Viper By Alan Riefe

Viper
By Alan Riefe
1990 Charter Diamond
Paperback, 271 pages

 
                                              

    This is a pretty good read, told in three different sections. In the first, we meet our cast of characters, the orphaned Felicity Jane and her aunt and uncle who are raising her. This part takes place in India where the uncle is working for a year or so, and the local Zaman is their majordomo. The second part is in Hawaii where the family usually resides and concerns a rich family who were left out of their rich father’s will and may explain how Felicity Jane became an orphan. Y’see, the old man left everything to her mom, the housekeeper. The third section finds Felicity Jane, Aunt Helen, and Uncle Bill back in Hawaii and the greedy family trying to knock off the kid to get the millions.

    OK, but is this a horror story? Yes. Yes, it is. Back in India, Zaman had discovered that the young girl had a gift, a unique way with snakes. He saw her as a davi, the snake Goddess of Naga. She could control venomous snakes to do her bidding. That talent would come in handy if there was a group of people trying to kill you. And when Uncle Bill's Jeep was returned to the US, Zaman had secreted a Russell’s Viper in it for Felicity Jane, as well as some tea that may or may not help her turn into a snake goddess in the flesh.

    Things get pretty exciting with the horrible group of brothers and sisters in a cat and mouse game with the child. Felicity Jane is a badass herself and knows what is going on. She and the snake are a good team, and the greedy group of siblings are all a mess in one way or another. It is also good to see a Russell’s Viper used instead of a cobra or something more obvious. They have a formidable venom and are the most common snakebite in India. Gorgeous animals, too.

    Alan Riefe is a fun writer to read. A little florid at times, but he is a competent and smart storyteller. He has written a number of Westerns and romances under different pennames, the super-hip Cage detective series under his own name and a couple more horror books. I am more interested in his comic book work where he penned a few stories for DC’s “mystery” titles in the early 70s as well as comic adaptations of Get Smart and Hogan’s Heroes for Dell. That is a well-rounded scribe in my opinion. This edition of Viper also gets points for the great Lisa Falkenstern cover!