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Ross wakes each morning to a planet that feels like it’s slowly rotting, the scent of decay clinging to the bustling spaceport and the crumbling Ghost Town beyond. As a clerk at the Oldham Trading Corporation, he watches the city contract around him while specialists argue over psychology, biology, and technology as the cause. The routine of manifests and endless paperwork masks a deeper unease that has kept him restless through sleepless nights.
When the trading bell rings, Ross is forced to navigate a world of bureaucratic politeness and invisible scarcity, his boss offering hollow reassurances about an inevitable “step forward.” A brief, uneasy encounter with a junior trader hints at hidden currents beneath the monotony, suggesting that even the most ordinary days on Halsey’s Planet may conceal larger forces at work. This opening sets a tone of quiet tension, inviting listeners to explore a future where decay is both literal and metaphorical.
Language
en
Duration
~5 hours (305K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Release date
2016-06-03
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1919–2013
A sharp, funny voice in science fiction, this writer helped shape the genre for decades as both a novelist and an editor. His stories often mixed big future ideas with sly social criticism, making them feel lively and relevant long after they were written.
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1923–1958
Best known for sharp, darkly funny science fiction, this American writer packed big ideas and biting satire into stories that still feel lively today. A member of the Futurians, he also wrote memorable collaborations with Frederik Pohl.
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by Frederik Pohl, C. M. (Cyril M.) Kornbluth

by Frederik Pohl

by Frederik Pohl, C. M. (Cyril M.) Kornbluth

by Frederik Pohl

by Frederik Pohl

by C. M. (Cyril M.) Kornbluth, Robert W. Lowndes, Frederik Pohl

by Frederik Pohl