section to fill up.

As the book itself, let's end on a cliffhanger.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Dinosaur Eggs - Max McCoy (1996)

Spoiler

Originally posted 10 June 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Indy goes to Jurassic Park!
Or does he?
While there is indeed a Lost World of sorts, the story does not dwell much on it.

As the book before, it starts with heavy references to the movies. Our hero meets Belloq for the first time, in an appropriately character-building scene before moving into a Temple of Doom prequel of sorts with the introduction of Wu Han and Lao Che.

I really appreciated both parts as they fit very well with the films. But to the book's credit, it quickly leaves the references behind and begins on its own unique story
The focus is largely on a Marco Polo-esque voyage of discovery through the mysteries of Asia. And in a relatively short number of pages, it covers a lot of ground.

Surprisingly, there is no one clear villain. Instead it seems like a relay race. It probably wouldn't have come across very strong on film, but in this story I like it.
It seems to be more about the journey than the destination; more about character development than about high stakes.

There are good monks and bad monks; a Dalai Lama and a false one; an evil warlord and his second in command. They all weave their way in and out of the story.

Different points of view are explored and, while still being a rollicking adventure, it can be subtly philosophical at times.
Not a dumb book then.

The new characters are quite interesting and seem to really have a personality of their own. I like Tzen Khan, descendent of the great Khans of old who is a pensive, kind, but bitter man; who sees his faith restored.

Indy's hunter friend Granger (no, not Hermione!) adds a nice touch as well. He's grumpy, can seem mean and makes for one of the most unique arcs in any of the stories by being a very realistically flawed human being.

And who can forget Loki; the dog? A German Shepard, thoroughly abused in the past, with one ear cut off. This is certainly no pet!

The "Indy girl" seemed a bit odd to me though. Her being a nun makes for a nice twist, but she's clearly not 'your usual nun'. Once her character is truly revealed, she quickly disappears from the story. By the time of her return, she seems to have gone through a transformation that took place mostly 'off screen' for the reader; robbing it of some of its potential impact.

Either way, I like this story a lot. It's light on supernatural elements and very nearly might've happened in real life. It moves away from the common 'long dead cultures', 'goose-stepping morons' and 'trap-infested temples' and instead goes for living cultures and paleontology rather than archeology.
It's a change of pace.
And for me, it really works.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Hollow Earth - Max McCoy (1997)

Spoiler

Originally posted 11 June 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Apparently this is the writer's own favourite Indiana Jones book.
But if you ask me, it's a step down from the one that came before.
Appropriate though; as it moves down towards the planet core.

It's got great adventure.
From US towns to an Apache gold cave in the desert to finally the North Pole regions.
And each part has it's own little mythology; from the nightmare that had been chasing Indy since his youth, the various bandits who pop up for a few paragraphs or so, to the Indian folk myth "John Seven Oaks". None of those relate to the main plot, but they make for fun little vignettes; a glimpse at this historical world.

New characters include a REALLY strong female one from Denmark; and halfway into the book a cool old pilot friend of Indy's is introduced too. It feels a bit odd how familiar they are when we don't know him; but it does expand the feeling of there still being plenty stories that have remained untold.
Also fun is a young, gifted radio-electrician nicknamed (of course) Sparks; who goes through a bit of character-building in the second half of the book.

Our hero himself is at his darkest yet. He's the closest he's ever been to a grave robber and his rivalry with Belloq somehow managed to bump up several notches too. There's even a classic pistol duel in New Orleans, following a carnival parade where René dressed up as the French pirate Jean Lafitte; of all things!

It comes a bit out of nowhere and that goes for a lot of the story. There is easily enough imaginative story content for several books, but as it is... the parts feel only very loosely connected.

In fact, some of the connective tissue seems to rely on pure coincidence. After the 'call to adventure' from an old polar explorer at the start, Indy proceeds to his funeral, but then continues on his own personal sidequest for gold instead of moving along with the main plot.

Somehow, this leads him to find a perfect companion for his later Arctic escapades, who tags along for the rest of the book even though her experience with spelunking never proves necessary again.
It is more her Nordic background (including her belief in Odin, Thor and Ragnarok) that turns out useful.
Useful mainly to explain those concepts to the reader; as I do not remember her providing much of an active role after her initial rescue of Indy.
Feels a bit like a waste of a perfectly good character, truth be told.

Somehow the Nazi's are also behind the Crystal Skull from the past two books and this merges with the search for Ultima Thule at the 'top of the world', which to me feels a bit too convenient.

The bad guys fly around with the Graf Zepellin, which Indy himself had been a passenger on quite recently in The White Witch (also in the polar regions; as a matter of fact). And like in Sky Pirates before, Indy again gets to lead a team of military personnel.
Some unexpected similarities with Caidin then!

On the subject of the unexpected, the Indy girl from two books ago returns too. But their love was a doomed one and she basically just appears only to get killed a few paragraphs later.
It would've been heartbreakingly sad; if only their relationship had been developed a bit more.

And on that subject, where Indy was perfectly fine engaging in romance and physical relationships under McGregor, under Caidin, McCoy and (so far) Hohlbein, he's been surprisingly reluctant. He's also religious again, after seeming fairly atheistic in prior books.
Consistent characterization is proving quite tricky...

Anyway, back to the story at hand. After a bit of polar expedition, the final bit moves towards quite odd fantasy; involving a river flowing inland, impossible navigational situations, the Northern Lights being sucked into a volcano and the most magical death trap in Indy history; before offering a glimpse at the living ancient civilization to end all living ancient civilizations.
It goes so far so quick that the memory loss plot device is applied to counter the massive revelations there at the end.

A bit of a mixed bag then for me. It's not as 'way out there' as "Interior World", but it also gets its 'Journey to the Center of the Earth' section over so quickly that I feel like the titular Hollow Earth is robbed somewhat of its impact.

Also, there's an awesome little steamship on the back cover.
But where is she in the book?

 

[Pieter Boelen]

Spoiler

Originally posted 18 June 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

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Oops, I MAY have found the wrong poster image for my next book review!

Clearly this title speaks to the imagination.
And rightly so!
It just oozes with adventure, doesn't it?

But is the book itself any good?
Honestly, I just finished reading it and I can't quite make up my mind.

Stay tuned...

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Secret of the Sphinx - Max McCoy (1999)

Spoiler

Originally posted 20 June 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Cool fan poster, inspired on the final Max McCoy book.
(Also... why does that website not work? And what used to be on there?)

This picture kind-of looks to belong to a different title, but as it turns out... most of the story is NOT set in Egypt at all!

We start with an exploration of the tomb of the first Emperor of China; aka. the same one you visit in the Emperor's Tomb video game.
This bit is a direct sequel of Dinosaur Eggs as Indy follows clues on the dagger that he was given at the end of that story.

It would've been cool, only the traps were really weird (marbles?!?) and Indy's escape got a bit incomprehensible to me.
It also is forgotten shortly after and mainly serves to introduce us to the bad guys (and girl!) for this story.

I like the idea of the Japanese Imperial Army obsessively following Indy halfway across the world. But the execution didn't quite work for me.

The motivation of the main bad guy seemed quite vague. He starts out seeming as quite a gentleman, before turning completely nasty all of a sudden. He then gets injured by the same torture device he tried to use on our hero, which happened completely by accident.

But despite the villain seeming honourable at first, with a strong focus on Bushido, for the rest of the story, he seems to be motivated purely by revenge for something that never happened on purpose in the first place and that he himself was easily as responsible for as Indiana Jones himself.

The idea of a female secondary villain is another interesting one, but she also seems quite one-dimensional in her blind loyalty to Villain #1 and his globe-trotting revenge plot.
Indy even saves her life once or twice, but this has zero impact on her personality.
In fact, I'm not sure what IS her personality.

This goes for the two female leads too. A mother with her daughter, searching for their lost husband/father. But I never got much of a feel for their personalities either.
At the end, the daughter even writes she was a bit in love with Indy, which comes completely out of the blue.
And then they're gone from the story.

The most interesting new character, to me, was the "doctor" on the tramp steamer that helps Indy survive. He turns out to have quite a colourful history and I was curious to see his development. But then he died.
There was also the Katanga-like captain, who also felt to have potential. But him too; he was in and out of the story before he got the chance to show much of his true colours.

Ultimately, it was Sallah's return that was the most welcome one. He really did feel like we got to know him in Raiders; with his big broad heart, and his large family.
I can't help it.
I like that guy.

So much then for the characters. As for the story relating to this poster, half is set in Asia as Indy tries to escape the clutches of his Japanese followers.
From a chase through a poor Chinese town to a trip on first a tramp steamer and then a Junk, to a visit to a leper colony.

There are many settings to like. But as with the previous book, they never get enough time to shine; and ultimately end up having little impact on the main plot.
This goes especially for that leper colony.
I was honestly wondering why that was even there.

I also really don't understand why the crew of that Junk just abandons ship prior to that massive storm approaching. Having learned survival at sea, one of the most important lessons is that "your ship is the best lifeboat".

Reading on, I was also hoping that Indy would get to Shanghai for his introduction to one of my other favourite famous characters: Short Round.
But nope, that ended up not happening.

Does any other story other than Temple of Doom actually feature Shorty at all?
I honestly don't know any...

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Secret of the Sphinx - Max McCoy (1999) - Yes... Again!

Spoiler

Originally posted 21 June 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

First of all...
Just LOOK at that artwork!!

As for the book it goes with, I still have a few more words to share.

The main plot deals with the history of magic, starting with the original wand: the Staff of Aaron. Supposedly that can be used to find "The Omega Book"; a bit like the Staff of Ra in Raiders is used to find the Ark.

Only where Ra's Staff is basically "just a stick" with a beautiful, functional, but otherwise mundane headpiece; Aaron's one, in the hands of the one right person, is TRULY POWERFUL!
It could easily be "endgame material", but here it is just a stepping stone for what follows.

As with the previous book, coincidences rule. Indy literally just "happens" to run into a magic show conducted by the two female leads (mother & daughter) that doubles as an exposition scene for a MASSIVE audience (who are all obviously very confused and only care about "the rope trick").

Later on, after some adventures that don't really advance the plot, our heroes return to a city and end up in a hotel that just happens to be the one that the lost father explorer had used years before, which the desk personnel still remember.

This is where another magician is introduced who then gains some importance for the remainder of the story while... doing surprisingly little.

The quest proceeds to a town of Muslim "devil worshippers", which is a fascinating concept as the rumours preceding them and their true nature turn out very different from each other.
Here they find the Staff with surprising ease; right before heading off to Cairo and the titular Sphinx.

I still don't know HOW they knew the Sphinx was the place to go. Was that something I glanced over and missed? Or did the story itself skip a beat?

Some general Indy-ing follows and leads them to The Book. But just when it gets interesting, they have to escape and one by one, in rapid succession, our villains get picked off.

The epilogue is surprisingly long.
After 4 books, Indy returns the cursed Crystal Skull where it came from.

This could've been emotional, with our hero remembering his lost love from the previous book, but instead some sort of time travel happens to the past of this ancient Central American city. This is a scene that begs SO many questions, but it just randomly happens and ends and impacts not much of anything.

To finish, Indy goes to talk to some unnamed professor who is seemingly built up to be someone of importance (Stephen Hawking or something?) and they exchange some confusing words about the meaning of time.

Again, this book is full of interesting ideas.
But more than with any of McCoy's other ones, I was left just completely baffled.

What was the point of it all?

I guess I can't have been the only one to wonder that, because Indy and Sallah both agree to NEVER speak of the events of this book again.
(Remember, it takes place shortly *before* Raiders.)

There is honestly a lot to like about McCoy's books. But I wished he would go back, smooth out the rough edges and expand his work into, say, double the amount he's got.
There are plenty of gems hiding in there to fill easily another four books.
And I, for one, would love to read those!

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Longship of the Gods - Wolfgang Hohlbein (1990)

Spoiler

Originally posted 11 June 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

WOLFGANG HOHLBEIN STRIKES AGAIN!

Where he tactfully avoided any Germans and politics in his previous book, here both appear; and in FULL FORCE too.
Considering this is a German author writing for a German audience in a series known for using them as cardboard bad guys, I find this really quite courageous.

This is the longest Indiana Jones of them all, but it makes its extended length count.
And where many of the other books draw strong parallels to the films, this story stands squarely on its own two feet as a quality piece of work.

What starts as a simple search for a floating iceberg with a Viking ship frozen inside becomes a quest for survival in one of the toughest environments on Earth.

We open with a lengthy prologue that features "Captain Morton" of the U.S. polar exploration vessel "Poseidon" in the lead, featuring as a kind of *inverted* James-bond opening.
Instead of having our regular hero in an unrelated (previous) story; we have a different character experiencing something that thoroughly DOES relate to the main plot!
This unusual start immediately sets the tone of the story to follow and helps establish the main mystery.

Captain Morton is a relatable character and Hohlbein does not let him go to waste as he sticks around for the entire rest of the book.
He does start to get overshadowed by Indiana as the story progresses (like he should) and gradually loses importance; but his presence even at the end adds an interesting atmosphere of "doom and gloom".

This approach also allows us to meet Indiana Jones from Morton's point of view; which happens in a nicely adventurous setting so that once Indy shows up in chapter 2, he really makes one helluva impact!
Think Harrison Ford's recent film "Call of the Wild", but featuring our favourite hero in his prime.

Once the story gets to New York, it picks up some brief levity and it becomes clear that Hohlbein's writing is as witty as ever. As before, I had to laugh out loud a good several times; and even sent some quotes to my family so they could enjoy it too.
It's truly entertainingly written!

But don't be mistaken; a comedy, this is not!
Far from it, in fact.
While the longest chapter (90 pages; I kid you not!!) is set on April 1st, what happens is no joke.

This book takes inspiration from psychological submarine thrillers (in a Zeppelin), mixed with an air of looming horror and dread.
Seriously, this story gets DARK in places and it does NOT pull any punches!
Characters die and not even animals are safe.

Like in "Sky Pirates" and the second half of "Hollow Earth" this is an ensemble show featuring a team of different characters.
This time, however, Indy is NOT in charge of the expedition, which makes far more sense and creates a nice bit of tension between our hero and the two actual leaders.

The extended length of the book is used well to establish the other characters, allowing them all to develop their own different personalities as they interact with each other; first under regular circumstances, before the pressure is increased and increased; eventually far beyond the breaking point.

Interestingly, this story is set literally RIGHT on the eve of WW II and this plays a substantial role.
While international tensions are already high, officially war has not yet broken out, making for the bizarre situation where German (Nazi) officers are part of a US science expedition.
They are clearly anti-Jew, right from the start all the way to the finish.
And with Indy along for the ride, this goes about as well as you'd expect.

But not all is as it appears. Not by a long shot!
There are multiple twists and turns, which make equal parts sense and can be shockingly surprising at times.

Our "merry" band of characters are very thoroughly *human*. It's not clear from the start who the bad guys are; and the good guys aren't all good either.
In fact, they can all be quite discriminatory, both to women and to Indy's Eskimo/Inuit friend.
Not even our dear hero is infallible.
There are many shades of grey at play and this truly helps give this story far more meaning than "just a throwaway adventure".

The story treats the titular Norse "Ship of the Gods" with respect, lifting more and more of the veil of mystery surrounding it as it progresses.
There is a lot of scepticism to go around and a lot of the threat is related to "mundane" military might.

But an Indiana Jones story would not be an Indiana Jones story if there were not some sort of "larger than life" element to it.
The big question is: how much is due to magical influences?
And how much is ordinary, harsh human nature?

I can only hope that the IndyMag will release the English translation story some time soon (ish).
It is well and truly worth a read and I would be really very excited to hear what other people think of it!

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Legacy of Avalon - Wolfgang Hohlbein (1993)

Spoiler

Originally posted 4 July 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Remember how I mentioned the previous Hohlbein book was entertainingly written, had me laugh out loud several times, but was definitely not a comedy?
This book is not that book!

This time around, it really IS a comedy!
Or more like a satire; or even a *farce*.

At the start, Indy manages to catch a bad guy off guard by sticking his finger in the pistol barrel that's pointed at him; then daring the other to pull the trigger and risk the gun backfiring in his face.
QUESTION: is that a real thing??

The plot revolves around Sir Lancelot being caught by a Nazi U-boat while rowing around in a mysterious fog on the North Sea.
He was sent to "current times" by Magic of Avalon to pave the way for the Knights of the Round Table to assist dear England in their time of great need during World War II, which had just broken out.

This quest is interrupted because our favourite bad guys want to use him to find Excalibur (of course!) for themselves.
But to do this, they have to gain his trust; by building a fake castle in a quarry in Belgium, using film set techniques and having military soldiers walk around in period clothing, some hiding machine guns below their garments and others having to fight (clumsily!) with lances instead.

It is repeatedly pointed out by characters in the book how ludicrous all of this is. It even causes one of the German military leads to struggle with sacrilegious thoughts as he starts questioning the Führer's sanity.
It gets especially nutty as the medieval castle catches on fire and the built-in SPRINKLER INSTALLATION is switched on, turning walls and floors into icky goop.
One of the German soldiers spends a good few pages with his head stuck in a wall and nobody around him caring one bit.
(For all I know, the poor lad is still there now.)

There's also a well-executed German military raid on a Scottish town to... kidnap a bunch of TERRIBLE folk actors to use in their deception of Lancelot.
This is told from the point of view of a local pickpocket, who ends up caught right in the thick of it by complete accident.

This all sounds pretty dodgy and, to be fair, it basically IS. But there are some interesting parts to this book too.

As with Hohlbein's previous books, I really appreciate how he humanizes his various characters. Especially the conversations between the German paratroopers and the Scottish pickpocket, where they're joking around together about the war and invasion, even though being on opposing sides; but also the surprisingly decent thoughts of the German U-boat captain, right before he gets mauled by Lancelot.

There are also a lot of references to Shakespeare and this is linked to the contrast between fake Medieval times (as quickly invented by the German army) and the accurate realities of it as explained by our hero, his old scholarly companion and the attempts by the Nazi's French(!!!) historical advisor to set their initial mistakes right.

And with that certain advisor (hint, hint!) mentioned, that's another clear difference with prior Hohlbein Indy books: this one DOES reference the films! All three of them, even.
The circus train escapade gets mentioned and there's even a call-back to Temple of Doom's minecart chase.

Amongst all the weirdness, I find that the King Arthur myth is actually handled quite respectfully. A lot of its details are woven into the story and I especially like how there are clear, strong, supernatural elements; but the close shows clearly how those elements also have their limitations and clash with regular reality.

A regular reality in which British anti-air guns fire at anything in the sky, even when it's their own secret service. A reality in which that secret service behaves hardly less unscrupulous than that of the Axis. And one in which young German soldiers care more about catching a nice rabbit for dinner and avoiding punishment from their superior officer than they care about killing anyone.

If there is any point to this story, I believe it is to point out the ridiculousness of war itself; what it drives people to do; and how, compared to all that, the main plot of this book is hardly any more insane.

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Labyrinth of Horus - Wolfgang Hohlbein (1993)

Spoiler

Originally posted 21 December 2022 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

WOLFGANG HOHLBEIN.
The very first author write brand new Indiana Jones stories was *German*.

Who else has heard of this guy?
Do his novels hold any interest for you?
How would you rank them next to the better known MacGregor and McCoy ones?

Here's a fanmade translation of my favourite book of his.
(Not my work.)

This was always my favourite novel.
Another fan translation from German into English.

From the very first paragraph, it sketches a Indy scene indeed.
Story wastes no time jumping right into the most Indy of openings you could ever wish for.
Even within those first few paragraphs.
It really paints the picture.

A commendable job indeed if you be asking me!

 

[Pieter Boelen]

The Sword of Genghis Khan - Wolfgang Hohlbein (1991)

Spoiler

Originally posted 24 August 2020 on the Indiana Jones Facebook Group

Took me a while to think of what to write about this next Hohlbein book.
In short: It's perfectly decent.
And yet I remembered very little of my previous readings.

Literally(!) fearless Hordes of Huns group together in the Himalayas and (s)he who wields the Sword of Djengis Khan gets to command them.
This could upset the balance of power to rival even the Third Reich!

And so Indy is hired to retrieve it.
By THE RUSSIANS!!!

Turns out their lead archeologist is a most charming lass.
But luck is not with our hero as she gets kidnapped by a Chinese warlord and basically turns into a McGuffin for the remainder of the story.

Instead, Indy spends most of his time with a mysterious samurai named Moto.
As their goals temporarily align, Indy is forced to work together with him and the Japanese invasion army.
This triggers some entertaining verbal sparring, with one continuously outwitting the other.

Also along for the ride are two Tibetan monks.
It's another fun dynamic as their strong belief in a predetermined destiny clashes with Indy's attitude of "making it up as he goes".

Ultimately, the actual Chinese are barely part of the story.
The Russians only appear at the start and the conclusion.
And the Americans are a complete no-show.
It's really a small scale story between Indy, Moto and the two monks.

As they make their way towards Shambala, it's only a matter of time before snow monkey business happens.
And honestly....THAT part is the highlight of the book for me.

The way the legendary snow monster is handled really made me think twice; if not thrice.
Indy doesn't believe in it.
Until he starts to question his scientific convictions.
Which then gets both confirmed *and* denied.

Schrödinger's Jeti? Perhaps.
Ultimately, it's never spelled out what the truth actually is.
And the way this plays out is ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS!

Well played, Mr. Hohlbein.
Well played!