Product Description
An armed cadre of fundamentalist extremists threatens the security of the interstellar Empire, while uprisings of separatist traitors spark outrage on dozens of planets around the galaxy.The agents of the Imperial Special Investigation Service must find the common thread and de-fang these vipers before the wildfire of revolution engulfs the galaxy. ... Read more

Product Description
Published in 1982, before the widespread use of personal computers, the Internet, and electronic publishing, THE BUSINESS OF BEING A WRITER concentrated on writing and selling to the print media--books and magazines. Updated excerpts are now being reprinted electronically on various topics--still focused on those primary areas, but still applicable to the current-day writer.

Theodore Sturgeon called the book "the second best reference book a writer can have, after the dictionary."

Harlan Ellison said, "It may not make you a better writer, but it will keep you from being a poorer one."

Isaac Asimov said, "Thank goodness! I am constantly being asked an infinity of questions about the writing business and can never answer coherently. Now I will stamp cards with a stamp that says: READ THE BUSINESS OF BEING A WRITER. IT WILL TELL YOU EVERYTHING, CLEARLY AND INTERESTINGLY. Why on Earth didn't he write the book forty years ago when it would have done me some good?"

This excerpt compares the jobs of magazine and book editors and discusses how to maintain good author-editor relations, as well as how to go about negotiating the terms of sales to your publishers. ... Read more

Product Description
Published in 1982, before the widespread use of personal computers, the Internet, and electronic publishing, THE BUSINESS OF BEING A WRITER concentrated on writing and selling to the print media--books and magazines. Updated excerpts are now being reprinted electronically on various topics--still focused on those primary areas, but still applicable to the current-day writer.

Theodore Sturgeon called the book "the second best reference book a writer can have, after the dictionary."

Harlan Ellison said, "It may not make you a better writer, but it will keep you from being a poorer one."

Isaac Asimov said, "Thank goodness! I am constantly being asked an infinity of questions about the writing business and can never answer coherently. Now I will stamp cards with a stamp that says: READ THE BUSINESS OF BEING A WRITER. IT WILL TELL YOU EVERYTHING, CLEARLY AND INTERESTINGLY. Why on Earth didn't he write the book forty years ago when it would have done me some good?"

This excerpt discusses proper manuscript format, and how to submit your writing to an editor/publisher. ... Read more

Product Description
Classic science fiction action-adventure. Book #9 in the "Family d'Alembert" series. ... Read more

Product Description
The galactic Empire of Earth, faced with a cunning plot to dethrone the rightful Emperor, turns for help to its top agents: Jules and Yvette d'Alembert, super-humanly-strong natives of the triple-gravity planet DesPlaines. Only the legendary d'Alemberts have the know-how and the quickness to succeed where every other agent has failed. But to do so, they have to crack the defenses of the mightiest fortress in the galaxy! ... Read more

Product Description
Answering a distress call from Epsilon Delta 4, where 700 colonists are dying of radiation poisoning, the crew of the USS "Enterprise" are high-jacked by Enowil, an eccentric being of unbelievable power, who has also seized control of a Romulan and a Klingon star cruiser. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

a real yawner
The bantam versions of these ST books are in general inferior to their pocket book competitors.The only need that this book would fulfill is to have something with the characters one knows, so that one can commune with them for a little while.

The plot of this is insipid and unoriginal:a superior being, who is nuts, is playing with them and gets them into danger.He happens to be an organian, those throbbing balls of light who enforced a peace with the Klingons.

This is nothing to remember, just a rehash of well known scifi and comic book traditions, however well it is executed.I was growing bored of these treatments at the time I read it, and looking at it again briefly, I have absolutely no desire to read it again.

Not recommended.

Trek to Madworld
The Enterprise takes Kostas Spyroukis and his daughter back to his new home planet. Spyroukis is an explorer and renowned colonizer of worlds, and has decided to settle on his final world. On the way home he collapses, and dies. Dr. McCoy discovers that the cause is a combination of argon in the planet's atmosphere, and zeton radiation emitted by the sun. Alone, neither of these things is harmful, but together they make up a slow poison. Captain Kirk sends the ship off on a mission to remove the colonists from the deadly planet, but on the way they are intercepted by a powerful being calling himself Enowil, who identifies himself as an Organian split with his fellows, and living in an uncharted region of space. He has brought the Enterprise, as well as a Klingon and Romulan ship to his home to help him answer the question of what he is missing. The first to discover will be given anything they desire. Kirk determines that he must participate, lest one of the others discover the answer and wish for an unbeatable superweapon.

The writing here is rather pedestrian, not what you would expect from a seasoned s-f writer such as Goldin. Too often I found myself saying, "Why don't they just.....?" The usual answer is, because then the problem would be solved and the book would be even shorter than it is (179 pages). Couldn't Kirk ask Enowil to intervene on the colony world, and set that problem aside? Eliminating the argon from the world's atmosphere would seem to be an effective method.

This book also suffers from a malady common to the Bantam paperbacks, which all seem to have a title with some variation of "world" in it. It involves an extremely powerful machine or being, which Kirk and crew must outwit, or persuade to their side, or some such. This was also a frequent problem on the TV series, and is a symptom of lazy plotting. With a nearly omnipotent agent, virtually anything can be accomplished, and any plot holes the writer puts him/herself in can be dodged. However, it also leads to many "why don't they" questions.

I can't recommend this book, unless you are a real ST novel completist. It's not bad, really, but there's not much to get excited about.

not good
i would not recommend it for reading, trust me.

Floppy
This book is totally terrible. Confusing. It doesn't make sense. It is full of inaccuracies.

For example, if Romulans in Goldin's pathetic excuse for a story are honorable, then why did the Romulan try to shoot adefenseless woman?Second thing is this book is racist stuff. If Goldincited all Klinons are treacherous, then he must be implying all Germans arenazis, Irish are alcoholics and terrorists, etc. I would not say thosewords. I don't even imply them.

Major conscience decision for Kirk.
This is one of the pre Pocket Books Star Trek novels.Published in the late 70's as part of the ramp up for a second series, this is a new adventure molded in the shape of the TOS series. ... Read more

Product Description
Classic space opera adventure, Book #7 in the "Family D'Alembert" series. For centuries, the planet Gastonia has been a planet of exile, an escape-proof prison world for the worst sorts of traitors. But now, it seems, prisoners are indeed escaping, and all evidence points to the sinister, all-knowing conspiracy that continues to shadow the Throne. The d'Alemberts must infiltrate this world of traitors--and they must do it without a safety net, because if they fail they themselves will be trapped on this inhospitable world. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Princesses, spaceships, blasters, and pirates.
And a circus. Yes this really does have it all. Swashbuckling, daring rescues, evil conspiracies, and the silent band in the Service Of The Empire or SOTE - super-secret protectors of the imperial family. The good guys (and gals) are teeth-achingly good, so of course the bad guys (and gals) don't stand a chance.

This is fifth in Doc Smith's little-known Family D'Alembert series, a 1970s successor to his earlier Lensman and Skylark space operas. These aren't quite so technologically whiz-bang as the earlier books, and not so mired in the stereotypes of the Eisenhower era ideals. Unfortunately, Smith and Goldin never manage to regain that melodramatic sense of straight-faced, goofy heroism that makes the earlier books so memorable. What's new, compared to the older series, is a post-Neolithic view of women and a flailing attempt at emotional depth. The latter tops out around high school level, though, based on soured sibling rivalries and girl-fights to see who gets the boy.

The only reason to read this is A) a nostalgic attachment to Smith's earlier work, in the vain hope that the magic could be rekindled, B) you're stranded on a desert island with only this and a parrot, and you've already read the newspapers in the bottom of the cage,or C) you're a nine year old boy and want something more sophisticated but without all that mushy stuff.

//wiredweird ... Read more

Product Description
Classic space opera adventure, Book #3 in the "Family D'Alembert" series. By law, Princess Edna, heir to the interstellar Empire of Earth, must marry a commoner. But as she travels through her domain, word comes of a mysterious threat to her succession. It's up to Jules and Yvette d'Alembert and their family of circus performers, all agents of the Empire, to uncover this bizarre plot before it can wreak havoc for all of humanity. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Clockwork Traitor
Not bad.Not one of the best Family d'Alembert novels but not bad. ... Read more

Product Description
Classic space opera adventure, Book #1 in the "Family D'Alembert" series. The Empire of Earth, spanning more than a thousand solar systems, is threatened by a conspiracy from within. Now, with more than three-quarters of the Galaxy ready to fall into enemy hands, the Empire is forced to call on its top-secret weapon: the renowned Circus of the Galaxy featuring the d'Alembert family, a clan of circus performers with uncanny abilities. But even these super agents may not be in time to save the Empire. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Not good.
"Imperial Stars" is, apparently, the only book in this series that is, mostly, written by Doc Smith.However, it is not a good book. For me, the plot was unbelievable and the writing was not up to Smith's standards.And, unfortunately, in my opinion, the rest of the series is worse.

I understand that some folks liked this book and the rest of the series.I did not.

Not Free SF Reader
Circus secret agents, that is what it boils down to, here.The d'Alemberts are a family of Galactic circus entertainers, from DesPlain.They are highly skilled, as you would imagine, if there services are in demand on more than one planet.

However, there are some nogoodniks around that need dealing with, and other agents have failed to deal with them.Time to send in the clowns.

feels like a doc smith, but bad
It has most of Doc's regular trappings, heroic, square jawed men (& in this case a woman too) facing down evil that wants to destroy civilization.But it's just bad.It doesn't put you in the world.Further, I found myself rooting for the bad guy.

I hope that Stephen Goldin does better work when he isn't expanding someone else's story.As it was, I'm not sure I would have hated it so much had it not been ostensibly a Doc Smith novel.

This book is the first of many in a great series.
If you plan on reading any of the Family D'Alembert series, then I strongly reccomend that you read this first. It sets the plot and introduces the main characters. Frankly, without reading this book, you will probably get lost in the others! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Short, fast-paced and boring
From the writing, contrived incidents and wooden characters one would suspect this was written for teenagers. But the setting, on a moon of vice called Vesa, belies this. Jules and Yvette are sent to Vesa to investigate an underground series of kidnappings - apparently 30 people go missing a day but the compromised authorities have let this happen for 20 years!

Every character cliche is unleashed here and Jules and Yvette get out of their scrapes with their usual bluster, kung fu and bravado. Doc Smith has missed a good opportunity to create a melange of races and colourful people by instead opting for the 'brawn always wins' scenario. Avoid, despite the pretty cover art. ... Read more

Product Description
Polly!
by
Stephen Goldin,


Meeting Polly is an adventure where youll discover: why snowmen cant dance; a previously unseen Marx Brothers movie; the Three Laws of Thermodynamics; the secret of the universe. Oh, and also the recipe for the perfect peanut butter and jelly sandwich. ... Read more

Product Description
CONTENTS: ~ ~~ ~ SERIAL: The Children Star (Part 2 of 4) [Joan Slonczewski]; NOVELETTES: The Sword Unswayed [Stephen Goldin]; Yellow and Orange Blues [Amy Bechtel]; SHORT STORY: The Human Touch [H. G. Stratmann]; ARTICLES: In Memoriam: G Harry Stine; Bio Hazards and Medical Care in Space (Part 2) [H. G. Stratmann & G. David Nordley]; Snakes or Paychecks: IS That the Question? [Stanley Schmidt]; The Permanent Alternative [Jeffrey D. Kooistra] ... Read more

Product Description
Book 8 of Agents of ISIS.

Having had its plans thwarted too many times by the Imperial Special Investigation Service, the evil conspiracy declares war directly on the brave men and women who serve in the agency.

Impostors sabotage the Service's work, and the Commissar himself falls under suspicion. ISIS must confront itself to prevent being torn apart from within. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document, covering the life and work of Stephen Goldin, is an entry from Contemporary Authors, a reference volume published by Thompson Gale. The length of the entry is 854 words. The page length listed above is based on a typical 300-word page. Although the exact content of each entry from this volume can vary, typical entries include the following information:

• Place and date of birth and death (if deceased)
• Family members
• Education
• Professional associations and honors
• Employment
• Writings, including books and periodicals
• A description of the author's work
• References to further readings about the author