
A daring mission sends three reluctant volunteers hurtling toward the veiled world of Venus. Strapped into a cramped cockpit, the crew—an arrogant former crime‑boss, a sharp‑tongued ex‑convict, and a young, bone‑thin pilot—must keep the aging rocket humming while confronting their own pasts. Their banter and uneasy camaraderie provide a human thread amid the cold, star‑filled void, and the ship’s fragile descent hints at both technical peril and the unknown waiting below.
When the craft finally breaks through the thick, milky clouds, they find a landscape unlike any Earthly desert. Towering, crossbow‑armed Amazons patrol the alien terrain, locked in a fierce struggle against the native Frogmasters—massive, amphibious overlords who dominate the planet’s hidden valleys. As the newcomers scramble to survive, they become entangled in this exotic conflict, their limited resources and wits the only chance of staying alive on a world where every step could be their last.
Language
en
Duration
~1 hours (97K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
Release date
2020-05-15
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1903–1986
Best known for eerie, folkloric tales set in the Appalachian Mountains, this prolific American writer brought regional legend and old-time music into fantasy and horror in a way that still feels distinctive. He also worked across science fiction, mystery, westerns, and historical fiction, building a career that ranged far beyond one genre.
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