''Shadow Over Mars'' is the debut

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

novel by American writer

Leigh Brackett Leigh Douglass Brackett (December 7, 1915 – March 18, 1978) was an American science fiction writer known as "the Queen of Space Opera." She was also a screenwriter, known for ''The Big Sleep'' (1946), '' Rio Bravo'' (1959), and '' The Long Goo ...

, published in 1944.

Publication

The novel was first published in the Fall 1944 issue of ''

Startling Stories ''Startling Stories'' was an American pulp science fiction magazine, published from 1939 to 1955 by publisher Ned Pines' Standard Magazines. It was initially edited by Mort Weisinger, who was also the editor of ''Thrilling Wonder Stories'', S ...

''. Its first book publication came in 1951 with a paperback edition distributed by Sydney Pemberton but it is more widely known for its appearance as

Ace Double American company Ace Books began publishing genre fiction starting in 1952. Initially these were mostly in tête-bêche format with the ends of the two parts meeting in the middle and with a divider between them which functioned as the rear cover ...

F-123 with Robert Silverberg's ''

Collision Course {{wiktionary A collision course, also known as a ''kamikaze run'', is the deliberate maneuver by the operator of a moving object (or often in Sci-Fi a spaceship) to collide with another object. It is a desperate maneuver since it often damages ...

''. This edition was retitled ''The Nemesis from Terra''.

Summary

Like much of Brackett's work, the novel is set on Mars, where tension is building between rebellious Martians and humans in the thrall of the Company. At the beginning of the novel, the protagonist Rick Urquhart is attempting to evade the Company when he encounters a Martian, who makes a prophecy that he will ultimately rule the planet. He is forced to kill her in self-defense but the company soon catches up with him and sends him back to labor in the mines. However, he is able to escape and meets Martian-rights activist Mayo McCall. He is captured by the Martians and made to atone for his murder but after a failed rebellion, Rick becomes their greatest hope for success and the stakes are raised when Company operative Jaffa Storm kidnaps Mayo. In order to discover his fate and rescue Mayo, Rick sets out to the Martian North Pole, home of the mysterious "Thinkers".

Reception

In 2012, Rich Horton gave a mostly positive review to the Ace Double edition, describing it as "decent work, early Brackett in more of a tough and cynical mode than the poetic mode she later found." He found the politics of the Martian rebellion particularly interesting but commented that it didn't fit well with Brackett's other Mars stories. In 2020, ''Shadow Over Mars'' was awarded the 1945

Retro-Hugo Award The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention and chosen by its members. The Hugo is widely considered the premier a ...

for Best Novel.

References

External links

* 1951 American novels 1951 science fiction novels Novels by Leigh Brackett Novels set on Mars {{1950s-sf-novel-stub