Hudson looked round the command room with its cramped balsa-plast desk, single chair and wall bunk. Command room! His mouth twisted, half with amusement, half contempt. All the years of struggling and devoted service, service which had broken up his home and driven his wife to seek comfort elsewhere. All that until, finally, they had given him a command. A command! Not one of the new powerful cruisers or even a fleet of space tugs but a detector post on Ganymede. A hive-shaped dome on an a...

They captured the human and his puny ship. They had been ordered to interrogate him to find out humanity's strenths, weaknesses, and numbers...because their empire intended to expand into human space. But the human wanted to be captured and interrogated—for compassionate reasons. Human space was infected, he said...and any attempt at conquest was doomed!

n Damien Broderick’s haunting tale, “The Meek,” the survivors of humanity’s drive toward racial suicide must pay an awful price for their continued survival. John Glasby’s “Innsmouth Bane” tells how the alien entity Dagon first came to nineteenth-century America. In “Helen’s Last Will,” James C. Glass shows us that death may not always be “the end.” Charles Allen Gramlich’s “I Can Spend You” is a futuristic western which puts prospecting in a whole new light! “The Voice of the Dolphin in A...

A science fiction classic by British master Philip E. High!Harcourt smiled his professional smile. “Now, you came to me because you felt something was wrong, some probably frightening aberration which we will deal with later. Were you under pressure at the time.”“A policeman is always under pressure.” Nevinson sighed. “Unfortunately this happened three weeks ago while on a holiday in Europe. Before I left everyone told me I should visit the Spatza, you’ve heard of it no dou...

They were technically superior to mankind—they made humans look like savages. So what could possibly go right when the two empires bumped up against each other?

Crichton was a brilliant chemist, but he had one great fear: being stranded on an alien world with no way to survive. It drove him to study woodcraft and survival techniques. But would it be enough if the impossible happened to their ship?

This issue features a pair of novels. The first, The Man in the Queue, by Josephine Tey, kicks off her Inspector Alan Grant series. The second, The Enchantress of World’s End, by Lin Carter, continues the epic far-future, sword-and-sorcery saga begun last issue.As for our mystery shorts, we have a great lineup. Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken has selected an original Ecuadoran-set thriller by Tom Larsen, and Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman has uncovered a terrific ...

This time, we have holiday-themed stories from Ron Miller (a great new tale featuring burlesque-queen-turned-private detective Velda), Nina Kiriki Hoffman (who remains one of my favorite fantasists active today), and Lillian M. Roberts (thanks to Acquiring Editor Barb Goffman).Plus, we have great originals by Elizabeth Zelvin (courtesy of Acquiring Editor Michael Bracken), Hala Dika, Joshua David Bellin, and Edmund Glasby (concluding his two-part novel serial from last issue). Our ...

It’s our annual Halloween kickoff—for the next four Black Cats, extra spooky stories will be creeping and crawling into every issue. This time, we have vampires and scarecrows and werewolves (oh my!) as well as sinister strangers for your reading pleasure. Plus other tricks and treats.Here’s the complete lineup—Mysteries / Suspense / Adventure:“Skip Trace,” by Angela Zeman [Michael Bracken Presents short st...

NOVELCaptains of Souls, by Edgar WallaceA shadowy figure holds the key to power and peril in a fog-drenched London mystery.SOLVE-IT-YOURSELF MYSTERY“Death Takes a Dinner Cruise,” by Hal CharlesCan you solve the mystery before the detective? All the clues are there!SHORT STORIES“Dead Gifted,” by Robert Jeschonek

NOVELThe Black Camel**, by Earl** Derr Biggers [Charlie Chan series]A Hollywood star, a Hawaiian beach, and Charlie Chan on the case—secrets will out!SOLVE-IT-YOURSELF MYSTERY“Called Out,” by Hal CharlesCan you solve the mystery before the detective? All the clues are there!SHORT STORIES

This issue, we have novels from J.J. Connington (a Golden Age mystery) and E. Hoffmann Price (a classic Weird Tales fantasy), plus our usual wide variety of short stories. Acquiring Editors Michael Bracken and Barb Goffman have selected tales by Aeryn Rudel and Janice Law, plus we have even more great stories from Dan Leicht, Tom Easton, Larry Tritten, Philip E. High, and E.C. Tubb. Rounding things out is a solve-it-yourself puzzler by Hal Charles.Here’s the complete lineu...