L. Sprague deCamp – författare

Meet Victor Hasselborg, easily the most miserable Private Investigator in the entire galaxy. More comfortable with the dull routine of investigating insurance frauds than interstellar adventure, Hasselborg is bound by duty to chase a runaway heiress across known space to the primitive world called Krishna. Clad in kilt and sword, his hair dyed green, riding a buggy driven by a six legged monster of a beast, Hasselborg''s quest takes him through the volatile world of feudal Krishna politics and into the presence of . . . the Queen of Zamba. The Queen of Zamba is the first of L. Sprague de Camp''s Krishna book - interplanetary romance in the tradition of Edgar Rice Burroughs'' Martian Tales.

Outside the walls of the starport Novorecife, Earthmen on the warrior planet Kishna are on their own. So when he is chosen to lead the first ersuma (Earth-tourists) through the sorcerer-kingdoms of this "protected" medieval world, Fergus Reith must first learn to speak Durou; must take the chemical oath against imparting technical information; and must above all else learn to handle a broadsword! All these skills are needed when Reith finds himself and his ersuma trapped as pawns in a deadly war between a sorceress and a sterile kingdom under three moons . . . The Hostage of Zir is the third of L. Sprague de Camp''s Krishna book - interplanetary romance in the tradition of Edgar Rice Burroughs'' Martian Tales.

Percy Mjipa, diplomat-adventurer, and Alicia Dyckman, interplanetary runaway, both aliens on the alien world of Krishna, are swept up in wildly treacherous - and wildly funny - imperial intrigue. . . .The Prisoner of Zhamanak is the fourth of L. Sprague de Camp''s Krishna book - interplanetary romance in the tradition of Edgar Rice Burroughs'' Martian Tales.

Welcome back to the planet Krishna - a wilderness of blue woods under three moons, where square-riggers sail the treacherous inland seas, where fierce humanoid natives with feathery antennae cross swords in endless war, and where a Terran outside the confines of the spaceport is strictly on his own!The Virgin of Zesh is the fifth of L. Sprague de Camp''s Krishna book - interplanetary romance in the tradition of Edgar Rice Burroughs'' Martian Tales.

When Fergus Reith agrees to act as tour guide for the famed palaeontologist Dr Aristide Marot, little does he realise that the search for the elusive Ozymandias will uncover spectacular riches, ruthless adversaries - and his former wife, the seductive Dr. Alicia Dyckman! Caught in a bloody civil was, the three adventurers must fight or face death by boiling in the Cauldron of Repentance! The secrets of the planet Krishna continue to unfold in L. Sprague de Camp''s latest tale of mystery, treachery and romance.The Bones of Zora is the sixth of L. Sprague de Camp''s Krishna book - interplanetary romance in the tradition of Edgar Rice Burroughs'' Martian Tales.

Welcome back to the planet Krishna - a wilderness of blue woods under three moons, where square-riggers sail the treacherous inland seas, where fierce humanoid natives with feathery antennae cross swords in endless war, and where a Terran outside the confines of the spaceport is strictly on his own!The Tower of Zanid is the seventh book of L. Sprague de Camp''s Viagens Interplanetarias series - interplanetary romance in the tradition of Edgar Rice Burroughs'' Martian Tales.

The Producer thinks he''s God''s gift to women - whether they''re human or alien.The Director is delighted to work on a wild and woolly planet, where he can really behave like Attila the Hun. Some of the local natives are trying to steal the film crew blind - while others plan all-out war.And if that weren''t enough, every time Tour Guide Fergus Reith turns around, he stumbles over another of his ex wives or girlfriends!The Swords of Zinjaban is the fourth of L. Sprague de Camp''s Krishna book - interplanetary romance in the tradition of Edgar Rice Burroughs'' Martian Tales.

Wrestling Reptiloids is no job for milquetoasts.Mild-mannered Terran archaeologist Keith Salazar was just minding his own business, digging up the alien past on an out-of-the-way site on the planet Kukulcan, when suddenly he was besieged by intruders on his scholarly peace: hostile natives, an indifferent ex-wife, and a demon developer with rapacious eyes glued on both his site and his true love.In the course of protecting his dig, regaining his loved one and vanquishing his rival, Salazar will fight a giant reptilian predator bare-handed, leap into snake-filled pits, engineer the planet''s first imperial conquest, lead and train a battalion of alien riflemen and hold a séance. Pretty exciting work - but then maybe Keith Salazar wasn''t such a milquetoast after all.

Tortured IntellectualKirk Salazar, devout intellectual, had quite been looking forward to his field research on Sunga. He aimed to discover how the stump-tailed, semiarboreal kusis lived without being injured within the venom tree forest. A fascinating topic!His thesis would have progressed splendidly, save for one thing. A certain lack of financing necessitated that he travel through Sunga with a tour group. Much against his will, he soon became embroiled with a conglomeration of characters even more peculiar than Sunga''s natural wonders.First there were the hard-core tourists, always pushing and complaining, desperate to glimpse the rare, birdlike zutas. Worse the Cantemir - a man lewd, rude and dangerous - who had struck a deal with the native Chief to destroy the whole Sunga forest for lumber! But most formidable was Alexis Ritter. She was the high priestess of a Sunga cult dedicated to chastity. But she sure seemed to have a use in mind for Salazar''s body!Doggedly Salazar pursued his research through ambushes, sex, and even attempted murder. A determined intellectual does not give up easily - even if he has to go to extremes to defend his thesis!

Against the Fall of NightThe Roman Empire had spread order, knowledge, and civilisation throughout the ancient world. When Rome fell, the light of reason flickered out across the Empire. The Dark Ages had begun; they would last a thousand years. Could a man from the 20th century prevent the fall of Rome? When lightening struck and he was hurled backward into the sixth century, the question became anything but academic to Martin Padway, but even forearmed with a knowledge of 20th century technology and of events to come, what could one man do? But Padway must try, lest darkness fall.

Twenty-five men and women against a world of evolution gone mad!Here is the vivid story of their adventures and terrors - the monster in the forest - the city of giant beavers - and the secret of the incredible race that had supplanted mankind.

The Glory that was - or the Glory that wasn''t?Knut Bulnes had considered Vasil IX, World Emperor of the 27th century, to be a harmless eccentric until Imperial decree completely sealed off Greece behind a force wall and people of Greek descent suddenly began disappearing from the rest of the world - including the wife of Bulnes''s friend Wiyem Flin.Bulnes reluctantly agreed to help Flin find his wife, and the two managed to get inside the force wall only to find themselves in the Classical Greece of Socrates and Euripides - and the target of a man-hunt not only by the soldiers of Perikles, but also by the unpleasant characters with machine guns.

The Virgin of ZeshIn which a beautiful woman, a mind-drunk poet, and a super-sober scientist must fight for their lives on a planet occupied by weird cultists from the Earth and bizarre varieties of humanoids from all over the galaxy.The Wheels of IfIn which a young lawyer is trapped in a sense-shattering shuttle among alternative worlds of possibility, and lands at last in an America that has been colonised by Norsemen and divided between two great warring empires - one white, one Indian.

On the 15th day of Franklin, Year of Descent 1008, in the Kralate of Vizantia Planet Kforri.A young teacher, Marko Prokopiu, is convicted and jailed. His heinous crime: preaching the false and unholy belief that Kforri was originally settled by men arriving from Earth in flying machines - a dangerous heresy against the official doctrine of divine evolution.Goaded into jail-break by his wife''s desertion and mightily armed with his father''s great ax, Markorushes to avenge his marital honour. With an eminent philosopher, Dr. Halran, inventor of the incredible hot-air balloon, Marko journeys perilously to exotic lands - to decadent Anglonia, hostile Afka, civilised Eropia and, at last, the all-female Isle of Mnaenn. There, by clever ruse and uncommon physical daring, he must recover the Great Fetish and solve the riddle of planet Kforri''s ancient history, or meet a fate more complicated than death!

The Mathematics of Magic was probably the greatest discovery of the ages - at least Professor Harold Shea thought so. With the proper equations, he could instantly transport himself back in time to all the wondrous lands of ancient legend.But slips in time were a hazard, and Shea''s magic did not always work - at least, not quite as he expected . . .The Incomplete Enchanter is the first in L. Sprague de Camp and Fletcher Pratt''s much-loved Compleat Enchanter series.

The Mathematics of Magic was probably the greatest discovery of the ages - at least Professor Harold Shea thought so. With the proper equations, he could instantly transport himself back in time to all the wondrous lands of ancient legend.But slips in time were a hazard, and Shea''s magic did not always work - at least, not quite as he expected . . .The Castle of Iron is the second in L. Sprague de Camp and Fletcher Pratt''s much-loved Compleat Enchanter series.

The Mathematics of Magic was probably the greatest discovery of the ages - at least Professor Harold Shea thought so. With the proper equations, he could instantly transport himself back in time to all the wondrous lands of ancient legend.But slips in time were a hazard, and Shea''s magic did not always work - at least, not quite as he expected . . .The Wall of Serpents is the third in L. Sprague de Camp and Fletcher Pratt''s much-loved Compleat Enchanter series.

The Perfect Servant (NOT!)He looked like a cross between a dragon and a catfish, and he could bend iron bands into pretzels with a flick of his hand. But what Zdim the mild-mannered demon really was, was a scholar of logic and philosophy. That''s why when Zdim was drafter for a year''s servitude on the mortal plane he felt that a monumental administrative error had been made.And even though Zdim resolved to be absolutely obedient and to do exactly what he was told, the wizard who employed him soon agreed.

King Jorian was rather attached to his head. Hence, he felt his promise to seal the Kist of Avlen, a treasure trove of ancient manuscripts on magic, was little enough a price to pay for a chance to escape his own beheading.But when the quest pitted him against one peril after another - a murderous wizard and his giant squirrel, a castle full of executioners, a marauding troop of ape men, and a voluptuous 500-year-old princess who was also a serpent - Jorian wondered if he''d made a good bargain!

The Best Mislaid PlansWizardly schemes, Jorian knew went oft a-gley. But this time the wizard''s plan seemed simple. Since ancient prophecy foretold that the clocks would save Iraz, Jorian must repair the great tower clocks that his father had built.If everything went well, Karadur could then plan the rescue of Jorian''s beloved wife, Queen Estrildis from Xylar.And Jorian would be appointed Clockmaster of Iraz, a position that would require him to break a pirate siege, placate an amorous priestess, and stay at least one step ahead of the Royal Guard of Xylar - where he was still wanted as the star sttraction of a royal beheading!

Never Trust a DemonThree years earlier, Jorian had been the crowned King of Xylar. But the laws of Xylar decreed that each randomly chosen King must be beheaded at the end of a five-year reign. Jorian had a prejudice against losing his head. With the aid of the aged wizard Karadur, he managed to flee.Unfortunately he had not been able to bring his beloved wife, Queen Estrildis, with him, nor had he yet been able to find a means of freeing her from the palace in Xylar City.Now, however, he felt that his luck was about to change. He and the aged wizard Karadur were being flown through the night air in a great copper bathtub, powered by a demon under Karadur''s control. Ahead of them lay Xylar City. There, while the demon kept the bathtub hovering above the palace, Jorian could let down a rope and rescue Estrildis.It should have been a foolproof scheme¿

The Whims of DestinyJorian, the one-time unbeheaded king, was now safely retired from a long career of getting into trouble. But his younger brother Kerin lacked such wisdom. The outraged father of Adeliza had caught him in compromising circumstances with the maiden. So Kerin had to be sent at once on a mission by sea to the Far East.But Kerin''s talent for trouble was not to be denied. First came Belinka, a sprite sent by Adeliza to bring him back safe for her. The ship captain believed Kerin was seducing his mistress. Though innocent this time, Kerin left hastily in a rowboat. That got him to a hermit-wizard''s island - and a voyage on a pirate ship, where the kidnapped princess Nogiri was held captive. Kerin was unable to save her - until he gained the help of the hermit-wizard, who then betrayed him by seizing the girl and fleeing with her to be used as a human sacrifice.From then on, events became hectic as Kerin managed to save Nogiri again, helped by a wizard who was the enemy of the first one. Belinka was much distressed by what happened then between Kerin and Nogiri - with cause - as they set out again, this time to the Emperor of the Farthest East.There Kerin discovered more magic, and the Emperor learned that no man should be absentminded when using a powerful spell. But it was later that Kerin discovered the limitations of roller skates.

The Weirdest Drinking Establishment in the UniverseGavagan''s Bar - presided over by Mr. Aloysius P. Cohan, bartender. Where you will meet such not-so-regular customers as:Councilman Maguire, who brought his own leprechaun with him from Ireland. Mrs. Vacarescu and her husband Putzi, the were-dachshund. Mr. Murdoch, who borrowed a very small dragon to rid his apartment of mice and lost it. And assorted witches, magicians, devils, dryads, and the occasional demigod.

The gods of Poseidonis - or Atlantis - were powerful and real. Now they were determined to destroy the kingdom ruled by the father of Prince Vakar, the one man whose mind they could not read. The only way to save the kingdom was to discover that thing which the gods feared most.To find it, Prince Vakar set out across the largely unknown world where dangers multiplied with every league. There he found savage countries and strange people - the wild Amazons; a voluptuous, ensorcelled queen; a too-charming girl who was half-horse, half-woman; dangerous magicians who ruled hordes of headless slaves; and the Gorgons, who could paralyze their victims at a glance.Behind was his ambitious brother, determined that Vakar must fail. Even closer were unknown enemies set on his trail by the suspicious gods.And to add to his troubles, Vakar had no idea of what he sought!