Customer Reviews (2)

Fast Moving Space Opera, Minus the Space
The front and back covers of this book would have you believing the plot centers around a global ecological catastrophe.Indeed, there are earthquakes, tsunamis, tidal waves, and calamity galore.But this is all quite incidental to the actual story; it merely provides the setting for an action-filled "adventure in the future" tale.
In classic space opera fashion, we have a reluctant hero with a hazy background who stumbles across a mystery.The mystery, as you may expect, sucks him in and soon has him running for his life.He encounters a foreign woman - at least, she doesn't speak any language he recognizes - and saves her life.Though he barely knows her, he finds himself strangely attracted to her and repeatedly risks his life to keep her alive.Then he loses her . . . and finds her . . . and loses her, while cheating death at every turn.Who is trying to kill him, and her; or do the mysterious strangers really want them dead, or alive for some sinister purpose?Before we're done, he encounters an ancient civilization and an evil force that's been brought to light by the global calamity.Then he has to save humanity, and hopefully get the girl.
This is a really good old-school sci-fi adventure, fast moving and interesting.It stops short of being great though.Our hero tends to find just the right person or thing he needs, just when he needs it.For instance, he's given a mysterious coin, drives hundreds of miles, checks into a hotel, and lo! there is a numismatic convention just a few floors away from his room.If you can ignore the string of coincidences, and our hero's tendency to absorb and shake off more damage than Dirk Pitt on a bad day, this is a pretty darn good read.Recommended.

One of Keith's Best
In The Breaking Earth, Keith is at his best.The plot has more twist and turns then a slinky.The Sci-Fi is down to Earth (no pun intended;).The scenario is Earth 21st Century experiencing a Catastrophic Upheval.In themidst of this calamity, there is some mysterious group out to kill forlittle rhyme reason.If you liked Trace of Memory, you will definatelylike this book.This book definately ranks as one of Keith's Top 5. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

It's pretty awful
This book is a true turkey.It's about bug-eyed monsters called the Gool who attack human spacecraft psionically -- making the crew go bananas -- and the brash, invincible hero who saves humanity from these nasty ole chupacabras.It's almost a parody of itself -- truly painful to read.It makes the cheesiest episodes of Star Trek TOS look like Shakespeare by way of comparison.Laumer, the author of the Retief and Bolo series, can do a lot better than this one.I suspect he was under a deadline.At least it's short. ... Read more

Product Description
contents clean, binding tight, no creasing ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Problems with Act II
The other reviewers have provided good synopses of this book.I had the curse of reading the first half in Analog, where it went by the title "The Wonderful Secret."The serial version ended with Dammy stealing the space vehicle to head out to the stars.Years later, when I finally read the entire book, I was disappointed that the second half really did not go anywhere, and I also found the stream-of-consciousness narration difficult to follow.Overall, an interesting book, with a humanistic premise that we're all capable of being the best in the Galaxy (or at least "Class 2, Special") and capable of kicking anyone's tail feathers who messes with us.

Alien-Created Superman Breaks Free
In The Ultimax Man, an alien abducts a common criminal for an experiment - to imbue him with all of the knowledge and skills of human history...to make him a true superman; the Ultimax Man. But, once our hero reaches the pinnacle of all of this knowledge and all of these skills, what next? He breaks the bonds of his creator and sets himself free in search of where to go from here.

This is an interesting story that is better at getting to the third act than finding a satisfying ending to our character's story. As another reviewer put it, once he is free it is all down hill from there. In the end I was pretty disappointed with what promised to be, but failed to deliver.

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A Guide to my Book Rating System:

1 star = The wood pulp would have been better utilized as toilet paper.
2 stars = Don't bother, clean your bathroom instead.
3 stars = Wasn't a waste of time, but it was time wasted.
4 stars = Good book, but not life altering.
5 stars = This book changed my world in at least some small way.

Tries too hard
This book is not in the class of Laumer's Retief books.The 1st half is relatively straight-forward but the rest is a hodgepodge of activity--attempting, I believe, to combine SF with mystery.The ending has a twist, but wasn't very satisfying IMHO.Still, there's some innovative thinking and a good quote: "What one doesn't understand seems arbitrary and meaningless."

Excellent book-drive read or lazy afternoon
Simple enough premise about an everyman, abducted by a human-appearing agent and trained to utilize his mind to its fullest. The alien-turned-handler finds the tables turned on him as he realizes he has created an intellect and power superior to his own mind and technology. I first read this book when I was 15 and for years found it not even listed in Laumer's biblio. I would recommend locating this book for any Laumer fan due to its rarity, and definitely loan it to any avid sci-fi middle schooler.

Superman doesn't stand a chance..
This book is an easy read and slightly entertaining.Summary: A man iskidnaped by an alien and trained mentaly and phsycially to becomesuperhuman.Some of his talents include matter transmission, matterconversion, levation and telepathy.These are just a few of his talentsand once gained he must use them to solve a mystery for all mankind. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

good to see
Although this wasnt the best effort of this author, it was good to see the progression of the character. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A top pick for any serious science fiction collection.
Take suspense and blend it with science fiction using the short story format and you have a set of truly gripping adventures, as represented in Keith Laumer (Eric Flint, Editor)'s The Long Twilight and Other Stories. From a final combat between two forces in an uncontrolled experimental power plant that threatens Earth to a detective who is given devices to aid his investigation which seem far beyond any Earthly technology, this collection holds an outstanding selection of vivid plots and action, and is a top pick for any serious science fiction collection. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Old School, Light-Weight Space Action
Amazon provides no information for this book, so let's start by correcting the author names. Planet Run was written by Keith Laumer and Gordon R. Dickson, and the cover claims it's "The only collaboration to date by two of SF's greatest masters!" The novel was originally published in 1967, and republished in 1982 along with two short "bonus stories", "Once There Was a Giant" by Laumer, and "Call Him Lord" by Dickson.
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From the back cover:
"The last virgin planet in this sector of the galaxy is about to bust wide open - and two ancient heroes are going to trade the rest of their lives for one sweet year of youth, and the chance to make one last planet run."
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From the page inside the front cover:
"'Corazon's a hell of a place,' Henry said thoughtfully.
`All raw worlds are hell - but we could sure have ourselves some fun taming her down a little . . .' the old man's eyes hazed wistfully. `One last go-round before the Big Dark. Remember, Cap'n, how it feels to have a deck under your feet, and the whole universe on the other side of the hull, waiting to be tamed?'
`Damn your hide, Amos,' Henry said softly. But the decision was made" there would be one last planet run."
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In the future, you can stay young . . . for a while . . . for a price. You can rejuvenate yourself and restore your youth, extending your life. But, you can only rejuve so many times. And the ageing comes quicker after each one. Captain Henry thought he'd reached his limit, and was content to spend his final days relaxing in the sun. He had made a career out of exploring new worlds, and was perhaps the most successful and famous explorer ever. Now though, he's being blackmailed into one last rejuve and trip, to the last untamed world that mankind can reach. He goes, but takes along his granddaughter's terribly naïve fiancé, who is big on tennis and politics but lacks any street smarts. Henry hopes the trip will toughen up the young man, and make him worthy of his granddaughter's hand. They set out for Corazon, which is being opened up with a land rush, much like Oklahoma. The competition is fierce and deadly; you can stake your claim but you have to live to register it! Overall, this is a decent book, with a fast-moving story, but it's all pretty predictable. It reads like one of Heinlein's early teen-oriented novels. The two short stories are OK but not prize-winning material. You can spend a couple of enjoyable hours with this one.

Old School, Light-Weight Space Action
Amazon provides no information for this book, so let's start by correcting the author names.Planet Run was written by Keith Laumer and Gordon R. Dickson, and the cover claims it's "The only collaboration to date by two of SF's greatest masters!"The novel was originally published in 1967, and republished in 1982 along with two short "bonus stories", "Once There Was a Giant" by Laumer, and "Call Him Lord" by Dickson.
.
From the back cover:
"The last virgin planet in this sector of the galaxy is about to bust wide open - and two ancient heroes are going to trade the rest of their lives for one sweet year of youth, and the chance to make one last planet run."
.
From the page inside the front cover:
"'Corazon's a hell of a place,' Henry said thoughtfully.
`All raw worlds are hell - but we could sure have ourselves some fun taming her down a little . . .' the old man's eyes hazed wistfully.`One last go-round before the Big Dark.Remember, Cap'n, how it feels to have a deck under your feet, and the whole universe on the other side of the hull, waiting to be tamed?'
`Damn your hide, Amos,' Henry said softly.But the decision was made" there would be one last planet run."
.
In the future, you can stay young . . . for a while . . . for a price.You can rejuvenate yourself and restore your youth, extending your life.But, you can only rejuve so many times.And the ageing comes quicker after each one.Captain Henry thought he'd reached his limit, and was content to spend his final days relaxing in the sun.He had made a career out of exploring new worlds, and was perhaps the most successful and famous explorer ever.Now though, he's being blackmailed into one last rejuve and trip, to the last untamed world that mankind can reach.He goes, but takes along his granddaughter's terribly naïve fiancé, who is big on tennis and politics but lacks any street smarts.Henry hopes the trip will toughen up the young man, and make him worthy of his granddaughter's hand.They set out for Corazon, which is being opened up with a land rush, much like Oklahoma.The competition is fierce and deadly; you can stake your claim but you have to live to register it!Overall, this is a decent book, with a fast-moving story, but it's all pretty predictable.It reads like one of Heinlein's early teen-oriented novels.The two short stories are OK but not prize-winning material.You can spend a couple of enjoyable hours with this one.

Man can reach the stars, but he takes mankind with him.
Planet Run takes you back to the frontier, the frontier of space.When the galaxy starts to fill up and become too civilized, men battle for the last bit of wilderness.A planet is being opened for settlement, and therush is on.Some search for the treasure they are sure awaits, othersbecause it's the last of its kind. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

The Dream Machine
Night of Delusions (1972) is a standalone short SF story.It is set in the mid-future.It starts out like a film noir detective story and then turns into a nightmare.

In this novel, Florin is hired to bodyguard an insane Senator while his associates use technological illusions to shock him into reality.But suddenly he finds himself in a dingy bar across from a nice looking young woman.Then he goes out into the night and finds things have changed.

Florin keeps waking up, only to discover that he is still in a dream world.A pink lizard named Diss shows up time and again and gives him a very convincing spiel on his present condition.Unfortunately, the gecko is mostly lying.

Florin learns that the Senator is an actor named Bardell.He also learns the real names of Big Nose, Lardface and other associates of the Senator.Then he wakes up in the dream machine.

In this story, Florin has his perceived reality change over and over again.The structures move and change shape.Only the characters stay the same, but not their roles in his life.And the color Nile green seems to appear frequently.

The young woman is named Curia Regis.She is always sitting across from him when he recovers consciousness.Her relation to him changes with each recurrence.Somehow, Florin believes that she is not associated with Big Nose and the other players.

Florin is rendered unconscious by various means.Sometimes he is attacked and knocked out.Other times, the lights just go off and he floats around for a while.But he always reappears in the bar across from Curia.

This tale goes into some deep philosophic pits.Florin cannot tell if he is dreaming or awake until he awakes in the bar.He is told that the machine is responding to his unconscious desires.So he tries to gain conscious control of the device.

This novel is the most confusing work by the author.I have read it several times and still get confused.The only consistent element is the hero's stubborn resistance to surrendering control of his own fate.

This novel is not among the greatest works of the author.Yet it is entertaining in a demented sort of a way.Enjoy!

Recommended for Laumer fans and anyone else who enjoys tales of dream manipulation, persevering heroes, and sheer confusion.

-Arthur W. Jordin

Diminished expectations
I read this work on the enthusiastic recommendation of a friend who was really crazy about this science-fiction psychological space thriller. My friend was comparing it to Stranger in a Strange Land, a fine ground-breaking work with which I was already very familiar so I considered that I might be okay in reading Laumer's book on that basis.

I should say up front that I'm a pretty discriminating and critical reader, delving into all genres with equal enthusiasm. And I should also know better by now than to take book recommendations from others at face value without researching the title myself before committing to obtaining and reading such offerings -- but that's what I did here and as a result I was somewhat disappointed.

Here's a pretty good representative quotation from page 60 of Laumer's 1972 book:

"We're not on Earth. We're on Greyfell, the fourth planet of the Wolf 9 system, twenty-eight light years from Sol."

A surprise, I did run across a reference to the Floyd Collins Cave Tragedy on page 65 which is a fascinating, if little-known, account. Trapped!: The Story of Floyd Collins. Laumer casually mentions this work as his own book clearly shares some parallels with the Collins incident but in very different ways.

But overall, I detected nothing special in Laumer's rather difficult-to-follow story. Really rabid sci-fi fans might rate it somewhat higher than I did but I really didn't see that this book was either an epic work or that it met the criteria of "literature".

So basically, I'll summarize by saying this is just an okay read for sci-fi fans and I'll leave it at that.

Highly Original, very easy to read at one sitting.
I'm drawn by Keith Laumer's simplistic style and easy reading, as well as his original plot twists.I first read this in 1975, and the story is as fresh now as then.The story is what I would call 'Psychological SF'.Ido think the work leaves some questions unanswered in the plot, butnonethelessNight of Delusions is an excellent work of SF that should beread by serious SF fans.See also Keith Laumer's A Trace of Memory. ... Read more