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Killer Planet
Remote, mysterious and deadly, Verdia is a world from which no one has ever returned.But Jan Hazard is convinced his brother could still be alive and Petra knows Jan can't make it alone...on the Killer Planet.Together they go in search for survivors - only to find themselves the next victims, trapped by the malign forces of a monstrous alien...
- GenresScience Fiction
105 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1992
3 people are currently reading
25 people want to read
About the author
Bob Shaw
211 books104 followersBob Shaw was born in Northern Ireland. After working in structural engineering, industrial public relations, and journalism he became a full time science fiction writer in 1975.
Shaw was noted for his originality and wit. He was two-time recipient (in 1979 and 1980) of the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer. His short story Light of Other Days was a Hugo Award nominee in 1967, as was his novel The Ragged Astronauts in 1987.
Shaw was noted for his originality and wit. He was two-time recipient (in 1979 and 1980) of the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer. His short story Light of Other Days was a Hugo Award nominee in 1967, as was his novel The Ragged Astronauts in 1987.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 5, 2015
I have been a fan of bob Shaw for some time and this is one of his rarer books to find - Ok now with the SF Gateway so many hard to find or "lost" books are now available, however I managed to find a copy of this in pristine hardback.
The book is very much orientated towards a specific market - though I am not sure if it is strictly young adult - saying that it was written in an age when such a genre was never recognised as its own theme (1989). However it is a very short novel and one I feel was either coming from or going towards a much larger piece of work. The story though self contained certainly feels rushed - or a precursor to something bigger.
Either way it was a cracking science fiction story of golden age tales, full or true grit and determination and quickly glossed over technology and scientific explanations. there are many reasons you could criticise this book but one simple reason why it should be praised - this book holds an innocence of storytelling i think sometimes is missing in this modern world, and sometimes its good to look back and see where it all came from, guilty pleasure or not you have to acknowledge where you came from to appreciate where you are.
The book is very much orientated towards a specific market - though I am not sure if it is strictly young adult - saying that it was written in an age when such a genre was never recognised as its own theme (1989). However it is a very short novel and one I feel was either coming from or going towards a much larger piece of work. The story though self contained certainly feels rushed - or a precursor to something bigger.
Either way it was a cracking science fiction story of golden age tales, full or true grit and determination and quickly glossed over technology and scientific explanations. there are many reasons you could criticise this book but one simple reason why it should be praised - this book holds an innocence of storytelling i think sometimes is missing in this modern world, and sometimes its good to look back and see where it all came from, guilty pleasure or not you have to acknowledge where you came from to appreciate where you are.
April 7, 2015
This is quite a short book, about an hours read. Again this book is set in the future, and it has a male teenage protagonist, although he has a female sidekick that is more than a match for him. Jan steals his father’s specially designed space rocket in order to reach the planet Verdia. He has to outrun the authorities, as Verdia is forbidden to all, and is nicknamed “the Killer Planet” as no one has made it off there alive. All technology fails on the planet, which has strange magnetic properties.
However, Jan is determined to reach the planet as his older brother was part of an expedition there, and all of those expeditionaries have been declared dead. Jan does not want to believe that his brother is dead, and neither does his father, who has specifically designed the space rocket for Verdia, to compensate for the magnetic anomalies. Petra, best friend of Jan decides that he will not succeed without her, and manages to get on the rocket with him.
They reach the planet, only to find out that they are the planet’s next intended victims. Using all their wits, strength and luck, they explore the planet, narrowly missing death several times, until they find the centre of the disturbance in the electrical field. An evil alien causes this disturbance, along with the death and destruction of the expeditionary force, and Jan and Petra have to thwart him to survive.
This is an old-fashioned adventure story, just set in the future with a space rocket and an evil alien. The story is fast paced, and there is plenty of interaction between characters to keep things lively. This helps to keep children interested in the story. Children tend to like the good verses evil, and the kids triumph over all type stories, and two teenage friends being “trapped by the malign forces of a monstrous alien” qualifies this novel as one of those stories. There is plenty of imagination, and detailed descriptions that bring the setting to life;
“Nothing could have prepared them for the actuality of the Verdian jungle. Trees, vines, giant flowers, thorny shrubs, mosses and waist-high grasses fought for every inch of space. So virulent was their growth that in some places the movement was discernable – the tendrils of climbing plants could be seen blindly probing for their grip on trees; carnivorous flowers closed with audible snaps as they engulfed their prey”.
Language is also used creatively in generating atmosphere, and clearly defining the mood of the story. Emotive language is placed within the description, and the effect is very clever indeed. In just a short few lines, the mood of the chapter is set, and readers are in no doubt as to the character of the mysterious alien;
“Several hundred meters away was a squat, windowless black tower – the stronghold of the inhuman fiend which had descended on Verdia centuries earlier. The force of evil and of hatred emanating from it was almost tangible, a silent assault on the mind which made all who encountered it want to cower away”.
I am a huge fan of the way Shaw writes. There are no waffley bits, no story lulls, and nothing is there just for the sake of a plot inconvenience. There are no spare parts in this story. Every line is carefully thought out, and the characters well rounded. There is plenty of dialogue between characters, and the show me don’t tell me adage has been well and truly applied here. I would love to read more stories from this author.
However, Jan is determined to reach the planet as his older brother was part of an expedition there, and all of those expeditionaries have been declared dead. Jan does not want to believe that his brother is dead, and neither does his father, who has specifically designed the space rocket for Verdia, to compensate for the magnetic anomalies. Petra, best friend of Jan decides that he will not succeed without her, and manages to get on the rocket with him.
They reach the planet, only to find out that they are the planet’s next intended victims. Using all their wits, strength and luck, they explore the planet, narrowly missing death several times, until they find the centre of the disturbance in the electrical field. An evil alien causes this disturbance, along with the death and destruction of the expeditionary force, and Jan and Petra have to thwart him to survive.
This is an old-fashioned adventure story, just set in the future with a space rocket and an evil alien. The story is fast paced, and there is plenty of interaction between characters to keep things lively. This helps to keep children interested in the story. Children tend to like the good verses evil, and the kids triumph over all type stories, and two teenage friends being “trapped by the malign forces of a monstrous alien” qualifies this novel as one of those stories. There is plenty of imagination, and detailed descriptions that bring the setting to life;
“Nothing could have prepared them for the actuality of the Verdian jungle. Trees, vines, giant flowers, thorny shrubs, mosses and waist-high grasses fought for every inch of space. So virulent was their growth that in some places the movement was discernable – the tendrils of climbing plants could be seen blindly probing for their grip on trees; carnivorous flowers closed with audible snaps as they engulfed their prey”.
Language is also used creatively in generating atmosphere, and clearly defining the mood of the story. Emotive language is placed within the description, and the effect is very clever indeed. In just a short few lines, the mood of the chapter is set, and readers are in no doubt as to the character of the mysterious alien;
“Several hundred meters away was a squat, windowless black tower – the stronghold of the inhuman fiend which had descended on Verdia centuries earlier. The force of evil and of hatred emanating from it was almost tangible, a silent assault on the mind which made all who encountered it want to cower away”.
I am a huge fan of the way Shaw writes. There are no waffley bits, no story lulls, and nothing is there just for the sake of a plot inconvenience. There are no spare parts in this story. Every line is carefully thought out, and the characters well rounded. There is plenty of dialogue between characters, and the show me don’t tell me adage has been well and truly applied here. I would love to read more stories from this author.
January 9, 2012
If this is a novel, it must squeak in at just over the bare minimum. Bob Shaw’s novel “Killer Planet’ is a mere 102 pages long but packed with adventure and action. And just to let you know - it is a young adult novel.
This is my first Bob Shaw (Bob is from Britain) novel ever and I thought this book was written sometime in the sixties, but when I checked the publication date for “Killer Planet”, I found that it was published in 1989. The cover art tricked me. Tricksy cover art, or should I say Trippy?
The gist of the story is a young man goes on adventure to a planet - yup the Killer one where nobody has ever returned, ever. - to see if he can rescue, or at least find out what happened to, his brother who was a space marine lost there several years ago.
And I can see influence here from the Berserker series by Saberhagen. Anyhow, this novel reads like a much larger one, but a much larger one chopped down significantly. There is a lot here in not so many words. It kind of throws you if you are used to reading more fleshed out novels.
Bottom line. Not bad, but seems rushed. If you want to read it you will find it okay but not nearly as good as early Heinlein. But at 102 pages, it will be easily absorbed in no time at all. And aren’t you just dying to know what’s on the “Killer Planet”?
This is my first Bob Shaw (Bob is from Britain) novel ever and I thought this book was written sometime in the sixties, but when I checked the publication date for “Killer Planet”, I found that it was published in 1989. The cover art tricked me. Tricksy cover art, or should I say Trippy?
The gist of the story is a young man goes on adventure to a planet - yup the Killer one where nobody has ever returned, ever. - to see if he can rescue, or at least find out what happened to, his brother who was a space marine lost there several years ago.
And I can see influence here from the Berserker series by Saberhagen. Anyhow, this novel reads like a much larger one, but a much larger one chopped down significantly. There is a lot here in not so many words. It kind of throws you if you are used to reading more fleshed out novels.
Bottom line. Not bad, but seems rushed. If you want to read it you will find it okay but not nearly as good as early Heinlein. But at 102 pages, it will be easily absorbed in no time at all. And aren’t you just dying to know what’s on the “Killer Planet”?
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews