Beyond the Darkness & The Fireless Age

Armchair Fiction presents extra large editions of classic science fiction double novels. The first novel is "Beyond the Darkness" by veteran sci-fi writer S. J. Byrne. His name was Nad and the only world he had ever known was a few square kilometers in area. He and his fellow Passengers had all the food they could eat and there was always comfortable shelter to be had. Mating was allowed, to a certain degree, and there were numerous forms of entertainment available to stave off boredom. Yes, he and the other Passengers were well taken care of by the Navigators-so long as one did not question what lay outside the Door or its darkness beyond. The Door was a thing to be feared and occasionally the Navigators sent people through that door and into the black abyss beyond-people who were deemed undesirable or whose minds had become too inquisitive. But Nad was perpetually restless, for he and his fellow Passengers had no knowledge of man's past. There was no human history to delve into, no course of events that explained the existence of their small, pitiful world. Then one day Nad dared to raise a questioning voice, and soon he was thrown into a bizarre chain of events that threatened not only his own life, but the existence of the entire human race as he knew it... The second novel is "The Fireless Age" penned by noted author David H. Keller, M. D. Try to imagine a world without fire. What would civilization be like? How would everyday life function without the benefit of a lighted match. Renowned science fiction author Keller ponders these possibilities, laying out a bleak world where fire was a god-a god that no person was allowed to tamper with; and to do so was punishable by death. Keller's fireless world is a sometimes pleasant but more often than not, brutal realm. Set in pre-ice age North America, it's a world where dangers abound; from saber-tooth tigers to bloodthirsty, barbaric tribes. Keller's primary tribe, "The White Ones," harbors a long-standing initiation into manhood that is exceedingly bestial in nature, yet laden with a primitive sense of nobility. But Keller's main character, More Bear, is one of the few in his backward tribe to wonder what the benefits of fire would be for his world. In his quest for answers, More Bear sets out on a long journey filled with nail-biting primeval peril. From start to finish "The Fireless Age" is an exciting, sometimes thought-provoking prehistoric adventure.