Product Description
David Marin risks his reputation and government career when he makes a plea for Wade Trask, a brilliant scientist condemned to be executed for sedition. Trask is experimenting with transplanting the mind and nervous system of one animal into the body of another. When Marin goes to see him, the nearly-mad scientist suddenly blasts Marin with his gas gun, and now Marin's identity is encased in Trask's body! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

at times exciting, sometimes silly and just plain bad
David Marin is a powerful government appointee. When Wade Trask, a controversial and ambitious scientist, is condemned to die for treasonous remarks, Marin makes the mistake of going to visit him. Trask blasts him with a ray gun (that's right, a ray gun) which conveys the mind of Trask into Marin's body, and the mind of Marin into Trask's body.

Marin awakes to find himself inside Trask's body. Everyone who sees him will recognize him as Wade Trask, a seditious criminal condemned to die in five days.

All citizens are marked on the muscle of one shoulder with some sort of tracking device/mark which allows the government to target them, causing them ever increasing pain. In this way, the government can becripple any condemned citizen, then seize him. For this reason, condemned miscreants are not imprisoned-- they can be immobilized via this method. So-- even though Marin now looks like Marin (because of the mask) his body is still the body of Wade Trask, and the government has got him in a bind, scheduled for execution.

People are very suspicious of Wade Trask, so Marin cannot travel the country looking like Trask.So he finds a stopgap measure, a mask which matches his features. This allows Marin to travel around and work to try to safe his own life (looking like David Marin).

This novel has an exciting story, but some really bad writing. The prose is inornate and easy to read, but the plot elements are often goofy and downright imbecilic. For example, in a subplot, the main group (including Marin) has subdued the neighboring Jorgians in a military conflict. The great leader is due to accept the surrender of the Jorgian queen. Then she falls into his arms and he must do his duty by "satisfying her" ! What? How idiotic can it get?

Better science fiction is abundant, and there are better books by Van Vogt.

Commonly admitted as superior novels are the Van Vogt books Slan, Weapon Shops of Isher, Weapon Makers, and The World of Null-A.

sometimes exciting, sometimes ridiculous, or plain bad
David Marin is a powerful government appointee.When Wade Trask, a controversial and ambitious scientist, is condemned to die for treasonous remarks, Marin makes the mistake of going to visit him.Trask blasts him with a ray gun (that's right, a ray gun) which conveys the mind of Trask into Marin's body, and the mind of Marin into Trask's body.

Marin awakes to find himself inside Trask's body.Everyone who sees him will see him as Wade Trask, condemned to die in five days.He finds a stopgap measure, a mask which matches his features.This allows Marin to travel around and work to try to safe his own life.

All citizens are marked on the muscle of one shoulder with some sort of tracking device/mark which allows the government to target them, causing them ever increasing pain.In this way, the government can becripple anycitizen.For this reason, condemned miscreants are not imprisoned-- they can be immobilized via this method.So-- even though Marin now looks like Marin (because of the mask) his body is still the body of Wade Trask, and the government has got him in a bind, scheduled for execution.

This novel has an exciting story, but some really bad writing.The prose is plainly simple and easy to read, but the plot elements are often goofy and downright dumb.For example, in a subplot, the main group (including Marin) has subdued the neighborhing Jorgians in battle.The great leader is due to accept the surrender of the Jorgian queen.Then she falls into his arms and he must do his duty by "satisfying her" !What?How stupid can it get?

there is better science fiction out there, and better Van Vogt.

A little slow but well worth reading
Though this is by no means Van's best novel - written as it was at the forefront of his second wave of output that peaked in the 70s - the brilliant and unexpected turns in the last few chapters of the book make the sometimes dull plot worth enduring.

Not really worth reprinting
Van Vogt is known for his prolific output of mediocre stuff. This book is a real van Vogt as per style and per themes, but it is pretty run of the mill. Even in the classics (Slan, Isher, Null-A, The Silkie) there areweaknesses. Weaknesses abound here, not really worth reading.

Not one of his best, but still VAN-VOGT.
This is a well-built book. Allthough not one of those crazy, mind-blowing, and half psichodellic books that van-vogt often unleashes at us, its a good one. It has the tipical plot twists and lead charecter that makes youthink-" Damn! now that's a man!", and ofcourse a few females thatcant be trusted. Buy it if youre a van-vogt fan or if you want to"taste" him but consider yourself a "down to earth sci-fireader". ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Not His Best Work, But Good
The basic premise here is that there is a group of people out there who do not think like the rest of us, and they are women. If you can get past that and like Van Vogt, you'll probably like this book. Van Vogt has a style of writing that certainly pulls one in and makes a good read. If only SF in TV and movies matched his level. I found this work to be quite an enjoyable read.

Men vs. Women vs. Alienoids.
Actually the book should get 3.5 stars ,but when dealing with A.E.Van Vogt i'm rounding up.

It becomes known ,plotwize ,that there are a few alienoids of different races on earth ,all in a delicate political ballance. The Deeans are waiting for they're ship to come and conquer Earth.

Another issue is the Man-Woman thing. I'm affraid that a feminst would not like this book. Van Vogt try's to explain women behavior in a set of actions and reactions ,which are not only simple ,but are not very convincing. This is really ,i think this book's down side. I don't believe ,notice ,that he's a real chaouvinist ,but Van-Vogt is known in his wonderfull behavioral theories in his books ,that even when they are obvieously wrong ,they are beuatifully structured. This time it simply did'nt come off right.

The book is not as idea filled as others of the same manufacteror ,but all in all ,not really bad too. I would put it in the same class as "The mind cage" and "Moonbeast". ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Lacks credibility.
In Van Vogt's better works ,you believe whatever you read ,no matter how incredulous. In this book however ,something does'nt work ,too far-feched.

Peter Grayson ,is a man in a world dominated by women. Men can't drive ,can't have real-astate property ,and so on. All men are going through a procedure ,when they're 16yr old ,that weakens their eye-sight ,and are given spectacles ,that cause the aggresiveness of males to disapear.

All that is because an all powerfull race-the Utt ,decided ,after examining the human race ,that all the major problems are traceable to the human male behaviour.

Grayson is freed from his spectacles accidentally ,and becomes involved with the males underground ,as well as with the Utt official on earth.

In all ,not really bad like "The book of Ptath" for instance ,but not as idea filled as other books by Van Vogt ,and his usually wonderfull sociological theories of behavioral patterns ,are inclined toward chauvinism this time.

I would'nt recommend this book as a first Van Vogt. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Not bad but not good
I love old science fiction but this might be a little too old ; )I found some parts very confusing; how did Norma get her powers exactly?There is no way I would have kept reading if the novel had been over three hundred pages.

Nice and short product of its time
I wouldn't underrate this book so much -- I thought it was as good as many a sci-fi miniseries.It took me a couple of hours to get through on a hot summer's evening.The author spins a yarn with plenty of arresting scenes and ideas.The time-travelling kidnappers of the future justify their practice by saying that it's the responsibility of every man to fight for his planet.Van Vogt was prolific and it's good to think that minor works should in some way be kept alive.20 cents a copy -- not many prices have changed that little since the 1950s!

SEXIST WAR OF THE FUTURE!
Just as the first artwork by mankind were primitive paintings and stick figures on the walls of caves, Masters of Time is an example of the first primitive attempts at writing modern science fiction. This novel from the early 1940s was first published in the pulp magazine Astounding Science Fiction, and boy, can you tell.

The book starts off promising enough in the aftermath of a suicide attempt by Norma Matheson. She was trying to kill herself out of regret for rejecting the marriage proposal of man named Jack Garson. The same Professor Jack Garson who, ten years later,is in town to deliver a series of lectures. As she struggles back onto shore from the river where she tried to drown herself, a mysterious man named Dr. Lell approaches her and offers her a job in a recruiting station for a war in Calonia (a war which is never explained). She accepts.

Later on, she finds out the the recruiting is actually for a war in the far future of Earth and that her role is to dupe volunteers who come in. When she tries to escape from the situation, she finds that a machine used by Dr. Lell can control her mind, and even more, can control her age. He is a so-called "Master of Time". He offers her a deal. In return for her cooperation, he will make her young again. With no options, she writes a desperate letter to her ex-lover, Jack Garson, who shows up and is sent into the future to fight a war he does not even understand. How will the two survive the future? Norma will have to unlock the power of the universe within herself.

I guess the plot is sorta interesting. The drag of the 1940s is all over this book though. For example, Dr. Kell does not accept women in his future war because they are not mentally suited. Yeah, right. Tell that to our own 21st century women military personnel. The whole thing that the Norma, a woman, has to lead these men into Dr. Kell's trap goes with the whole femme fatale crime noir of the 30s and 40s.

Another negative of the book is the downright goofy jargon of the text. You hear things like "super duper ray guns", "the Glorious depersonalizing machine", and "three handsome Ganellians" etc. This book comes from an age when your science fiction didn't have to explain its science and so they just winged it all, more like fantasy really.

It did have some good moments when it didn't rely on too much science. I was glad that Norma actually becomes the heroine in the end. The fact that in the future man's actions were partially controlled by superhuman machines called Observors and that some of these machines were called Tentacles, who are described much as the Sentinels in the latest Keanu Reeves actionfest, reminds one of the world of the Matrix. I was disappointed reading this after knowing the reputation of AE van Vogt. Perhaps he wrote better and worse novels than this one.

sloppy writing
Reputation of Science Fiction luminary AE Van Vogt could not have been built on the likes of Masters of Time, a sloppily written novel that barely held my attention.

A woman, Norma, is contacted, and offered a job. She finds out that her secretarial job is in a business which exists as a front for a recruiting station, where men are duped into being sucked into the distant future, to fight in a battle for all of Earth. Indeed, Norma's lover/boyfriend Garson is caught up in just this. The man who hires Norma is a tall, powerful, and callous individual named Dr. Lell.

Apparently, Dr. Lell is one of the (try not to laugh) "Masters of Time."

Part of the novel concerns Norma's plight and efforts; part of the novel concerns Garson's attempts to get back to his own time in history. When Norma fails to cooperate with Dr. Lell, she is "aged" years into the future. As she cooperates, she "earns" years, and she appears to get younger.

By and large this novel is sloppily written and pockmarked with atrociously bad phrasing and sci-fi jargon.

Here is one example: "The destruction of Tentacles 1601, 2, and 3 and the neutralization of electron molds could have only been accomplished with the assistance of a mind reader."

In places, the author's description of an individual character's plight is moving. He describes desperate situations very well. The beings, such as Dr. Lell, who assemble and use the machines to create these armies are ruthless, harsh, and cold. Scenes where these beings are summarizing the fate of the mere humans are striking and memorable.

So I suppose the entire book is not a waste. _Masters of Time_ is a slender novel, something you can probably read in three hours or so. My copy is 128 pages.

ken32 ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

TITLE SHOULD BE "CREATURES"
A FEW OF THESE STORIES ARE MY FAVORITES OF ALL TIME.ALFRED'S DESCRIPTIONS ARE UNREAL. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Kirlian computers enforce the law.
Historically it's interesting that the "Kirlian Photography" fad that gave Van Vogt the idea came to nothing. Here "Van" imagines a future where computers can stop crime instantly, but there's something afoot they can't cover... It's a scenario where a few resourceful and inspired Vogtian characters quickly analyse a bizarre situation and take the required bold actions needed to solve the problem. Builds on the portrayal of the power and elegance of (real) rational thinking that was a major theme of Van's. ... Read more

Product Description
A critical appraisal of Van Vogt's work. ... Read more

Product Description
...A. E. van Vogt: Science Fantasy's Icon presents the results of a nearly three-decades long project about the late "golden age" science fantasy author, A. E. van Vogt. This book emphasizes an interest that H. L. Drake and A. E. van Vogt shared in the subject of general semantics... ... Read more