PDF Books in Space Opera Fiction
Voyage to Procyon
by Robert SilverbergIn the deepest level of the mighty Starship I, Peter Conroy lay hidden in a cornfield. Around him waved the tall stalks of ripening corn; high overhead, near the distant ceiling of the level, blazed the actinic lights that irradiated the broad field.And nearby, Conroy could hear the stealthy footsteps of Bayliss Kent and his men, searching desperat..
Not in the Rules
by Mack ReynoldsShe patted my hand. "Don't worry about me, Jak. I'm taking along an extensive micro-film library dealing with the literature and drama of Twentieth Century North America. As you undoubtedly know, it reached its height in the comic books and cartoon movies of the time. Besides," she went on, "Alger Wilde will be there, covering the meet from the soc..
They Reached for the Moon
by William OberfieldThey took a thousand days to build the great, gleaming monster, and another two hundred to groom it for its trip around the moon. All this they did with an air that made a trip to the moon seem quite natural and sure, even though three other rockets had gone before and not one had returned.But they were not sure. They were stubborn, perhaps proud, ..
Barnstormer
by Tom W. HarrisCareful to keep trees and bushes between himself and the cottage, the boy legged it across the fields toward the glass rocket poised in Johnson's pasture, glittering and slim like a dark, slender dancer. To Pete it was all the promise in the world distilled into a pointed black glass bottle. But to the women in the cottage....He glanced back. Appar..
Last Run on Venus
by James McKimmeyThis was Nicholas Caine's last run and he didn't like it. It didn't look right or feel right or taste right. Even the small jetcopter felt sluggish to his touch. He was getting it down too fast and up too slow. But that, he knew, was really caused by his nerves. Usually he was as cold about these jaunts as a piece of newly chipped ice; this was his..
Amour, Amour, Dear Planet!
by Mark ClutterSpacecaptain Jan Obrien was plain drunk and in no condition to handle an aircar. Which fact perhaps can be understood for a man who has not tasted the liquor of Terra in ten years and who comes home to his native planet to find it wrecked by the worst of its wars.Obrien was in no condition, but nevertheless he was handling an aircar, whizzing down ..
Planet in Reverse
by Henry GuthDarrel Bond allowed himself a grin. The fleet admiral had warned him against straying off the freight lanes. Had, in fact, threatened to break him down to a button-pusher if he did it again. That was a laugh! Button-pusher! What was he now, if not a button-pusher?In the old days, space piloting had been something—a thrill and a challenge. But now—b..
Six Frightened Men
by Robert SilverbergThe thing was at least sixty feet tall and all eyes and mouth. The mouth yawned, showing yellow daggers a foot long. As for the eyes—well, they burned with the cold luminosity of an intelligent and inimical being. I didn't know what the thing was. One minute I'd been examining an interesting rock formation, a second later I was hiding behind it, wa..