Wildside Double # 25, part of a series patterned after the old Ace Doubles. Read a short novel, then flip the book over for a second.
UNDER THE EMBER STAR is an SF adventure tale featuring a heroine named Ginn. Her father’s death left her alone at fourteen on the planet Kelmer, a dying world warmed by a slowly
cooling brown dwarf star, the Ember sun. She is quite accomplished at taking care of herself.
She takes a job from a mysterious alien that needs guidance into the mysterious nomad lands. He’s very secretive and she soon wonders how smart it was to take the job. He’s looking for something and everyone seems to want a piece of him.
The trail leads them to ancient ruins and a secret.
A very good little tale. Will we see more of Ginn? We can only hope.
THE BATTLE FOR EDEN concerns the human race’s war against the invading Knackers, or the crabs as humans call them, a carnivorous race that are constantly on the hunt. Overwhelming numbers and technology, they’ve never been defeated. Their forces are headed toward the core worlds of the human Federation.
Major Simon Roy’s is among the forces making a stand above the world of Eden, a beautiful forested planet. They must be stopped before they can land their big ships and start loading humans aboard. Their usual plan is to move eighty percent of the population off planet to their processing factories, then head to the next world.
Simon’s fighter is disabled and left as the Knacker moves off to take another ship. The only advantage humans have is the crabs don’t like to kill their prey. You know, keep the food stuffs alive until you get them to a processing plant.
Simon spirals his ship in and glides to a landing. His ship is a mess, but you know the old saying: any landing you walk away from is a good one.
He lands on a rural farm, one owned by the McKinleys. The head, Cyrus, is retired space force and he’s fought the Crabs before. His home is designed to withstand attacks.
Simon is welcomed into the faily and they start planning their defenses when the enemy arrives.
The story is essentially one family’s stand against overwhelming odds until help can arrive. Simon has faith in new weapons being developed to deal with the Knacker hordes.
And he’s got something to protect now. His own wife and child had been swallowed up by a Knacker invasion. On Eden, he gets close to a widow and her daughter, much against his will, as they fight the battles.
Superior tale.
It can be ordered HERE.
