151:
little success. After an encounter with the estate's whipmaster, he uses drugs obtained from Kramer to drive the whipmaster insane and thereby gains a reputation among the superstitious Vorra as a powerful shaman. One day he is taken to confront a rival shaman, who tells him that the Vorra acquired their hyperdrive-propelled starships and advanced weaponry by stealing them from another alien race. The shock of seeing the mummified remains of one of those aliens, still encased in a spacesuit, breaks a barrier in Shaw's mind and he begins to regain his lost memories, including why and how he lost his memories in the first place.
155:
symptoms, Pwill, Jr. comes to Shaw's room desperately seeking coffee and attacks Shaw. In self-defense Shaw kills the young man and hides the body in a sewer. Heir
Apparent's disappearance precipitates the desired crisis and Shaw comes under suspicion of having provided the coffee that kept the young man addicted. The night before he is to be tortured to death, Shaw is extracted from the Pwill estate by Marijane, Ken, and Gustav and taken to the Acre.
143:
take him to Judge
Olafsson, the voice of Terran law in the Acre. After being interrogated about his time on Qallavarra, Shaw leaves Judge Olafsson's court and completes his mission. He obtains from Hans Kramer, an apothecary, the love potion that Shavarri has ordered him to bring to her. Containing credulin, a drug that enhances suggestibility, the potion will enable Shavarri to manipulate Pwill Himself in her favor.
158:
The next morning, convinced that his son has gone to the Acre in search of coffee, Pwill
Himself leads four companies of his army toward the city, only to be ambushed by six companies of soldiers from the rival House of Shugurra. Soon thereafter the armies of ten other Houses join the battle and the
134:
For two generations humanity has been enslaved by the Vorra, a race of technologically advanced barbarians who had conquered space. On
Qallavarra, the home planet of the Vorra, Gareth Shaw is an indentured servant of the House of Pwill, one of the giant city-states into which the planet is divided.
162:
In the Acre all of the
Terrans on Qallavarra climb to the rooftops and watch as a Vorra starship descends upon the city. The ship has been hijacked by a specially developed robot that had been hidden in a cargo container and now the ship will take all of the Terrans back to Earth. There the ship's
150:
Soon after returning from the Acre and after his confrontation with Pwill
Himself, Shaw begins to notice that he doesn't know things that he should know and that he knows things that, apparently, he shouldn't. He struggles to decode the meaning of that discovery and to regain lost memories, but has
142:
Chased into the Acre by a
Vorrish mob instigated by a squad of soldier-trainees, Shaw meets an almost equally hostile reception from three Terrans—Marijane Lee, her brother Ken, and their friend Gustav—who have rescued him from the mob. Seeing that he's wearing the livery of a Vorrish estate, they
135:
As the only Terran on the estate, he is drawn into a seraglio intrigue by Under-lady
Shavarri, the ninth wife of Pwill Himself, the overlord who rules the estate like a medieval duke. Shavarri's demand obliges Shaw to visit the "Acre of Earth", a ghetto-like enclave in the middle of a nearby city.
154:
On the same day that he regains his memories he is told by
Marijane to cut off Pwill, Jr's coffee supply. Shaw agrees, knowing that Heir Apparent's display of withdrawal symptoms will throw the House of Pwill into crisis and put his life into jeopardy. But before anyone can notice his withdrawal
146:
Returning to the Pwill estate, he is called to the Grand
Terrace of the manor house, where he finds Pwill Himself and his primary wife, Over-lady Llaq, having an angry confrontation with their wastrel son, Pwill Heir Apparent. Pwill, Sr. tells Shaw that his son has become addicted to a drug that
138:
In the Acre humans lived in relative freedom because they provided services that the Vorra could not provide for themselves. Chief among those services was the maintenance and repair of machines brought from Earth for the Vorra to use. But the Terrans also provided certain chemical services and
166:
Safe aboard the ship, Shaw sees the last piece of the puzzle fall into place in his mind. He realizes that the old shaman had lied to him about how the Vorra got their starships and advanced weaponry and he understands then that for the next century or so the Vorra will be the lesser of Earth's
29:
125:
in 1962. Written in the first person, the story gives an account of an Earthman's struggle to regain lost memories and to uncover the horrifying secret of the feudal society whose people used remarkably advanced technology to conquer Earth and its solar system.
147:
affects the Vorra much as heroin affects Terrans—coffee—and that he expects Shaw to ensure that no one in the Acre will supply his son with more coffee. Later Pwill, Jr. prevails upon Shaw to keep him supplied with coffee beans through his friend Forrel.
583:
263:
236:
578:
214:
588:
411:
459:
573:
272:
499:
256:
593:
550:
315:
483:
395:
387:
118:
42:
180:
534:
347:
323:
307:
276:
249:
518:
467:
451:
8:
443:
371:
299:
206:
542:
475:
435:
427:
403:
291:
210:
419:
355:
339:
526:
491:
379:
163:
technology can be copied for use against the Vorra in the general Terran revolt.
114:
60:
159:
Vorra are fully engaged in an all-out civil war, just as the Terrans had hoped.
230:
198:
567:
363:
175:
241:
122:
71:
28:
565:
203:The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy
257:
139:Shaw had been sent to obtain one of those.
264:
250:
121:, first published in the United States by
27:
271:
566:
245:
237:Internet Speculative Fiction Database
197:
13:
14:
605:
224:
129:
584:British science fiction novels
1:
460:Players at the Game of People
191:
348:The Astronauts Must Not Land
170:
7:
579:1962 science fiction novels
10:
610:
407:Doubleday (1968), (1969)
33:Cover of the first edition
16:1962 novel by John Brunner
510:
283:
188:three stars out of five.
102:Ace catalog number: D-547
101:
93:
85:
77:
66:
56:
48:
38:
26:
551:The Best of John Brunner
316:The Atlantic Abomination
117:novel by British writer
484:Children of the Thunder
396:The Productions of Time
388:The Squares of the City
589:Novels by John Brunner
181:Galaxy Science Fiction
535:The Traveler in Black
324:Secret Agent of Terra
235:title listing at the
22:The Super Barbarians
519:Times Without Number
468:The Crucible of Time
452:The Infinitive of Go
332:The Super Barbarians
232:The Super Barbarians
186:The Super Barbarians
110:The Super Barbarians
574:1962 British novels
444:The Shockwave Rider
23:
372:The Martian Sphinx
340:Listen! The Stars!
300:The World Swappers
21:
561:
560:
543:Entry to Elsewhen
476:The Tides of Time
436:Web of Everywhere
428:The Sheep Look Up
404:Stand on Zanzibar
292:Echo in the Skull
106:
105:
89:Print (Paperback)
78:Publication place
601:
420:The Jagged Orbit
356:To Conquer Chaos
308:Slavers of Space
266:
259:
252:
243:
242:
220:
31:
24:
20:
609:
608:
604:
603:
602:
600:
599:
598:
594:Ace Books books
564:
563:
562:
557:
527:Not Before Time
506:
492:A Maze of Stars
380:The Long Result
284:SF&F novels
279:
270:
227:
217:
199:Tuck, Donald H.
194:
173:
132:
115:science fiction
86:Media type
61:Science fiction
34:
17:
12:
11:
5:
607:
597:
596:
591:
586:
581:
576:
559:
558:
556:
555:
547:
539:
531:
523:
514:
512:
508:
507:
505:
504:
496:
488:
480:
472:
464:
456:
448:
440:
432:
424:
416:
412:Double, Double
408:
400:
392:
384:
376:
368:
360:
352:
344:
336:
328:
320:
312:
304:
296:
287:
285:
281:
280:
269:
268:
261:
254:
246:
240:
239:
226:
225:External links
223:
222:
221:
215:
209:. p. 71.
193:
190:
172:
169:
131:
128:
104:
103:
99:
98:
95:
91:
90:
87:
83:
82:
79:
75:
74:
68:
64:
63:
58:
54:
53:
50:
46:
45:
40:
36:
35:
32:
15:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
606:
595:
592:
590:
587:
585:
582:
580:
577:
575:
572:
571:
569:
553:
552:
548:
545:
544:
540:
537:
536:
532:
529:
528:
524:
521:
520:
516:
515:
513:
509:
502:
501:
497:
494:
493:
489:
486:
485:
481:
478:
477:
473:
470:
469:
465:
462:
461:
457:
454:
453:
449:
446:
445:
441:
438:
437:
433:
430:
429:
425:
422:
421:
417:
414:
413:
409:
406:
405:
401:
398:
397:
393:
390:
389:
385:
382:
381:
377:
374:
373:
369:
366:
365:
364:The Whole Man
361:
358:
357:
353:
350:
349:
345:
342:
341:
337:
334:
333:
329:
326:
325:
321:
318:
317:
313:
310:
309:
305:
302:
301:
297:
294:
293:
289:
288:
286:
282:
278:
274:
267:
262:
260:
255:
253:
248:
247:
244:
238:
234:
233:
229:
228:
218:
216:0-911682-20-1
212:
208:
204:
200:
196:
195:
189:
187:
183:
182:
177:
176:Floyd C. Gale
168:
164:
160:
156:
152:
148:
144:
140:
136:
127:
124:
120:
116:
112:
111:
100:
96:
92:
88:
84:
81:United States
80:
76:
73:
69:
65:
62:
59:
55:
51:
47:
44:
41:
37:
30:
25:
19:
549:
541:
533:
525:
517:
500:Muddle Earth
498:
490:
482:
474:
466:
458:
450:
442:
434:
426:
418:
410:
402:
394:
386:
378:
370:
362:
354:
346:
338:
331:
330:
322:
314:
306:
298:
290:
277:John Brunner
231:
202:
185:
179:
174:
165:
161:
157:
153:
149:
145:
141:
137:
133:
130:Plot summary
119:John Brunner
109:
108:
107:
43:John Brunner
18:
511:Collections
205:. Chicago:
568:Categories
192:References
171:Reception
167:worries.
123:Ace Books
72:Ace Books
67:Publisher
201:(1974).
49:Language
52:English
554:(1988)
546:(1972)
538:(1971)
530:(1968)
522:(1962)
503:(1993)
495:(1991)
487:(1989)
479:(1984)
471:(1983)
463:(1980)
455:(1980)
447:(1975)
439:(1974)
431:(1972)
423:(1969)
415:(1969)
399:(1967)
391:(1965)
383:(1965)
375:(1965)
367:(1964)
359:(1964)
351:(1963)
343:(1963)
335:(1962)
327:(1962)
319:(1960)
311:(1960)
303:(1959)
295:(1959)
213:
207:Advent
184:rated
39:Author
273:Works
113:is a
94:Pages
70:1962
57:Genre
211:ISBN
275:by
178:of
97:160
570::
265:e
258:t
251:v
219:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
