Embark on a journey through the cosmos with this stellar collection of science fiction tales curated from the depths of Amazing Stories. From the minds of esteemed authors such as Paul Saka, Heather N. Santo, Adrian Tchaikovsky, and Norman Spinrad, among others, immerse yourself in worlds where the boundaries of reality blur and the possibilities of the universe are endless. Join a team of intergalactic explorers as they navigate the treacherous depths of space in search of a new home. Encounter sentient AI grappling with existential questions of identity and purpose. Witness the struggle for survival on distant planets, where humanity's resilience is put to the ultimate test against formidable alien adversaries. From pulse-pounding action to thought-provoking speculative fiction, this anthology showcases the diverse talents of today's most imaginative writers. Prepare to be transported to distant galaxies, alternate realities, and future civilizations as you delve into these gripping tales of adventure, intrigue, and wonder. Featuring contributions from a roster of visionary storytellers, including David Ian, Lisa Fox, Andrew Hiller, and more, this collection promises thrills, chills, and unforgettable journeys through the vast expanse of the cosmos. So buckle up and get ready to explore the unknown—because in the universe of Amazing Stories, anything is possible.

Based on an incredible true episode of World War II history, Paul Malmont’s new novel is a rollicking blend of fact and fiction about the men and women who were recruited to defeat the Nazis and ended up creating the future. In 1943, when the United States learns that Germany is on the verge of a deadly innovation that could tip the balance of the war, the government turns to an unlikely source for help: the nation’s top science fiction writers. Installed at a covert military lab within the Philadelphia Naval Yard are the most brilliant of these young visionaries. The unruly band is led by Robert Heinlein, the dashing and complicated master of the genre. His “Kamikaze Group,” which includes the ambitious genius Isaac Asimov, is tasked with transforming the wonders of science fiction into science fact and unlocking the secrets to invisibility, death rays, force fields, weather control, and other astounding phenomena—and finding it harder than they ever imagined. When a German spy washes ashore near the abandoned Long Island ruins of a mysterious energy facility, the military begins to fear that the Nazis are a step ahead of Heinlein’s group. Now the oddball team, joined by old friends from the Pulp Era including L. Ron Hubbard (court-martialed for attacking Mexico), must race to catch up. The answers they seek may be locked in the legendary War of Currents, which was fought decades earlier between Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison. As the threat of an imminent Nazi invasion of America grows more and more possible, events are set in motion that just may revolutionize the future—or destroy it—while forcing the writers to challenge the limits of talent, imagination, love, destiny, and even reality itself. Blazing at breathtaking speed from forgotten tunnels deep beneath Manhattan to top-secret battles in the North Pacific, and careening from truth to pulp and back again, The Astounding, the Amazing, and the Unknown is a sweeping, romantic epic—a page-turning rocket ship ride through the history of the future.

This edition features a linked Table of Contents CONTENTS VOL. I No. 1 THE BEETLE HORDE by VICTOR ROUSSEAU THE CAVE OF HORROR by CAPTAIN S. P. MEEK PHANTOMS OF REALITY by RAY CUMMINGS THE STOLEN MIND by M. L. STALEY COMPENSATION by C. V. TENCH TANKS by MURRAY LEINSTER INVISIBLE DEATH by ANTHONY PELCHER VOL. I, No. 2 OLD CROMPTON'S SECRET by HARL VINCENT SPAWN OF THE STARS by CHARLES WILLARD DIFFIN THE CORPSE ON THE GRATING by HUGH B. CAVE CREATURES OF THE LIGHT by SOPHIE WENZEL ELLIS INTO SPACE by STERNER ST. PAUL MAD MUSIC by ANTHONY PELCHER THE THIEF OF TIME by CAPTAIN S. P. MEEK VOL. I, No. 3 INTO THE OCEAN'S DEPTHS by SEWELL PEASLEE WRIGHT MURDER MADNESS by MURRAY LEINSTER BRIGANDS OF THE MOON by RAY CUMMINGS THE JOVIAN JEST by LILITH LORRAINE THE ATOM-SMASHER by VICTOR ROUSSEAU

When physicist Robert Goddard, whose career was inspired by H. G. Wells's War of the Worlds, published "A Method of Reaching Extreme Altitudes," the response was electric. Newspaper headlines across the country announced, "Modern Jules Verne Invents Rocket to Reach Moon," while people from around the world, including two World War I pilots, volunteered as pioneers in space exploration. Though premature (Goddard's rocket, alas, was only imagined), the episode demonstrated not only science's general popularity but also its intersection with interwar popular and commercial culture. In that intersection, the stories that inspired Goddard and others became a recognizable genre: science fiction. Astounding Wonder explores science fiction's emergence in the era's "pulps," colorful magazines that shouted from the newsstands, attracting an extraordinarily loyal and active audience. Pulps invited readers not only to read science fiction but also to participate in it, joining writers and editors in celebrating a collective wonder for and investment in the potential of science. But in conjuring fantastic machines, travel across time and space, unexplored worlds, and alien foes, science fiction offered more than rousing adventure and romance. It also assuaged contemporary concerns about nation, gender, race, authority, ability, and progress—about the place of ordinary individuals within modern science and society—in the process freeing readers to debate scientific theories and implications separate from such concerns. Readers similarly sought to establish their worth and place outside the pulps. Organizing clubs and conventions and producing their own magazines, some expanded science fiction's community and created a fan subculture separate from the professional pulp industry. Others formed societies to launch and experiment with rockets. From debating relativity and the use of slang in the future to printing purple fanzines and calculating the speed of spaceships, fans' enthusiastic industry revealed the tensions between popular science and modern science. Even as it inspired readers' imagination and activities, science fiction's participatory ethos sparked debates about amateurs and professionals that divided the worlds of science fiction in the 1930s and after.

H. Beam Piper is one of science fiction's most enigmatic writers. In 1946 Piper appeared seemingly from out of nowhere, already at the top of his form. He published a number of memorable short stories in the premier science fiction magazine of the time, Astounding Science Fiction, under legendary editor John W. Campbell. Piper quickly became friends with many of the top writers of the day, including Lester Del Rey, Fletcher Pratt, Robert Heinlein and L. Sprague de Camp. Piper also successfully made the turn from promising short story writer to major novelist, authoring Four-Day Planet, Cosmic Computer, Lord Kalvan of Otherwhen and Little Fuzzy, which was nominated for a Hugo award. Even those who counted Piper among their friends knew very little about the man or his life as a railroad yard bull in Altoona, Pennsylvania. This biography illuminates H. Beam Piper, both the writer and the man, and answers lingering questions about his death. Appendices include a number of Piper's personal papers, a complete bibliography of Piper's works, and an essay on Piper's Terro-Human Future History series.