W. A. Ballinger (1925–1991)
Author of The Vampires of Finistère
About the Author
Disambiguation Notice:
W.(illiam) Howard Baker was a novelist, editor, and publisher. In addition to writing under his own name (Baker), he used numerous pseudonyms, including:
* Peter Saxon (a house name, credited for numerous works)
* W. A. Ballinger (Drums of the Dark Gods)
Series
Works by W. A. Ballinger
Gods dwazen 2 copies
Sexton Blake - The Fugitive 2 copies
Devil's Can-Can 2 copies
No Place For Strangers 1 copy
Mord i parti 1 copy
Dollarligan 1 copy
Mannen som visste för mycket 1 copy
Det hände i Hamburg 1 copy
Klenod försvunnen 1 copy
The Inexpendable 1 copy
The Naked Blade 1 copy
Dark mambo 1 copy
Mord i studio ett 1 copy
Murder in Camera 1 copy
The Galaxy Lot 1 copy
Televisionsmordet 1 copy
Unfriendly Persuasion 1 copy
Unfriendly Persuasion 1 copy
The Guardians 1 copy
Without Warning 1 copy
The Voodoo Drum 1 copy
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Legal name
- Baker, Arthur Athwill William
- Other names
- Baker, W. Howard
Saxon, Peter
Rekab, Bill - Birthdate
- 1925-10-03
- Date of death
- 1991-02-13
- Gender
- male
- Nationality
- UK
- Birthplace
- Cork, County Cork, Ireland
- Place of death
- London, England, UK
- Places of residence
- Wimbledon, England, UK
- Occupations
- editor
publisher
novelist
newspaper reporter - Short biography
- W. Howard Baker was a novelist and editor, Editor of Sexton Blake Library for a time. Writer of Sexton Blake, Danger Man and Jonathan Quintain novels, plus many war, horror and mystery stories. Proprietor of Howard Baker Books (1960s UK publishing company). Credited with saving the Sexton Blake Library from extinction, when publishers Fleetway ended the series, he gained their permission to continue the series independently, firstly through deals with various paperback publishing companies then later through his own Sexton Blake Omnibus hardback series. He is noted for the many pseudonyms used by him (e.g. Peter Saxon).
- Disambiguation notice
- W.(illiam) Howard Baker was a novelist, editor, and publisher. In addition to writing under his own name (Baker), he used numerous pseudonyms, including:
* Peter Saxon (a house name, credited for numerous works)
* W. A. Ballinger (Drums of the Dark Gods)
Members
Discussions
The Waters of Madness by W.A. Ballinger in Talk about LibraryThing (May 2022)
Reviews
Secret agent Peter Quintain is sent undercover on an Allied convoy to Murmansk. The convoys have taken a battering from the Germans, and the admiralty suspect a spy in the midst of the ships’ crews. Quintain’s task is twofold: unearth the traitor, and ideally prevent another attack. This is a competent but rather thin naval thriller. Some of the writing is overly dramatic, and the characters don’t really have much personality (except for the cartoonishly awful Fanshawe). I would definitely not rank this anywhere near MacLean (whose Ice Station Zebra and HMS Ulysses are much better reads). It is a quick read, though, so if this is the flavour of brain candy you like best and you aren’t too fussed about thin characterization, this might do the job.… (more)
The Sexton Blake series began in 1893 and more-or-less dwindled to a halt in the late `60s. Initially the province of Blake`s creator, Hal Meredeth (real name Harry Blyth), it eventually incorporated the work of many writers, some `big names` (John Creasey, Hank Jansen), others less well-known.
Part of the attraction of the series, for me at least, is that it provides a cheap and cheerful method of encountering the works of a variety of writers. Inevitably, there is occasional `mission creep` as inidividual writers take our hero into adjacent genres, as in this Cold War thriller from series editor W Howard Baker.
A posse of bad guys plan to flood the West with counterfeit banknotes using plates designed by wartime Nazis. Who are the perpetrators ? Embittered Nazis ? Communists seeking to destabilise the West ? Or simply mobsters looking for massive profits ? Blake travels to Germany and America in pusuit of a solution, making a few friends and many enemies as he goes.
The plot is an ambitious one given the 64 page format, but Baker pulls it off with only the most minor fudging to get the thing finished within the allotted space. Ultimately, it`s entirely subjective whether one warms to this kind of detour into Cold War territory. It`s intelligently plotted, with a tolerable balance between action and intrigue, and the occasionally nod towards pulpiness. Personally, I found it was a bit like Chinese food ; it was enjoyable at the time, but at the end I didn`t feel like I`d had a full meal.… (more)
Part of the attraction of the series, for me at least, is that it provides a cheap and cheerful method of encountering the works of a variety of writers. Inevitably, there is occasional `mission creep` as inidividual writers take our hero into adjacent genres, as in this Cold War thriller from series editor W Howard Baker.
A posse of bad guys plan to flood the West with counterfeit banknotes using plates designed by wartime Nazis. Who are the perpetrators ? Embittered Nazis ? Communists seeking to destabilise the West ? Or simply mobsters looking for massive profits ? Blake travels to Germany and America in pusuit of a solution, making a few friends and many enemies as he goes.
The plot is an ambitious one given the 64 page format, but Baker pulls it off with only the most minor fudging to get the thing finished within the allotted space. Ultimately, it`s entirely subjective whether one warms to this kind of detour into Cold War territory. It`s intelligently plotted, with a tolerable balance between action and intrigue, and the occasionally nod towards pulpiness. Personally, I found it was a bit like Chinese food ; it was enjoyable at the time, but at the end I didn`t feel like I`d had a full meal.… (more)
Lists
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Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 62
- Members
- 314
- Popularity
- #75,177
- Rating
- 3.7
- Reviews
- 8
- ISBNs
- 26
- Languages
- 2
A society that kills killers! My vengeful heart loves this kind of thing! When a suspected murderer gets released, the 'Ketchers' grab them, pronounce them guilty, and hang them! Done and done!
Of course, the police are out to stop them, and a newspaper hires famous detective Sexton Blake to do the same! Can they catch the Ketchers? You gotta read it to find out!
I liked this story, and think it was just about the right length. Any longer, and I think I might have lost interest. I'm not sure if I liked the twist at the end, but overall, it was an enjoyable little read!
Good last sentence too! :
"You know," he said mildly, "I'd quite forgotten I was supposed to be dead."… (more)