James H. Schmitz 1 hr 43 min read

Two political titans, the head of the Interstellar Police and the Overgovernment's research chief, meet in a rare, tense conference over portentous events, in a shadowy game of power and secrets.

James H. Schmitz's 1963 story is a taut, inventive first-contact space opera. Sharp, clever golden-age SF. Read it for a suspenseful tale of high-stakes intrigue among the powers of a galactic government, where a mysterious 'beacon' and its implications set off a cerebral game of maneuver, from a reliably ingenious adventure master.

In its time

Published in 1963, during the 1960s, new wave revolutionizes the genre.

Reading it

1 hr 43 min read (a novella, a full arc in one sitting or two).

Illustrated by

Virgil Finlay