EMIL PETAJA – Doom of the Green Planet. Ace Double H-70. Paperback original; 1st printing, 1968. Published back-to-back with Star Quest, by Dean R. Koontz (reviewed here). Never reprinted. Cover artist: Jerome Podwil.

   Evidently a sequel to Lord of the Green Planet (Ace, 1967), and a continuation of the adventures of Diarnid Patrick O’Dowd, ex-starman, on the planet Eu-Tarah, protected from the outside by an impenetrable green barrier. Diarmid is now High Lord of the Islanders, having defeated their god-king and creator.

   But this very act is leading to the gradual destruction of the green barrier, leading to the challenging appearance of a new renegade starman.

   A collection of cultural conflicts has an isolationist theme: the Green must continue to protect the people of Eu-Tarah from the exploitation of space-faring man. Too much scientific achievement is compulsively driving the rest of the universe, without reason or conscience. A similar theme of conflict between opposing societies is carried out by the Islanders and the barbaric Nords.

   And then there are the original inhabitants of the planet, who have a part in saying what their world shall become. As a style, Petaja’s SF reads strangely like fantasy.

Rating:   **½

DEAN R. KOONTZ – Star Quest. Ace Double H-70; paperback original, 1968. Cover by Gray Morrow. Published back-to-back with Doom of the Green Planet, by Emil Petaja (to be reviewed here soon).

   The universe has been the scene of a centuries-long war between the Romaghins and Setessins. On a restricted primitive planet Tohm is forcibly separated from his love, Tarnilee, by invading Romaghins. His search for her leads him to the slave planet Basa II, where he joins a group of hunted Muties, mutants caused by the effects of nuclear warfare. They have learned the power of shifting between divided universes, and have successfully rid their own of warring worlds.

   Shallow on first reading, but Koontz says there are allegorical points. The warring enemies are descendants of the radical right and the radical left, the mutants are “soulbrothers” – the victims of the attempted cleansing of guilt – who succeed in ending war.

   Tohm is the catalyst, anyone in particular? But who are the mutants with white eyes, tangible lust creatures, that periodically appear and disappear? This will probably not rate well with others, sorry to say. Koontz does have a good picturesque style.

Rating: ***

JOHN D. MacDONALD – A Deadly Shade of Gold. Gold Medal paperback original; 1st printing, 1965. Lippincott, hardcover, 1974. Reprinted many times.

   Sam Taggart, an old friend of Travis McGee, returns to Fort Lauderdale to pick up the pieces of his broken romance with Nora Gardino. Before that can happen, a deal falls through, and Sam ends up witha sliced throat. The trail takes McGee and Nora to a small Mexican fishing village, and to Nora’s unpleasant death.

   McGee continues, and he goes on to California  and takes his revenge upon a rich pornographic blackmailer whose desires precipitated the entire chain of events, centered around two unfriendly groups of Cuban refugees.

   A long book, perhaps too long. MacDonald’s comments of current American culture, religion and sex are still pertinent, but life in Mexico is too quiet. It takes Nora’s wealth for the story to get back on track, and a particularly dirty trick it is, too. McGee himself has no answers for the frustrations of ordinary life but excellently represents the Nobility of the Individual Human Spirit.

   Especially noted was a view of the University’s role in subduing spirit (page 46). MacDonald’s background in SF is clearly revealed (page 37): a galactic concept of what is ours on Earth.

Rating: ****

POUL ANDERSON -To Outlive Eternity. Serialized in Galaxy SF, June & August 1967. Collected in To Outlive Eternity and Other Stories (Baen, trade paperback, 2007). An expanded version was published by Doubleday in hardcover in 1970 as the novel Tau Zero. (See Comment #3.)

   The spaceship Lenore Christine, traveling at nearly the speed of light toward Beta Virginis, runs into a small cosmic cloud that disables the deceleration unit. Since by relativity time within the ship is not not so much a factor, the expedition can continue until the empty spaces between galaxies are reached; only then would it be safe to turn off the accelerator force-screens,

   But the velocity keeps increasing, making it difficult to find a region of space empty enough, and the rate if deceleration must be considered in finding a likely galactic cluster in which they could stop.

   And then the universe begins to die. The only possible answer is to continue until its rebirth.

   The captain is not the protagonist, but rather the officer in charge of discipline and morale – what he has to do is keep discouragement and frustration from leading to madness. Sexual relationships are dwelt with, almost frankly, but still not deeply. The stress on the physical situation the expedition finds itself in seems greater than the force [and the] effect has on them.

   Anderson does not seem capable of getting beyond physics, and his enthusiasm for physical ideas does not carry over to his readers. For example, the rebirth of a universe cannot really be told in two paragraphs, but it is, and it does, sad to say, seem dull.

Rating: ***

GALAXY SF – August 1967. Editor: Frederik Pohl. Cover artist: Dember. Overall rating: ***

ROBERT SILVERBERG “Hawksbill Station.” Novelette. Reviewed separately and appearing here. (4)

ROGER ZELAZNY “Angel, Dark Angel.” Dark Angels bring death to individuals who threaten the stability of galactic society, Of what significance is Sensibility? (2)

K. M. O’DONNELL “We’re Coming through the Windows.” A letter to Mr. Pohl about a time-machine. Funny but hopeless. (1)

R. A. LAFFERTY “Ginny Wrapped in the Sun.” Reversible evolution, told Lafferry-style. Is this based on an Asimov article? (3)

RICHARD WILSON “9-9-99.” Letters between the last two men on Earth, about a bet that can’t be paid off. (2)

H. H. HOLLIS “Travelers Guide to MegaHouston.” Non-fact article. The domed city of the future has its roots today in the Astrodome and the US pavilion at Expo76. Not very interesting. (1)

TED THOMAS “The Being in the Tank.” A strange man appears in the works of a hydrazine plant. Why didn’t this appear in Analog? (2)

LINDA MARLOWE “Hide and Seek.” Population controlled by a children’s game. (3)

MIRIAM ALLEN deFORD “The Great Stupids.” Discrimination because of age, and how to combat it — with soda pop. (2)

POUL ANDERSON “To Outlive Eternity.” Serial; part 2 of 2. Review to be posted here soon.

EDGAR RICE BURROUGHS – Tarzan and the Forbidden City. Tarzan #20, Ballantine U2029, paperback; 1st printing thus, March 1964. First published in rather different form in Argosy as a six-part serial under the title The Red Star of Tarzan. March 19, 1938 – April 23, 1938. The story is a revised version of the radio serial, “Tarzan and the Diamond of Asher,” written by Rob Thompson in 1934. First hardcover edition: ERB Inc., September 15, 1938. Many reprint editions.

   Tarzan is asked by his friend Paul d’Arnot to help Brian Gregory’s father and sister in their search for the lost explorer. They have a map he sent, and a description of the lost city of Ashair, which contains the fabulous Father of Diamonds. Others know of the diamond, however, and are determined to get there first. An uncountable number of kidnappings, captures, and other forced separations keep the party divided and working to save the rest, until final victory.

   There is same formula here that Burroughs is famous for, but the buildups often lead to quick letdowns, or nowhere at all, as if he [Burroughs] were a bit tired of it. Tarzan is a superman – without him the group would have been quite helpless, facing total disaster by the second chapter. Flashes of surprising humor shine occasionally, with apt comments on religion (page 134) and Hollywood (page 176). Not to be read critically.

Rating: ***

ELLERY QUEEN – The Last Man Club. Pyramid R-1835, paperback; 1st printing thus, July 1968. Both stories were originally published as Better Little Books in 1940 and 1942, respectively. Both are novelizations of radio plays.

   Not all of the recent assortment of EQ reprints, of which this is one, are listed with rest of Ellery Queen’s works, and it is not surprising. The writing is distinctly substandard, although the first story does have appeal as a problem in deduction. The print is large, and there aren’t many pages [127], so 50¢ is an exceeding high price for this book.

Overall rating: **½
      —-
“The Adventure of the Last Man Club.” A hit-and-run accident witnessed by Ellery and Nikki leads them to believe a murderer is striking the survivors of an unusual club formed twenty years before. A trust fund of $120,000 to be divided equally if the killer’s obvious goal. A poisoned cordial bottle provides Ellery with the necessary clue.

   A clever and unexpected twist that occurs as the would-be killer is revealed makes the story better than it would otherwise be. Color-blindness is the key, but mailboxes are no longer painted green.    ***½
      —-
“The Adventure of the Murdered Millionaire.” A murdered stockbroker’s gum-chewing habit gives away the killer’s identity in this one, as a baseball scorecard pinpoints his whereabouts the previous afternoon.

   It’s too simple a puzzle, and bad writing shows too clearly. Did EQ actually write this? On page 98, Doc Prouty is dusting for fingerprints. Since he is the medical examiner, what indeed is going on?    *½

PHILIP JOSE FARMER – The Felled Star. Serialized in If SF, July-August, 1967. Combined with the serial “The Fabulous Riverboat” (If SF, May-June 1971) into the second Riverworld novel, The Fabulous Riverboat (Putnam, hardcover, 1971).

   Continuing the Riverworld series, we now follow the adventures and dreams of Sam Clemens as he and a shipful of Viking warriors [as they] sail upstream in search of a mysterious tower reportedly seen in the polar regions. One of the Ethicals intervenes again, to cause a meteorite to fall, promising a source of much-needed iron.

   The story does not end, and cannot stand by itself; hence the low rating. Who couldn’t it be told at once? Farmer’s Sam Clemens has only faint resemblance to the historical Mark Twain, though no doubt the facts of his life are correct. Some comments [are included] on the human condition, reflections on life by Clemens, etc.

Rating: ** ½.

IF SCIENCE FICTION. August 1967. Editor: Frederik Pohl. Cover artist: Gray Morrow. Overall rating: ***

JAMES BLISH “Faust Aleph-Null.” Serial: part 1 of 3. See report following that of the October 1967 (yet to come).

ROGER DEELEY “The Trouble with Vegans.” First story. They are very clever smugglers. An old joke retold. (3)

KEITH LAUMER “Clear As Mud.” Novelette. Retief and Magnan are Terran representatives on a planet where mud volcanoes are a bad problem. And the complications arise. Fun. (3)

FRED SABERHAGEN “The Winged Helmet.” Novelette. Sequel to “Stone Man” in the May issue of Worlds of Tomorrow. The berserkers’ attacks through time are concentrated on individuals who control a great deal of the planet’s destiny. King Ay of pre-civilized times is killed, and a replacement has to be sent to maintain history. The ending is not satisfying; there may be more to come. (3)

BURT K. FILER “Paint ’em Green.” The search of “effects machines” by Terran governments brings about interference by outside interests, for a second time. (3)

PHILIP JOSE FARMER “The Felled Star.” Serial; part 2 of 2. Report on complete story to appear here soon.

WEIRD TALES January 1949. Editor: Dorothy McIlwraith. Cover artist: Lee Brown Coye. Overall rating: *½.

ALLISON V. HARDING “Four from Jehlam.” Novelette. An ancient Indian woman’s curse follows four Englishmen back home and to their not unexpected deaths. Not very well written. (1)

EVERETT EVANS “Food for Demons.” A demon inside one professor’s head feeds on the minds of others. (2)

FRANK GRUBER “The Thirteenth Floor.” Standard tale of non-existent floor in a large department store. (2)

SNOWDEN T. HERRICK “Open Season on the –bottoms.” People whose last names end in “bottom” start disappearing. (0)

JOHN D. MacDONALD “The Great Stone Death.” The great stone lizard attacks two outdoorsmen; one escapes. (1)

HAROLD LAWLER “Lover in Scarlet.” A skeleton in a scarlet cloak. (0)

ROBERT BLOCH “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.” A magician’s assistant tries to saw a girl in half, and succeeds! (2)

ERIC FRANK RUSSELL “The Big Shot.” At his time of reckoning, Rafferty finds that his final judge is himself. (4)

STEPHEN GRENDON “Balu.” A boy’s strange Egyptian cat knows the secret of transformation to human form. (1)

MARY ELIZABETH COUNSELMAN “The Bonan of Baladewa.” An old Javanese musician calls of the spirit world to avenge his daughter’s death. (1)

ROBERT HEINLEIN “Our Fair City.” Novelette. A reporter uses the talents of a friendly whirlwind to expose the corruption of City Hall. Farce. (2)