The Steel of Raithskar

The Steel of Raithskar by Randall Garrett and Vicki Ann Heydron
Bantam Books, 1981
Price I paid: 75¢

When the fireball hit the cruise ship, Ricardo Carillo was already on his way out—a terminally ill language professor. He regained consciousness as a well man in the desert…only it wasn’t a desert on Earth, and he was man only because he was still male. More surprises awaited him in the exotic city of Raithskar—he was called Markasett, a master swordsman, son of a powerful leader, and a man on the run, accused of murder and the theft of a precious, sacred jewel. With the aid of Keeshah, a great war-cat with which he shared a telepathic link, he set out to clear his newfound name…

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The Penetrator #49: Satan’s Swarm

The Penetrator #49: Satan’s Swarm by Lionel Derrick
Pinnacle Books, 1982
Price I paid: 60¢

When a group of international terrorists releases Dr. Raymond Barr from a hospital for the criminally insane, the Penetrator springs into action. Dr. Barr, aside from being insane, is a brilliant scientist—a very dangerous combination. With the mad doctor on the loose, no one is safe.

Taken by his rescuers to a secret laboratory in Nicaragua, the doctor’s twisted talents are employed by Colonel Po Hahn Chau, who is breeding new strains of abnormally large, highly-aggressive insects. The colonel’s plan is to develop an insect army, a living weapon which could bring the world to its knees.

The Penetrator has to smash this plot before the colonel’s plague is loosed on the world—and before he becomes the swarm’s first victim.

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Peace Company

Peace Company by Roland Green
Ace Science Fiction, 1985
Price I paid: 25¢

If you seek peace—prepare for war

A rule as true in the 24th century as it is today. When 75 planets—from savage tribes to outlaw tyrannies to star-spanning mega-powers—totter on the brink of the hell that began the day Earth destroyed itself. When only one military outfit has the experience, strength, and firepower to deliver rapid deployment justice to the galaxy—the Planetary Union Peace Force.

This is the frontline.

Peace Company Group 14, New Frontier Seventh Peace Brigade. The 900 shock troops of the battle-cruiser Ark Royal. Knife-honed vets, men and women, commander to crew. Elite commandos ready to wage and win war, anytime, anywhere. Under any conditions. On any world.

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The Penetrator #38: Hawaiian Trackdown

The Penetrator #38: Hawaiian Trackdown by Lionel Derrick
Pinnacle Books, 1980
Price I paid: 60¢

Big men are making big money off little children, and the Penetrator has found an explosive new cause!

From the sleepy suburbs of the San Fernando Valley, to the smut-ridden streets of Hollywood, and over to the island paradise of Hawaii, Mark Hardin draws his deadly leash tighter and tighter around a vicious pornography ring bent on the sexploitation of innocent children.

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The People Beyond the Wall

The People Beyond the Wall by Stephen Tall
DAW Books, 1980
Price I paid: 75¢

The original premise of science fiction—the foundation stone—was the tale of the discovery of a lost land or an unknown civilization. From Plato’s Atlantis and Swift’s Lilliput, Butler’s Erewhon, and the beloved works of Haggard, Burroughs and Merrit, “Lost Race” novels have been the favorites of millions. But time and exploration seem to have abandoned this engaging theme.

Yet here is a new one, written with all the color and feel that marks the work of the masters, which manages to place the lost land within the context of today and get away with it. Stephen Tall’s tale of two Alaskan explorers who burrowed beneath a vast glacier to find themselves beyond the maps of today, where a strong primitive people made life free from crises, wars, and social disasters.

THE PEOPLE BEYOND THE WALL will delight everyone who loves a good adventure—and especially those who yearn for a new Alan Quatermain, a new Tarzan, a new Gulliver.

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TekWar

TekWar by William Shatner
Ace Books, 1989
Price I paid: 90¢

Known to millions as STAR TREK’S Captain Kirk, actor-director William Shatner now turns his talents to a stunning novel of future shock. TekWar is the story of ex-cop Jake Cardigan, who’s framed for dealing an addictive brain stimulant called Tek and sentenced to fifteen years of suspended animation. Now, mysteriously released after four years in the “Freezer,” Cardigan is on the loose…and out for justice.

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Psi Hunt

Psi Hunt by Michael Kurland
Berkley Science Fiction, 1980
Price I paid: 90¢

Astral Emprise sold metaphysics, mysticism, paranormal phenomena, astrology lessons—and anything else that Believers were willing to spend a dollar on.

Not the kind of operation the U.S. Navy was used to dealing with.

Until the People’s Republic of China decided it could blow up half the United States with five telepathic kids who spent their days watching grade-B war movies in an L.A. theater.

And Lieutenant Junior Grade Robert Burrows was assigned to call their bluff…

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Thrice Upon a Time

Thrice Upon a Time, by James P. Hogan
Del Rey Books, 1980
Price I paid: 95¢

When Murdoch was summoned to his grandfather’s isolated Scottish castle, he had no idea of the old man’s latest discovery—nor where it would lead him. Sir Charles, a genius in far-out physics, had found a flaw in the law of conservation of energy; in any process an incredibly tiny increment of energy escaped—back through time! Using this “tau” radiation, he could send messages into the past.

But Murdoch discovered records of messages he knew he had never sent! Were many futures possible? Could a message from Future X alter the past—and thus wipe out Future X? But who would be foolish enough to send a message that could eliminate his own existence?

Then disaster struck. An advanced fusion reactor threatened to destroy all Earth. Grimly, Murdoch sat down to send back the words that would destroy everything he had learned to love.

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Under the City of Angels

Under the City of Angels by Jerry Earl Brown
Bantam Books, 1981
Price I paid: 75¢

Jack Kelso is a scavenger, a half-crazed loner, a burnt-out cause, always one jump ahead of the government, eking out an uneasy living in the sunken ruins of L.A. Then he meets Judith—mysterious, beautiful, driven—who offers him an assignment only “Mad Jack” Kelso would be crazy enough to take on. He takes the job, and gets love in the bargain. Suddenly, their newfound happiness, and perhaps the fate of the entire planet, is threatened by a deadly power struggle on an alien world light centuries away…

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Sniper!: Viet Rampage

Sniper!: Viet Rampage by Mark Acres
TSR, Inc., 1987
Price I paid: $1.50

YOU are John Strong, an elite “on call” agent working with the CIA, sent to find a U.S. spy satellite that crashed in Vietnam. The satellite’s memory banks contain information on Soviet Space technology, and the Russians and their Vietnamese friends will do everything they can to stop you…

To be successful in this adventure, you will have to make snap decisions under pressure, using your abilities of stealth, gun-firing, hand-to-hand combat, and bomb-throwing to reach your objectives. Prepare yourself for adventure and combat with VIET RAMPAGE.

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