Enchantress of Venus

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The Fall 1949 issue of Planet Stories. 14 1949 fall planet anderson.jpg.scaled1000.jpg
The Fall 1949 issue of Planet Stories .

"Enchantress of Venus" (also published as "City of the Lost Ones") is a science fiction short story by American writer Leigh Brackett. It was originally published in the magazine Planet Stories in 1949. [1] It is part of the Eric John Stark series of books and stories. [2] The story has been reprinted numerous times since its first publication, [3] [4] and has been the subject of critical commentary in the Science Fiction community. [5] [6]

Contents

Plot summary

"Enchantress of Venus" is a story about a man known as Stark and his adventure to Inner Venus, specifically the town of Shuruun, to find his missing friend Helvi. Stark was taken to this town by boat captain Malthor. The captain offered Stark a place to stay, but Stark denied the offer. Malthor attacked Stark from behind causing Stark to jump into the mysterious Red Sea. Stark eventually swims to the town and sees the people who are shocked to see someone with such a dark complexion. Stark was eventually approached by Malthor’s young daughter, Zareth, who warns him of the plans of her father. She explains to him about the Lhari who are basically the royalty of the town. Stark ends up enslaved by these people. Once enslaved Stark finds Helvi and also meets a woman by the name of Varra. They somehow manage to free themselves, and Stark leads the slave rebellion. Stark kills the Lhari with the help of his fellow slaves. Then Stark and most of the slaves, specifically the ones that weren’t born there, leave via spaceship.

Characters

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References

  1. "The Locus Index to Science Fiction: Stories".
  2. "The Locus Index to Science Fiction: Series List".
  3. "The Internet Speculative Database: Enchantress of Venus".
  4. ""The Enchantress of Venus" at WebScription".
  5. Westfahl, Gary (2005). The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Science Fiction and Fantasy: Themes, Works, and Wonders. Greenwood Press. ISBN   978-0-313-32952-4.
  6. Terry Hansen. "Myth-Adventure in Leigh Brackett's 'Enchantress of Venus'" Extrapolation 38 (Summer, 1982), 77-82