Most Popular Books by Robert Silverberg

A “dark, restrained, and powerful” mirror of current politics from the Science Fiction Grand Master (Science Fiction Ruminations). In the barren landscape of the late Cambrian period, a penal colony sits high above the ocean on the east coast of what would become the United States. The men—political prisoners—have been sent from the twenty-first century on a one-way ticket to a lifetime of exile. Their lonely existence has taken its toll . . . Jim Barrett was once the physically imposing leader of an underground movement dedicated to toppling America’s totalitarian government. Now he is nothing but a crippled old man, the camp’s de facto ruler due to his seniority. His mind is still sharp, having yet to succumb to the psychosis that claims more and more men each day. So when a new prisoner is transported to the colony—a startlingly young and suspiciously apolitical man—Barrett’s instincts go on high alert. As Barrett reminisces about his revolutionary past, he uncovers the new prisoner’s secrets—and faces a shocking revelation that thrusts him into a future he never dreamed possible . . . “One of the finest writers ever to work in science fiction.” —The Philadelphia Inquirer

By the 23rd century Earth''s population had reached seven billion. Mankind was in danger of perishing for lack of elbow room--unless prompt measures were taken. Roy Walton had the power to enforce those measures. But though his job was in the service of humanity, he soon found himself the most hated man in the world. For it was his job to tell parents their children were unfit to live; he had to uproot people from their homes and send them to remote areas of the world. Now, threatened by mobs of outraged citizens, denounced and blackened by the press, Roy Walton had to make a decision: resign his post, or use his power to destroy his enemies and become a dictator in the hopes of saving humanity from its own folly. In other words, should he become the MASTER OF LIFE AND DEATH?

''The explosion was painfully bright against the dark backdrop of the moonless New Mexico sky. To those who looked up at that precise moment - and there were many who happened to look up - it was as though a new star had momentarily blossomed in blue-white incandescence.'' Only three human beings would ever know that the blinding flash in the sky on that night in 1982 was an exploding flying saucer. Only they would learn the truth about THOSE WHO WATCH - about the alien observers who came into this world in a crash landing from the stars. THOSE WHO WATCH is the strange, seductive story of three accidental colonists from outer space whose chance encounter with Earth brought revelation to three earthly counterparts - and triggered interplanetary conflict. It is a remarkable story by one of science fiction''s most remarkable writers.

A thousand years in the future, the earth has been conquered by an alien race and covered by a single sea. Dovirr Stargan, who is disgusted with the servility of his life on the floating city of Vythain, longs to become one of the Sea-Lords, who roam the sea as powerful protectors of the cities. Dovirr gets his wish, but the return of the alien race brings unexpected and critically dangerous crises to his new life as he learns the real, sometimes terrible, significance of power.

The epic tale of Gilgamesh, the legendary god-king of Sumeria who discovered the secret of eternal life, has enflamed the imaginations of countless generations. In Gilgamesh, science fiction Grand Master Robert Silverberg gives us a vivid portrait of a courageous, lusty, sometimes reckless ruler of men. It is the majestic tale of a man haunted by gods, tormented by his passion for a woman who was his greatest rival, and driven by a thirst for immortality.

This novel involves a man who is surrounded by machines that flash instantaneous pictures of everything happening. A man surfeited with drugs that allow him to be eyewitness to the living past. A man named Shadrach who finds little rest in his miracle-infested world.

Twins become involved in an experiment in time travel.

Introducing "Amazing Tales Volume 163", a captivating collection that explores the boundaries of human experience across the cosmos. Each story invites readers to journey through worlds where courage, humor, and mystery intertwine. In "The Overlord''s Thumb", we are transported to the alien world of Markin, where a blood-red sunset signals impending turmoil. Here, Colonel John Devall stands at a crossroads, balancing his dual roles as a military leader and an anthropologist. His decisions could define humanity''s future, testing his resolve in ways he never imagined. Transitioning from alien landscapes to familiar yet challenging domestic terrain, "Go to Sleep, My Darling" offers a humorous glimpse into the life of Bertrand Baxter. Once a football star, now a sporting goods salesman, Bert struggles to understand the women in his life-his wife and four daughters. This story beautifully captures the chaos and joy of navigating a world dominated by feminine energy. Next, "The Way Out" plunges readers into a psychological thriller where Earth''s fate hangs in the balance. Trapped within a labyrinth of mirrors, a man faces an existential question: how do you kill without killing? As reality blurs, he must uncover this mystery before time runs out, offering a gripping exploration of resilience and the power of the mind. Finally, "West o'' Mars" takes us on a cosmic adventure with Peache, a salesman with an unyielding love for Mars. Set in 2081, amidst the Martian dunes, Peache unravels a tale of intrigue and romance. In the shadow of a woman''s influence, fortunes are won and lost, and the legendary whispers of West o'' Mars beckon with promises and secrets. "Volume 163" of "Amazing Tales" invites you to explore the uncharted territories of the human spirit, where every decision and encounter can alter the course of destiny.

The final collaboration between two of science fiction''s greatest names chronicles the extraordinary life of a robot whose experimental brain turns out to have unique capabilities that lead him to desire to be declared human. His "biography" is a fascinating discussion of what it means to be human.

The definitive collection of the best in science fiction stories between 1929-1964. This book contains twenty-six of the greatest science fiction stories ever written. They represent the considered verdict of the Science Fiction Writers of America, those who have shaped the genre and who know, more intimately than anyone else, what the criteria for excellence in the field should be. The authors chosen for The Science Fiction Hall of Fame are the men and women who have shaped the body and heart of modern science fiction; their brilliantly imaginative creations continue to inspire and astound new generations of writers and fans. Robert Heinlein in "The Roads Must Roll" describes an industrial civilization of the future caught up in the deadly flaws of its own complexity. "Country of the Kind," by Damon Knight, is a frightening portrayal of biological mutation. "Nightfall," by Isaac Asimov, one of the greatest stories in the science fiction field, is the story of a planet where the sun sets only once every millennium and is a chilling study in mass psychology. Originally published in 1970 to honor those writers and their stories that had come before the institution of the Nebula Awards, The Science Fiction Hall Of Fame, Volume One, was the book that introduced tens of thousands of young readers to the wonders of science fiction. Too long unavailable, this new edition will treasured by all science fiction fans everywhere. The Science Fiction Hall Of Fame, Volume One, includes the following stories: Introduction by Robert Silverberg "A Martian Odyssey" by Stanley G. Weinbaum "Twilight" by John W. Campbell "Helen O''Loy" by Lester del Rey "The Roads Must Roll" by Robert A. Heinlein "Microcosmic God" by Theodore Sturgeon "Nightfall" by Isaac Asimov "The Weapon Shop" by A. E. van Vogt "Mimsy Were the Borogoves" by Lewis Padgett "Huddling Place" by Clifford D. Simak "Arena" by Frederic Brown "First Contact" by Murray Leinster "That Only a Mother" by Judith Merril "Scanners Live in Vain" by Cordwainer Smith "Mars is Heaven!" by Ray Bradbury "The Little Black Bag" by C. M. Kornbluth "Born of Man and Woman" by Richard Matheson "Coming Attraction" by Fritz Leiber "The Quest for Saint Aquin" by Anthony Boucher "Surface Tension" by James Blish "The Nine Billion Names of God" by Arthur C. Clarke "It''s a Good Life" by Jerome Bixby "The Cold Equations" by Tom Godwin "Fondly Fahrenheit" by Alfred Bester "The Country of the Kind," Damon Knight "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes "A Rose for Ecclesiastes" by Roger Zelazny At the Publisher''s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

ROBERT SILVERBERG confronts the paradoxes of time travel in a brilliant novel of the 25th century, when the only escape from suffocation in a totally controlled environment is to hop backward through time. Since time hopping rearranges the past on which the structure of current existence is based, it must be stopped - but not too quickly. For the history of the 1970''s includes the arrival of hoppers who have not yet left the 2490''s - and whose departure thus must not be stopped!

The computer had chosen them - a small cross-section of humanity to serve Mankind''s Destiny. Out of seven billion people on Earth mechanical chance had selected them as involuntary colonists on an unknown planet. In seven days they would be on their way, on a sink-or-swim mission to a lonely world beyond the limits of the Solar System. It was a summons each had privately dreaded, yet always been prepared for. But no one had prepared them for the vicious attacks of sinister aliens . . .

Science fiction-roman.

Originally published in 1958, under the pseudonym David Osborne. Dr. Jeffrey Brewster, assistant professor of psycho-sociology at Columbia University, had been six weeks old when the first crude satellites were flung into space back in 1957. During his childhood there had been Moon rockets and the space stations - then the joint American-Russian-manned expedition to the Moon in 1965, right after the collapse of the Soviet dictatorship. Mars and Venus had been reached as he grew up and a permanent base was established on the Moon in 1973. Now the day''s papers reported that an expedition was ready to leave for Callisto, moon of Jupiter. But Dr. Brewster had a class to make and he was late. That was when the telephone rang and Mari, his wife, said, "Long distance from Washington." The caller was Colonel Chasin of Unsecfor - United Nations Security Force, the global and international army that policed the world in these days of relative peace and harmony...

Silverberg, winner of four Hugos and five Nebulas, presents a riveting tale of an epic voyage of survival in a hostile environment. On the watery world of Hydros, humans live on artificial islands and keep an uneasy peace with the native race of amphibians. When a group of humans angers their alien hosts, they are exiled--set adrift on the planet''s vast and violent sea.

This far-future sci-fi saga by a multiple Hugo and Nebula Award–winning Grand Master chronicles the perilous rebirth of humanity on a destroyed Earth. Robert Silverberg’s critically acclaimed masterworks have earned him entry into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame, and a place among the genre’s greatest legacies. This classic, two-book saga gazes into a world many millennia from now and spins a mesmerizing tale of survival, evolution, and the ultimate future of humanity. At Winter’s End: For the past 700,000 years, the remaining inhabitants of planet Earth have survived underground, escaping the endless rain of “death stars” that destroyed their civilization—and the world. Now, with the surface finally inhabitable after countless millennia, one tribe’s leader is guiding her people to freedom. But unexpected threats and dark revelations could endanger their long-awaited rebirth. The Queen of Springtime: Hidden below ground for millennia, the People have finally emerged to repopulate the Earth and reclaim their legacy as the dominant species. But the cold, insectile hjjk, who remained on Earth’s surface throughout the frozen eons, will not give up the world they inherited without a fight. The New Springtime series is Robert Silverberg at his very best, showcasing the intelligence, ingenuity, humanism, and extraordinary talents that have won him four Hugo Awards, six Nebulas, and a host of other honors.

In this modern account of the genesis of a great medieval myth, celebrated science fiction author Robert Silverberg’s explores the mysterious origins of Prester John, the astonishing Christian potentate of the East. Prester John was a legendary figure who cast a powerful spell over Latin Christendom for almost five centuries. Rumors of the warrior-king-prelate’s fabulous realms first reached Europe in the eleventh century and quickly assumed an exalted status alongside such fabled wonders as El Dorado, The Fountain of Youth, and the Holy Grail. The defeat of a Moslem Turkish tribe by a Buddhist Chinese warlord seems to have been the unlikely historical nugget around which the Prester John myth grew, but contributions to this strange saga have also been traced all around the globe to the Apostle Thomas'' apocryphal preaching in India, to the actual existence of small colonies of Nestorian schismatics in central Asia, and even to Genghis Khan.

NEVER FOLLOW A FALLING STAR! The humanoid worlds of the galaxy were alarmed! Somehow, somewhere the mind-destroying hypnojewels were being trafficked in. An uneasy Earth, newcomer to the ranks of the civilized planets, sent Lloyd Catton to the Interworld Crime Commission on Morilar to investigate. Although the Commission had made little progress until then, after his arrival things started to happen fast. For it didn''t take Catton long to realize that the hypnojewels were but the thin edge of a murderous wedge that was calculated to shove the Earth back again into the helpless isolation of a world returned to savagery.

On a planet with six suns, night is about to fall for the first time in two thousand years . . . The planet Kalgash is on the brink of chaos—but only a handful of people realize it. Kalgash knows only the perpetual light of day; for more than two millennia, some combination of its six suns has lit up the sky. But twilight is now gathering. Soon the suns will set all at one—and the terrifying splendor of Nightfall will call forth a madness that signals the end of civilization Isaac Asimov''s short story “Nightfall” first appeared in 1941. It has since become recognized as a classic, its author a legend. But the short story isn''t the whole story. Now, Dr. Asimov has teamed with multiple Hugo and Nebula Award winner Robert Silverberg to explore and expand one of the most awe-inspiring concepts in the history of science fiction. In this novel, you will witness Nightfall—and much more. You will learn what happens at Daybreak.

One of the most persistent legends in the annals of New World exploration is that of the Land of Gold. This mythical site was located over vast areas of South America (and later, North America); the search for it drove some men mad with greed and, as often as not, to their untimely deaths. In this history of quest and adventure, Robert Silverberg traces the fate of Old World explorers lured westward by the myth of El Dorado. From the German conquistadores licensed by the Spanish king to operate out of Venezuela, to the journeys of Gonzalo Pizarro in the Amazon basin, and to the nearly miraculous voyage of Francisco Orellana to the mouth of the Amazon River, encountering the warlike women who gave the river its name, violence and bloodshed accompanied the determined adventurers. Sir Walter Raleigh and a host of other explorers spent small fortunes and many lives trying to locate Manoa, a city that was rumored to be El Dorado—City of Gold. Celebrated science fiction author Robert Silverberg recreates these legendary quests in The Golden Dream: Seekers of El Dorado.

It had been five hundred years since the distant Terran Colony of Corwin had communicated with Earth. But now Corwin was threatened by the indomitable warriors of Klodni and the peaceful planet desperately needed help. Baird Ewing was the ambassador chosen by his people to find that help and save Corwin from destruction. But Earth had changed . . . Ewing found a decadent world of worthless pleasure-seekers devoid of hope and incapable of help. The only remaining vestige of the old world on Earth was to be found in the College of Abstract Science. It was Ewing''s last hope. If he failed it was the end of the line for him, Corwin - and the galaxy. First published in 1958.

Here is a rarity—Robert Silverberg''s first professional story, which appeared in a British magazine in 1954. A strong adventure tale set on an alien world, it shows the strengths the then 18-year-old writer would hone over the coming decades, as he rose through the ranks to become one of the greatest science fiction writers of all time. Includes an introduction by Robert Silverberg.

When their spaceship explodes on a hostile planet, three survivors face certain death unless they can reach a special beacon which will enable them to contact the nearest rescue station.

"Gilgamesh in the Outback" is a science fiction novella by American writer Robert Silverberg, a sequel to his novel Gilgamesh the King[ as well as a story in the shared universe series "Heroes in Hell." It won the Hugo Award for Best Novella in 1987 and was also nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novella in 1986. Real-life writers Robert E. Howard and H. P. Lovecraft feature as characters in the novella.

Anthologized here for the first time, the author''s five novellas give testimony to his groundbreaking career, including the title story, which won him a Nebula Award.

The first three novels in the acclaimed sci-fi fantasy series from the award-winning author: “An imaginative fusion of action, sorcery, and science fiction” (The New York Times Book Review). In the first three books of the Majipoor Cycle, Hugo and Nebula Award–winning author Robert Silverberg delivered a vast and vividly imagined world full of epic adventure, court intrigue, and high drama. In Lord Valentine’s Castle, an amnesiac wanderer receives dreams of his true destiny as ruler of the planet Majipoor. In Majipoor Chronicles, the planet’s bloodthirsty history is revealed through tales of rulers and thieves. And in the final novel, Valentine Pontifex, Valentine faces the threat of civil war as well as conspiracy within his court.

Dale Kesley was a simple farmer in the Iowa province of the North American empire when van Arlen found him. He''d been looking for the young man for four years and came to take him to Antarctica. Coincidentally, Dale couldn''t remember much of his life before four years before. Antarctica is the thirteenth empire set up after the world had nearly destroyed itself in a nuclear war. In order to recover and rebuild the world had agreed to a simpler life. Except Antarctica. It had erected a barrier around itself and been cut off for over four hundred years. Each empire was ruled over by an immortal, mutants from the war. In short order, trying to make his way south, Dale runs awry of both North and South American Dukes and now has a price on his head. Alone, van Arlen either dead or wounded, gone in any case, his only choice is to get to Antarctica somehow. The answers to who he is and why everyone wants him dead lie there. (Goodreads)

This is the definitive collection of one of the century''s finest fantasists & features introductions by some of the biggest names in the field. Includes an afterword by Ray Bradbury & Harlan Ellison.

Two pioneering time-travellers have gone missing. As part of the effort to find them, Edward Davis travels 3,500 years into the past to visit the ancient Egyptian city of Thebes.