Spade/Paladin Conundrums

When a dead body turns up at the first ever Dinocon, Secret Master of Fandom and Private Detective Spade knows just who might be behind it all: Lucinda Danielle Stanhope who calls herself the Martha Stewart of Science Fiction. Now he just has to prove it. “Stomping Mad” marks the first appearance of Spade, who along with his sidekick Paladin is one of Rusch’s most popular characters.

Secret Master of Fandom and Private Detective Spade gets a strange request: the infamous Paladin needs help finding a teenage boy whom she says vanishes whenever she approaches him. Spade knows that disappearing teenagers only live in (ahem) science fiction novels, so he vows to do everything he can to find the missing boy—and to impress the impressive Paladin.

Secret Master of Fandom and Private Detective Spade faces an impossible mission: He must save Celebcon Five from itself. The convention that’s trying to out Comic-con Comic-con has decided to make Dmitri Karnikov its guest of honor. Then Spade’s mysterious friend Paladin reveals the secret to Karnikov’s attendance, and Spade must act to stop a horrid crime.

The police often show up at science fiction conventions, but not because Secret Master of Fandom and private detective Spade calls them. But that all changes when Paladin finds a box with a note, a box she believes contains a bomb. Spade and Paladin must hurry to save the convention before the police arrive. The conundrum? Figure out who sent the bomb—before they lose their lives trying. “I hope

The teenage girl wrapped in a sheet calls herself Casper (as in “The Friendly Ghost”). But Secret Master of Fandom and private detective Spade doesn’t find her friendly, and she’s definitely not a ghost. Still, Paladin demands that Spade babysit Casper, and Spade never says no to Paladin.