Ten Years To Doomsday

by Chester Anderson, Michael Kurland

Contact! The image in the battle cruiser's screens grew - and it was clear that this was a new kind of ship, a new race, the first new civilization the Federation had met in three hundred years. The crew's excitement mounted - the newcomers would be invited to join the Federation, the crew would all be heroes and be awarded enormous bonuses, and -

The stranger opened fire with an impressive battery of weapons; the cruiser's defenses cut in automatically, and in a few seconds the unidentified ship was nothing but an expanding cloud of radiant gases.

After a thousand years of peace in space, there was a war on. But who was the mysterious and deadly enemy?

Genres: Science Fiction

158 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1964

About the author

Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name

Chester Valentine John Anderson was a novelist, poet, and editor in the underground press.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chester...

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good old-school sf novel about the planet Lyff, where three agents of the Terran Empire have only ten years to raise the level of technology from medieval feudalism to interstellar military preparedness for war. It's a fast-paced read that reminded me a lot of Eric Frank Russell's work, and in turn I thought maybe it had been an influence on Pournelle's A Spaceship for the King. It's also very funny, starting with the authors dedicating it to one another and then moving on to the introduction of the good ship Terran Beaver. It was published by Pyramid in 1964 with a very good Ed Emshwiller cover and reprinted by Jove in 1977 with a nice Robert Adragna cover. It was the only Kurland and Anderson collaboration and was the first novel for both authors. Anderson only wrote one other, The Butterfly Kid, which was a very different New Wave Hugo nominee in 1967 and is now something of an underground classic.

[Lowden · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an amazing book, in my opinion. I found it at the first time I ever browsed a bookstore. read it before the day was out, fairly short.

The story goes like this: three guys have to turn a planet full of peasants from medieval times into a space age force in ten years. it's pretty remarkable how they managed it. however, it flies pretty fast, and it's hard to follow. but otherwise, it's interesting.

[Halecki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good,clever yarn

I picked this book up by mistake. I thought the story would be about something else.
I'm glad I did.
The story was an easy read and the plot was pretty nifty. The only drawback to the story was i never got a sense of immersion in the environment,. It was all superficial. (Hence,, the 4 stars)
This is NOT great literature. It is,however,great storytelling.
Highly recommended.

[Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful science fiction and easy to read. I was definitely entertained throughout the story. Alas I cannot keep this one because it is in rather poor condition. This was a garage sale find I think. If I can find another copy it will go into my permanent collection. =)

[Tomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 stars.

I don't normally bother giving something a .5 star rating, but this book is an exception. It's delightfully fun, trashy, and entertaining, but it doesn't quite deserve the full 4 stars. The story itself moves at a rapid pace, and never lets itself get too bogged down in details, which keeps the book feeling fresh and fun.

The characters are a bit flat, but since everything happens fast, that barely matters. If you enjoy your sci fi pulpy and a bit over the top you'll have a blast with this one. If you're looking to actually think then you should read something else.

[Sandra Megyesi-hallas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!! It brings back the joy of the golden age of science fiction writers! A fun read and a but if a mystery tied into it. It reminds me of the fun books which Heinlein wrote and that brought so much joy to my school days reading. Get it and enjoy the ride.

[Mathieu · Rating 4 out of 5]

A light and enjoyable read with an interesting premise. Also, it's about a federation of planets with a law against interfering with civilizations that haven't begun space travel yet. Printed in 1964, two years before Star Trek first aired.

[Mathew Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received the vintage copy of this book as an xmas present this year.

I love a good old vintage sci fi book with a larger than life cover. This baby fits the bill. A guy with a sword, near a castle, shooting a laser at a rocket ship.
Typically, these type of books have a great cover and a mediocre (or sometimes terrible) story. This book defied the odds and surprised me with a well written tale of galactic proportions, along with a surprising twist at the end.
10 years to doomsday is a countdown type of story...a medieval era planet is the target of an aggressive alien race. These killer aliens will attack in about ten years, and it's up to us Earthlings to help this puny world develop, or else the evil aliens will set their sights on us next.
This victim world is an interesting place built on a religion that praises the Mother figure. There are also kings and nobles, sword fights and joist matches. This world may be a bit backward, but they are an inventive people, and once let loose with a few high tech inventions they quickly turn into a space age civilization (that are even more powerful than us Earthlings)...you see where this is going?
I won't totally spoil the ending, but it isn't a nice one if that is what you are looking for.

[Richard Woods · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great 1960s SF, with a twist in the tail.
Given 10yrs to move a pre-industrial society to a level of launching a spaceship, so that it can be brought into the Terran Federation and help to defeat a new and unknown enemy, a group of secret Terran operatives are caught off -guard by the culture in which they work.

Too late they discover that the scriptures they had disdained include a book entitled 'A Handbook of Modern Physics'.
And that the faith they thought meaningless teaches that 'Mother’s love, being perfect, seeks always to embrace all creation, even those things that would deny her love'

[Dan Mibourn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun read

What a fun several hours, had no idea where the story was going but went along for the ride. Really glad that I did, reminded me of a story about China Conquers went to China were assimilated and China continued on there is a lesson there somewhere. D.M.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Ten Years to Doomsday is a great story. It has everything a science fiction reader would like. The ending blew me away!!

[Hugh muller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightfully different

A very enjoyable read. You never know what will happen next. The characters are characters. Gulliver’s travels on steroids. A fun read. Try it.

[Bill Ramsell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good yarn!

[Jonathan Palfrey · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is basically traditional old-style Campbellian science fiction, in which human ingenuity suffices to see off the nasty alien invaders. The plot shows some imagination in places, but the main problem for me is fundamental lack of plausibility.

We start with the planet of Lyff, inhabited by humans at a pre-gunpowder mediæval level of technology. With only a little help from a few emissaries from Earth, in less than ten years it’s producing and manning powerful fleets of spaceships. This would be a remarkable achievement if there were some credible explanation of how it all happened; but there isn’t. We’re just told that it happens. Oh dear.

Apart from that, the story is pleasant and readable enough. Characterization is very slight, and the characters are male: I noticed just one named female character, who appears only briefly. Perhaps by way of compensation (?), the people of Lyff worship a female god, named Mother.

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting SiFi story. Idea is a modern civilization must bring a medieval tech world up to advanced tech to meet a coming alien invasion. Recommended

[shawn murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great yarn. Made me think. Do not underestimate someone born in a stable.

[Miranda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another one younger me gave 4 stars that I don't remember at all

[Fire Star · Rating 2 out of 5]

be warned of the misogyny