Ministry of Disturbance

Federation

by Beam Henry Piper

HardPress Classic Books Series

Genres: Science Fiction, Short Stories, Fiction

60 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1958

Reviews

[SciFiOne · Rating 3 out of 5]

2019 grade C

A 60 page political SciFi novelette. I think there was a lot of satire and sarcasm in the story. But the story was a bit long and wordy. It sort of went over my head and bored me at the same time. It is well written, as Piper always is, but not good enough.

Kindle Mega-pack

[Janelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

I couldn’t follow this in audiobook format. There were too many characters for me to track. Especially with so many characters being ‘your majesty” or “your highness” etc.

[Wampuscat · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Goodreads blub says it all on this one. The only thing I can add is that it was excellent. You seldom find character development in a short story strong enough to make you like/care for one of them, but this one does. The intrigue in this story kept me guessing, and outsmarted me, until the end. I found myself wanting more from the future of this Galactic Empire. One of the best stores in the series. I give it 5 stars, and I call it a Superb Read!

[Stan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good short dealing with intergalactic politics in Piper's cosmos. It is a bit detailed for a short, so you have to follow it closely, or kind of skim the details and just enjoy the development. In the end, it all comes together. Even then, it isn't all completely clear, but you get the idea of what was going on and for how long it was in development. Still, Piper's talent and creativity shine through.

[Mason Kendrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the best Piper has to offer, but not bad. the story itself was barely interesting, and the big subplot is resolved by two guys explaining why everything that happened shows how smart they are rather than us actually getting to see anything interesting. However, viewed as a piece of the Terran future history series, this is a good bit to show how the Empire continues to develop. if you are reading the series it is worth the read, otherwise not much here.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting read, and particularly worth considering given the current events happening around the world.

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good story in the future history series. The scheming and political maneuvering was very well done and I always enjoy this type of clean wrap up, especially in a short story.

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did not work

Due to eye issues Alexa reads to me, I was trying to read H. Beam Piper's works. This one did not work out maybe you will have better luck. Enjoy reading 🔰2021😂

[Harvey Dias · Rating 3 out of 5]

Political intrigue in a sci-fi setting

[Harpoon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A light, pleasant read.

[MH · Rating 2 out of 5]

Badly-aged SF, full of space imperialism and contempt for democracy.

[The Bauchler · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short tale from the ‘top-end’ of Piper’s Future History.

The empire is stagnant...so lets shake things up a bit.

Not as good as Space Vikings...but then what is?:)

[Jon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid scientific/political short story set in Piper's Federation universe. For what it was, I'm impressed that the author managed to squeeze in some character development and throw in a slight twist at the end. It seemed that the plot was heading inevitably towards one outcome when something completely different occurred instead.

[Susan Molloy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story.

[gum · Rating 1 out of 5]

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