The Weapon from Beyond

Starwolf #1

by Edmond Hamilton, Jack Gaughan (Illustrator)

The stars whispered:Die, Starwolf! Die!

Morgan Chane was an Earthman by parentage, but he had been born on the pirate-world Varna, whose heavy gravity had developed strength and incredibly quick reflexes in him. When he was old enough, he joined the raider-ships that looted the starworlds, and fought side by side with the dreaded Starwolves of Varna.

But then there was a fight among them. Chane killed their leader, and the other Starwolves turned on him. He barely got away alive---wounded near death, his Starwolf pursuers following him across the galaxy.

An there was nowhere he could seek refuge, for no world lift a hand to save one of the hated Starwolves.

La saga di Morgan Chane, il Lupo dei Cieli, appartiene alla più moderna epica della fantascienza.Ma chi è Morgan Chane? E' un terrestre, figlio di missionari emigrati sul pianeta Verna, un mondo nel quale gli abitanti si dedicano sistematicamente alla rapina e al saccheggio di tutti i mondi conosciuti. In tutto il cosmo i Lupi dei Cieli sono temuti e odiati, e Morgan Chane è un Lupo dei Cieli, anche se la sua origine è terrestre, anche se soltanto per un miracolo è riuscito a sopravvivere alle tremende condizioni del gigantesco pianeta Verna... ma dal quale è stato anche scacciato, così ora egli considera come la sua patria i mondi della Via Lattea. Braccato e in perenne fuga, egli incontra i Mercenari che rappresentano la seconda potenza della Galassia, uomini che combattono per il proprio interesse economico in ogni angolo dell'universo. L'incontro tra Chane e John Dilulio, il vecchio mercenario che da troppi anni percorre le vie siderali combattendo contro i pericoli e i misteri di cento pianeti, sarà l'inizio di una rocambolesca saga che toccherà mondi strani e fantastici.

Contiene, in trad. italiana: The weapon from beyond, The closed worlds, World of the starwolves

In appendice: Edmond Hamilton e la fantascienza, di U. Malaguti.

Genres: Science Fiction, Space Opera, Fiction, Adventure, War

158 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1967

About the author

Edmond Moore Hamilton was a popular author of science fiction stories and novels throughout the mid-twentieth century. Born in Youngstown, Ohio, he was raised there and in nearby New Castle, Pennsylvania. Something of a child prodigy, he graduated high school and started college (Westminster College, New Wilmington, Pennsylvania) at the age of 14--but washed out at 17. He was the Golden Age writer who worked on Batman, the Legion of Super-Heroes, and many sci-fi books.

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Weapon from Beyond was the first of three space opera novels that Hamilton wrote featuring Morgan Chane, a Starwolf. He was stronger and faster than normal humans, because he had been raised on Varna, a heavy gravity world that was the home of space pirates, the Viking-like Starwolves of Varna. In this initial outing, he gets into a fight with the pirate leader, who dies, and ends up having to flee, finally joining up with a band of mercenaries commanded by John Dilullo. It's obviously a heavily pulp-influenced story, though by the time it was published the pulp magazines were long gone. Ace published it in 1967 with a striking and colorful Jack Gaughan cover. It's a very fast-paced and action-packed tale but is well-written and a lot of fun.

[JKirin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was the very first sci-fi story I have ever read. As a young girl obsessed with stars and planets that has read everything available to her in the school library's "astronomy" section, I was desperate for something "out of this world". I remember how my elder brother's friend give me this book behind my brother's back (because it wasn't "cool" for a guy to like reading, even sci-fi xD) and then how, after I read it, we talked for hours and hours about it! Then, I raided his home library, of course, but that's a different story.

At the time, I liked the book for a simple reason without really having anything to compare it to: it gave me a window to not one but countless different worlds that waited to be explored.

This week, I picked up the book again interested in whether or not I will like it after so many years and after so many other sci-fi books. I wasn't disappointed! This book, with all its strengths and flaws, is a fantastic example of its genre and time.

On the surface, it is a very light read: manly men conquer worlds, fight, drink, charm women, and go conquer other worlds. So much action and fun! Looking deeper, we see an antihero who is torn by an internal conflict. And we're made aware of it in the very first sentence of the book – so much distaste, shame, and judgement in there. And it carries through the quieter moments of the book, through internal dialogues. There is little likeable about the protagonist whose will to survive is not linked to a noble goal but instead is simply out of spite, out of sheer stubbornness. Then, the subtle changes in the guy's views, his growth as a person as he discovers new things and perspectives make you like him and laugh with him. I enjoyed this part a lot.

It is also important to mention how incredibly visual the writing is. On these pages, you get to see the unfamiliar worlds, shiver from the cold of empty space, hear stars whisper. And this is not even the best book of the series. Wait until you read The Closed Worlds.

[Malcolm Schmitz · Rating 5 out of 5]

...Entirely better and more delightful than it had ANY right to be. This is a delightful pulp-y romp through a galaxy that manages to feel convincingly alien. There are ancient mysteries, prison escapes, culture clashes, and- well, it's about an antihero raised by FURRY SPACE VIKINGS who call themselves STARWOLVES, do I really need to say anything else?

I'm definitely going to read the rest of this series.

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

While reading Edmond Hamilton's 1966 novel "Doomstar," I labored under the mistaken idea that this was the final work given to us by the Golden Age sci-fi master, and as it turns out, that thought was far from being correct. I have since found out that Hamilton did indeed come out with more work shortly after "Doomstar" appeared...in fact, an entire trilogy of books! I have no idea how that trilogy had escaped my earlier awareness, but for a long while now, I've been wanting to one day experience those three books. One of my favorite reads of 2024 had been Hamilton's "The Haunted Stars" (1960), a wonderful novel that combined Golden Age plotting with the author's more-sophisticated writing style of his later years. I'd been hankering for another dose of latter-day Hamilton ever since, and this trinity thus seemed made to order. The three books in question are the so-called STARWOLF TRILOGY, and are comprised of the novels "The Weapon From Beyond" (1967), "The Closed Worlds" (1968) and "World of the Starwolves" (also 1968). For the sake of convenience, I will be examining the books individually here, starting, of course, with "The Weapon From Beyond."

"The Weapon From Beyond" was originally released as a 50-cent Ace paperback here in the U.S. Internationally, the novel would see editions in Portugal (1967, under the title "Arma do Alem," or "The Weapon From Beyond"), Italy ('68, as "Il Lupo dei Cieli," or "The Wolf of the Skies"), Germany ('69, as "Der Sternenwolf," or "The Star Wolf," and featuring a beautifully faithful piece of cover art), Sweden ('70, as "Vapnet Fran det Okanda," or "The Weapon of the Unknown") and Japan ('70). For those readers today who might be desirous of purchasing the trilogy in one big volume, please know that such do exist: for example, the English-language ones from Ace, simply entitled "Starwolf" ('82, and the edition that I was happy to lay hands on), and the one from the British publisher Hamlyn/Arrow ('85, also simply titled "Starwolf").

Now, as for "The Weapon From Beyond" itself, the book was released when Hamilton was already 63 years old, and 10 years prior to his passing. The book is set in an indeterminate future age in which space flight and space commerce have been long established. Against this backdrop the reader is introduced to Morgan Chane, one of the piratical Starwolves of the planet Varna. Decades earlier, Chane's parents had arrived on Varna from Earth as missionaries and had succumbed to the world's heavy gravity. Chane had somehow survived and had been taken in by the Starwolves there. But shortly before the events of this book commence, Morgan had had a falling out with one of his fellow raiders, Ssander, involving spoils following a foray. Chane had killed Ssander in self-defense, and as this Book #1 opens, he is fleeing from the vengeful Starwolves and attempting to hide his one-man cruiser in the gaseous murk of the parsecs-wide Corvus Nebula. His lot is made even worse when he espies another ship. If it is a cruiser belonging to the Starwolves, he is a dead man; if it is not, he will most assuredly be killed anyway, if his identity as a former Starwolf is discovered. And when his craft is damaged by a marble-sized bit of space junk, knocking out the ship's drive, Morgan has no other choice than to suit up and, using hand-held impellers, try to make it to the mystery cruiser. Fortunately for him, the ship belongs to a band of mercenaries, the Mercs, whose leader, John Dilullo, although recognizing Chane for what he is, nevertheless gives him a chance to work along with them on their current mission...or else. And Morgan, a man without a friend in the world(s) and nothing else to do, has no choice but to concur.

Thus, before long, the Mercs land on the planet Kharal, in the Corvus Nebula, and take on their new assignment. It seems that the Kharalis' enemies, the people of Vhol on the outer planet of their star system, have reportedly come into possession of a new kind of superweapon; one that is being developed somewhere in the immense nebula. The Mercs' mission (if they choose to accept it) is to locate this new superweapon and then destroy it. After some tense days on Kharal, during which Chane is imprisoned and compelled to escape from a guarded jail cell, the Mercs make their way to the beautiful planet of Vhol to do some spying, under the guise of being purveyors of conventional armaments. More escapades ensue, after which the crew is compelled to fight their way off the planet and back into space. Casting about the nebula once again, the Mercs have the bad luck of running into a squadron of Starwolf cruisers, and since the space pirates are capable of zipping along at far greater velocities than any other ships in the galaxy (due to their ability to resist killing acceleration pressures), things begin to look very grim, indeed...and even worse, when a Vhollan cruiser joins the battle! But ultimately, Dilullo & Co., with Chane beside them--his identity still a secret from all but the Merc leader--do indeed find what they are looking for, on an unnamed planet in the Corvus Nebula. And, it would appear, this discovery will just be the prelude to some more jaw-dropping wonders....

"The Weapon From Beyond," to its very great credit, is a book that features virtually nonstop action, movement and color all the way through. That elusive sense of wonder, so highly esteemed by readers during science fiction's Golden Age, is very pronounced here, too. Hamilton, after over four decades of nonstop productivity, had perfected a wonderfully readable style by this point, and the cliff-hanger chapters here seem to make those pages fly by. Besides the space travel, alien races and galactic commerce, Hamilton peppers his book with all manner of interesting futuristic touches. And so, we witness Chane being treated with a "healamp" to do away with a grievous wound sustained in battle; Chane employing a "miniaturized ato-flash" gizmo to cut through the bars in his jail cell; a portable analyzer whose "fingering rays" help examine the innards of the most arcane devices; and, of course, those nasty laser pistols that every race in the galaxy seems to favor. Adding to the exotic flavor of the book are the alien races that Hamilton gives us in this outing: the slender, seven-foot-tall, blue-skinned Kharalis; the albino Vhols; and the amber-skinned, seemingly jointless Krii, whose wrecked starship the Mercs discover on that nameless planet. Oh...and let's not forget some of those interesting critters to be found on Vhol: the Pyam, a telepathic, turnip-shaped thing; the snokk, a wallabylike animal with a friendly, canine disposition; and the Golden Ones, enormous sea creatures far far larger than a Terran whale. No, we don't get to see the Varnan Starwolves here--only their space cruisers--although one senses that they will surely make an appearance later in the trilogy.

Very few authors were capable of depicting space battles better than Edmond Hamilton (see such novels as 1929's "Outside the Universe" and 1930's "The Universe Wreckers" if you don't believe me!), so it might seem strange that in this Book #1, the ship-to-ship engagements are present but considerably downplayed. Still, any number of exciting set pieces are to be had. Among them: the spacesuit-clad Chane adrift in that nebula, his cruiser having gone blooey, hoping against hope to be spotted and rescued; his escape from that jail cell in a mountain-city on Kharal; Chane breaking into a heavily guarded spaceport warehouse on Vhol, to see what has just been delivered from the heart of the nebula; the Mercs escaping from house detention on Vhol and fighting their way back to the ship; the attack of the Starwolves in the Corvus Nebula; the discovery of the Vhollan superweapon on the lost planet; the exploration of the derelict Krii ship; Chane and two other Mercs' scaling of a precipice to fire a laser weapon at two Vhollan heavy cruisers; and finally, the arrival of the Krii themselves, in a scene that might bring to mind the return of the Llorn in "The Haunted Stars."

For the rest of it, "The Weapon From Beyond" also gives us an interesting roster of secondary characters. Dilullo shows himself to be both highly capable and not a little tough, despite the fact that he is getting up in years; his second in command, the corpulent engineer Bollard, remains absolutely unflappable during times of crisis; Thrandirin, a Vhollan government functionary, impresses by dint of his sneakiness and arrogance; and Labdibdin, a Vhollan scientist working on the lost planet, ingratiates because he seems to be the only Vhollan more interested in research than in weapons. The book gives readers some occasional food for thought, too, in addition to the relentless action. Thus, when Chane tells Labdibdin that the Krii "must have been the greatest looters in the universe," based on all the galactic artifacts and flora and fauna samples in their wrecked ship, the Vhollan replies "Not looters. Scientists. Collectors of knowledge." To which the Starwolf replies "I see. It all depends on who does it." A good part of the fun in Hamilton's book comes from watching Chane as he endeavors to conceal his superior abilities--running speed, strength, withstanding crushing velocity pressures--from the other Mercs. And it is surely nice to observe the Starwolf gain a grudging respect for the weaker Mercs from Earth, and vice versa. Oh...and I love the concept of the lingua-franca "galacto" language that enables all the alien races to communicate with one another here; no need for the Universal Translator found in the original "Star Trek"! And speaking of "Star Trek," fans of that show might pick up on a hint of the Season 1 episode "Errand of Mercy," to be found near the end of Hamilton's story. As the kids like to say today, if you know, you know.

At one point in Hamilton's novel, Dilullo is accosted by a green-skinned madam on Vhol, who tells him "The ninety-nine joys dwell here, oh Earthman!" To which Dilullo replies "Not I, mother. I crave the hundredth joy...the joy of sitting down quietly and reading a good book." And it seems to me that Edmond Hamilton, with "The Weapon From Beyond," has given his many fans a very good book to sit down with, indeed! By the end of this first installment, Chane has accepted an offer to work indefinitely with the Mercs, while the two brothers of the deceased Ssander continue to comb the galaxy to take their bloody vengeance on him. What could possibly happen next? I guess I'll just have to crack open Book #2, "The Closed Worlds," to find out. Stay tuned....

(By the way, this review originally appeared on the FanLit website at https://fantasyliterature.com/ ... a most ideal destination for all fans of sci-fi adventure tales....)

[Karen Siddall · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was the old-school scifi cover that caught my eye in the used bookstore in Van Buren, AR but it was the back blurb that made me go ahead and fork over the "above the actual marked price" of $1 to buy it. The 2017 PopSugar Reading Challenge is what moved it to the top of my TBR list - "A book you bought on a trip." (We were on a weekend excursion to ride the A&M Railroad from Van Buren to Winslow, AR.) The ensuing story is what made me go in search of book 2 & 3 in the series, and put the author on my list of ones to glom.

[Tom Britz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Edmond Hamilton was cutting his writer's teeth before there was a term called science fiction and he made a career of it. The Weapon From Beyond is book one of a trilogy called Starwolf. Starwolf is a name of space pirates. Morgan Chane, an earthman born and raised on Varna, the home planet of the Starwolves. Varna is a planet of heavier gravity than Earth's do Morgan has muscles that are more powerful than normal earthmen.
Morgan Chane had killed the leader of his group of starwolves over the loot of his last raid so he's on the run. He ducks into a dark nebula to hide from a group of Starwolf ships that have been chasing Morgan to make him pay for killing the leader. Suddenly his ship is holed by a meteor so he's forced to abandon ship. He sets the ship to self destruct and leaves with a couple of impellors that allow him to move in space. When his ship explodes it brings a group of mercenaries to investigate and they stop to pick up Morgan. The mercenaries take Morgan on as another mercenary and so the adventure begins.
Edmond Hamilton's writing career began in the late 1920's and continued almost till his death in 1977. He was famous for his swashbuckling space operas, of which this is a pretty good representation. His writing never achieved classical style, but he was damn good at writing stories and this is one of his better entries.

[Michael Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Starwolves are space pirates from a heavy gravity world which gives them great speed and strength among "normal people". Morgan Chane was a Starwolf till he killed his captain over a share of treasure. Now they want him dead. Chane takes berth on a ship full of mercenaries under Captain Dilullo. Two planets are on a long term war and it is believed one side has got hold of a super weapon to destroy the other. The Mercs take a mission to find and destroy the mystery weapon. Barely making it to an unknown planet as they escape the Starwolves, they find a mile long ship from the Andromeda Galaxy beached on the strange planet. Then the bad guys arrive from the other planet, and things get worse when a rescue mission arrives from the Andromeda Galaxy.

[John JJJJJJJJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's so good to read Hamilton. He's truly one of my favorite authors. Although it was E. E. Smith who invented space opera, it was Edmond Hamilton who wrote the codes (mercenaries, pirates, space adventure, etc.). It was actually for one of his novels, Star Kings (1949), that the term "space opera" was coined.

Star Wolves is therefore a "true space opera." It features mercenaries, pirates, distant and unusual planets, and extraterrestrial races. And then there's Morgan Chane, from Earth, the only one to be a member of the Star Wolves.

[Kathy KS · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reminiscent of science fiction of a decade or two before it's publication, this one is a rather familiar tale of space opera. Which I have always like. An Earth child raised on a high-G planet where attacking and looting in space is honored (think Vikings?), Chane is stronger than humans usually are. When he gets in to some serious trouble with his shipmates, he escapes and ends up with a group of mercenaries. Adventure ensues.

A fun, short read; but not great literature, necessarily.

[Azuregos · Rating 2 out of 5]

Albeit a product of its time, this book is quite bland, unimaginative and shallow. No creative world-building, no interesting or memorable characters and to top it all dumbed down and exceptionally unrealistic depiction of other planets, alien civilizations, cultures and technologies. The book is not joyful to read and easy to forget.

[Ryan Dorsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quick thrill ride with some original’ish ideas and some classic themes executed very well!

[Robbie Sheerin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun fun fun. This was a wonderful imaginative story. Can’t wait to read book 2. This is a new author for me and this is the second book I’ve read of his.

Classic sci-fi and no racism.

[Noé Sautel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Parler à son enfant intérieur, c’est relire les livres qui nous ont aidé à survivre le collège

[Brannigan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Previously published at TheQwillery.com

I found this excellently pulpy science fiction tale at my local bookstore. The cover grabbed my attention immediately, along with the back cover copy giving me a nice slap across my face. I couldn't pass it up, and after reading it, I'm glad it didn't.

Edmond Hamilton was a prolific writer in his time and I can understand why. He knows how to set up an intriguing story with some fun characters. I was hooked right away in its glorious retro future. One of my favorite aspects of the book is the fact it was written before computers were commonplace, making his inventive technology highly entertaining.

The length of the story doesn't leave a lot of time for character development, but Hamilton really knows how to cut out the fat and give you what you need to enjoy the story while still allowing his characters to develop. Morgan Chane, the protagonist, starts off as a space viking turning on his own to be left adrift only to find a new place with a group of mercenaries. He starts off aloof and by the end finds a new identity. The leader of the mercenary group, John Dilullo, also develops as a support character.

Much like the character development, Hamilton doesn't waste time in world building. He introduces three major planets with their own unique life forms as well as a brief history on how humans became space-faring people. He doesn't go into as much detail as I prefer, but I think that was common for books from this time period.

The Weapon From Beyond is an adventure-driven space opera with the perfect amount of pulp. I would definitely buy more books by Edmond Hamilton in the future. There is minor violence and language. I would recommend it to teens and adults. I'd recommend you borrow this book from a friend or the library, and don't be surprised if you spend time hunting for more.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this 1967 story is a bit dated when it comes to Science Fiction, it still was a lot of fun. Completely pulpy, but lots of fun. Morgan Chane is a Starwolf. While he is of human descent, his parents came to their home planet as missionaries when he was but a child. They were killed and he was raised as one of the Starwolf, a group of raiding and marauding Space Pirate, feared by all in the galactic reaches. The heavy gravity of their planet had endued Chane with extra strength and endurance-- in fact, one of the reasons the Star Wolves are so tough is that the heavy gravity of their planet allows them to push their spaceships beyond the g's humans can normally experience, which allows them to be far more maneuverable, etc. However, Chane has fled their presence because of a dispute over loot, and like most Space operas resemble a western theme as Chane killed a member of one of the families and his kid want vengeance and will stop at nothing to get it. When Chane's ship is stranded he is taken aboard a mercenary ship and earns his place in one of their missions.

Full of a number of odd alien beings and cool merc equipment, Chane enjoys merc life, but knows the Star Wolves are still seeking him. What follows is a heady adventure full of action including ship to ship and ground combat. Much better than I actually expected and I have the next two in the series on my shelf and well definitely read them.

[⚔️Kelanth⚔️ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quanto mi piacciono i vecchi romanzi di fantascienza, quando ancora le storie erano piene di occasioni per avere gli occhi spalancati sulle pagine di questi libri, che avevano lo stupore tra le parole. Quando ancora eravamo ingenui e tutto ci appariva come meraviglioso.

Ricordo anche che questo autore è lo scrittore che ideò la fantastica figura di Capitan Futuro, da cui fu poi realizzato un cartone animato giapponese e se siete più o meno della mia età sicuramente saprete di cosa sto parlando.

Questa storia si basa su una semplice premessa: la possibilità di mandare la mente di una persona attraverso lo spazio per andare ad "abitare" la testa di qualcuno al di là dello spazio e del tempo. Nella trama di questo racconto, di fantascienza avventurosa è proprio quello che accade, tra intrighi politici, amore a prima vista e battaglie spaziali.

Il libro si lascia leggere in pochissimo tempo e ti porta su mondi sconosciuti a vivere avventure fantastiche e la figura di Chane vi impressionerà di certo; dunque se avete ancora quella voglia di rimanere stupiti e se non siete cresciuti troppo con la vostra personalità, se in voi c'è ancora l'avventuriero spaziale che dominava la vostra vita da adolescenti, leggete questo libro!

Un classico esempio di fantascienza avventurosa.

[Dylan Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short read that I absolutely loved! Written almost like a western set in space, Morgan Chane is the space-cowboy protagonist that you’ll love (or hate).

Now, if only I could find the next two novels!

[Susan Butcher · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good, but the end's a bit of a let down. Still, space heroes can't expect to win them all, and it's not a total washout for Starwolf Chane and his friends. Worth reading as an introduction to the series.

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 2 out of 5]

http://pussreboots.pair.com/blog/2015...

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good older SiFi story from one of the Golden Age master of the craft. Very recommended