The Demolished Man

The Demolished Man. Alfred Bester. 1951. Random House. 245 pages.

Explosion! Concussion! The vault doors burst open. And deep inside, the money is racked ready for pillage, rapine, loot. Who's that? Who's inside the vault? Oh God! The Man With No Face! Looking. Looming. Silent. Horrible. Run....Run...

The Demolished Man is the winner of the first Hugo Award. I am not sure it's an absolute must-read. But. If you're a fan of science fiction, I think you should definitely consider reading this one! Depending on your expectations, of course, you might just find yourself surprised at how clever and literary well written it is.

The mystery elements of The Demolished Man made it a great read for me. The novel stars two characters. One, Ben Reich, who is determined to murder his business rival, Craye D'Courtney. With (future) society being what it is, murder is unheard of because telepaths (espers) always, always are able to read the minds of the would-be murderers and stop them before the crime is committed. But Reich plans to bribe a few high(er) level telepaths to help him cover his tracks, AND he plans on using a catchy song to distract other mind-readers in the area, to keep them from peeping his intentions.

Eight, sir; seven, sir;
Six, sir; five, sir;
Four, sir; three, sir;
two, sir; one!
'Tenser' said the Tensor.
'Tenser,' said the Tensor.
'Tension, apprehension,
And dissension have begun.' 

The second main character is Lincoln Powell, the detective on the case. (The murder is successful.) Both characters narrate this one. So readers get the view points of both the detective and the criminal. I wasn't sure how I felt about this--at first. But I think it works well, for the most part!

Have you read this one? What did you think? What did you think of the ending? Of what happens to criminals... And what did you think of the "romance"?!

This one surprised me. It did. I really liked it so much more than I thought I would. In fact, I think I may even love it. I couldn't help thinking of this Alfred Bester when I read it.

Read The Demolished Man

• If you're a fan of classic science fiction
• If you want to read the FIRST Hugo Winner
• If you're interested in reading science fiction with a focus on telepaths
• If you're a fan of mysteries and detective fiction

© 2012 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

The Puppet Masters

The Puppet Masters. Robert A. Heinlein. 1951. Del Rey. 340 pages.

Were they truly intelligent? By themselves, that is? I don't know and I don't know how we can ever find out. I'm not a lab man; I'm an operator. 

I honestly don't know which Heinlein is my favorite, but it would definitely be either The Puppet Masters or The Door Into Summer. At least of the ones I've read so far. The Door Into Summer is about cold sleep and time travel. The Puppet Masters is about an alien invasion--where the aliens are parasites that take on human hosts. Both books are good--really, really good. Though if you hate science fiction, I doubt either would change your mind. (Connie Willis might change your mind though!)

So. The Puppet Masters is a novel that I think you should definitely try. I am SO SO glad I bought myself a copy.

The narrator of The Puppet Masters is an agent named "Sam." (His real name is revealed, but most people do call him Sam, so that's what I'll call him too.) When the novel opens, he's getting a new assignment. He'll be working with two other agents--his Old Man, and his "sister" "Mary" (that's not her real name either) to investigate the landing of a flying saucer in a small town in Iowa. What they discover changes everything...but it may take some convincing to be believed.

Read The Puppet Masters

• If you're a fan of classic or vintage science fiction
• If you're a fan of alien-invasion novels
• If you're a fan of Robert Heinlein
• If you like reading about how different authors have envisioned the future. (The novel is set in 2007, I believe).

© 2012 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews