Search Worlds Without End

During an action on the third planet from Arcturus, soldier Cal Truent woke up in the hospital with a sixteen-hour hole in his memory. No one knows what it is that Cal has forgotten, but his superiors can't take the chance that it might be something deadly to his fellow soldiers - and to Earth.

Somehow Cal means to seek out whatever it is that his mind is resisting...

Table of Contents:

• 7 - Preface (Tomorrow, the Stars) - (1952) - essay by Robert A. Heinlein (variant of Introduction (Tomorrow, the Stars))
• 19 - I'm Scared - (1951) - short story by Jack Finney
• 33 - The Silly Season - (1950) - short story by C. M. Kornbluth
• 49 - The Report on the Barnhouse Effect - (1950) - short story by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
• 63 - The Tourist Trade - (1951) - short story by Wilson Tucker [as by Bob Tucker]
• 74 - Rainmaker - (1949) - short story by John Reese
• 88 - Absalom - (1946) - short story by Henry Kuttner and C. L. Moore [as by Henry Kuttner]
• 104 - The Monster - (1951) - short story by Lester del Rey
• 118 - Jay Score - [Jay Score / Marathon - 1] - (1941) - short story by Eric Frank Russell
• 136 - Betelgeuse Bridge - (1951) - short story by William Tenn
• 155 - Survival Ship - (1951) - short story by Judith Merril
• 165 - Keyhole - (1951) - short story by Murray Leinster
• 183 - Misbegotten Missionary - (1950) - short story by Isaac Asimov (variant of Green Patches)
• 200 - The Sack - (1950) - short story by William Morrison
• 221 - Poor Superman - novelette by Fritz Leiber (variant of Appointment in Tomorrow 1951)

The stars are ours. Again.

After an effort to disable an ancient stargate discovered on Sioux land was stymied, the local people cooperated with Federal officials and others in exploring the strange worlds linked by the alien technology. Secrets old and new are uncovered but prove difficult to explain. Who built the stargate? What connection do the builders have with the worlds and intelligent species the various doors open to reveal?

Life on Earth was intolerable - and yet Man had stayed there, his dreams and potential suffocating under the dead weight of bureaucracy.

The stars were attainable - thanks to the Infall Drive - but only a few heard the call of deep space. Some had already gone to colonise a new world. The second ship was ready at last. Ready to escape the Earth's prison; ready to seek refuge in deepest space. But it wasn't only freedom that awaited it...

The space-faring Yherajk have come to Earth to meet us and to begin humanity's first interstellar friendship. There's just one problem: They're hideously ugly and they smell like rotting fish.

So getting humanity's trust is a challenge. The Yherajk need someone who can help them close the deal.

Enter Thomas Stein, who knows something about closing deals. He's one of Hollywood's hottest young agents. But although Stein may have just concluded the biggest deal of his career, it's quite another thing to negotiate for an entire alien race. To earn his percentage this time, he's going to need all the smarts, skills, and wits he can muster.

read "Agent to the Stars" online

Three men, each driven by secret reasons, volunteered to take the strangest trip since the beginning of time:

GORDON--filled with a need for power, enough power to wipe out the memory of an earlier terrible shame.

LOCKWOOD--to whom life was worth very little without Susan--maybe it was worth nothing at all.

STANTON--a man haunted by the knowledge that a special and mysterious fate awaited him.

Behind them were their pasts. Ahead of them--infinity.

In this different and suspense-filled novel, the author of Donovan's Brain tells the story of a strange quest whose outcome might mean the difference between survival and extinction for mankind.

Accompanying his scientist parents on an exploratory voyage to another star system, seventeen-year-old Cliff Macklin discovers the ruins of an alien culture.

Ships to the Stars

Something had thrown Earth's scientists into an uproar - or rather, nothing had. Because suddenly there was absolutely nothing where something very definitely should have been. Phobos and Deimos, the two moons of Mars. had disappeared.

And that was just the start of it. Before long, more of the solar system's moons were gone... people on Earth were sinking out of sight into the ground... and Earth's telepaths kept having strange dreams, full of foreboding....

A collection of 6 short stories by Fritz Leiber:

• Dr. Kometevsky's Day - (1952) - shortstory
• The Big Trek - (1957) - shortstory
• The Enchanted Forest - (1950) - novelette
• Deadly Moon - (1960) - novelette
• The Snowbank Orbit - (1962) - shortstory
• The Ship Sails at Midnight - (1950) - shortstory

The Million Year Hunt

...He heard a shout, distant and ringing, "No, Carson! Not that door!"

Something green writhed in through that door. Something gaseous, billowing, filling the chamber faster and faster, something that caught at his throat and gagged him, made him wretch, brought streaming tears to his eyes.

Before his eyes stretched a nightmarish growth of vine and tree, of mushroom-headed stalks, of gyrating tentacles swaying from every branch and limb. He heard a shrill, triumphant chittering.

He turned to spring back. A vice closed over his foot and tripped him. He fell, sprawling, his mouth and nostrils filling with stinking mud.

He did not remember anything more for a very long time.

Tonight We Steal the Stars

In II Galaxy, only Wolf Dragonard can make the impossible possible.

The Wagered World

The astronauts didn't know they were betting the Earth on the toss of the dice!

"Only a decade away!" Yes, according to the well-known author of STEP TO THE STARS, this remarkable age that has produced rocket ships, guided missiles and hydrogen bombs will have a space station circling the Earth within the next ten years. World domination will be in the hands of the country that constructs it, and man will know, once and for all, whether he is free or slave.

Such thoughts were far from Jim Stanley's mind when he was investigated by the FBI and later subjected to strange and rigorous tests. It wasn't until he satisfied the stiff requirements that he learned the United States was in the space station race for keeps and that he could count himself among the handful of men destined to breach the barriers of space in operation "Big Shush."

Fascinating details of the construction and operation of the station are part and parcel of this tense and dramatic story. Treacherous sabotage by a dangerous foreign spy; Jim's almost fatal fall into the "empty, hungry depths of space"; and a savage fire which threatened the existence of the station add to the rising tide of excitement. Tying these explosive events together is a narrative that skillfully portrays the reaction of men to new and staggering experiences.

Table of Contents:

• The Seed of Earth - (1962) - novel
• Slaves of the Star Giants - (1957) - novella
• The Songs of Summer - (1956) - shortstory
• Hopper - (1956) - novelette
• Blaze of Glory - (1957) - shortstory
• Warm Man - (1957) - shortstory

Prince Roger MacClintock, Heir to the Throne of Man, was a spoiled rotten arrogant, thoroughly useless young pain in the butt.

But that was before the royal Brat and his Marine bodyguards had their starship sabotaged, and all were marooned on the enemy-occupied planet of Marduk. Before they had to march half way around the entire planet, through steaming jungles, damnbeasts, Capetoads, and killerpillars. Before they encountered treacherous local potentates, hostile barbarian armies numbering in the thousands, and an ocean full of creatures that are big, vicious and voracious.

Under the right circumstances, even the most spoiled brat can grow up fast. Now, Roger and his loyal troops have made it to the sea, and on the way, Roger has proven himself to be a true MacClintock and a born leader. Still, the sea has monsters big enough to swallow a ship - and across the water is an enemy spaceport, bristing with heavy artillery, against which Roger's team has only hand weapons with nearly-drained power packs. But neither Roger nor the Marines are about to give up, Marduk, do your worst!

A collection of Farmer's Father Carmody stories, including:

• The Night of Light - Jun '57
• A Few Miles - Oct '60
• Prometheus - Mar '61
• Father - Jul '55
• Attitudes - Oct '53

INTO THE HEART OF THE MILKY WAY

Earth wants to join the incredibly powerful Federation of the Heart Stars. But first, an expedition must journey to the center of our galaxy to be accepted by the ancient and advanced civilization of Malis, the leader of the Heart Stars.

After receiving space directions on the Mars moon of Phobus, the Earth expedition proceeds into the uncarted vastness of space. Streaking faster than the speed of light, they venture where no man or woman had ever been before, to strange-and dangerous-planets. But the biggest peril of all awaits them on Malis itslef, where the fate of Earth will be decided!

The Groaci peril: They're nasty little five-eyed sticky fingers who want the galaxy and will stoop to anything to get it. But when they try to sabotage one planet and use another for their garbage, it's time for Retief, that cunning and courageous emissary from Corps Diplomatique Tewrrestrienne to samsh in.

And smash in Retief does, in an extraordinary series of adventures that take him from gambling to gunplay, from the blue lagoons of the most coveted planet in the solar systems to the aid of one of the loveliest women in the galaxy - and ultimately up against the fiercest and most destructive beings in the Universe!

Contents:

• The Hoob Melon Crisis - (1975)
• The Garbage Invasion - (1972)
• An Excerpt from Retief & the Warlords (Excerpt) - (1968)
• The Troubleshooter - (1975)
• The Negotiators - (1975)

An original novel based on the explosive new TV series Star Trek: Discovery!

Despite being an inexperienced Starfleet cadet, Sylvia Tilly became essential to the U.S.S. Discovery finding its way back home from the Mirror Universe. But how did she find that courage? From where did she get that steel? Who nurtured that spark of brilliance? The Way to the Stars recounts for fans everywhere the untold story of Tilly's past.

It's not easy being sixteen, especially when everyone expects great things from Tilly. It's even harder when her mother and father are Federation luminaries, not to mention pressing her to attend one of the best schools that the Federation has to offer. Tilly wants to achieve great things--even though she hasn't quite worked out how to do that or what it is she wants to do. But this year, everything will change for Tilly, as she about to embark upon the adventure of a lifetime--an adventure that will take her ever closer to the stars....

After saving Earth from the threat of V'Ger, James T. Kirk is called again to the final frontier. His new mission: to lead a valiant group of settlers to a distant world, to defend the struggling colony from alien threats, and to explore the diverse mysteries and dangers of a strange new Earth!

Far from the Federation, a newly discovered M-class world has been eyed as a potential home by a group of hardy and determined colonists. Star?eet can spare only one starship to escort the would-be settlers on their perilous voyage, but that ship is none other than the legendary "Starship Enterprise", commanded by the most well-known captain in the quadrant.

Now Kirk finds himself responsible for the lives of 30,000 men, women, and children -- a task that grows all the more difficult when the expedition is caught in the middle of an ancient feud between two dangerous alien races!

A student is assigned to an exploratory agency to study humanoid races throughout the universe accessed through "gates" which link thousands of planets. The student is betrayed and learns that the agency is corrupt with a power-hungry insider who would take over the known universe and hungers for an even larger network of "gates" that link millions of worlds.

Just how far would a money-loving freesailer go to find the master key to every planet in the galaxy? And how would he get back?... when freesailer, plunderer James Oregas and his beautiful business partner set out to bilk the unsuspecting denizens of the backwater planet Llango... it got complicated... when Jamas, who knew the ins and out of stargates was doublecrossed and had to disappear -- and fast, it moved into high gear... when Jamas landed on Prime -- a repository planet of galactic history -- and learned of a mysterious lost race that held the master key to all the stargates for all the worlds... when Jamas himself decided to scour the galaxy, looking for that long-lost race, following a trail that would lead him to power beyond his wildest dreams -- if he somehow managed to stay alive!

Always run, never fight.
Preserve the knowledge.
Survive at all costs.
Take them to the stars.

Over 99 identical generations, Mia's family has shaped human history to push them to the stars, making brutal, wrenching choices and sacrificing countless lives. Her turn comes at the dawn of the age of rocketry. Her mission: to lure Wernher Von Braun away from the Nazi party and into the American rocket program, and secure the future of the space race.

But Mia's family is not the only group pushing the levers of history: an even more ruthless enemy lurks behind the scenes.

A darkly satirical first contact thriller, as seen through the eyes of the women who make progress possible and the men who are determined to stop them...

Over one hundred identical generations, Mia's family has shaped earth history to push humanity to the stars, making brutal, wrenching choices and sacrificing countless lives.

After nudging the human race through the dawn of rocket technology, Mia finds herself about to help launch the first people into space. She can't take them to the stars, not quite yet, but she's getting them ever closer...

But a terrible adversary is upon her, threatening the future of two species...

When you don't know The Rules it's hard to stay safe.

After a traumatic incident, Aster's blood work comes back with some unusual readings. Unsurprising, as she's the last of an alien race called the Kibsu, though she doesn't know it. She becomes the focus of a hunt, with her mortal enemies, the Trackers, on one side, and the American government on the other. But help has come from a most unexpected quarter. Whoever finds her first, it won't be good news for Aster.

Or for the world!

Meet that twenty-first century stellar trader, Nicholas Van Rijn, and get set for one of the finest creations of Poul Anderson.

Contents:

Hiding Place
Territory
The Master Key

Having divorced his parents and escaped to the moon, Charles and his brothers find themselves faced with most difficult decision. Unable to return to Earth, where do they go? One option is the distant Earth colony Outbeyond. Complicating matters, he and HARLIE-a state of the art intelligence unit-have become valuable commodities in a Free Luna movement. A hijacking aboard ship, however, and suspicion's of HARLIE'S true motives could doom the brothers' bid for freedom forever.

The quest is on to find the coveted Stone of the Stars on the mystical isle of Trynisia, once a place where humans dwelt side by side with dragons. Four have set off on their journey to reach it-Ailia, a daydreaming bookworm; Damion, a devoted missionary; Jomar, a half-breed soldier-slave; and Lorelyn, quite possibly a prophesied savior, who will one day guide her people ina battle against the Dark God. But can they reach the isle and the Stone of the Stars before the tyrannical God-King Khalazar finds it and uses it to rule the world?

Niko Landry and his crew thought a routine hyperspace survey would be easy money. But when the barrier separating their homeworld from the rest of the human race opens, they seize the chance to go exploring... finding an empire more dangerous than they imagined.

Homeworld introduces us to Jan Kulozik, an upper-class engineer who has taken his privileges for granted. While vacationing at a luxurious resort in the Middle East, he nearly drowns in a sailboat accident, but an illegal Israeli submarine saves him. Kulozik's rescuers make him unwillingly recognize the suffering of most of the planet's inhabitants, and the Israelis reveal the existence of an underground movement, which is struggling to topple society's current balance of power. Jan must choose between the comfort and safety of his former life and the dangers towards which his conscience is urging him.

In Wheelworld, Jan has been banished from Earth, exiled to the inflexible tribal society of Halvmork, which helps supply Earth's agricultural needs. Unhappy with his lot, Jan is nonetheless resigned, until the crucial cargo ships fail to arrive from Earth. Then, Halvmork's only hope for survival is Jan's organization of a daring, grueling mass exodus against incredible odds...

In Starworld, Jan returns to Earth and finds himself caught between the underground and Earth's government. The Earth colonies have rebelled, and Earth is desperately struggling to retain its tyrannical hold over them. Jan is caught in a series of fast-paced espionage and counter-espionage episodes. His goal, to destroy the vestiges of power among what were once Earth's reigning elite. And he is the one person who can save the planet.

Space Platform tells the story of Joe Kenmore, who dreamed of Man's conquest of space and played a small but essential role in making this dream a reality. Joe helped make the gyros in his father's factory for the Space Platform that was to orbit around the Earth.

Space Platform is available to read free from Project Gutenberg.

Space Tug is one of those many sci-fi novels from the 1950s which tried to give a practical, realistic rendering of the problems of concerns of rocket flight into space - dealing with the physical strains of the G-force during lift-off, overcoming the disorientating effects of weightlessness (the astronauts wear magnetic-soked shoes like in 2001: A Space Odyssey), growing vegetables in a hydroponic farm on a space station, etc.

Space Tug is available to read free from Project Gutenberg

Life on the moon under anything less than optimal conditions had always been a nightmare, and as Joe Kenmore and his colleague, Moreau, drove back to the City On The Moon on that day the Earth shuttle was due to land, the nearby mountain supporting critical elements of the shuttle's landing mechanisms crumbled causing an avalanche and resulting in chaos. Optimal conditions were no where in sight that day and as Kenmore and Moreau's investigations lead to their conclusion that explosions had been responsible for the avalanche.

Now they realized that they were in a race against the clock to restore the landing beam before the shuttle had reached it's point of no return prior to landing. Kenmore had more than strictly humanitarian reasons for wanting to prevent a mishap aboard the shuttle that day, because on this particular mission, Arlene Gray was aboard. Kenmore had been anxiously awaiting her arrival, and while in the scope of things Kenmore's comparatively meaningless love life might hang in the balance...

City On The Moon is also published as part of Ace Double D-Series: Book 277

The Nemesis From Terra:

Rick Urquahrt was going to conquer the turmoil-ridden planet of Mars. He was penniless and unknown, but there could be no doubt that he would rule the Red Planet - the ancient Martian mystic had made the prophecy, there was no way fate could cheat him of his prize.

But there were powerful interests on both Earth and Mars who didn't believe in prophecies - and they were going to undo Rick's future before it had a chance to begin.

Battle for the Stars:

A husband and wife find themselves at odds with each other when they become the center of a whirlpool of galactic intrigue.

Naked to the Stars:

During an action on the third planet from Arcturus, soldier Cal Truent woke up in the hospital with a sixteen-hour hole in his memory. No one knows what it is that Cal has forgotten, but his superiors can't take the chance that it might be something deadly to his fellow soldiers -- and to Earth. Somehow Cal means to seek out whatever it is that his mind is resisting...

The Alien Way:

One man is mentally linked to an alien who is spearheading an invasion of Earth; a group of soldiers fight to win new space for Earth; and a small group of men fight against a machine that controls all life.

Run For The Stars:

The Kyben demolished Deald's World and their armada was heading for Earth. All that stood in their way was a man on Deald's World named Benno Tallant, about as lousy a candidate for hero as one could imagine: junkie, looter, coward, betrayer. The retreating Earth forces decide to make him the last man on Deald's World. They surgically implant a cataclysmic bomb in his body, turn him loose, and let the Kyben hunt him down.

See Benno Run. Run, Benno, Run Like Hell.

Echoes of Thunder:

No man, Mohawk or white, walks the high steel like John Stranger.

Julie E. Czerneda's 1997 debut, A Thousand Words for Stranger, was the first novel of the Trade Pact Universe-an instant best-seller, Science Fiction Book Club Editor's Choice and Locus Recommended First Novel. Book two, Ties of Power, further established the author's reputation as a master of vivid alien worlds-and had fans clamoring for the third book in the trilogy. Now comes the final chapter: To Trade the Stars.

The stage is set for a possibly cataclysmic confrontation in non-space-and the Speaker for the Clan Council and her human mate are about to find themselves in the heart of the conflict.