Edmond Hamilton, husband to Leigh Brackett, author of Captain Future and the Star Kings, is a current obsession of mine. I'm currently reading an unbelievably fun space opera called "Outside the Universe" by him, and I'm vacuuming up old Hamilton novels faster than I'm vacuuming my apartment.

Are you familiar with Edmond Hamilton? Any reccomendations?

--Erik Mona

Edmond Hamilton, husband to Leigh Brackett, author of Captain Future and the Star Kings, is a current obsession of mine. I'm currently reading an unbelievably fun space opera called "Outside the Universe" by him, and I'm vacuuming up old Hamilton novels faster than I'm vacuuming my apartment.

Are you familiar with Edmond Hamilton? Any recommendations?

--Erik Mona

Well, I rather enjoyed the Star Wolf trilogy some years ago - pure space opera from start to finish, so I would think you'd appreciate it.

I haven't read any of Edmund Hamilton's books yet but I have some fond childhood memories of a German dubbed anime TV series of Captain Future. I'd love to read a Captain Future compilation.

I have made repeated inquiries to the Captain Future tales, but they appear to be tied up, for the most part.

--Erik

Edmond Hamilton, husband to Leigh Brackett, author of Captain Future and the Star Kings, is a current obsession of mine. I'm currently reading an unbelievably fun space opera called "Outside the Universe" by him, and I'm vacuuming up old Hamilton novels faster than I'm vacuuming my apartment.

Are you familiar with Edmond Hamilton? Any reccomendations?

--Erik Mona

He did a lost story book titled Valley of Creation (I think) that was pretty good, not least becase the protagonist spent about half the story with his mind trapped inside a wolf's body.

Edmond Hamilton, author of the Star Kings

No relation to Jack Vance's The Star King, I assume? I ask for obvious reasons...

No, Vance, John Jakes and Hamilton all have different Star Kings.

The Captain Future thing is what the Baen people said too, so someone has Captain Future rights and is not using them, or is there some expensive 200 people only will ever have it collectable out there, or something?

Edmond Hamilton was one of the first things besides Burroughs and Heinlein i read as a youth, and the Captain Future books were the first books i purchased for myself when i was young....they were in a resurgent paperback publication and i grabbed every one i could get my hands on. loved them, haven't thought of them in ages....*smiles nostalgically*

No, Vance, John Jakes and Hamilton all have different Star Kings.

The Captain Future thing is what the Baen people said too, so someone has Captain Future rights and is not using them, or is there some expensive 200 people only will ever have it collectable out there, or something?

I've seen some of the Captain Future stories being published through the guys who do the pulp reprint mag High Adventure. They've re-issued some of the original Planet Stories magazines too, complete with the original art.

Erik Mona wrote:

E<snip>

Are you familiar with Edmond Hamilton? Any recommendations?

--Erik Mona

Well, I rather enjoyed the Star Wolf trilogy some years ago - pure space opera from start to finish, so I would think you'd appreciate it.

Star Wolf!

A space opera featuring pirates and mercenaries centered around a protagonist developing morality while benefitting from enhanced strength and reflexes resulting from being raised an orphan in a heavy gravity environment.

(I tell ya... As a source of superhuman power, before there was mutation there was radiation. And before there was radiation, there was gravity! Superman, John Carter, and Morgan Chane--the Star Wolf!)

As a teenager, I found these gems among the miscellany at a rural antique store. The 3 stories were a lot of fun. When my collection was destroyed by water damage during college, I've kept an eye out for a new printing with no luck.

I've been curious to see what Planet Stories picks up from Hamilton.

So far, nothing.

My first four or five ideas were thwarted by pending projects from other publishers, tied up rights, etc. So I kind of gave up on him for now and have moved to other authors.

I'll get back to him later (I have more pulps featuring his work than for any other author), but right now I'm reading other people.

Erik,

Two books you should have, if you don't alreayd :-

Gardner Dozois' The Good Old Stuff and The Good New Stuff.

I did see you mention Hugh Cook I think - speaking of original type projects.

A couple of suggestions for people that may not be snagged by other publishers you could have a look at, and see what you think.

The latter two gentleman have stories in the second book.

R. Garcia y Robertson - his SF stories - sentient killer tiger-men, green people, space pirates, stargates and other wild space adventure

RGyR at ISFDB

Here's the SF ones I have read :-

SF-S-4.0 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : Bird Herding
SF-S-4.0 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : Fair Verona
SW-S-4.0 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : Far Barbary
SF-S-4.5 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : Gone To Glory
SF-S-3.5 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : The Good Ship Lollypop
SF-S-3.5 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : Kansas She Says Is the Name of the Star
SF-S-4.5 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : Long Voyage Home
SF-S-3.5 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : The Moon Of Popping Trees
SF-S-4.0 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : Oxygen Rising
SF-S-4.0 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : A Princess Of Helium
SF-S-3.5 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : Ring Rats
SF-S-3.5 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : Stuck Inside Of Mobile
SF-S-4.0 Y Robertson, R. Garcia : Teen Angel

He's done quite a bit of fantasy, too, but not quite the flavour, I think.

Also, G. David Nordley. He has written some really good hard SF adventures in the Solar System - see Into the Miranda Rift, among others.

For something that fits more with Planet Stories:-

See below description.

SF-S-4.5 Nordley, G. David : Poles Apart

I couldn't find a breakdown a while ago, and asked the author, and this is what he said, or part of

Full reply I put here :- G. David Nordley reply

I went to the source, and here is what he sent me :-

"Almost all of my stories take place in a single, loosely consistent future history. Several stories have featured the same characters and/or settings:

Trimus Takes place on Trimus, the planet of a brown dwarf, featuring the whale-liike Do Utian detective Drinil-ib, assistants Mary (human), and the flying beings from Kleth, Do Tor and Go Tan.
Poles Apart
Network
Final Review

The story I read these alien cops were fighting barbarians in a castle, pretty much, not to mention land and water chases.

Gardner Dozois actually said on the Asimov's forum he was surprised these hadn't been made into a fixup novel. So a possibility.

To go old again, though, have you read Jack Williamson's Legion Of Space? No idea if yet another high-priced collectible or other publisher has rights to this, though. :) Wouldn't be surprising, I guess.

Haffner has all of Williamson in print in hardcover and will soon be pulling the same trick with Hamilton. There's a world of difference between a $45 hardcover and a Planet Stories book, but the whole "let's republish the pulps" field is crowded enough without all of us stepping on each other's feet.

Haffner has all of Williamson in print in hardcover and will soon be pulling the same trick with Hamilton. There's a world of difference between a $45 hardcover and a Planet Stories book, but the whole "let's republish the pulps" field is crowded enough without all of us stepping on each other's feet.

Yep, doesn't surprise me someone doing him.

Chance one of those type of books turns up in a shop outside the USA is basically zero, though, as far as I can tell. When I look it up at Libraries Australia, not one of their books are held anywhere in the country, it seems. So only really of interest to local collector geeks. Nice for them, not much use for readers.

I've actually seen Williamson Legion books used, though, so there was likely quite a lot of 'em and a UK edition, or I wouldn't have. Probably another reason to avoid them, too, looking it up.

Compared to say, the Morigu books, which get a sum total of 20 titles, period. There's a $1 Desecration at thriftbooks, too according to ABE for people wanting to check it out.

Edmond Hamilton, husband to Leigh Brackett, author of Captain Future and the Star Kings, is a current obsession of mine. I'm currently reading an unbelievably fun space opera called "Outside the Universe" by him, and I'm vacuuming up old Hamilton novels faster than I'm vacuuming my apartment.

Are you familiar with Edmond Hamilton? Any reccomendations?

--Erik Mona

number one on my wanted list is 'stark and the star kings' with LB!...'star kings' and 'return to the stars' were definitely my favouite hamilton books...i love his early weird tales and wonder stories stuff...also 'alien earth' etc.,i've tried starting the 'star wolf' trilogy but couldn't get into it...also i was unimpressed with 'doomstar' from '66

number one on my wanted list is 'stark and the star kings' with LB!...'star kings' and 'return to the stars' were definitely my favouite hamilton books...i love his early weird tales and wonder stories stuff...also 'alien earth' etc.,i've tried starting the 'star wolf' trilogy but couldn't get into it...also i was unimpressed with 'doomstar' from '66

Baen has Stark and the Star Kings.

I'm the reverse here, I like the Star Wolf stories more than the Star Kings.

johnny jessup wrote:

number one on my wanted list is 'stark and the star kings' with LB!...'star kings' and 'return to the stars' were definitely my favouite hamilton books...i love his early weird tales and wonder stories stuff...also 'alien earth' etc.,i've tried starting the 'star wolf' trilogy but couldn't get into it...also i was unimpressed with 'doomstar' from '66

Baen has Stark and the Star Kings.

I'm the reverse here, I like the Star Wolf stories more than the Star Kings.

excellent,i'll definitely get that!...i WILL read star wolf one day...just got to find the right mood

I missed Brackett/Hamilton's Stark and the Star Kings until today. Is it worth the 45$US? Ouch. And it's huge! I'd like to hear more about this from folks who've read it (sans significant spoilers).

I missed Brackett/Hamilton's Stark and the Star Kings until today. Is it worth the 45$US? Ouch. And it's huge! I'd like to hear more about this from folks who've read it (sans significant spoilers).

Is it good? Yes. This a more mature Hamilton, pretty darn good space opera. And Brackett of course is always excellent, even if I have already read an expanded version of two of the three novellas here. They are pretty different actually.

Is it the best use of $45? Depends on how much spare cash you have.

Hi,

I can recommend the Captain Future series as I've read 'em all (though in German). They differ from the Japanese comics:

- nearly all episodes/books play in the Sol system;
- technical level is more Flash-Gordon-like (no PCs/CPUs, heavy use of atomic energy in weaponery and propulsion);
- all Sol system planets are inhabited;
- the slap-stick between Otho and Greg is tuned down to a more reasonable level;
- in general: the characters are better described (at least IMHO);
- last, but least: the series is more "American" than "Japanese".

Yours,
AdL

EDIT: ... and the tech-science-talk is less cryptic (camarilla-/insider-like) between the characters and the "educational off-voice" is not there either.

But, oh well! I guess I'm taking owls to Athens ...

The Star Kings stuff didn't seem too memorable to me.

I do reread City at World's End (think that is the name) ever few years for some reason.

Star of Life is another book of his I like. Not as much as City though.

I,m really new to Edmond Hamilton i just finished my first story of his from a 1946 issue of weird tales i just bought from a comic shop hes a awesome writer

the story is day of judgement a planet of the apes type story of the last man and last woman on earth vs the 7 animal clans that now run the planet the cat the dog the cow the lizard the bird and the rat

iv had his collection crashing suns in my book collection for a few months now just havnt gotten around to reading it yet

I wasn't too impressed with Crashing Suns. It's very proto-space opera, but it's also very cardboard. Other than their names, all of the characters are essentially interchangeable, which I don't consider a positive quality.

However, I have enjoyed almost all of the rest of the Hamilton material I've read, including Captain Future. His extremely early stuff is very akin to Lovecraft, only science fiction rather than horror.

I share Lovecraft's opinion that Hamilton's style coarsened as his output increased, but I almost always have fun with his stories, no matter what era they're from.