by Otis Adelbert Kline, with an introduction by Joe R. Lansdale
Sentenced to Death!
A master of the sword and planet genre, Otis Adelbert Kline is
considered by many to be the only true equal of Edgar Rice Burroughs.
From his position on the original editorial staff of Weird Tales and
as the literary agent for Conan creator Robert E. Howard, Kline was
instrumental in shaping the face of science fiction as we know it.
Now, in its first complete edition since 1934, Kline blasts off to
Mars with the story of Jerry Morgan, a disgraced American soldier
convinced he has nothing left to live for. Nothing, that is, until his
eccentric scientist uncle offers to make him the first man to explore the
Red Planet in person. Transported through space by powers beyond
his understanding, Jerry lands on Mars only to find himself sentenced
to death for a crime he didn’t commit. Hunted by both sides of a
vicious civil war and spurned by the beautiful princess he loves, Jerry
Morgan is left with only one choice: to unite the slaves and malcontents
of the Red Planet beneath his own banner, and take the throne himself
as an outlaw of Mars.
“Enough action for three novels... court intrigue, treachery,
weird inhabitants, sword fighting, and one hot mama.” —Joe R. Lansdale, award-winning author of “Bubba Ho-Tep”
Known today primarily as the literary agent of Conan creator Robert E. Howard and supposed rival of Edgar Rice Burroughs, in his day Otis Adelbert Kline (1891–1946) was nearly as popular as Howard and Burroughs themselves. Though Kline's famous feud with Burroughs, in which the two published competing Mars and Venus books in constant attempts to one-up each other, may have been the creation of imaginative fans, there can be no doubt that the two authors shared both style and subject matter. Indeed, Kline has frequently been called Burroughs's only true competitor. While he produced only a handful of novels before his death at the age of 55, Kline's presence on the original editorial staff of Weird Tales and his sword-swinging romances on the red and green planets did much to influence the genre, and his legacy lives on in the tradition of sword and planet novels to this day.
The second of Kline's Martian Planetary Romances again sees a man with reasons to be happy to get the hell out of dodgy planet Earth. This time, Jerry Morgan, a falsely disgraced army officer ends up with his wealthy uncle.
Who just happens to be Richard Morgan (also writing something that just may be planetary romancesque, too, in The Steel Remains).
Richard Morgan happens to have hopefully perfected a way to transport a man to Mars, as opposed to doing the body inhabiting-mentality switching type trick employed elsewhere.
Once he makes it there, Jerry is propelled into sword swinging action, as he becomes embroiled in an interracial conflict and war - and is also caught between two space princesses and their various relatives who would like to see him lose a few vital body parts.
Some great monsters in here, flying beasties, sentient vegetable balls and more, including the trusty dalfs.
Not quite as good as the first, but certainly still up there with Burroughs best few Mars books, by way of comparison.
I wavered on giving this either 2 or 3 stars. Kline delivers a yarn that is passable and in some aspects improves upon the book's predecessor (Swordsman of Mars). Yet there is little remarkable in this rather formulaic story. The derring-do, near escapes from certain death, damsels in distress and the bug eyed monsters are all there but little stands out as Kline's characters and world come across as fairly drab.
Once the novel gets going the plot moves along at a snappy pace to its foregone conclusion. Kline's action reads well and luckily his stilted love scenes are mercifully short usually cut off by some iminent peril of the bug-eyed variety.
A quick note re the racism present in the text. The novel is a product of the 1930s and it shows but it is at least far less blatant and outright hostile than say the Fu Manchu or various Yellow Menace serials of the time. It is there, quite visible, but no moreso than you would find in many Jack London, Robert E.Howard tales or the like. Kudos to Planet Stories for presenting this text warts and all.
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