The Collected Short Works of Poul Anderson, Volume 3: The Saturn Game

Note: The Collected Short Work of Poul Anderson, Volume 3: The Saturn Game was a free review copy provided to Luke Reviews by NESFA Press.


As I discovered when reading a previous volume of Poul Anderson’s short works, I was really missing out having not read much from this accomplished author. I got the chance to dive into more of his work with the brand new collection out from NESFA Press, The Collected Short Works of Poul Anderson, Volume 3: The Saturn Game.

The third volume of this series contains a number of classic works from Anderson, including “The Saturn Game,” a wonderful stand alone story, “No Truce with Kings,” and a personal favorite of mine, “Operation Salamander,” a follow up to “Operation Afreet,” found in the previous volume. Anderson’s characters, along with his scientific-feeling magic system, make for a wonderful story. Series characters Manse Everard, David Falkyn, and Nicholas van Rijn all make appearances.

Added to the stories, filling out the volume, are a string of limericks and songs that are quite fun, especially the last, which explains the problems an astronomer runs into while driving.

Anderson’s sense of Sherlockian mystery, consideration of all points of view, sympathy for antagonists, and broad imagination make this volume yet another worth diving into. Anderson is a true gem of the genre, and any fan should consider this a required course in their history of the genre.