Best of the Destroyer (3 novels in one)

Best of the Destroyer by Warren Murphy and Richard Sapir

This book includes three of the early Destroyer novels, "Chinese Puzzle," "Slave Safari," and "Assassins Play-Off."

I have to confess that I'm a big fan of the Destroyer series, starring Remo Williams (Sheva reborn, the Destroyer) and Chiun, Reigning Master of Sinanju. Sure, they're "pulp" novels, but they're like no others. Halfway between comic books and deep-thought philosophical pieces, these are the greatest series of pulp novels ever written. Ever.

I was first introduced to Remo and Chiun through a book on tape back in the day. Then I saw the movie, which was pretty good, but not great. Then when I was a truck driver, I discovered the Graphic Audio Destroyer series. HOOKED!

Now that I'm no longer in a truck, I have started to discover the novels themselves. I started with this 3-book series to get an early introduction and to find out if the early books are worth reading.

Holy crap! They rock!

Murphy and Sapir manage to mix politics, mysticism, gritty real-world action, and tons of humor (dry and witty mostly) all into each book. Friikin' awesome. Of the three in this book, I think Chinese Puzzle is the best (it's book #3 in the series), but Assassins Play-Off has a lot to offer in the way of mixup and Chiun-based humor.

If you've been dubious about these books, have only seen the movie and judged the novels based on that, or have no idea what I'm talking about: you NEED to try these. They're available all over the 'Net (I got mine from a used Amazon seller). Definitely worth it.

Even if you don't like them, at least you gave it a shot. Trust me, though. You'll love 'em!

I've since bought 12 more books from the series. I promise not to fill this blog with reviews of them, though. :)