Have you heard the stories of Northwest Smith? A dark haired man with “space bronzed” skin and pale eyes, who wears brown spacer’s leathers and carries a raygun at his side – he is a smuggler and outlaw adventuring through the solar system with his Venusian sidekick, Yarol in their small and unspectacular but surprisingly fast and agile ship, the Maid.

Shambleau and Others

C.L. Moore (1953)

Shambleau and Others contains four Northwest Smith stories originally published in Weird Tales in the 1930s: “Shambleau”, “Black Thirst”, “The Tree of Life”, “Scarlet Dream” (the collection also includes “Black God’s Kiss”, “Black God’s Shadow” and “Jirel Meets Magic”, three Jirel of Joiry stories)

  • “Shambleau” (Weird Tales, November 1933). On Mars, Northwest rescues a strange, beautiful girl from the Lakkdarol mob. They become very close – but in fact, she is not a girl, nor a human being at all, and the mob had a good reason to try to kill her”¦
  • “Black Thirst” (Weird Tales, April 1934). A Minga woman invites Northwest into the forbidden Venusian fortress where she lives. It turns out to be even more dangerous than expected.
  • “The Tree of Life” (Weird Tales, October 1936). In the ruins of Illar, Northwest finds out more about the Martian drylanders’ past.
  • “Scarlet Dream” (Weird Tales, May 1934). An oddly-patterned shawl that Northwest picks up in Lakkdarol gives him unpleasant dreams.

Publications