Three to Conquer

by Eric Frank Russell

Wade Harper uses his telepathic powers to search for three aliens, who are disguised as humans and plan to take over the Earth

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Novels, Hugo Awards, Science Fiction Fantasy, 20th Century

211 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published October 1, 1955

About the author

Eric Frank Russell was a British author best known for his science fiction novels and short stories. Much of his work was first published in the United States, in John W. Campbell's Astounding Science Fiction and other pulp magazines. Russell also wrote horror fiction for Weird Tales, and non-fiction articles on Fortean topics. A few of his stories were published under pseudonyms, of which Duncan H. Munro was used most often.

Reviews

[Luffy Sempai · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a well constructed tale about an invasion by aliens that is so silent, it escapes the nets of what people used to call Uncle Sam. The USA is alive and kicking in this book, so ardents of Panem won't be satiated.

Well, the book itself is very much grounded, walking the line between Sci Fi and the simple novel. There are only the baddies and the telepath to make this quite enthralling story a futuristic horror one.

The upbeat ending does not mesh with the chaos in the battle between alien and man. But we go along with the ride. I gave Three to Conquer a perfect score because of its battleground and its casualties, and its prophecy veering towards a caveat for mankind.

[Johne · Rating 4 out of 5]

While written in the mid-50s, and starting off as what appears to be a pretty standard police procedural (with the addition of the world's only known telepath), the story really takes off when one additional SFnal element is added, and the effect on the story (and myself as the reader) was explosive. I was reading along, lulled into the familiar beats of what appeared to be a familiar kind of story, when BOOM!, the story was wrenched off into an entirely new, but not unsupported, direction. When I thought back on it, all the clues were there, but the storytelling kept me, the reader, in the dark until the big reveal occurred, and it was mindblowing.

After that, the book kicked into an entirely new and elevated gear, and rocketed along to a satisfying conclusion. I detected some similar ground to Heinlein's The Puppet Masters, but this was an entirely original treatment by Eric Frank Russell, and an entirely entertaining read.

[fromcouchtomoon · Rating 2 out of 5]

"What was that slut smirking at?" he asked.
"You," Harper informed. "She's about I.Q. 70 but that doesn't spoil her appetite for a tasty hunk of man."
.
Sometimes I think I'm numbed to fifties macho talk and then I discover gems like this.

[Oscar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mientras Wade Harper, fabricante de micro herramientas, viaja en coche, oye en su mente la llamada de auxilio de un hombre, un agente de policía que ha sido atacado. Antes de fallecer, Harper logra recabar ciertas pistas para la investigación. Sin embargo, el talento de Harper, que es capaz de leer las mentes, deberá usarse para una amenaza mayor.

‘Tres que capturar’ (Three to Conquer, 1956), del británico Eric Frank Russell, es una buena historia de ciencia ficción, con una primera parte, la que más me ha gustado, con buenos elementos detectivescos y de misterio. La parte central se hace algo repetitiva, pero remonta al final. Creo que hubiese funcionado mejor como novela corta.

[prcardi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Storyline: 2/5
Characters: 3/5
Writing Style: 2/5
World: 1/5

This 1956 Hugo finalist is a ready read for libertarians. Libertarians who everyday hope for an opportunity to exercise their right to self-defense. Gun-toting, do-it-yourselfers with dreams of aiding the local police. Firearm enthusiasts, amateur-detective aspiring, federal government-hating, readers of crime novels - and science fiction novels. The reader gets to meet the character of Wade Harper, "a squat man with immense breadth of shoulder, hairy hands and bushy eyebrows." Wade Harper is ready for whatever the combined genres of murder mystery and science fiction can throw at him. With his main street, common sense outlook, he'll show those white collar, college educated boys from the nation's capital how things ought to be done.

Wade Harper had his faults, but he was a generally likeable guy. The book, too, has a lot of faults, but has an earnestness to it that makes it likeable as well. There's no style here - no noir or literary tricks - and no big ideas. This a work that shares more from the Pulp age than the Golden one.

Reminds me of Mark Phillips and Lawrence M. Janifer's "Brain Twister"

[Tom Britz · Rating 5 out of 5]

It had been ages and ages since I've read Eric Frank Russell, and this was the perfect fit. It was a fast and entertaining read. Eric Frank Russell at one time was as popular as Heinlein and Asimov and he still stands up.
This is a story of a secret space mission to Venus that has gone wrong. The three astronauts that were sent met with a bad end and they were taken over by a Venusian parasite and arrived back on Earth without anyone aware of it, and the infestation has begun. Earth's only hope is a single telepath (at least he is the only one that is known. The pace of the story is quite fast and it was a quick read, I read it in one day. I liked it.

[Paul Dellinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this story as a three-part serial in Astounding SF magazine back in the late '50s. I was surprised and delighted that it held up so well on a re-read all this time later.

[Derelict Space Sheep · Rating 5 out of 5]

42 WORD REVIEW:

Russell selectively breeds two SF storylines — alien body snatchers and telepathic outsider — to produce a memorable invasion tale, told in the manner of hardboiled detective fiction (itself melding lone wolf with FBI manhunt). Cited for possible adaptation during Doctor Who’s planning stages.

[Katie Griffiths · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really fast paced, exciting old school sci fi adventure. It has everything - threat, aliens, chases, the lot. Real escapism. For me the only thing that let it down was a weak ending. Otherwise a thoroughly great page turner.

[Matt Hartzell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three to Conquer was a lot of fun! Obviously, telepathy was a popular idea in this time period of science fiction, as several of the Hugo nominees I've read have focused on this idea. Three to Conquer started out as something that appeared to be a pretty typical and mundane mystery with a paranormal twist, but quickly took a sharp left turn and was off and running from there. The book kept up a breakneck pace and had a satisfying conclusion.

Even though I really enjoyed it, I might bump it down to 3.5 stars. Obviously, a main character with the ability to read minds is going to have a leg up on normal folk, but I thought he was just a tad too smart throughout the book. He basically led an investigation involving several local police departments, the FBI, the Department of Defense, and even a national laboratory, and yet he was consistently outsmarting just about everyone. While I'd expect some of that from a telepath, it got a bit long in the tooth and felt a little unbelievable at some point.

Regardless, this one is recommended!

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's a few spots that lacked conviction, but this reads as an old style detective thriller.

[Francisco · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting science fiction novel which has not that much of science fiction to it and a lot more of the noir and supernatural thriller. Our main character, Harper, is a typical noirish guy who is at the wrong place and at the wrong time and sees himself involved in a series of murders, but there is a catch, the murderers are humans who have been possessed by alien life-forms from Venus and Harper is the only (?) living telepath on earth.

Being a telepath, Harper is also the only person who can detect the aliens, but the aliens can also detect him whenever he makes psychic contact. This leads to a constant game of cat and mouse involving the FBI and the police while Harper tries to identify and eradicate the alien threat while surviving himself.

So, the whole thing is a noirish police procedure but with alien invasion and psychic power themes. It's a fun little read that shows how in the 1950s the popular genres of the time, like the noir, intersect with other genres like the science fiction novel. Other than there are aliens and the fact that the three patients zero were astronauts nothing much here is that science fictiony, but its still an interesting weird tale intersecting several genres and ending up feeling like an exciting noir novel more than anything else. It was nominated for the Hugo awards in 1956 which it didn't get, but it's still worth a read.

[Martyn Vaughan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An old-school yarn, first published in serial form in "Astounding" in 1956. Eric Frank Russell was a Brit living in the USA who was one of the few writers who successfully combined SF and humour—most notably in "Next of Kin."
"Three To Conquer" is, however, played completely straight and is a member of the "Invasion of Earth" sub-genre. It is of its time: there are bases on the Moon and telephones have view-screens—but only for otherwise standard landlines. The hero is a telepath who is looking for, but not yet found, a lady telepath.
What makes the book noteworthy, however, is the nature of the invasion. It is not by an unconquerable fleet of space battleships which, amazingly, prove not to be unconquerable after all.
The invaders are viruses accidentally brought back from Venus. The twist is that they are not sentient until they have infected a human. It is this that lifts the novel from the mundane. Also, their defeat involves severe loss to humanity as the "cure" destroys the victim's sanity.
But there's a happy ending, in that the hero finally finds a lady telepath. And they live happily ever after.

[Mike Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eric Frank Russell followed the ideas of Charles Fort: humans in the future would include some special ability. In this case, the proganist is Wade Harper, a maker of microscopic tools and a telepath. Harper normally hides his ability - but when he reads the mind of a non-human, he realizes that the world has a serious problem. Combatting an alien invasion is more important than hiding from the military and media... He announces himself and his talents to the government, and they press him into the war against the aliens. Only he can detect them - which makes him their prime target.

Russell's blend of humanity and wit makes him my favourite writer of SF. This novel was written in the cold war, so there are morals to be made and parallels to be drawn - but only if you want to. It's good SF, and a good thriller. That combination makes it worthy of a read. Don't worry if you don't like SF, read if for the light comedy, the chase, the storyline. I've dipped into it several times in the decades since it was written - it's always entertaining.

[Reet · Rating 3 out of 5]

A character named Harper is the protagonist of this story about aliens from Venus taking over the minds of humans. After a ship sets out from Earth to explore Venus, the three astronauts neglect to report back to authorities. They're back, but they're not the same three explorers who set out. Now they're in hiding, and looking to convert more terrestrials to their way, and the only man on Earth who can detect them is Harper. There's one part that is very sexist, as another reviewer pointed out, and really knocks points off the otherwise talented characterization.

[Steven Fortriede · Rating 5 out of 5]

Found this at the library age 9 or 10. Loner kid feeling somehow “different “ I identified with Wade Harper and Russell’s depiction of his apartness. I never forgot those, but did forget the title of the book and name of the author. Years later I haunted sci fi collections in libraries looking for books with “”three” in the title

Found several, including the great “One in Three Hundred.” Finally found it in my ‘50’s. Still read it not as man against aliens but man against his own species. Gotta love those last couple of paragraphs though.

[John Peel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've always loved Eric Frank Russell's works, and he's one of my all-time favorite authors. So it was something of a surprise to me to discover that I'd never read this story before. A most delightful surprise! Three men have killed a cop, and the body is discovered by a telepath. He then finds out that the killers aren't even human... As with all of his novels, this one has several fun and intriguing ideas that will keep you amused and guessing. An absolute joy.

[Emmalyn Renato · Rating 4 out of 5]

A belated selection for the r/Fantasy 2018 Bingo for the 'Novel Published Before You Were Born' square. This short novel was nominated for one of the first Hugos. It's not one of his best, but it's a solid detective plot embedded within a science fiction novel (telepathy and alien invasion), complete with crisp dialog. For something written in 1956, the virus and contact tracing were eerily familiar.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this story. The plot is reminiscent of 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers', mixed with good old-fashioned detective work. The main character, Harper was enjoyable. The tech was severely dated (the most 'advanced' thing was the equivalent of Zoom/Facetime) but what you'd expect for a book written in the 1950s? Still, it was a cute book and I can see why it was nominated for the Hugo.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

1956 Hugo award finalist. About a parasitic alien species that takes over human bodies. They are completely undetectable by everyone except the main character who can secretly read thoughts. Good pulp science fiction fun, reminded me a bit like Invasion of the Body Snatchers.

[Sean Randall · Rating 4 out of 5]

EFR absolutely has a rare sense of irony and wit, Wasp is perhaps my favourite novel of 1957. This one was fun as well, bringing a bit more of the hard-boiled detective style with Russell's typical irreverence for authority. Really enjoyed.

[Sergio Mars · Rating 3 out of 5]

Harper posee un talento extraordinario. Hasta donde sabe, es el único telépata del mundo. Su sentido del deber le lleva a involucrarse en la resolución de los crímenes con los que se tropieza, aunque cuando acude a la llamada psíquica de un policía moribundo en una carretera secundaria poco puede imaginar que se inmiscuirá en un caso que no solo le obligará a desvelar su secreto a las autoridades, sino que pondrá en peligro la libertad e independencia mental de todos los seres humanos de la Tierra.

"Tres que capturar" es en muchos sentidos un producto típico de su época, con la enésima interpretación sobre la telepatía y un protagonista de una pieza, tan íntegro como capaz. Por el camino, sin embargo, Eric Frank Russell acierta a imprimir a la historia un par de giros insospechados, que la lanzan en nuevas direcciones.

Aunque una vez puestas las cartas sobre la mesa la trama se vuelve un poco más repetitiva (por no hablar de que resulta reminiscente de títulos superiores anteriores), el autor logra imprimirle suficiente agilidad para evitar que el interés decaiga en exceso, soteniéndolo todo sobre los anchos hombros del protagonista (que aun siendo un poco unidimensional, y también un poco cargante en su papel de héroe a su pesar, logra despertar la simpatías por su soledad y la delicada posición a la que se ve abocado).

Un título entretenido, que mantiene bastante bien su interés como aventura ligera.

Reseña completa en Rescepto Indablog: https://rescepto.wordpress.com/2021/0...

[Dave Morris · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fast-paced, inventive, but really just good pulp fiction.

[Tyler Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's alright. Not a run out and buy but a late night read. The kind of book one discovers in an antique store on vacation.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a 50's style detective novella with a small scifi overlay. Old-fashioned but charming. Really a short story stretched, lots of filler. Not great, not bad.

[Retrospective Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5 stars. Review to come.

[Kent · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read this a couple of times over the years; it's one I've had since the 60s or early 70s. It's still one of the best Sci-Fi books I've ever read!

[Chuck McKenzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

An exciting and quirky novel from one of the modern masters of the genre, filled with Russell's trademark brand of satirical humour (despite being a touch darker than some of his other novels), and evoking a sense of wonder that recalls the best of the pulp era of SF.

[Michael Fortner · Rating 4 out of 5]

picked it up for a penny + $4.00 shipping. The style is very old and asprects of the plot are plodding but I enjoyed the description of what life would be like in 1980 and the net optimism of the book. just reminds me of my youthful sf reading

[Bill · Rating 2 out of 5]

Story about a telepath (the only one) who tries to help police then gets involved in finding aliens who took the bodies of some Venusian astronauts. Not a great deal of payoff. The science involved is mostly nonexistent.