James Nicoll Reviews

Henry Kuttner and C. L. Moore’s 1953 Mutant is a collection of near-future evolutionary science fiction stories, unconvincingly transformed into a novel by a loose framing sequence.

Trapped in the wilderness by a plane-crash, a desperate survivor does what any person would do in their position. They relive the tumultuous events of the last two centuries.

Two hundred years ago the Blowup brought peace. The cost was humanity’s doom. At least, from a certain point of view.

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C. L. Moore and Henry Kuttner’s 1950 Fury—often but incorrectly credited to Kuttner alone — is the second in their Keeps science fiction series¹.

By the twenty-seventh century, Earth’s atomic death is six centuries in the past. Humanity survived only because Venus was at hand to provide a second life-bearing home. Because the continents teemed with life that 21^st century humans were not equipped to survive, let alone dominate, humans are confined to the subsea Keeps, which no Venusian lifeform can penetrate.

Life in the Keeps is tolerable and stagnant. Ruled by Immortal mutants such as the Harkers, society might have been fated to continue its long decline into decadence, save for an act of spite by a grieving father.

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Two-Handed Engine is a collection of vintage science fiction and fantasy by Henry Kuttner and C. L. Moore. The stories were written in the 1930s, 40s, and 50s. They were collected and published in 2004 by Centipede Press. Some stories were by Kuttner or Moore solo; most were collaborations. 

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Henry Kuttner and C. L. Moore’s 1949 Beyond Earth’s Gates is a standalone SF novel¹.

Eddie Burton is a rising actor with a promising career ahead of him. Would-be actress Lorna Maxwell would like to have a promising career ahead of her as well. Convinced without proof that Eddie can provide her promising career, Lorna is carrying out a campaign to attach herself to Eddie with all the determination of a school of piranhas surrounding a succulent child. No man of action, Eddie’s countermeasures are limited to hiding in his apartment with the lights off whenever Lorna comes to call. 

When Lorna vanishes, Eddie is the logical suspect.

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Henry Kuttner and C. L. Moore’s 1947 Tomorrow and Tomorrow was originally published under their Lewis Padgett byline. It came out in Astounding in two parts. It was later packaged with another short novel and re-published by Gnome Press in 1951. It was re-published again by Consul, in 1961. That latest version is the one I read. Had it been revised in the meantime? I don’t know. 

A third world war almost broke out in the mid-20^th century; it was stopped by the Global Peace Commission, which seized control of a planet seemingly on the verge of self-destruction. In the century since then, the GPC has kept the peace … but at a cost. It enforces strict social conformity and stifles scientific progress.

Joseph Breden is one of the elite few trusted with atomic power. Everyone knows atomic power plants are catastrophes waiting to happen. Only the most stable, most intelligent individuals are permitted to work at Uranium Pile One.

Lately Breden has had reason to doubt his stability, what with the murder dreams and all…

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1943’s Earth’s Last Citadel is a standalone far-future adventure by C. L. Moore and Henry Kuttner. 

Alan Drake’s desperate bid to get genius Sir Colin out of a North African war-zone is stymied when the two are ambushed by Axis agents Karen Martin and Mike Smith. Karen and Mike catch up to Alan and Sir Colin just after the pair stumble across a mysterious object in the desert. The Nazis barely have time to gloat before they and their prey are bewitched into entering what appears to be an alien spacecraft. 

The four do not emerge from their captor’s craft for a very very very long time. 

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