"The Trail of the Red Diamonds" by L. Ron Hubbard

"The Trail of the Red Diamonds"
by L. Ron Hubbard
Multicast performance
Produced by Galaxy Audio, 2010
Approx. 2 hours.

This September marks another month where Galaxy Audio and Galaxy Press release another set of "Stories from the Golden Age." This audio pulp will take you on an adventure with a couple of tales from the Orient. The book is also availaby from Galaxy Press in a pulp version you can hold in your hand and read but this review covers the audio book version.

All the audio books from Galaxy Audio have all been a pleasure to hear. I started out with my interest in Science Fiction (which Hubbard wrote some really fun sci-fi) but since discovering these releases from Galaxy Audio, I have been testing out all the genres. I'm still waiting to sample some of the westerns, but I have a feeling that'll be coming soon. I mean it's gotta be good if any of the others are a sign. All these audio books have superb voice acting, original music and subtle yet effective sound effects. These all combine with the excitement and thrills of the twists and turns of Hubbard's writing to make for an experience that will leave you looking for more.

The two stories in this collection are:

"The Trail of the Red Diamonds," originally published in "Thrilling Adventure" magazine January, 1935 and is a story of betrayal, espionage, death and adventure. This story was originally written under the pseudonym of Lt. Jonathan Daly, who by chance, but more likely by design, is the main character in the story. This story mixes in a lot of reality in that the authenticity comes from Hubbard's many experiences in China.

Lt. Daly translates an original manuscript of Marco Polo's travels and discovers that Kublai Khan was buried with some rare red diamonds. The diamonds were to light the Kahn's way to heaven. Lt. Daly sets out to follow Marco Polo's directions to find the red diamonds. Along the way are double crosses, death and deception. At what cost to Daly is the trail to these diamonds? Untold riches sound good but when the Chinese army and renegades want those riches for themselves, Daly has some competition.

"The Hurricane's Roar," originally published in "Thrilling Adventure" magazine April, 1939 is another story of betrayal, espionage, death and adventure. Hubbard's second story about the man the Chinese call “Feng-Feng” or “Wind-Gone-Mad" the true interpretation for the Chinese slange for hurricane, actually pilot-adventurer Jim Dahlgren—and a conspiracy to incite a provincial war. "Wind-gone mad" plays both sides of a provincial war against each other to have them discover they have already been played against each other, along the same lines he stops a war by creating a war between the provinces. As you can tell this story is full of twists and turns and double crosses that only L. Ron Hubbard does so well.

These two stories are a perfect pairing for some adventures in the orient that will be the perfect companion in your next audio adventure.