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Star Watch / Watchmen #3
The Dueling Machine
Dueling as a means of settling disputes has been revived by the invention of the dueling machine, which allows two adversaries to have at each other in the imaginary world of their choosing, with no danger to either other than humiliation and the loss of the point in dispute—until the Kerak Worlds found a way to kill with the machine. Unless a young Star Watchman can solve the mystery, the warlike Kerak Worlds will gobble up the planets of the Acquataine Cluster, murdering its leaders one at a time, and then be ready for the Terrans themselves...
Originally a short piece published as "The Dueling Machine" [with Myron R. Lewis] Analog May 1963; also as "The Perfect Warrior".
Originally a short piece published as "The Dueling Machine" [with Myron R. Lewis] Analog May 1963; also as "The Perfect Warrior".
256 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1963
33 people are currently reading
343 people want to read
About the author
Ben Bova
690 books1,042 followersBen Bova was born on November 8, 1932 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In 1953, while attending Temple University, he married Rosa Cucinotta, they had a son and a daughter. He would later divorce Rosa in 1974. In that same year he married Barbara Berson Rose.
Bova was an avid fencer and organized Avco Everett's fencing club. He was an environmentalist, but rejected Luddism.
Bova was a technical writer for Project Vanguard and later for Avco Everett in the 1960s when they did research in lasers and fluid dynamics. It was there that he met Arthur R. Kantrowitz later of the Foresight Institute.
In 1971 he became editor of Analog Science Fiction after John W. Campbell's death. After leaving Analog, he went on to edit Omni during 1978-1982.
In 1974 he wrote the screenplay for an episode of the children's science fiction television series Land of the Lost entitled "The Search".
Bova was the science advisor for the failed television series The Starlost, leaving in disgust after the airing of the first episode. His novel The Starcrossed was loosely based on his experiences and featured a thinly veiled characterization of his friend and colleague Harlan Ellison. He dedicated the novel to "Cordwainer Bird", the pen name Harlan Ellison uses when he does not want to be associated with a television or film project.
Bova was the President Emeritus of the National Space Society and a past President of Science-fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA).
Bova went back to school in the 1980s, earning an M.A. in communications in 1987 and a Ph.D. in 1996.
Bova has drawn on these meetings and experiences to create fact and fiction writings rich with references to spaceflight, lasers, artificial hearts, nanotechnology, environmentalism, fencing and martial arts, photography and artists.
Bova was the author of over a hundred and fifteen books, non-fiction as well as science fiction. In 2000, he was the Author Guest of Honor at the 58th World Science Fiction Convention (Chicon 2000).
Hollywood has started to take an interest in Bova's works once again, in addition to his wealth of knowledge about science and what the future may look like. In 2007, he was hired as a consultant by both Stuber/Parent Productions to provide insight into what the world is to look like in the near future for their upcoming film "Repossession Mambo" (released as "Repo Men") starring Jude Law and Forest Whitaker and by Silver Pictures in which he provided consulting services on the feature adaptation of Richard Morgan's "Altered Carbon".
http://us.macmillan.com/author/benbova
Bova was an avid fencer and organized Avco Everett's fencing club. He was an environmentalist, but rejected Luddism.
Bova was a technical writer for Project Vanguard and later for Avco Everett in the 1960s when they did research in lasers and fluid dynamics. It was there that he met Arthur R. Kantrowitz later of the Foresight Institute.
In 1971 he became editor of Analog Science Fiction after John W. Campbell's death. After leaving Analog, he went on to edit Omni during 1978-1982.
In 1974 he wrote the screenplay for an episode of the children's science fiction television series Land of the Lost entitled "The Search".
Bova was the science advisor for the failed television series The Starlost, leaving in disgust after the airing of the first episode. His novel The Starcrossed was loosely based on his experiences and featured a thinly veiled characterization of his friend and colleague Harlan Ellison. He dedicated the novel to "Cordwainer Bird", the pen name Harlan Ellison uses when he does not want to be associated with a television or film project.
Bova was the President Emeritus of the National Space Society and a past President of Science-fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA).
Bova went back to school in the 1980s, earning an M.A. in communications in 1987 and a Ph.D. in 1996.
Bova has drawn on these meetings and experiences to create fact and fiction writings rich with references to spaceflight, lasers, artificial hearts, nanotechnology, environmentalism, fencing and martial arts, photography and artists.
Bova was the author of over a hundred and fifteen books, non-fiction as well as science fiction. In 2000, he was the Author Guest of Honor at the 58th World Science Fiction Convention (Chicon 2000).
Hollywood has started to take an interest in Bova's works once again, in addition to his wealth of knowledge about science and what the future may look like. In 2007, he was hired as a consultant by both Stuber/Parent Productions to provide insight into what the world is to look like in the near future for their upcoming film "Repossession Mambo" (released as "Repo Men") starring Jude Law and Forest Whitaker and by Silver Pictures in which he provided consulting services on the feature adaptation of Richard Morgan's "Altered Carbon".
http://us.macmillan.com/author/benbova
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
February 8, 2021
I read the original short story published in Analog in 1963 not the expanded novel.
The dueling machine has eliminated violence from society, people (actually it’s all men, typical SF from 1963!) who have a grievance can solve their dispute in the machine without any injury....until a duel between representatives of two planetary systems. One man ends in a coma, the next duel a man dies. Dr Leoh the inventor of the machine arrives to investigate.
This is a clever idea and the story is an interesting read, definitely dated but entertaining.
The dueling machine has eliminated violence from society, people (actually it’s all men, typical SF from 1963!) who have a grievance can solve their dispute in the machine without any injury....until a duel between representatives of two planetary systems. One man ends in a coma, the next duel a man dies. Dr Leoh the inventor of the machine arrives to investigate.
This is a clever idea and the story is an interesting read, definitely dated but entertaining.
December 23, 2017
An interesting invention which creates a shared reality between 2 people. It brings back dueling as a form of honor since it is safe, but then something goes wrong & the inventor is brought in to fix it while the fate of planets hangs in the balance. As the frustrations mount, the stakes grow higher, & things look bleak.
Good premise, if strictly limited by the times in which it was written. The characters were OK, but more caricatures as was typical. Still, it was short & kept my attention. Well narrated & it's free.
Good premise, if strictly limited by the times in which it was written. The characters were OK, but more caricatures as was typical. Still, it was short & kept my attention. Well narrated & it's free.
October 29, 2011
Much more vanilla than the premise would suggest. Scientist Leoh has inventing a dueling machine in order to help people settle the conflicts and irrationality that come from living a life of leisure and prosperity. two people can go at it no-holds barred in a dream world with no lasting effects. However a certain dictator has found a way to injure or even kill people using this machine, so Leoh must stop him along with the aid of clumsy lieutenant Hector.
Bova splits the book into three parts, and each part introduces another implausibility in the machine. The characters are cardboard and hard to care about, and the central idea is never explored much except by inventing those implausibilities.It's ends up bland and forgettable, what I call "yard sale SF"-the books that you only buy if they are 50 cents at a yard sale or flea market. Bova has written much better.
Bova splits the book into three parts, and each part introduces another implausibility in the machine. The characters are cardboard and hard to care about, and the central idea is never explored much except by inventing those implausibilities.It's ends up bland and forgettable, what I call "yard sale SF"-the books that you only buy if they are 50 cents at a yard sale or flea market. Bova has written much better.
September 5, 2015
An interesting story about the us eof the duel top settle personal conflicts in the future. Of course it's safe as it is all in the imagination of the combatants however recently people are starting to die.
Why is this hapenning and how is one man responsible for so many deaths in the machine ?
Interesting tale. Finished in one day n!
Why is this hapenning and how is one man responsible for so many deaths in the machine ?
Interesting tale. Finished in one day n!
January 28, 2021
There are two versions of this story with the same title by Ben Bova. The first one is a novella, about sixty pages long, which first appeared in the May 1963 edition of Analog. This version lists Myron R. Lewis as Bova's co-writer. The short one is the version probably ninety percent of those who believe they have read this story have actually read. It has been widely reprinted in short story collections and anthologies (sometimes with and sometimes without credit to Lewis) and made available for free on Gutenberg, which means there have been many eBook versions made of it, some free, some available for a nominal fee by people seeking to capitalize on another person's intellectual property.
The more interesting version of the story is the expanded novel version Bova published in 1969, 247 pages long in my hardback edition. The novel drops and never gave any credit to Lewis. I've tried to separate the two versions in GoodReads, but have had only mixed success. They are probably hopelessly intertwined and will continue to be merged by librarians who don't know they are very different works.
My Review of the 1963 Novella:
This novella is set amidst the backdrop of Bova’s Star Watchmen series begun with his first novel, The Star Conquerors (1959) and concluded with Star Watchman (1964) the following year. However, it stands alone perfectly fine. I am surprised this novella is Bova’s only published work for 1963. He wrote more works in 1962 and 1964. None of the characters in this story carries over into either of the other two works of the Star Watchmen series, and only some of the planet names and races do. The Star Watch itself, an early version of Star Trek’s Star Fleet concept, is prominent in all three works. In this and only one other short story written next year, Ben Bova credits a co-writer named Myron R. Lewis. Lewis, if there truly was such an actual person, never wrote anything other than these two stories, and no information is available about him.
A machine is invented for people with disputes to settle matters peacefully. Imaginary violence might happen in the machine as the two disputants duel. But even if one dies an imaginary death, the two are supposed to both walk away from the dueling machine when it’s over. One day one of the disputants dies an actual death. Is it a glitch or is something sinister going on?
From the synopsis just given, the plot hole should be obvious. A duel set on an imaginary world is no true arbiter of a valid dispute. Usually in a disagreement, one side is in the right, and who that is can’t be determined by an arbitrary might makes right contest. Somehow the author conflates individual disputes like this into interplanetary crises. It’s a rather juvenile premise that the author can be forgiven perhaps because this story was probably targeted for a YA audience, like the other two stories in the Star Watch series.
My Review of the 1969 Novel:
The 1969 novel version begins with what is essentially the 1963 novella version, only slightly more fleshed out at points, for the first forty percent of the novel. The stories are essentially the same although Bova polished the wording for the 1969 novel. The last sixty percent of the novel is completely new material.
The struggle between Odal and Kanus against Leoh and Hector continues in the last sixty percent. The dueling machine evolves into a transporter device and we get to see more of the love interest between Geri and Hector as it turns into a really unexpected love triangle. It's a fun to read addition, but it makes the story too long, mostly because it does not retain the excitement and combat drama of the first forty percent of the novel. The final sixty percent reads almost like padding, as if Bova didn't know where to take the story or how to properly end it. I appreciate being able to read the further adventures of our cast, I just wish it was more interesting fare than what we were given.
The more interesting version of the story is the expanded novel version Bova published in 1969, 247 pages long in my hardback edition. The novel drops and never gave any credit to Lewis. I've tried to separate the two versions in GoodReads, but have had only mixed success. They are probably hopelessly intertwined and will continue to be merged by librarians who don't know they are very different works.
My Review of the 1963 Novella:
This novella is set amidst the backdrop of Bova’s Star Watchmen series begun with his first novel, The Star Conquerors (1959) and concluded with Star Watchman (1964) the following year. However, it stands alone perfectly fine. I am surprised this novella is Bova’s only published work for 1963. He wrote more works in 1962 and 1964. None of the characters in this story carries over into either of the other two works of the Star Watchmen series, and only some of the planet names and races do. The Star Watch itself, an early version of Star Trek’s Star Fleet concept, is prominent in all three works. In this and only one other short story written next year, Ben Bova credits a co-writer named Myron R. Lewis. Lewis, if there truly was such an actual person, never wrote anything other than these two stories, and no information is available about him.
A machine is invented for people with disputes to settle matters peacefully. Imaginary violence might happen in the machine as the two disputants duel. But even if one dies an imaginary death, the two are supposed to both walk away from the dueling machine when it’s over. One day one of the disputants dies an actual death. Is it a glitch or is something sinister going on?
From the synopsis just given, the plot hole should be obvious. A duel set on an imaginary world is no true arbiter of a valid dispute. Usually in a disagreement, one side is in the right, and who that is can’t be determined by an arbitrary might makes right contest. Somehow the author conflates individual disputes like this into interplanetary crises. It’s a rather juvenile premise that the author can be forgiven perhaps because this story was probably targeted for a YA audience, like the other two stories in the Star Watch series.
My Review of the 1969 Novel:
The 1969 novel version begins with what is essentially the 1963 novella version, only slightly more fleshed out at points, for the first forty percent of the novel. The stories are essentially the same although Bova polished the wording for the 1969 novel. The last sixty percent of the novel is completely new material.
The struggle between Odal and Kanus against Leoh and Hector continues in the last sixty percent. The dueling machine evolves into a transporter device and we get to see more of the love interest between Geri and Hector as it turns into a really unexpected love triangle. It's a fun to read addition, but it makes the story too long, mostly because it does not retain the excitement and combat drama of the first forty percent of the novel. The final sixty percent reads almost like padding, as if Bova didn't know where to take the story or how to properly end it. I appreciate being able to read the further adventures of our cast, I just wish it was more interesting fare than what we were given.
October 13, 2022
This is the first science fiction book I ever read and as a child it opened up worlds in my brain that I didn't know existed. I have read hundreds of SF books since but this is the one that made me wide-eyed with wonder. Love it.
January 15, 2019
I've heard the name of this author so many times, finally I've decided to give him a try with a short story and now I understand why his name keeps showing up.
Even as a short story it was great.
Totally recommended.
Almost a year later:
Just discovered that this is a trilogy so please disregard my review, obviously I’ve made a big mistake thinking it’s a short story listening only to book two.
My apologies!
Even as a short story it was great.
Totally recommended.
Almost a year later:
Just discovered that this is a trilogy so please disregard my review, obviously I’ve made a big mistake thinking it’s a short story listening only to book two.
My apologies!
January 30, 2025
Originally read this book in 1979, and reread it recently when I came across my old copy. The story was fun and quick to read. The speculative portions (Culture at the time, and the Dueling Machine itself) were interesting. The use of the bad guys as an updated WWII Nazi regime was a bit dated though.
February 1, 2021
This is classic science fiction and (in part) reminds me of another book "The World of Null-A" by A. E. Van Vogt where a computer is controlling and limiting the level of violence in society.
The story: dueling still exists in order to settle debts of honor, but such duels no longer take place in reality, but inside the virtual reality of a computer, a "dueling machine". This allows the duelers to fight without causing injury or death to each other. Yet people begin dying in reality after a man from the Kerak Empire discovers a way to actually kill his opponents inside the machine. No one can figure out how because, naturally enough, his opponents are dead or mentally damaged and he won't allow monitoring. Nevertheless, it is Dr. Leoh's quest to find out how these deaths are occurring and save the galaxy from conquest by duel.
Any problems with this story? From a classic science fiction standpoint, no problems at all. In a modern context the equipment seems too clunky. This story was published in 1963, back when computers of any significant power were the size of small houses. Imagining a future with computers even with transistors would have meant bulky machines that could not be moved and perhaps one even needed to enter inside a computer to get the full effect of virtual reality.
And, as was normal for the time, women in science fiction stories were passive and/or submissive if they had any role at all in the story.
The story's ending was reasonable if the people felt a strong commitment to the honor code. Of course, I'm not sure if such people would have killed someone in the dueling machine in the first place if they felt so strongly about such a code, or perhaps friends would not want to be associated with such a cad and ruffian. Yet, somehow it was OK one way but not OK the other way. I'm not sure why.
I might read this book again.
The story: dueling still exists in order to settle debts of honor, but such duels no longer take place in reality, but inside the virtual reality of a computer, a "dueling machine". This allows the duelers to fight without causing injury or death to each other. Yet people begin dying in reality after a man from the Kerak Empire discovers a way to actually kill his opponents inside the machine. No one can figure out how because, naturally enough, his opponents are dead or mentally damaged and he won't allow monitoring. Nevertheless, it is Dr. Leoh's quest to find out how these deaths are occurring and save the galaxy from conquest by duel.
Any problems with this story? From a classic science fiction standpoint, no problems at all. In a modern context the equipment seems too clunky. This story was published in 1963, back when computers of any significant power were the size of small houses. Imagining a future with computers even with transistors would have meant bulky machines that could not be moved and perhaps one even needed to enter inside a computer to get the full effect of virtual reality.
And, as was normal for the time, women in science fiction stories were passive and/or submissive if they had any role at all in the story.
The story's ending was reasonable if the people felt a strong commitment to the honor code. Of course, I'm not sure if such people would have killed someone in the dueling machine in the first place if they felt so strongly about such a code, or perhaps friends would not want to be associated with such a cad and ruffian. Yet, somehow it was OK one way but not OK the other way. I'm not sure why.
I might read this book again.
March 13, 2018
The Dueling Machine is a novel by Ben Bova from 1969. It is part of his loose Watchman quartet about a space opera future where Terra dominates the galaxy. This story is set around the use of a psychotronic device capable of two participants entering a virtual reality with almost universal sensory immersion.
The two participants will most often use the device to conduct a duel to settle arguments. The rules of the duel is that each combatant takes turn picking the scenario, weapon, and environment for the duel. Some of the dueling scenes in the novel are quite creative. In the end no one is hurt, until one day several people start dying in the use of the machine. The Terran Commonwealth is fearful and calls in the inventor of the Dueling Machine to figure out how a small third party nation is using the device to assassinate rival nation leaders in duels.
The social set up is obviously from the 50s and 60s with women's hearts to be won, and public courage is considered a vital part of social acceptance of a man's masculinity. These are only secondary factors, and quite common in science fiction of the time. No reader should let that distract them from an otherwise interesting story.
In many ways this was one of the early novels to deal with the idea of virtual reality and what it could do for humans. It is comparable to Roger Zelazny's Dreamshaper in how it tries to show how virtual reality has many potential usages for entertainment and other social functions.
The style of the novel is not the best Bova wrote, but it is a good straightforward way of telling the story. The story is interesting and lively.
The two participants will most often use the device to conduct a duel to settle arguments. The rules of the duel is that each combatant takes turn picking the scenario, weapon, and environment for the duel. Some of the dueling scenes in the novel are quite creative. In the end no one is hurt, until one day several people start dying in the use of the machine. The Terran Commonwealth is fearful and calls in the inventor of the Dueling Machine to figure out how a small third party nation is using the device to assassinate rival nation leaders in duels.
The social set up is obviously from the 50s and 60s with women's hearts to be won, and public courage is considered a vital part of social acceptance of a man's masculinity. These are only secondary factors, and quite common in science fiction of the time. No reader should let that distract them from an otherwise interesting story.
In many ways this was one of the early novels to deal with the idea of virtual reality and what it could do for humans. It is comparable to Roger Zelazny's Dreamshaper in how it tries to show how virtual reality has many potential usages for entertainment and other social functions.
The style of the novel is not the best Bova wrote, but it is a good straightforward way of telling the story. The story is interesting and lively.
March 13, 2018
The Dueling Machine is a novel by Ben Bova from 1969. It is part of his loose Watchman quartet about a space opera future where Terra dominates the galaxy. This story is set around the use of a psychotronic device capable of two participants entering a virtual reality with almost universal sensory immersion.
The two participants will most often use the device to conduct a duel to settle arguments. The rules of the duel is that each combatant takes turn picking the scenario, weapon, and environment for the duel. Some of the dueling scenes in the novel are quite creative. In the end no one is hurt, until one day several people start dying in the use of the machine. The Terran Commonwealth is fearful and calls in the inventor of the Dueling Machine to figure out how a small third party nation is using the device to assassinate rival nation leaders in duels.
The social set up is obviously from the 50s and 60s with women's hearts to be won, and public courage is considered a vital part of social acceptance of a man's masculinity. These are only secondary factors, and quite common in science fiction of the time. No reader should let that distract them from an otherwise interesting story.
In many ways this was one of the early novels to deal with the idea of virtual reality and what it could do for humans. It is comparable to Roger Zelazny's Dreamshaper in how it tries to show how virtual reality has many potential usages for entertainment and other social functions.
The style of the novel is not the best Bova wrote, but it is a good straightforward way of telling the story. The story is interesting and lively.
The two participants will most often use the device to conduct a duel to settle arguments. The rules of the duel is that each combatant takes turn picking the scenario, weapon, and environment for the duel. Some of the dueling scenes in the novel are quite creative. In the end no one is hurt, until one day several people start dying in the use of the machine. The Terran Commonwealth is fearful and calls in the inventor of the Dueling Machine to figure out how a small third party nation is using the device to assassinate rival nation leaders in duels.
The social set up is obviously from the 50s and 60s with women's hearts to be won, and public courage is considered a vital part of social acceptance of a man's masculinity. These are only secondary factors, and quite common in science fiction of the time. No reader should let that distract them from an otherwise interesting story.
In many ways this was one of the early novels to deal with the idea of virtual reality and what it could do for humans. It is comparable to Roger Zelazny's Dreamshaper in how it tries to show how virtual reality has many potential usages for entertainment and other social functions.
The style of the novel is not the best Bova wrote, but it is a good straightforward way of telling the story. The story is interesting and lively.
July 25, 2024
The setting of this book lives up to the quintuplet books that have been written around it. I have always enjoyed intergalactic human civilizations with large governmental systems. The planetary war of the story was quite fun due to the napoleon inspired dictator of the Kerak regime.
My issues with the novel revolve around pacing. I found many of the characters to be unfinished and the ending to be rushed. If there had been fewer characters and maybe 100 additional pages of storyline the general plot would not have felt so hectic. The definite time skips and relatively surprising plot events facilitated the fast pacing leading to relatively unmemorable characters. All of the characters were enjoyable, although for the sake of time many could go either way when it came to personality. Geri was a good example of this as her character was not sufficiently written to provide a proper transition from wanting revenge to falling in love with Hector.
Outside of this, the dueling machine as a concept is quite humorous as it reminded me greatly of inception, although, I believe this was written prior to the movie. Regardless, I enjoyed the concept but felt the author was way too generous with the psy abilities. Hector/Odal teleporting, with this only being introduced in the final 100 pages of the book, came out of no where and more in a plot convenient way rather than good writing per se.
I did enjoy the book immensely although the fast pacing led to some parts being boring due to the constant transition from one character’s perspective to the other’s.
My issues with the novel revolve around pacing. I found many of the characters to be unfinished and the ending to be rushed. If there had been fewer characters and maybe 100 additional pages of storyline the general plot would not have felt so hectic. The definite time skips and relatively surprising plot events facilitated the fast pacing leading to relatively unmemorable characters. All of the characters were enjoyable, although for the sake of time many could go either way when it came to personality. Geri was a good example of this as her character was not sufficiently written to provide a proper transition from wanting revenge to falling in love with Hector.
Outside of this, the dueling machine as a concept is quite humorous as it reminded me greatly of inception, although, I believe this was written prior to the movie. Regardless, I enjoyed the concept but felt the author was way too generous with the psy abilities. Hector/Odal teleporting, with this only being introduced in the final 100 pages of the book, came out of no where and more in a plot convenient way rather than good writing per se.
I did enjoy the book immensely although the fast pacing led to some parts being boring due to the constant transition from one character’s perspective to the other’s.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 18, 2024
Albert Leoh invented the dueling machine, sort of a virtual reality device where two people can take out aggression on each other without either coming to harm. He felt it was needed, the galaxy has come to a point where everyone can live comfortably, this gives them a socially acceptable outlet. He'd rather there be a zest for expansion, but there are no pioneers left.
Kerek is being ruled by Kanus, a power hungry tyrant. They’re one of a number of small factions outside the Commonwealth. Their plan is to cause disarray in Acquatania and to take over enough of the smaller factions to give them enough firepower to win a war against them this time. The disarray starts with Odal picking a dual with their prime minister and putting Dulaq in a catatonic state. After the duel and Leoh is summoned to look at the machine and determine what went wrong.
Leoh wants to prevent war, he asks his friend high up in the Starwatch for support. Lt. Hector is the man he receives. They have to confound the plans of Kanus, first by defeating his assassin, Odal (How did he subvert the dueling machine into something that can kill?) and then try to get the stubborn Acquatanians to sign a treaty with the Commonwealth.
Fast fun read. The clumsy Hector is a nice comedy element, slapstick rather than witty banter. There is the basic premise of the dueling machine is set right from the start. OK. But then there’s other elements added so quickly that it gets a bit far fetched. 4.1 stars.
Kerek is being ruled by Kanus, a power hungry tyrant. They’re one of a number of small factions outside the Commonwealth. Their plan is to cause disarray in Acquatania and to take over enough of the smaller factions to give them enough firepower to win a war against them this time. The disarray starts with Odal picking a dual with their prime minister and putting Dulaq in a catatonic state. After the duel and Leoh is summoned to look at the machine and determine what went wrong.
Leoh wants to prevent war, he asks his friend high up in the Starwatch for support. Lt. Hector is the man he receives. They have to confound the plans of Kanus, first by defeating his assassin, Odal (How did he subvert the dueling machine into something that can kill?) and then try to get the stubborn Acquatanians to sign a treaty with the Commonwealth.
Fast fun read. The clumsy Hector is a nice comedy element, slapstick rather than witty banter. There is the basic premise of the dueling machine is set right from the start. OK. But then there’s other elements added so quickly that it gets a bit far fetched. 4.1 stars.
August 24, 2017
Curioso romanzo di Bova che, sebbene scritto nel 1966, mi dava l'impressione, durante la lettura, di essere almeno di vent'anni più datato, probabilmente a causa di alcune "leggerezze" ed ingenuità nello sviluppo della trama. La storia, divisa in tre parti, ripercorre gli intrighi politici e le mire espansionistiche di un dittatore impegnato nel tentativo di espandere il suo dominio sui sistemi planetari confinanti. Le vicende finiscono per ruotare attorno alla "Duellomacchina" ed al suo inventore. Un dispositivo creato per consentire agli uomini di sfogare la loro aggressività e redimere le dispute personali in modo solo oniricamente cruento, che però, sorprendendo anche il suo geniale inventore, si rivelerà essere molto più di questo. Una lettura comunque leggera, piacevole e scorrevole.
March 3, 2020
Full review: https://sciencefictionruminations.com...
"This novel feels like two separate stories connected by the presence of the dueling machine. The story when the dueling machine is a dueling machine and the story when the Bova decides that the dueling machine is also teleportation device and a therapy device and only occasionally used for duels. The first part of the novel deserves five stars while the second (after the machine’s use [...]"
"This novel feels like two separate stories connected by the presence of the dueling machine. The story when the dueling machine is a dueling machine and the story when the Bova decides that the dueling machine is also teleportation device and a therapy device and only occasionally used for duels. The first part of the novel deserves five stars while the second (after the machine’s use [...]"
January 17, 2020
This story has space travel, futuristic cities, political intrigue, combat taking place in all sorts of fantastic environments, incredible technology, attractive women, a bit of humor and a decent plot. What more can you ask for? This novella was originally published in Analog magazine in 1963. The Dueling Machine is a fun glimpse of science fiction from the early 60s.
October 17, 2023
This is a more or less enjoyable romp, but even for 1969 it feels a bit old fashioned.
About half way through I was able to make definite an impression that had been half formed in my mind - this is very much like an Asimov book. Thinly defined characters working their way through the implications of a piece of technology, with a side order of stereotypes.
About half way through I was able to make definite an impression that had been half formed in my mind - this is very much like an Asimov book. Thinly defined characters working their way through the implications of a piece of technology, with a side order of stereotypes.
January 19, 2018
Fine classic tale, well read, seemed to have been prematurely resolved with a somewhat anticlimactic ending. Worth reading all the same , I found the characters to be engaging and the plot suspenseful, at least for the first 90%.
March 25, 2021
Pretty standard old SF. Smart guys. Female characters who could be replaced by a sexy lamp. I think one of them was literally only called the equivalent of “coma guys daughter” A neat gizmo that’s pretty much a virtual reality game with PvP turned on. The ever present threat of war.
May 14, 2022
This entertaining tale of a psychological duel facilitated by a machine had me fascinated by the development and use of the mechanics involved. I like stories that show advanced technology run amok and human ingenuity to solve the problems the technology can create.
May 28, 2022
Interesting concepts and how they interact. There is a bit of a disconnect and possibly a large jump, even in the speculation, that creates two "perfect" men magically. Worth reading to know how Bova was writing at the end of the 60s but doesn't truly inform you about the rest of his works.
September 11, 2017
This is mediocre space opera at best. It has a decent plot, but the execution is poor and at times I thought it might be a poor attempt at satire. Bova did write some good stuff later.
March 20, 2019
Interesting novel. A “dueling machine” is created that allows combatants to settle disputes virtually and peacefully, until someone finds a way to weaponize it.
July 6, 2020
A good short spin
A good spin fun and fast with actual science vs. Fantasy. Science fiction to be clear. Blah blah blah blah
A good spin fun and fast with actual science vs. Fantasy. Science fiction to be clear. Blah blah blah blah
January 12, 2023
Non ho molto da dire, carino, leggero e godibile
September 1, 2024
It is an interesting psychological character study story.
September 17, 2025
Surprisingly intricate geopolitics and strong character arcs (for sci fi of this era) make this above average even if the sci fi elements are bog standard.
November 21, 2025
Clever given the timeframe in which it was written.
April 30, 2014
The plot is fairly straightforward--a man invents a machine that is used for horrible doings, and seeks to correct the misdeeds. The machine in question here is the titular dueling machine, which allows men to enter the imaginations of another and fight to the "death." In the dueling machine, death isn't the end, however, it's just a defeat--the problems start when the machine starts killing people for real.
It's sort of amusing now to think of such a device that ISN'T used for explicitly sexual purposes, when inventions such as this have been thrust forward largely by the sale of pornography (home video, internet, e-readers), but whatever. The novel requires a great many conceits to imagine that, okay yes, this machine works, and it somehow has replaced all-out war, because through the lens of this narrative, disputes between countries can often be boiled down to disputes between men.
It's sort of an imperialist outlook on history, isn't it? Great men, and all of that. One of the protagonists is even referred to as hopefully becoming a "great man" in a few years at the novel's end.
I don't know the actual efficacy of such a device as the dueling machine. If you could have Chamberlain and Hitler sit down in this machine, theoretically, would it have really stopped people from frothing at the mouth to fight for very long? It's the kind of notion that can only truly work in a science-fictional world where resources are plenty and economic unrest seems non-existent, because as far as I can tell, most wars are, at their base, about land and resources how to get more of them--not ideals.
And what's odd is that Bova seems to acknowledge this; the main thrust of the discovery arc of the protagonist--Dr. Leoh--is that he wants to find a way to transfer men to more planets, so they can have more land and resources and stop fighting all the time. I suppose the idea is that most men and women don't even understand that what they're really pissed off about is not having enough, so they get stuck on ideals and petty feuds? Anyway, the dueling machine is recognized by Leoh as a stop-gap measure, even in the book.
All told, it's an odd little book. You've got space Nazis--the antagonistic force--without all that horrible business of fascism and genocide (or at least, none that is really explored), with just strong hints of tyranny and strong examples of military discipline and a mad leader, enough to make the analogue of Nazi pretty clear. Turns out, that's still pretty evil even without the genocide. (I suppose they could just as easily be Space Stalinists, or the Space Khmer Rouge [besides that not existing yet at the time of publication]. Humanity is sort of depressing in its ease of analogues for tyrannic evil that way. But "Space Nazis" is just catchier.)
It's sort of neat that the main protagonist here, Dr. Leoh, is an old man. He is a fun character, highly fascinated by science and discovery, but prone to long tangential excursions into exploring his own fame, showing off his dueling prowess in his machine, daydreaming about younger women, and being cranky with politicians.
There's a complicated relationship with gender, here. By complicated, I mean "problematic." And by complicated and problematic, I am trying to be diplomatic about saying it is pretty awful. There is a grand total of one female character in the book, Geri, and she runs through the motions of being a trophy, and then manipulative via feminine wiles, and then a trophy again--all of this without any of her point-of-view in a book with frequently shifting point-of-views. There is literally more time spent in the point-of-view of men who die within five pages of their first appearance than there is in the point-of-view of a woman who is present throughout the entire book. That's kind of crap.
If that wasn't enough, in the last few pages of the book, the main antagonist--an assassin named Odal--ends up in love with Geri as well.
"He," meaning Odal, here, "had expected to feel either an excitement at the thought of pleasing Geri, or a new burden of fear at the prospect of returning to Kor's hands. Instead he felt neither. Nothing."
Yeah, me too, buddy. I understand what Bova was going for with that, I think, attempting to indicate a sort of disillusionment by Odal of his own failing status, but I think it's sadly a bit too revealing of where the reader is at this point in the novel as well.
All throughout, the writing is crisp and easy to follow along with. There are parts of this that I found silly, but at the same time it all moves at such a fast clip that I was compelled to keep going. Pages fly by, full of information and conflict, and all of it engaging. Recommended for a fun read and a cross-section of societal opinions in the sixties; just don't go in expecting anything earth-shaking when it comes to convention or worldview.
It's sort of amusing now to think of such a device that ISN'T used for explicitly sexual purposes, when inventions such as this have been thrust forward largely by the sale of pornography (home video, internet, e-readers), but whatever. The novel requires a great many conceits to imagine that, okay yes, this machine works, and it somehow has replaced all-out war, because through the lens of this narrative, disputes between countries can often be boiled down to disputes between men.
It's sort of an imperialist outlook on history, isn't it? Great men, and all of that. One of the protagonists is even referred to as hopefully becoming a "great man" in a few years at the novel's end.
I don't know the actual efficacy of such a device as the dueling machine. If you could have Chamberlain and Hitler sit down in this machine, theoretically, would it have really stopped people from frothing at the mouth to fight for very long? It's the kind of notion that can only truly work in a science-fictional world where resources are plenty and economic unrest seems non-existent, because as far as I can tell, most wars are, at their base, about land and resources how to get more of them--not ideals.
And what's odd is that Bova seems to acknowledge this; the main thrust of the discovery arc of the protagonist--Dr. Leoh--is that he wants to find a way to transfer men to more planets, so they can have more land and resources and stop fighting all the time. I suppose the idea is that most men and women don't even understand that what they're really pissed off about is not having enough, so they get stuck on ideals and petty feuds? Anyway, the dueling machine is recognized by Leoh as a stop-gap measure, even in the book.
All told, it's an odd little book. You've got space Nazis--the antagonistic force--without all that horrible business of fascism and genocide (or at least, none that is really explored), with just strong hints of tyranny and strong examples of military discipline and a mad leader, enough to make the analogue of Nazi pretty clear. Turns out, that's still pretty evil even without the genocide. (I suppose they could just as easily be Space Stalinists, or the Space Khmer Rouge [besides that not existing yet at the time of publication]. Humanity is sort of depressing in its ease of analogues for tyrannic evil that way. But "Space Nazis" is just catchier.)
It's sort of neat that the main protagonist here, Dr. Leoh, is an old man. He is a fun character, highly fascinated by science and discovery, but prone to long tangential excursions into exploring his own fame, showing off his dueling prowess in his machine, daydreaming about younger women, and being cranky with politicians.
There's a complicated relationship with gender, here. By complicated, I mean "problematic." And by complicated and problematic, I am trying to be diplomatic about saying it is pretty awful. There is a grand total of one female character in the book, Geri, and she runs through the motions of being a trophy, and then manipulative via feminine wiles, and then a trophy again--all of this without any of her point-of-view in a book with frequently shifting point-of-views. There is literally more time spent in the point-of-view of men who die within five pages of their first appearance than there is in the point-of-view of a woman who is present throughout the entire book. That's kind of crap.
If that wasn't enough, in the last few pages of the book, the main antagonist--an assassin named Odal--ends up in love with Geri as well.
"He," meaning Odal, here, "had expected to feel either an excitement at the thought of pleasing Geri, or a new burden of fear at the prospect of returning to Kor's hands. Instead he felt neither. Nothing."
Yeah, me too, buddy. I understand what Bova was going for with that, I think, attempting to indicate a sort of disillusionment by Odal of his own failing status, but I think it's sadly a bit too revealing of where the reader is at this point in the novel as well.
All throughout, the writing is crisp and easy to follow along with. There are parts of this that I found silly, but at the same time it all moves at such a fast clip that I was compelled to keep going. Pages fly by, full of information and conflict, and all of it engaging. Recommended for a fun read and a cross-section of societal opinions in the sixties; just don't go in expecting anything earth-shaking when it comes to convention or worldview.
May 29, 2022
This sci fi novella can be easily obtained on Project Gutenberg. I like to read random sci fi stuff that gets released on there and this novella is my latest jump into the unknown of the golden age of Sci Fi (as some call it). Haven’t heard about neither of the authors. But I should have. Ben Bova had a very long and impressive career. The man has been writing for over 60 years (guess living from 1935 to 2020 has its perks). He wrote over 150 works, which like two or three per year of his active writing career. He also won not 1, nor 2 but 6, SIX Nebula Awards!!! Very accomplished and hard-working guy, need to read more about him, as well as from him.
Myron R. Lewis is a totally different story. This is only one of two available works by this person, if they exist at all. Nothing can be found, so maybe it was a onetime pseudonym by some other person Bova liked to collaborate. The second story is called “Men of Good Will” also co-authored with Ben Bova.
Quick side note, there are both a novel and a novella by this name. This is a recap/review or whatever you want to call it, of the novella.
Onto the story.
The crux of the novella is the impending clash between two Galactic Empires. In this future, there are no real wars in the sense that we and probably every intelligent species ever evolved in the history of our universe has fought (guessing most evolved societies evolved with a firm sense of territory). In the novella, they fight it out in a Dueling Machine. Not whole armies, but just two people. Its two or multiple rounds. In each round a person imagines an arena. It can be a prehistoric time with clubs, it can be a dense forest in the middle age, both arms with either swords or crossbows. They fight set by the conditions of the first combatant, then the second. The winner of the duel is the winner of the war and they can freely annex the other world. Can you imagine the pressure? Imagine waking up one morning and thinking, if I suck at this thing I do, the whole world is lost. If I don’t perform by utmost best, we are all potentially slaves to some green people 60, 70 light years away.
Naturally, this isn’t just for war, its thought of as something to let off steam and resolve any conflict that spirals into a potentially physical contact.
In the novella, the Kerak empire keeps expanding with their sly use of the machine. But their combatant doesn’t just defeat his opponents, somehow, he kills them. According to Dr Leah, the inventor of the Dueling Machine, such a thing is impossible. To halt the Kerak expansion, Leah has to work with a young Star Watch commander, to both figure out what goes wrong in the Dueling Machine once the Keraks use it, as well as how to stop the inevitable expansion and imperialism of the Kerak empire.
Myron R. Lewis is a totally different story. This is only one of two available works by this person, if they exist at all. Nothing can be found, so maybe it was a onetime pseudonym by some other person Bova liked to collaborate. The second story is called “Men of Good Will” also co-authored with Ben Bova.
Quick side note, there are both a novel and a novella by this name. This is a recap/review or whatever you want to call it, of the novella.
Onto the story.
The crux of the novella is the impending clash between two Galactic Empires. In this future, there are no real wars in the sense that we and probably every intelligent species ever evolved in the history of our universe has fought (guessing most evolved societies evolved with a firm sense of territory). In the novella, they fight it out in a Dueling Machine. Not whole armies, but just two people. Its two or multiple rounds. In each round a person imagines an arena. It can be a prehistoric time with clubs, it can be a dense forest in the middle age, both arms with either swords or crossbows. They fight set by the conditions of the first combatant, then the second. The winner of the duel is the winner of the war and they can freely annex the other world. Can you imagine the pressure? Imagine waking up one morning and thinking, if I suck at this thing I do, the whole world is lost. If I don’t perform by utmost best, we are all potentially slaves to some green people 60, 70 light years away.
Naturally, this isn’t just for war, its thought of as something to let off steam and resolve any conflict that spirals into a potentially physical contact.
In the novella, the Kerak empire keeps expanding with their sly use of the machine. But their combatant doesn’t just defeat his opponents, somehow, he kills them. According to Dr Leah, the inventor of the Dueling Machine, such a thing is impossible. To halt the Kerak expansion, Leah has to work with a young Star Watch commander, to both figure out what goes wrong in the Dueling Machine once the Keraks use it, as well as how to stop the inevitable expansion and imperialism of the Kerak empire.
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