paizo.com - Paizo / Messageboards / paizo.com / Product Discussion / Archives / The Dark World (Trade Paperback)

About the Author

Ray Bradbury once referred to Henry Kuttner as "a neglected master... a man who shaped science fiction and fantasy in its most important years." Born in Los Angeles, Henry Kuttner (1915–1958) sold his first story, "The Graveyard Rats," to Weird Tales in 1936, the same year in which he wrote a fan letter to rising science fiction author C.L. Moore, mistakenly believing her to be a man. The two were married in 1940, and in the years that followed they collaborated constantly, publishing under at least 17 pseudonyms, most notably Lewis Padgett and Keith Hammond. Along with Elak of Atlantis and Prince Raynor, both of which were created before his marriage to Moore, Kuttner's most popular solo works were the Gallegher stories, tales about an inventor who could only build robots while drunk, and who upon sobering immediately forgot their purposes. As a friend of H.P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith, Kuttner also contributed several stories to the Cthulhu mythos. In addition to writing scripts for television in collaboration with Moore, Kuttner wrote several stories that have since been translated to film, most recently "Mimsy Were the Borogroves," released as The Last Mimsy. In the years since his untimely death from a heart attack at 43, Kuttner has been cited as an influence by everyone from Marion Zimmer Bradley to Roger Zelazny, and both Richard Matheson and Ray Bradbury have dedicated novels to him.

Are there errors or omissions in this product information? Got corrections? Let us know at webmaster@paizo.com.

Vic Wertz (Technical Director), Wed, Sep 24, 2008, 03:04 PM

I've updated the cover image and description to match the finished book.

Russell Akred (Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Subscriber), Tue, Oct 7, 2008, 05:22 AM

So is this a graphic novel or a expensive paperback?

Elorebaen (Pathfinder Chronicles Charter Superscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Planet Stories Subscriber), Tue, Oct 7, 2008, 06:39 AM

I think it is technically called, quality print.

Russell Akred wrote:

So is this a graphic novel or a expensive paperback?

Vic Wertz (Technical Director), Tue, Oct 7, 2008, 10:11 AM

Russell Akred wrote:

So is this a graphic novel or a expensive paperback?

It's fiction in trade paperback form. (And a quick survey of the trades on my shelf shows that most of them are priced around $14, so it's by no means expensive for what it is.)

John Warren, Mon, Oct 13, 2008, 04:46 PM

This may help to clarify:

People from a comic book background are accustomed to the term "trade paperback" being used to refer to a collection of previously published comics, like Flaming Man #21-28.

However, the term is also used in "regular" book publishing for books that are of larger dimensions than a normal mass market paperback.

So, to be 100% clear... this is a prose novel, not a comic book or graphic novel.

Hope that helps!

Nevynxxx (Pathfinder Adventure Path Charter Subscriber; Planet Stories Subscriber), Tue, Oct 21, 2008, 10:42 AM

*this* wins the award for the best Planet Stories cover to date! By far. I really *must* subscribe after seeing this. Oh, um.

Theris Nordo Ichka, Thu, Dec 4, 2008, 09:20 PM

I subscribed recently and just yesterday received my first book, “The Dark World”, and can’t wait to start it.
But first, I’ve got a few book ideas for you:

“Space Hawk” by Anthony Gilmore
I’ve recently read “Space Vulture” (a modern tribute to pulp sci-fi) by Gary K. Wolf (creator of Roger Rabbit) and Archbishop John J. Myers. In the introduction to it they speak fondly of “Space Hawk”, it was “Space Hawk” that started them on sci-fi and inspired them to write.
I haven’t read “Space Hawk”, so I can’t recommend it personally, but I think it’s worth looking into. I’ve searched for it on Amazon but the only copies available are old, used, and expensive. As far as I can tell, it hasn’t been in print for at least fifty years.
If you were to publish it, I’m sure you could easily get Gary K. Wolf or John J. Myers (or both) to write an introduction.

“The Goddess of Atvatabar” by William R. Bradshaw
“Goddess of Atvatabar” is an early hollow-earth adventure, preceding ERB’s Pellucidar series by several years at least.
Sadly, another book I haven’t read. But I’ve heard it’s good and I’d like to read it (though I’d rather read it in a new Planet Stories edition than in an old falling-apart antique). I believe it’s also out of print.

“The Wizard of Venus” by Edgar Rice Burroughs
It’s a novelette, so you’d have to include other material---how about “Elmer”, the ERB story that was edited into being “The Resurrection of Jimber-Jaw”. (“Elmer” has not seen print since 2001, in a limited edition anthology)---to fill out the book. You could almost recreate the old “Tales of Three Planets” collection.
“Wizard of Venus” is the only story from any of ERB’s more famous series’ that is not being published by Leonaur.

I’d love it if you published any of the above, particularly “Space Hawk”.
Hope to hear from you soon,
---Theris

Vic Wertz (Technical Director), Fri, Dec 5, 2008, 01:30 PM

Theris Nordo Ichka wrote:

But first, I’ve got a few book ideas for you:

You might want to drop those in the Planet Stories Requests thread.

Theris Nordo Ichka, Fri, Dec 5, 2008, 06:41 PM

Vic Wertz wrote:

Theris Nordo Ichka wrote:

But first, I’ve got a few book ideas for you:

You might want to drop those in the Planet Stories Requests thread.

Thanks.

Kata. the ..... (Paizo Charter Superscriber), Fri, Dec 12, 2008, 08:16 PM

This was an astounding book, but I have one complaint. I mostly read on the bus in Tempe on the way to work and the way back (about an hour a day). I started this book on Tuesday and I will need to bring something else to read for the return trip Monday which could be a problem because Death in Delhi is not even listed as pending yet.

Other than that, this book is great. The Reavers of Skaith is anxiously awaited here, although I get the impression that might be the last of Skaith we see.