Secret of the Lost Planet & Television Hill — David Wright O'Brien

Armchair Fiction presents extra large editions of classic science fiction double novels. The first novel is “Secret of the Lost Planet” by veteran science fiction writer David Wright O'Brien. All Wade Baron wanted to do is get back to Earth. He'd given three years of his life to government service and now it was time to go home. His fiancée would be waiting for him, and Wade practically glowed at the thought of their reunion. The image of her beautiful face was foremost in his mind. But there's nothing worse than a rude homecoming, and that's what Wade got when he stepped onto Terran soil after three years of charting asteroids out in the loneliest sector of the Solar System. First he was arrested as a traitor; then he was banished to the planet Cardo, home of the worst Penal Colony in the Galaxy. And all of this at the hands of the man Baron believed to be his best friend. It had to be a joke of some kind -- but it wasn't; and soon Wade found himself on a spaceship headed for a planet where escape was impossible and death was a certainty. The second novel is George McLociard's “Television Hill,” which is one of the most unusual novels ever to grace the pages of Amazing Stories during the 1930s. McLociard fashioned what is essentially two stories within one novel. It begins as a tale of great scientific achievement -- a true “hard science” story if there ever was one. It describes in great detail the building of a revolutionary television device, a device so fantastic in nature that it allowed its creators to peer into even the most secret chambers of mankind. Nothing could be concealed from its prying eyes -- nothing. Such scientific achievements are not without peril, though, and the second half of this fantastic tale sends the reader down one of the wildest paths of scientific intrigue ever concocted. It is a tale of conflict, utter suspense, and betrayal. The final eight chapters of “Television Hill” are filled with so much excitement that they will literally keep you on the edge of your seat.