Saturday, January 20, 2018

Secret Agent of Terra by John Brunner :: Amy's bookshelf

Title: Secret Agent of Terra 
Subtitle: Vultures from the A-Power Orbit
Author: John Brunner
Publisher: Ace (Ace Double F-133)
Copyright: 1962
Pages: 127
Cover Price: 40¢
Series: Zarathustra Refugee Planets book one
Genre: science fiction

Note: story reworked / revised as The Avengers of Carrig (1969)

Description from the first page of book:
MONARCH OF MONSTERS -- OR MONSTER OF MONARCHY?

   Planet Fourteen --  just a speck on a spacial stereo map, just a world inhabited by a group of barbaric refugees.
   But to Belfeor, it was instant cash. All he needed was an iron hand and a means to dig out its radioactive resources for export to his own world.
   To Maddalena it was a final exam; this would be her last chance to prove herself worthy of Corps Galactica membership.
   To Saikmar, it was a nation and a people stolen from him by cruel treachery.
   To Gus Langenschmidt, it was part of a job he had, watching the skies and helping men who were being enslaved. But how do you help people who don't know you exist and who must not be told?


John Brunner (1934 – 1995) was a British science fiction author. His book Stand on Zanzibar (1968) won the 1969 Hugo Award for best novel. Other notable books include The Shockwave Rider (1975), The Sheep Look Up (1972) and The Jagged Orbit (1969).


I randomly pulled Secret Agent of Terra from a stack of vintage Ace Double books. The shown book cover graphic is from Wikipedia, unfortunately my copy is a bit more worn. The pages have yellowed in the over 55 years since it was published. It's not many pages long but the print font is small. I haven't read this science fiction book, so I can't say more. Although digging out "radioactive resources", as mentioned in the description, sounds dangerous. I'm featuring this book because I thought the cover was interestingly retro looking. Perhaps something from my bookshelf to add to my to-be-read list?

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