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Machines That Kill
Saberhagen, Fred and Martin Greenberg, Machines that Kill
326 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published December 1, 1984
About the author
Fred Saberhagen
336 books508 followersFred Saberhagen was an American science fiction and fantasy author most famous for his ''Beserker'' and Dracula stories.
Saberhagen also wrote a series of a series of post-apocalyptic mytho-magical novels beginning with his popular ''Empire of the East'' and continuing through a long series of ''Swords'' and ''Lost Swords'' novels. Saberhagen died of cancer, in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Saberhagen was born in and grew up in the area of Chicago, Illinois. Saberhagen served in the [[U.S. Air Force]] during the Korean War while he was in his early twenties. Back in civilian life, Saberhagen worked as an It was while he was working for Motorola (after his military service) that Saberhagen started writing fiction seriously at the age of about 30. "Fortress Ship", his first "Berserker" short shory, was published in 1963. Then, in 1964, Saberhagen saw the publication of his first novel, ''The Golden People''.
From 1967 to 1973, he worked as an editor for the Chemistry articles in the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' as well as writing its article on science fiction. He then quit and took up writing full-time. In 1975, he moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico.
He married fellow writer Joan Spicci in 1968. They had two sons and a daughter.
Saberhagen also wrote a series of a series of post-apocalyptic mytho-magical novels beginning with his popular ''Empire of the East'' and continuing through a long series of ''Swords'' and ''Lost Swords'' novels. Saberhagen died of cancer, in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Saberhagen was born in and grew up in the area of Chicago, Illinois. Saberhagen served in the [[U.S. Air Force]] during the Korean War while he was in his early twenties. Back in civilian life, Saberhagen worked as an It was while he was working for Motorola (after his military service) that Saberhagen started writing fiction seriously at the age of about 30. "Fortress Ship", his first "Berserker" short shory, was published in 1963. Then, in 1964, Saberhagen saw the publication of his first novel, ''The Golden People''.
From 1967 to 1973, he worked as an editor for the Chemistry articles in the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' as well as writing its article on science fiction. He then quit and took up writing full-time. In 1975, he moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico.
He married fellow writer Joan Spicci in 1968. They had two sons and a daughter.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 11, 2015
My paperback, rescued from somewhere, is not shown among the editions. Ace Science Fiction published in 1984. The lineup of writers is star-studded...
"Killdozer" by Theodore Sturgeon - A classic (long)story by a sci-fi all-timer. I read this many years ago AND remember seeing the TV movie version of it. The on-screen battle between the dozer and the shovel was very entertaining! The plot had been changed and simplified(of course) and updated from its WWII setting. The author either took the time to learn a lot about construction equipment of the mid-forties or had personal experience. It's pretty technical! The story is a definite ancestor to the movie/story "The Car" and "Christine." among others. I just looked at the Wiki page for "The Car" and "Killdozer!" and "Christine" are mentioned. Also very entertaining("The Car") as I recall!
"Alpha Ralpha Boulevard" by Cordwainer Smith - I don't recall this author's name and certainly you didn't see that many female authors in sci-fi back in the day(oops, I goofed - Ms. Emshwiller is the author of the NEXT story - I have heard of this author). But... this was a great story although all the height stuff made me queasy. Yesterday was a great example of why I love reading. First some Nabokov and his funny-sad and superb, crystalline prose and then some wonderful sci-fi imagination stuff. Watch out for that Abba-dingo thingee! Gotta love books!
- I just looked up Ms. Emshwiller on wiki - very interesting! Still going strong at 93...
"Hunting Machine: by (see above)Carol Emshwiller - Short and nasty tale about future sports hunting. It's somewhat prophetic as the field up-techs over time but fortunately the numbers of people who enjoy killing wild animals for fun is steadily dropping(I think... I hope...). But... as food shortages crop up here and there(central Africa) wild animal populations become nothing more than bush meat and extinction becomes a real threat. Too... many... people...
"Auto-Da-Fe" by Roger Zelazny - An amusing fantasy tale. Pretty lightweight but bolstered by the author's renowned over-the-top style.
"Second Variety" by Philip K. Dick - More Paranoia-porn from the master. Vaguely similar to "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep."
"Under the Hammer" by David Drake - Another author I don't recall. People(and things) REALLY get killed in this intense tale that brings to mind Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan.
- So... I'm about halfway through with this collection and report that indeed, people and things to get killed in a variety of unpleasant ways in every story. Plenty of "killing" imagination on display!
- "Lost Memory" by Peter Phillips - Gruesome but amusing. The perils of a first contact. Rings a vague memory bell...
- "Making the Connections" by Barry N. Malzberg - A vague, entertaining tale narrated by a dying robot(he's pretty vague[dying] so the story is vague). Lots of killing vaguely described.
- "Steel" by Richard Matheson - A old tale with a slight variation. The more things change... In this story NOBODY gets killed. Almost, but not quite!
- "The Iron Chancellor" by Robert Silverberg - A funny story about the perils of technology a la the HAL 9000 in "2001: a Space Odyssey." Make your own damned food! Nobody dead at the end of the story.
- "The Wabbler" by Murray Leinster is the oldest story in the collection. It's about a very advanced and deadly weapon with a bit of a brain. Enough to be very nasty. Appropriate for WWII I suppose. I think I read this long ago. Plenty of death implied here.
- "The Cruel Equations" by Robert Sheckley - Who's dumber, man or machine? Cruel but funny... This story is sort typical of that sci-fi genre of story that's both dramatic and funny. Again, nobody dead in this one - almost!
- "Combat Unit" by Keith Laumer - Very well written, though at times confusing tale of robot courage and persistence and human over-programming for valor and never-say-die. And in the end... a nice vacation for our deadly hero! Again with the humor and drama! Plenty bodies here...
- "Fondly Fahrenheit" by Alfred Bester - A story I know I read before, maybe more than once as it has been anthologized many times. A classic... All reet! Dead people? - Yup - including children.
- "Goodlife" by Fred Sabergagen - I wonder if he's related to Brett? Apparently the Berserkers are a series of stories by Fred S. This is another good one.
It's tough to give a genre book a 4* rating and I won't do it here but the stories are plenty good and about half are quite excellent. 3.5* rounds down to 3*
"Killdozer" by Theodore Sturgeon - A classic (long)story by a sci-fi all-timer. I read this many years ago AND remember seeing the TV movie version of it. The on-screen battle between the dozer and the shovel was very entertaining! The plot had been changed and simplified(of course) and updated from its WWII setting. The author either took the time to learn a lot about construction equipment of the mid-forties or had personal experience. It's pretty technical! The story is a definite ancestor to the movie/story "The Car" and "Christine." among others. I just looked at the Wiki page for "The Car" and "Killdozer!" and "Christine" are mentioned. Also very entertaining("The Car") as I recall!
"Alpha Ralpha Boulevard" by Cordwainer Smith - I don't recall this author's name and certainly you didn't see that many female authors in sci-fi back in the day(oops, I goofed - Ms. Emshwiller is the author of the NEXT story - I have heard of this author). But... this was a great story although all the height stuff made me queasy. Yesterday was a great example of why I love reading. First some Nabokov and his funny-sad and superb, crystalline prose and then some wonderful sci-fi imagination stuff. Watch out for that Abba-dingo thingee! Gotta love books!
- I just looked up Ms. Emshwiller on wiki - very interesting! Still going strong at 93...
"Hunting Machine: by (see above)Carol Emshwiller - Short and nasty tale about future sports hunting. It's somewhat prophetic as the field up-techs over time but fortunately the numbers of people who enjoy killing wild animals for fun is steadily dropping(I think... I hope...). But... as food shortages crop up here and there(central Africa) wild animal populations become nothing more than bush meat and extinction becomes a real threat. Too... many... people...
"Auto-Da-Fe" by Roger Zelazny - An amusing fantasy tale. Pretty lightweight but bolstered by the author's renowned over-the-top style.
"Second Variety" by Philip K. Dick - More Paranoia-porn from the master. Vaguely similar to "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep."
"Under the Hammer" by David Drake - Another author I don't recall. People(and things) REALLY get killed in this intense tale that brings to mind Iraq, Kuwait and Afghanistan.
- So... I'm about halfway through with this collection and report that indeed, people and things to get killed in a variety of unpleasant ways in every story. Plenty of "killing" imagination on display!
- "Lost Memory" by Peter Phillips - Gruesome but amusing. The perils of a first contact. Rings a vague memory bell...
- "Making the Connections" by Barry N. Malzberg - A vague, entertaining tale narrated by a dying robot(he's pretty vague[dying] so the story is vague). Lots of killing vaguely described.
- "Steel" by Richard Matheson - A old tale with a slight variation. The more things change... In this story NOBODY gets killed. Almost, but not quite!
- "The Iron Chancellor" by Robert Silverberg - A funny story about the perils of technology a la the HAL 9000 in "2001: a Space Odyssey." Make your own damned food! Nobody dead at the end of the story.
- "The Wabbler" by Murray Leinster is the oldest story in the collection. It's about a very advanced and deadly weapon with a bit of a brain. Enough to be very nasty. Appropriate for WWII I suppose. I think I read this long ago. Plenty of death implied here.
- "The Cruel Equations" by Robert Sheckley - Who's dumber, man or machine? Cruel but funny... This story is sort typical of that sci-fi genre of story that's both dramatic and funny. Again, nobody dead in this one - almost!
- "Combat Unit" by Keith Laumer - Very well written, though at times confusing tale of robot courage and persistence and human over-programming for valor and never-say-die. And in the end... a nice vacation for our deadly hero! Again with the humor and drama! Plenty bodies here...
- "Fondly Fahrenheit" by Alfred Bester - A story I know I read before, maybe more than once as it has been anthologized many times. A classic... All reet! Dead people? - Yup - including children.
- "Goodlife" by Fred Sabergagen - I wonder if he's related to Brett? Apparently the Berserkers are a series of stories by Fred S. This is another good one.
It's tough to give a genre book a 4* rating and I won't do it here but the stories are plenty good and about half are quite excellent. 3.5* rounds down to 3*
June 6, 2026
I picked this up at a bookstore sale that was going out of business for a dollar and for a dollar, it was worth it. But, like so many anthologies of this type, it's a mixed bag and the majority of the stories were okay at best. However, there were a few standouts. I'll run through a few as best I can remember.
I read these out of order so it's interesting that I ended with the first and longest story, "Killdozer" by Theodore Sturgeon. It opens a bit slow, but then gets really interesting. Unfortunately, it then goes so deep into the machinery and how it worked, that I felt I needed a construction degree to understand what was happening. Fortunately, it's not too bad and I got the gist, but it did bog the story down a bit. The ending is a little bit of a cop out, but I must confess, the premise is pretty great -- a piece of construction equipment is possessed with a hatred of what disturbed it. Yeah, we've seen it done a lot since, but this was written in 1944! It's also interesting in that the job's foreman knows what's going on, but can't tell his crew because he knows they won't believe him. And by the time they do, it's too late.
"Alpha Ralpha Boulevard" by Cordwainer Smith is an interestingly bizarre tale. Very imaginative.
"Auto-Da-Fe" by Roger Zelazny is fun. I've been a fan of the author since I was a kid and I think I first read this story in the anthology Devil Car. But I reread it for fun and that's just what it is!
I love Philip K. Dick and was looking forward to "Second Variety." It certainly carried the PKD trademarks of paranoia and uncertain reality, but it wasn't one of his better works. Still, an above average story in this collection.
As a child of the 80s, I grew up seeing David Drake's "Hammer's Slammers" on every bookstore SF shelf. So I was curious to read "Under the Hammer" but found it rather dull. It felt like an early chapter from the book and out of context, I didn't enjoy it. It felt like, and I shouldn't be surprised, typical 80s action (yes, I know it was written in the 70s, but close enough).
"Lost Memory" by Peter Phillips is kind of a Twilight Zone-light story of sentient computers finding a rocket ship with a human inside and not understanding that the ship itself isn't sentient.
"Making the Connections" by Barry N. Malzberg is another kind of interesting story about a robot designed to kill humans, but uncertain of its instructions and programming. A few interesting notions.
"Steel" by Richard Matheson was made into a Twilight Zone episode, but not a favorite and despite my being a fan of Matheson, I found this story to be just okay.
"The Iron Chancellor" by Robert Silverberg was really fun! A family buys a robot and asks it to put them on a diet. Unhappy with the restraints, they try to tinker with it short circuiting it to even more disastrous results.
I've read other stories by Murray Leinster that I enjoyed. "The Wabbler" isn't one of them.
"The Cruel Equations" by Robert Sheckley feels like a 50s story so I was surprised to see it was published in 1971. It's kind of a robot logic puzzle that Asimov was so fond of, but just okay.
"Combat Unit" by Keith Laumer - I found this one forgettable.
I read "Fondly Fahrenheit" by Alfred Bester for a SF class decades ago, but so long I'd forgotten it. I'm glad I reread it. A homicidal robot and its "master" who has no other way to make a living is forced into poverty as he's forced to continuously go on the run whenever his robot goes haywire. and maybe he's going a little mad as well.
I also saw Fred Sabergagen's name all over the Berserker books in the 80s, but never picked one up so I was curious to read this story. Certainly entertaining.
So the standouts for me were: "Fondly Fahrenheit" by Alfred Bester and "The Iron Chancellor" by Robert Silverberg as the two best. After that, I enjoyed Zelazny and Sturgeon on my second tier. After that, a few okay stories, but I can't recommend this anthology. It's fine if you pick it up cheap and read the better stories, but they can also be found elsewhere.
I read these out of order so it's interesting that I ended with the first and longest story, "Killdozer" by Theodore Sturgeon. It opens a bit slow, but then gets really interesting. Unfortunately, it then goes so deep into the machinery and how it worked, that I felt I needed a construction degree to understand what was happening. Fortunately, it's not too bad and I got the gist, but it did bog the story down a bit. The ending is a little bit of a cop out, but I must confess, the premise is pretty great -- a piece of construction equipment is possessed with a hatred of what disturbed it. Yeah, we've seen it done a lot since, but this was written in 1944! It's also interesting in that the job's foreman knows what's going on, but can't tell his crew because he knows they won't believe him. And by the time they do, it's too late.
"Alpha Ralpha Boulevard" by Cordwainer Smith is an interestingly bizarre tale. Very imaginative.
"Auto-Da-Fe" by Roger Zelazny is fun. I've been a fan of the author since I was a kid and I think I first read this story in the anthology Devil Car. But I reread it for fun and that's just what it is!
I love Philip K. Dick and was looking forward to "Second Variety." It certainly carried the PKD trademarks of paranoia and uncertain reality, but it wasn't one of his better works. Still, an above average story in this collection.
As a child of the 80s, I grew up seeing David Drake's "Hammer's Slammers" on every bookstore SF shelf. So I was curious to read "Under the Hammer" but found it rather dull. It felt like an early chapter from the book and out of context, I didn't enjoy it. It felt like, and I shouldn't be surprised, typical 80s action (yes, I know it was written in the 70s, but close enough).
"Lost Memory" by Peter Phillips is kind of a Twilight Zone-light story of sentient computers finding a rocket ship with a human inside and not understanding that the ship itself isn't sentient.
"Making the Connections" by Barry N. Malzberg is another kind of interesting story about a robot designed to kill humans, but uncertain of its instructions and programming. A few interesting notions.
"Steel" by Richard Matheson was made into a Twilight Zone episode, but not a favorite and despite my being a fan of Matheson, I found this story to be just okay.
"The Iron Chancellor" by Robert Silverberg was really fun! A family buys a robot and asks it to put them on a diet. Unhappy with the restraints, they try to tinker with it short circuiting it to even more disastrous results.
I've read other stories by Murray Leinster that I enjoyed. "The Wabbler" isn't one of them.
"The Cruel Equations" by Robert Sheckley feels like a 50s story so I was surprised to see it was published in 1971. It's kind of a robot logic puzzle that Asimov was so fond of, but just okay.
"Combat Unit" by Keith Laumer - I found this one forgettable.
I read "Fondly Fahrenheit" by Alfred Bester for a SF class decades ago, but so long I'd forgotten it. I'm glad I reread it. A homicidal robot and its "master" who has no other way to make a living is forced into poverty as he's forced to continuously go on the run whenever his robot goes haywire. and maybe he's going a little mad as well.
I also saw Fred Sabergagen's name all over the Berserker books in the 80s, but never picked one up so I was curious to read this story. Certainly entertaining.
So the standouts for me were: "Fondly Fahrenheit" by Alfred Bester and "The Iron Chancellor" by Robert Silverberg as the two best. After that, I enjoyed Zelazny and Sturgeon on my second tier. After that, a few okay stories, but I can't recommend this anthology. It's fine if you pick it up cheap and read the better stories, but they can also be found elsewhere.
August 1, 2009
Another very good military/war SF book. Great stories by Drake, Bester, Laumer and others.
My cover is different than this one.
My cover is different than this one.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews