The Green Ribbon by Edgar Wallace (Arrow, 1957)

 

She inherited a fortune--& sinister misfortune...

Young, wealthy and beautiful Edna Gray suddenly found herself, like a fly, caught in a web of sinister intrigue.  New to the racing game, she found that one of her tenants, Elijah Goodie--the famous racing owner and trainer--was indulging in strange, nocturnal activities...

And alone in the dark Perrywig Caves--she awaited a horrible death.

Well might Our Heroine be afraid--she's being pursued by a floating man emerging out of what appears to be a pink radioactive cloud!

As Edgar Wallace thrillers go, this one isn't bad mainly because the plot is halfway believable.  Criminals have set up syndicates to cheat at the races.  However Edgar Wallace can't resist adding a few over-the-top flourishes to this basic story--his chief villain is slain by panthers!

Cupid Rides Pillion by Barbara Cartland (Arrow, 1968)

Found in a dusty corner of the shed part of the Green Shed (and pounced upon because it's perfect for this blog):

 

England under Charles II was a gay, pleasure-loving land.  And Lady Panthea Vyne enjoyed it to the full, for she remembered only too well the dark days of Cromwell's Iron Rule.  She remembered Christian Drysdale, too, Cromwell's bestial tax-collector who had been her husband for a few short hours, until she had been rescued by a mysterious Highwayman.  Five years later, at the richly colourful court of Charles II, others learned her secret, including the jealous Lady Castlemaine... and as the dangers besetting her drew closer, Panthea put her faith in the man whose life was in equal danger--the mysterious, yet strangely familiar Highwayman.

If the fact that the author is Barbara Cartland doesn't alert you to what kind of book this is, surely the fact that the heroine is named Panthea Vyne, must!

Anyway, for those of you who came in late, this was Barbara Cartland:

... self-appointed expert on Romance, upholder of traditional values, step-grandmother of Princess Diana, and the very prolific writer of over 1,000 books.  

Flying Saucers from Outer Space by Donald E. Keyhoe (Arrow Books, around 1956)

 Found in a dusty corner of the Green Shed:

... And it has a wraparound cover.  Oh what the heck--let's see it in all its glory!

Do you believe that flying saucers emanate from another planet?  Or are you a confirmed sceptic?  Whatever your views this book will give a great deal of authoritative information about the most epoch-making phenomena of our time.

Here are investigations, reports, data and explanations from absolutely reliable sources, all rigidly and scientifically checked and verified.  The revelations in this book will startle you.  They will also fascinate you, and when you have read to the end you will be prepared for the final act of the saucer drama--an act that will have an impact on the lives of every person living on the Earth!

There's no date on this book, but research indicates that this was published some time between 1953 (when the first hardcover was released) and 1956.

This is the great-granddaddy of all the UFO conspiracy theories.  The author begins with accounts of pilots seeing things while in flight, continues with speculations about a government coverup, and concludes with a theory that we are being visited by aliens from outer space!

If I had to speculate and formulate a theory, I would say it is no coincidence that the first flying saucers were sighted in 1947, right at the beginning of the Cold War and the atomic age.  If Reds were under the beds, why not alien spaceships in the sky?   Keyhoe was one of the earliest writers about the phenomenon, producing a booked called "Flying Saucers Are Real" in 1950.  This is its followup.