This novel features very few of the inconsistencies-both internal and with other books in the series-that mar every previous Carter novel. Both parts of the novel are as fun as can be, although very much different in tone. His subsequent adventures on the moon propel the reader into the realm of pure fantasy.
BARSOOM GLOBE SERIES
In the second half, Carter's wife, Dejah Thoris, in what to any reader of this series must come as an instance of Dejah vu (uldn't resist!), is abducted again, and Carter follows her kidnappers to one of the Martian moons, using one of that planet's first spaceships. In the first half of the novel, Carter goes undercover to infiltrate this Murder Inc.-type of organization, and this segment is extremely tense and exciting. This time around, Carter goes to the Barsoomian city of Zodanga to put an end to the assassins guild that is thriving there. For the first time since book 3, "The Warlord of Mars," Carter himself takes center stage, rather than making a brief cameo appearance, and his return as the lead character is perhaps the best single element of this book. It first appeared serially in the "Blue Book Magazine" in six parts, from November 1934 to April 1935, and is one of the best in the Carter series. "Swords of Mars" is the 8th of 11 John Carter of Mars books that Edgar Rice Burroughs gave to the world. But otherwise, one of the best of the series. The ending of "Swords" is a complete, and satisfying, ending, even if it is abrupt. Better than the ending of "Thuvia, Maid of Mars," though, where the story just drops off at the brink of a world war that is never mentioned again. It's not that it's bad, it's just that it's a very quick summation. I don't want to oversell this, but if you like this sort of thing, it's especially well done. Really fun.Īs always, predictable fun - this is, after all, pulp fiction (literally, as that's how these were written). In this book, he's taking the fight to the assassins, instead of reacting to events. Entirely successfully, I might add - Carter really drives the action even more than in the first trilogy. Perhaps Burroughs realized this, and wrote this one to make John Carter front and center again. He's the main character in the first three books, and then functions as a King Arthur figure when he shows up afterwards - he wraps everything up after the main actors have already done everything.
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