The Beast

by A.E. van Vogt

AKA "Moonbeast" One of the finest writers in the golden age of science fiction--and inventor of the intricatley plotted form of SF known as the "space opera"--offers the story of a flawed hero possessing almost superhuman strength. When his wife is kidnapped, war veteran Jim Pendrake embarks upon a search that takes him to a lost colony on the moon--and a secret, sinister society. Originally published in Astounding Science Fiction.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Fantasy, Short Stories, Classics

Paperback

First published January 1, 1943

About the author

Alfred Elton van Vogt was a Canadian-born science fiction author regarded by some as one of the most popular and complex science fiction writers of the mid-twentieth century—the "Golden Age" of the genre.

van Vogt was born to Russian Mennonite family. Until he was four years old, van Vogt and his family spoke only a dialect of Low German in the home.

He began his writing career with 'true story' romances, but then moved to writing science fiction, a field he identified with. His first story was Black Destroyer, that appeared as the front cover story for the July 1939 edtion of the popular "Astounding Science Fiction" magazine.

Reviews

[Kostas Papadatos · Rating 1 out of 5]

Τι να πω και ποιος να με πιστέψει. Ο ήρωας μας (του οποίου το δεξί χέρι έχει ακρωτηριαστεί), βρίσκει μια περίεργη μηχανή σε σχήμα λουκουμά. Το εύρημα αυτό έχει ένα ισχυρό πεδίο ενέργειας. Επειδή μυρίστηκε πως θα κερδίσει χρήματα από το μαραφέτι, το παίρνει σπίτι του. Εκεί παρατηρεί πως το κομμένο του άκρο ξαναφυτρώνει λες και είναι ουρίτσα από λιμοντίρι.
Μην τα πολυλογώ, τον απαγάγουν οι άνθρωποι του προέδρου της Αμερικής, ξανακόβεται το χέρι του, ξαναφυτρώνει για δεύτερη φορά, τον στέλνουν στο φεγγάρι για πειράματα, εκεί το σκάει και τον πιάνουν οι άνθρωποι του νεαντερτάλιου Μεγάλου Ατζαμή, οι οποίοι δουλειά τους είναι να απαγάγουν νεαρές Γερμανίδες από τη γή και να τις φέρνουν πίσω στη σελήνη με σκοπό την αναπαραγωγή και μπλα μπλα μπλα…
Ότι να΄ναι.
Κανονικά έπρεπε να βάλω δύο αστεράκια στη βαθμολογία γιατί θέλει ιδιαίτερη προσπάθεια για να γράψει κανείς κάτι τόσο κακό.

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rather than read the fix up novel version of The Beast, published in 1963, which has been widely panned for it's slapdashery, I decided to read two of the three stories it's based on, namely The Great Engine and The Beast (novella), both published in 1943. This version of The Beast is essentially a sequel to The Great Engine and starts out with James Pendrake's continued search for the mysterious abandoned atomic engine he found on a hilltop two years earlier. Paired with The Great Engine this makes for an excellent, and consistent, story arc.

If I say too much about the plot of The Beast it will sound ridiculous. Maybe it is. Suffice it to say there are underground Nazis involved in a nefarious conspiracy, immortal polygamous cowboys, an interplanetary matter transporter, a million year old genius Neanderthal named "Big Oaf", and that most of it takes place within millennia old caverns created by an extinct alien civilization on the moon. With all of that and more van Vogt manages to harness his extravagant imagination and inimitable style to tell an amazing adventure story full of action and intrigue, and at breakneck speed. Oh, and there's a saber tooth tiger.

Seriously, what other author, then or since has so consistently and unabashedly unleashed his/her imagination to such an extent? van Vogt straps a rocket to his imagination, which either explodes after launch or takes you all the way to the moon and beyond.

[Denis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This fix-up was cobbled together by using three short stories originally published Astounding Science Fiction magazine:

"The Great Engine"- July 1943 (Chapters 1-5)
"The Changeling"- April 1944 (Chapters 5-11)
Linking material (Chapters 12-13)
"The Beast"- November 1943 (Chapters 14-31 and Epilogue)

A bit of spoiler here, perhaps, but in reality, not really. It is simply a sample of some of the bizarre turns, typical of van Vogt’s fix-ups of this era. And this is not one of his best efforts as far as they go. The Great Engine part seems a very good start. It would, perhaps, have been a much better novel if he would have simply taken that and expanded it with new material.

The second part, based on “The Changeling”, attempts to propel the plot forward with the new elements with our protagonist (now known as ‘James’ Pendrake rather than Jim? - something to do with altered identity... I think) is made aware that he is “toti-potent” (a result of being exposed to the found machine) which means he now has some sort of super powers - both mental and physical - he even has the ability to regrow amputated limbs - a good thing as he loses them quite often. The President of the United States, naturally, demands this ability once learning that he can possibly have it simply by way of blood transfusion with Pendrake...

The third part involves East-Germans (Nazis) and stereotypical south-western cowboys secretly living inside the Moon ruled by a Neanderthal known as the “Big Oaf”and the Beast is a saber tooth tiger living in the bottom of a pit... Yeah, you see? It’s a bit much of a stretch to somehow tie these three story lines together. Even for van Vogt. But this is why I read him. You just don't know what you are going to get wit his books. What he is going to do with the story (stories).

A laughable element is a treatment that creates “Equalized women”. This is a process that allows women to be the equal to men and are therefore employed as security personnel for the President... So, it seems, they are “dumbed-down?” in order for this to happen. They are but automatons here.

Trying to string the initial Engine story throughout this novel along with the two other stories seemed quite forced. Better to read these stories separately as they were first originally published rather than this cannibalization. They can be found, as well as many of the others he wrote during his prime in the 1940’s, in there original form in many collections.

[Helen · Rating 1 out of 5]

The plot of Moonbeast is an absolute mess. It makes very little sense and the main character, James Pendrake, keeps passing out, losing his memory, and waking up in a different book. Or that's what it feels like because the story changes so drastically three or four times.

It's frustrating to read, and then also very sexist. There are women in the book that take a serum to make them the 'equal' of men. But apparently the jokes on them because other women don't like them, men think they are odd and don't want to marry them, and no one will employ them.

Then, randomly, the president has to win the "most fantastic election in the history in the history of America" because a woman is running for president. And the most important part of this woman's campaign? Well she wants to "end the infidelity of the American male".

The science is daft and details are skimmed over. Nothing holds up to close scrutiny. Pendrake has super strength from the start of the book and I never worked out why. It's more pulp sci-fi style, like what they would write in the 30's. It has people living underground on the moon, in heated tunnels and caves with plenty of air, growing crops and with water and herds of cows. I have no idea how that's possible, it's never explained.

There are some very good examples of vintage sci-fi out there, this mess isn't one of them. Don't waste your time.

[Bryan · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's really too bad - some SF has not aged as gracefully as others. And sadly, when it comes to the A.E. van Vogt, the current status of his legacy is very under-appreciated.

This author used to be one of the big stars in the early pulp days. His works were often the wildest and most outlandish in a field distinguished by writers with amazing imaginations. A van Vogt story had a mysterious and compelling aura to it - something to be held in awe, and a guarantee of a good engaging read and a bizarre mindbender of a story plotline.

But... van Vogt has virtually no audience anymore. Perhaps here are some reasons why:

1) Fake science.
His space opera is too "bogus" in a time when hard SF demands realistic science to the extent that most current space opera manages to hang on to FTL drives but not much else. All van Vogt needed for an amazing technology was some bafflegab involving a "lead plate [which has been] electrically prehardened
[and used with] a pentagrid shielding tube". What? Even an unsophistocated junior science student knows that's junk, and most current readers are savvy enough that this is jarring.

2) Wooden characterization
Not really van Vogt's forte, this is also not really a hallmark of his era. But it also allowed van Vogt to soar beyond the mundane. The very fact that his characters were a bit distant and aloof allowed van Vogt to write about supermen. While Asimov was dealing with making robots lifelike, van Vogt was giving us the ultimate in fantastic gods. Zelazny later found a way to bring the more humanlike qualities to such larger-than-life characters, but his was a rare talent. In this book, van Vogt's superman protagonist can literally not be disarmed! His toti-potent body regenerates lost limbs!

3) Archaic ideals
This book actually has a process called "equalization", which is administered by means of drugs. It allows women to be the equal of men. (But of course, not equal to our hero, because remember he is toti-potent.) Now, we certainly don't have to assume that van Vogt held denigrating ideas about women, but his writing may be less palatable to many.

BUT.... remember, van Vogt was highly regarded. So what did he get right, and what still holds up as strengths even today?

1) Writing quality
The man could write. In fact, based on the first few chapters, I was loving this book and was ready to give it 4 or 5 stars. Van Vogt certainly knew how to keep the plot moving, and always fed the reader enough to keep them engrossed and eager to turn another page.

2) High imagination
Never set out to read a van Vogt novel without preparing yourself for some of the most outlandish ventures science fiction has to offer! He will not play it safe, and he will not allow things to become dull or mundane. In sheer scale, van Vogt crosses more fantastic frontiers within his stories than most other authors, and he does it in a totally casual manner, as though such bizarre extremes are merely of consequential import. Bold and daring, imagine an artist unafraid to use the wildest brush strokes as he works on his canvas.

So... why so low a score for this novel?

It was originally published as a series of 3 short stories:

"The Great Engine" - July 1943
"The Beast" - November 1943
"The Changeling" - April 1944

(Each of these stories was published in Astounding Science Fiction magazine.)

So let's be fair - this is a fix-up, and there is bound to be some parts where transitions are less smooth than others.

But does it work as a novel? Actually, I found it a bit jarring. I went from an extremely enjoyable section about a great engine (you have to read it to get the full enjoyment, as I can only spoil it by describing it further)...

And then suddenly it jumps into some strange spy novel, with our superman protagonist suffering from amnesia during another toti-potent phase. And from this point on, I never again figured out exactly who the bad guys were, or what each of the various groups really wanted to achieve. There were German nazis on murderous rampages, groups of historic old-west characters locked youthfully in time (and led by an even more impossibly longlived Neanderthal who liked to be called "Big Oaf"). There was a president who wanted toti-potent treatment through a blood-type match from our hero, and an entire conspiracy involved in providing the protagonist a false life during his amnesiac state. And there's the moonbeast...

One of the major failings of this book is that it didn't hold together well enough as a novel. As I mentioned previously, I never really understood the actions or the goals aimed for by the various groups involved. Even the protagonist seemed to be carried along as human flotsam, and the various bouts of amnesia didn't help in giving him any quest for which the reader might be sympathetic.

The sheer breadth of ideas is daunting, but the unfortunate lack of cohesiveness leads to this novel's main drawback.

Sadly, this is not the book to which I would steer a new SF fan in hopes that they might read van Vogt and gain an appreciation for some of the early works.

For fans only, or for those who like a challenge.

[Nick · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ο Α. Ε. ΒΑΝ ΒΟΓΚΤ είναι ένας από τους αγαπημένους μου συγγραφείς επιστημονικής φαντασίας της επονομαζόμενης "Χρυσής Εποχής". Ένας συγγραφέας που χαρακτηρίζεται από την πλούσια φαντασία του και την καταιγιστική δράση που προσφέρει στα βιβλία του.
"Το τέρας της σελήνης" είναι η πρώτη του δουλειά ως συγγραφέα επιστημονικής φαντασίας, η οποία τον καιρό που την συνέγραψε(1943,1944) δεν έγινε δεκτή προς δημοσίευση από τα γνωστά περιοδικά επιστημονικής φαντασίας της εποχής. Και μάλλον σε αυτή την περίπτωση οι εκδότες είχαν δίκιο, γιατί το βιβλίο είναι πρωτόλειο, όπου ο συγγραφέας με τον ενθουσιασμό του νέου δημιουργού προσπαθεί να χωρέσει πολλά πράγματα μέσα σε λίγες σειρές με αποτέλεσμα να κάνει την ανάγνωση του δύσκολη. Επίσης η διήγηση του είναι αποσπασματική και συχνά πετάγεται από το ένα θέμα στο άλλο.
Από την άλλη δεν μπορείς να μην θαυμάσεις το εύρος της φαντασίας του συγγραφέα, αφού σχεδόν κάθε ιδέα που περιέχει μέσα σε αυτό θα μπορούσε να γίνει από μόνη της ξεχωριστή ταινία ή βιβλίο. Ή μήπως έχει ήδη γίνει; Θα αναφέρω μερικά παραδείγματα: 1) ο ήρωας του βιβλίου πάσχει από κενά μνήμης και υπάρχουν μυστικές οργανώσεις που θέλουν να το εκμεταλλευτούν αυτό (προσωπικά μου θύμισε την ιστορία του "Ολική Επαναφορά" του Βερχοφεν), 2) υπάρχει μηχανή - πύλη που μεταφέρει ανθρώπους, ζώα κι αντικείμενα από τη Γη στη σελήνη (ιδέα που διαπραγματεύτηκε η ταινία Stargate), 3) ο ήρωας αποκτά τη δύναμη να αναπλάθει τραύματα και ακρωτηριασμούς που του συμβαίνουν κατά τις περιπέτειες του (Deadpool), 4) ο ήρωας μας αποκτά τη δύναμη να επεκτείνει τις νοητικές του ικανότητες όπως ο χαρακτήρας στην ταινία Limitless (Απόλυτη ευφυΐα) και 5) φυσικά στη σελήνη υπάρχουν Ναζί (Iron Sky). Σε όλα αυτά προσθέστε κι ένα σκεπτόμενο κι απειλητικό Νεάντερταλ μαζί με ένα μαχαιρόδοντα τίγρη στη σελήνη και νομίζω θα καταλάβετε για τη δύναμη της φαντασίας του συγγραφέα.
Πραγματικά, εδώ, υπάρχουν πολύ καλές ιδέες, οι οποίες όμως αδικούνται από τον τρόπο γραφής και πως δομεί το βιβλίο του ο Βογκτ. Σίγουρα δεν είναι μια από τις δυνατές του στιγμές....

[SciFiOne · Rating 4 out of 5]

1981 Grade A
2024 Grade B

A.E. van Vogt is another historical SciFi writer. I always knew there was something odd about his books and I shouldn't read them too often. Now I know why. This story starts very well, level headed, and at a grade A level, with a man finding a crashed engine in a field. He starts to make it functional until it is taken away from him on page 34. From there on it changes gear so much I could not believe it. By the time it ended, the story is so outlandish I could not suspend my disbelief. I used quite a bit of speed reading from the moon on.

But it is an interesting and unusual read and worth reading once.

[Xabi1990 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Leído en 2003.
Relato del 43 de Van Vogt.

Esto es un veterano de guerra que busca a su esposa secuestrada y va a la Luna y se encuentra con una colonia perdida y una sociedad secreta.
Esto es un relato de esos años que se puede leer uno por curiosidad si eres forofo de la CF. Sólo en ese caso.

[Teemu Öhman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fix-up (a term A. E. van Vogt invented; he also invented the E and the van in his name) of three short stories published in the 1940s. Several reviewers here say that one should read the original stories rather than this fix-up. They’re probably right.

I read somewhere that Philip K. Dick was a fan of van Vogt. If Moonbeast is representative of his work, I can sort of understand that. The plot (if you can call it a plot) makes very little sense, and includes beautiful East German Moon Nazis, polygamous cowboys from the wild west and a Neanderthal named Big Oaf, all being essentially immortal and living in a version of the hollow Moon concept. We also get a couple of glimpses of the original Moon people, who have by now advanced to another level. Or something. And there’s a beast.

In addition, there’s an uninteresting superhuman main character who conveniently forgets everything every few chapters and chases a miracle machine built by those original Moon people. Oops, that could have been a spoiler, but who cares, really? Oh, I forgot to mention the government conspiracy.

With all this you could come up with some highly entertaining pulp, but van Vogt fails miserably. It’s hard to say what he was after. The obvious choice is a parody, but it feels like van Vogt was at least partially taking this more or less seriously, because otherwise it’s hard to understand why he would have made it so boring.

From a lunar geologist’s point of view it was worth noting that van Vogt’s lunar maria are made of pumice, and that the whole Moon is a volcanic body. This, of course, largely reflects the scientific consensus of the 1940s, although in the early 1960s when this fix-up version was published, the tide was already turning towards impact cratering being the most important lunar geologic process.

Recently, I read van Vogt’s classic short story Black Destroyer. I wasn’t too impressed about that either. After this mess called Moonbeast, I think I’m done with van Vogt.

2.5/5

[Alexander Theofanidis · Rating 2 out of 5]

(ελληνική κριτική στο τέλος)

"The Beast" by A.E. Van Vogt (also published under the title "Moonbeast") is one of the author’s lesser-known yet quintessential works, originally serialised in science fiction magazines during the 1940s. It belongs to Van Vogt’s early period, a time when his prose combined a flair for the imaginative with a fragmented yet intensely atmospheric narrative style.

Set in a post-apocalyptic future, the tale follows humanity’s struggle to endure under the shadow of a formidable, near-mythic entity known as “The Beast.” This being is not only a force of physical destruction but also a potent symbol: it embodies fear of the unknown, the threat of losing control, and the savage instinct lurking within the human psyche. The existential undertones are impossible to miss, while the tension of a metaphysical thriller permeates the narrative.

Into the mix goes political intrigue, psychological suspense, and classic pulp sci-fi action. As in many of Van Vogt’s other works (cf. The Weapon Shops of Isher), one observes the recurring themes of individual versus system, the pursuit of knowledge, and the evolution of human consciousness.

Van Vogt’s sentences are terse, his scene transitions abrupt, and the plot is often... disjointed—rendering the reading experience both thrilling and, at times, demanding, as the reader is required to “fill in” the gaps with their own intuition.

What remains memorable: the gripping central premise and an atmosphere thick with dread; the philosophically and psychologically resonant undertones; the fact that it stands as a classic example of golden age science fiction. Also: the omnidynamic cells of the amputee Jim Pendrake, which regenerate severed limbs. F_ck yeah!

What one might discard: the unorthodox and frequently confusing narrative structure; the characters (not entirely forgettable, admittedly) who tend to function more as symbols than as fully fleshed-out individuals; and the occasional descent into chaos where ambiguity reigns supreme.

In conclusion: The Beast is a work that encapsulates the very essence of early science fiction—bold, allegorical, and intense. It is by no means the most accessible or structurally coherent of Van Vogt’s writings, but it rewards those who approach it with imagination and patience. Ideal for readers who savour dark, existential sci-fi with a distinctly mysterious edge.

* * * * *

Το "Τέρας" του A.E. Van Vogt (κυκλοφόρησε και ως "Moonbeast"), είναι ένα από τα λιγότερο γνωστά (αν και βρήκε το δρόμο του για τουλάχιστον δύο διαφορετικές ελληνικές εκδόσεις!) αλλά και από τα χαρακτηριστικά έργα του συγγραφέα. Δημοσιευμένο αρχικά τη δεκαετία του 1940 σε περιοδικά επιστημονικής φαντασίας, ανήκει στην πρώιμη περίοδο του Van Vogt, όταν η γραφή του συνδυάζει εντυπωσιακή φαντασία με αποσπασματική αλλά έντονα ατμοσφαιρική αφήγηση.
Σε ένα μετα-αποκαλυπτικό μέλλον, η ανθρωπότητα προσπαθεί να επιβιώσει υπό την απειλή μιας πανίσχυρης, σχεδόν μυθικής οντότητας, του "Θηρίου". Αυτό το ον δεν είναι μόνο φυσικά καταστροφικό, αλλά και συμβολικό: αντιπροσωπεύει τον φόβο του άγνωστου, τον κίνδυνο της απώλειας ελέγχου και την εσωτερική μας βαρβαρότητα. Τα υπαρξιακά ερωτήματα προφανώς κάνουν μπαμ, ενώ η ένταση ενός μεταφυσικού θρίλερ είναι πανταχού παρούσα.
Στο μπλέντερ μπαίνει πολιτική, ψυχολογικό θρίλερ και κλασική pulp sci-fi δράση. Όπως και σε άλλα του έργα (λέγε με The Weapon Shops of Isher), βλέπουμε την αντιπαράθεση ατόμου με το σύστημα, την αναζήτηση της γνώσης και την εξέλιξη της ανθρώπινης συνείδησης.
Οι προτάσεις Van Vogt είναι κοφτές, οι εναλλαγές σκηνών γρήγορες και συχνά η πλοκή… ασύνδετη, κάτι που =καθιστά την ανάγνωση συναρπαστική μεν αλλά ενίοτε δύσκολη, καθώς απαιτεί από τον αναγνώστη να «συμπληρώνει» τα κενά.
Τι κρατάμε: Τη βασική ιδέα που είναι συναρπαστική και την ατμόσφαιρα αγωνίας. Τις εξαιρετικά ενδιαφέρουσες ψυχολογικές και φιλοσοφικές προεκτάσεις. Το ότι είναι κλασικό δείγμα "golden age" science fiction. Τα ολοδυναμικά κύτταρα του ακρωτηριασμένου Τζιμ Πεντρέικ που αναγεννούν ακρωτηριασμένα μέλη. F_ck yeah!
Τι πετάμε: Την ανορθόδοξη και συχνά συγκεχυμένη δομή. Τους χαρακτήρες (εντάξει, όχι ΕΝΤΕΛΩΣ) που είναι περισσότερο συμβολικοί παρά ρεαλιστικοί. Το ότι σε κάποια σημεία-μπάχαλο η ασάφεια βασιλεύει.

Εν κατακλείδι: Το The Beast είναι ένα έργο που ενσαρκώνει την ουσία της πρώιμης επιστημονικής φαντασίας: τόλμη, αλληγορία και ένταση. Δεν είναι το πιο εύπεπτο ή καλοδομημένο από τα έργα του Van Vogt, αλλά ανταμείβει όσους προσεγγίσουν την ανάγνωσή του με φαντασία και υπομονή. Ιδανικό για αναγνώστες που αγαπούν τη σκοτεινή, υπαρξιακή sci-fi με έντονο μυστηριακό στοιχείο.

[Jim Mcclanahan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This "novel" is comprised of a cobbled together mix of three early stories (1943 and 1944) published under the current title in 1963. Just time enough passed to allow him to acknowledge the existence of East Germany, but not enough to spur him to clean up messy plot lines. In essence the story is about a man who stumbles over an alien engine and is changed by it in just about any way you could imagine: physically (He grows back a lost arm). Mentally: He is suddenly smarter by orders of magnitude. And last but not least, he ultimately becomes an advocate for an egalitarian society; one which has room for everyone, even a transplanted in time Neanderthal (The beast).

Along the way he confuses characters and motivations, leaving a trail of broken story bits and pieces. What he does not do is abandon his built-in belief that women are created to serve men and not much else. Not a very convincing global view of his egalitarian beliefs. But he was a Dianetics pioneer, so you figure it out.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

My devotion to sci-fi movies, StarTrek, Stargate, Dr. Who, and such has never quite translated into reading the genre. But I keep trying.

The Beast is one of those that is so complicated if not convoluted that I'm not sure I know what happened. A highly intelligent Neanderthal, regrowth of severed limbs, strange transport and stranger engines, telepathic incidents, million-year-old Moon colonies ... I enjoyed the ride but I'm not sure where I went.

Post script
I then discovered through wandering in cyberspace that The Beast is likely a conflation of three different shorter stories. That would explain a lot.

[Edoardo · Rating 2 out of 5]

La città immortale è composto da un'accozzaglia di elementi che non si amalgamano per niente bene tra loro. Nella prima parte l'autore indugia sulla scoperta e lo studio di un motore misterioso, per poi virare bruscamente verso altri temi, tra superpoteri, intrighi politici ed un'esperienza su una colonia lunare ridicolmente fantasiosa. L'opera è chiaramente composta da più storie scritte distintamente, la cui raccolta ha dato forma a "La città immortale", un libro senza una trama portante e privo di un'identità ben definita.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book, I enjoyed reading it and the story was original and engaging. I raced through it keen to see what would happen next. A couple of downsides which really dated the book was the sexism (women need a drug to "equalize" them with men!) and much talk of East Germany and felt like it was still stuck in Nazism - it seems very outdated now but if you ignore those points all was good, it is Sci-Fi after all so it's not like all of it has to ring true.

[Sirvinya · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to enjoy this book more as there were quite a lot of concepts that seemed interesting. Unfortunately few of them were fleshed out or explored.

The book jumped around between plots so wildly that I even checked to see if I was reading the same book. It felt at times as though I was reading the plot for 2 or 3 different books all lumped into one.

[Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great concept. I don't remember that much about it but Van Vogt could write.

[Blake · Rating 3 out of 5]

(FYI I tend to only review one book per series, unless I want to change my scoring by 0.50 or more of a star. -- I tend not to read reviews until after I read a book, so I go in with an open mind.)

I'm finally going through my physical tv, film etc. tie in library owned book list, to add more older basic reviews. If I liked a book enough to keep then they are at the least a 3 star.

I'm only adding one book per author and I'm not going to re-read every book to be more accurate, not when I have 1000s of new to me authors to try (I can't say no to free books....)





First time read the author's work?: No

Will you be reading more?: Yes

Would you recommend?: Yes


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How I rate Stars: 5* = I loved (must read all I can find by the author)
4* = I really enjoyed (got to read all the series and try other books by the author).
3* = I enjoyed (I will continue to read the series)
or
3* = Good book just not my thing (I realised I don't like the genre or picked up a kids book to review in error.)

All of the above scores means I would recommend them!
-
2* = it was okay (I might give the next book in the series a try, to see if that was better IMHO.)
1* = Disliked

Note: adding these basic 'reviews' after finding out that some people see the stars differently than I do - hoping this clarifies how I feel about the book. :-)

[Cuauhtemoc · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Beast by A.E. Van Vogt is an entertaining book. However, I struggled to understand what the book was about. More than Science Fiction this book belong to the Fantastic realm. It starts pretty well, and then it goes in many different directions until you reach a point in which you do not know what the story is about. There is not a lot of Science based facts, you have to take the events at face value for the story to work.

Also, being from 1963, the book struggles to be in tune of modern times. If in any case, the USA is not yet ready to have a woman President (like BACK IN 1963!). On some other topics though, this book is outdated.

Overall, I enjoyed reading it. Would I read it again in the future? Probably not. Only time will tell. A.E. Van Vogt is a good writer, his style is fluent and keeps you engaged.

[Michael Norwitz · Rating 1 out of 5]

AE van Vogt is one of the masters of the so-called Golden Age of Science Fiction, but this novel is an absolute mess. It starts off with a disabled farmer finding (apparently alien?) engine crash-landed on his property, conveyed in a manner which seemed old-fashioned and made me feel dubious but I was willing to give it a try, then transitioned to a completely different narrative in which the engine has not only cured the farmer's disability but wiped out his memory, essentially transforming it into a different sort of book. By the time the protagonist goes to the moon and is about to meet a hidden civilisation under the surface led by an immortal Neanderthal .. .I completely lost interest. Maybe this ought to have been an anthology of different stories, but as a single narrative it was incoherent.

[Sir Blue · Rating 5 out of 5]

European science fiction master.
A E van vogt. Writes
science fiction master piece.
Pendrake finds a strange alien engine.
He meets his wife as he becomes rich.
He lost his arm in the war but the engine is helping him grow back his arm.
Then the engine teleports him to a cave in the moon. Like a star gate is built.
Big olf is the man in charge.
Of this city inside the moon.
Pendragon finds himself at odds with big olf.who has built a harem for his 5 wives.
Using a teleporter he returns to earth to get help from the president.
He returns to the moon where he fights his way out of a pit with a sabertooth tiger.
Knocking big olf into the pit.
He saves his wife and returns home.
Freeing the sabertooth tiger.
He rescues them from the oppressive tyrant big olf.

[Alan]

Unfortunately this is a mashup of previous short stories. I had previously read The Changeling, so when this suddenly interrupted the flow as a new plot line I dropped the book. I'd really like to know about The Engine, but I can't finish this. So I'll have to read the original short stories and novellas.

[Laurent · Rating 2 out of 5]

De la science-fiction à l'ancienne, avec des sauts incessants dans le temps et l'espace qui rendent le récit confus.

[Gustave Floobah · Rating 3 out of 5]

poor old Jim Pendrake - if he was playing football and he got knocked out that many times - he'd have been suspended under the concussion rules - usual read for A.E. - jumps around a bit

[mar · Rating 3 out of 5]

disorienting at times

[Aristodimos]

τελείωσα στο αεροπλάνο το Σάββατο.
βιβλίο που άξιζε μόνο γιατί ήταν πολύ οικονομικό και το είχα στα μέσα χωρίς να με πολύ ενδιαφέρει η κατάσταση του, κατά τα άλλα δε νμζ ότι με πολυαγγιξε.

[Andres Borbon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Es una historia caótica y descoyuntada, un "fix-up" hecho a partir de varios cuentos y con una trama incoherente (ya que la incongruencia no es problema en la ciencia ficción).

En breve: Jim Pendrake, a quien le falta un brazo pues lo perdió en la guerra, encuentra un extraño motor súper-avanzado y, tras tocarlo, le crece otro brazo. Hay una conspiración internacional para arrebatarle el motor y lo persiguen. Pasa un par de años y, habiendo perdido la memoria, es ahora un alto funcionario en una empresa pero es secuestrado por el presidente de los Estados Unidos que quiere extraerle la sangre pues se está convirtiendo en una especie de superhombre y la transfusión puede rejuvenecer al político. Lo secuestran mujeres "igualizadas", que se han inyectado drogas para ser iguales a los hombres (?). Escapa, pierde la memoria y termina en la Luna donde se encuentra en unas cavernas con aire, agua, pastos, ganados... una comunidad comandada por un Neanderthal llamado Gran Deforme que tiene nada menos que 1 millón de años de edad, pues la caverna le confiere la inmortalida. Él se enfrenta a Gran Deforme pues el primate quiere robarle a su esposa (que fue raptada por nazis y llevada a la Luna). Las cavernas, a propósito, fueron construidas por una especie de seres que "ascendieron" convirtiéndose en una conciencia grupal y que incitan a Jim a unírseles, pero él se niega. Derrotado por el Gran Deforme y a punto de ser arrojado a una fosa con un tigre dientes de sable que el Neanderthal mantiene en cautividad, logra escapar por un pasaje interdimensional de regreso a la Tierra donde, mientras tanto, el presidente lucha por la reelección ante una mujer liberada cuya lucha principal como candidata es conseguir que los hombres sean fieles, en cuyo caso contrario serán encandenados y castigados físicamente. Con los superpoderes recién adquiridos (y recuperándose de un nuevo episodio de pérdida de la memoria), Jim consigue mediante sus superpoderes hipnóticos, convencer al presidente de los Estados Unidos para que no se vuelva un tirano y de igualdad a las mujeres y otras cosas beneficiosas para la humanidad. Entonces, recobra la memoria y regresa a la Luna donde lucha con el Gran Deforme y lo vence, pero lo perdona al último momento pues lo que el espantoso homínido realmente quería era que una mujer lo quisiera por lo que hay realmente en él. Y...

¡Uf! Es demasiado para mí. Además, la prosa de Van Vogt se parece a sus tramas: el más puro caos. No es para mí. No me importa cuánto lo haya alabado Philip K. Dick ni que Harlan Ellison tuviera también en alta estima sus obras. Simplemente... no lo veo.

[Paul Adkin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I first read this book when I was a young teen, and I am reading it again to satisfy a gnawing desire to recall what it was about. I thought it an interesting book, but I hardly remembered anything about the actual story other than, primarily it was strange, and had something to do with a one-armed man finding a doughnut shaped machine that regenerates his amputated arm... and that the story ended up on the Moon.
But now that I have returned to this Beast of a book the most uncanny thing about our re-encounter is the way it must have seeped into my subconscious (perhaps not so uncannily at all if we consider the formative period in which I first absorbed it). Van Vogt's book's themes of eternal youth, amnesia and the physical monster that the amnesia victim becomes, have all been themes running through my own work.
But yes, what is uncanny is that I had precisely "forgotten" the Beast's references to amnesia... I had forgotten that he forgot.
Now it seems important that this is written down, unless the amnesia process begins again... who knows, perhaps I am really A. E. van Vogt rejuvenated, and has forgotten who he is in that same process of rejuvenation...
Coming back to the book after some 40 years, these remarks are really the only good things I can say about it. The writing starts off ok, but now I know why I probably don't remember anything about the story after the first 40 pages or so... the narrative collapses after that. Everything seems like a hurried pasting job that the author seems to have no control of. It is obviously full of an ideology, although a schizophrenic one replete with a foul air of sexism and so adolescently expressed that I won't bother trying to analyze it. All in all a rather disappointing return to the forgotten book that I had thought was going to be better.

[Max Turner · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is so awful I only skim read the final third - in the hopes that things might take a turn for the better: they don't.

Aside from being intensely boring, the story is disjointed and nonsensical. I've seen many reviews defend that this is because it is made up of three stories put together with linking material, but even the separate parts of just... boring and poorly plotted.

There is pretty much no real characterisation or character development. The personality of the main character is completely absent which makes it hard to engage at all. We learn some of his history and physical attributes but otherwise he is a completely blank slate.

When the story shifts POV it doesn't feel planned out, rather that the writer wasn't able to continue the story from the main character's POV and so is forced to change. The whole thing just feels like a poorly plotted first draft that no one went back over at any point.

I don't always buy into the "don't judge a book by its cover" but this one for me was definitely a warning for "don't judge a book by its blurb".

The back of my copy exclaimed:
"The time machine had brought together a strange assortment of people from many different centuries and left them at the mercy of the strongest - a brutal, primitive half-man, half-animal. Jim Pendrake was caught up in the machine, and began a frantic chase that carried him to the ends of the earth and beyond... to a world where, he learned, another of the Oaf's prisoners was a woman named Eleanor - Pendrake's wife."

I'd have loved to read that story, but unfortunately, that's not what I got.

[Andrew · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is disappointing, I can't recommend it. It is very difficult to follow, the main character keeps getting knocked out and wakes up with amnesia over and over, also he has super powers, and it takes place in a version of the 1970s when man already has colonies on the moon and venus, but is still worried about the evil East Germans.

It is cobbled together from some shorter pieces and it reads that way. The hero, his relationships, even the danger are hard to take seriously. This novel is cartoonish, to say it has not aged well implies it was a good novel at some point which it wasn't.

If the plot of Prometheus pisses you off when the captain suddenly decides the planet they are on is a weapons factory than the leaps of faith in this book are way more than you'll want to put up with, some of the other villains include the President of the United States who wants to live forever, a Neanderthal who has practically lived forever and the Beast itself which isn't introduced until the last third of the novel then doesn't do much but sit and wait to be fed.

Moral of the story, always bet on superhuman or "toti-potent" Americans that can regrow their limbs, build death rays out of prison radios, have super strength, mind control powers, and know how to travel to the moon and back. They can defeat any number of evil American Presidents, East Germans, and even one 1000s of year old Neanderthal...

[Socrate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maşinăria cenuşiu-albăstruie era aproape îngropată în verdeaţa dealului. Zăcea acolo, în vara anului 1972, un obiect neînsufleţit alcătuit din metal si din forţe la fel de puternice ca şi viaţa. Ploaia îi spăla formele lipsite de orice noimă. Soarele de iulie – iar acum şi cel de august – se revărsa fierbinte peste el. Noaptea, stelele se reflectau în acea îngrămădire de metal ce părea inutil, mut, nepăsător faţă de menirea sa. Nava pe care o propulsase şi care până atunci funcţionase normal tocmai pătrunsese în atmosfera Pământului când s-a produs accidentul: impactul cu un meteorit îi avariase structura exterioară. Din cauza fisurii făcute de meteorit, nava începuse să cadă spre Pământ, tot mai jos, mai jos… Zăcea de câteva săptămâni pe coasta acelui deal; un obiect ciudat ce părea lipsit de viaţă, dar care era de fapt extrem de viu în esenţa sa.
În câmpul lui de forţă se adunaseră tot felul de murdării, într-un strat atât de consistent, încât doar o sensibilitate ieşită din comun ar fi putut înregistra vibraţiile. Nici măcar băieţii care se aşezaseră într-o zi pe flanşa motorului nu observaseră straniile convulsii ale murdăriei. Dacă vreunul dintre ei şi-ar fi introdus mâna în infernul acela de energie – care de fapt era câmpul de forţă – muşchii, oasele şi sângele i s-ar fi transformat pur şi simplu în gaz, s-ar fi lichefiat instantaneu, explodând.