The Venus Factor

by Vic Ghidalia (Editor), Roger Elwood (Editor)

This anthology contains: The Last Seance by Agatha Christie; God Grante That She Lye Stille by Cynthia Asquith; The Foghorn by Gertrude Atherton; Against Authority by Miriam Allen de Ford; J Line to Nowhere by Zenna Henderson; The Ship Who Disappeared by Anne McCaffrey; The Lady Was a Tramp by Judith Merril; and The Dark Land by C. L. Moore.

Genres: Science Fiction

189 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1976

About the author

Victor Simon Ghidalia (1926-2013) was a US publicist for ABC TV. He co-edited eight anthologies with Roger Elwood between 1969 and 1975, and several solo anthologies between 1971 and 1977.

Reviews

[Tbfrank · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up this paperback, originally published in 1972, because it contained a story by Zenna Henderson I had not read. A respected author though hardly as well-know as her contemporaries, Ms Henderson's stories are more humanistic than fanciful and in my opinion share many qualities with Ursula Le Guin.

Eight women writers are represented, two unfamiliar to me - Cynthia Asquith, daughter-in-law of British PM H.H. Asquith, and Gertrude Atherton an early feminist from California. Added to a decidedly odd story by Agatha Christie, they contributed three creepy supernatural stories involving a predatory ghost, a psychological break, and medium consumed by a spirit made material (Christie's) the most memorable lines (on which the plot turns) being: "A mother's love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity, it dares all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path."

Also included is a rather florid C.L. Moore sorcery tale of Jirel of Jorey from 1936; a space opera from Judith Merril, eminently forgettable and which must have been written/edited explicitly for a male audience; an alien invasion via interbreeding from Miriam Allen De Ford with a female heroine (who is only one quarter human); a brawn and brain cybernetics story from Anne McCaffrey; and Henderson's vision of a future of over-population, massive cities and structures, and rigid social behaviors.

McCaffrey's story, which has appeared elsewhere, Henderson's story, easily the best, and the oddity of a Christie story not involving a mystery (but maybe something more personal) offset an otherwise unremarkable collection which failed to live up to the hype printed on the cover.

[Nicole Iovino · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book in a used book store and thought it was an interesting concept for an anthology: A collection of sci-fi short stories with female leads. But I did have trouble connecting some of the stories with the theme. Some seemed more like they'd be in the horror genre, rather than sci-fi. Regardless, I still enjoyed the majority of them.

[Margaret Oliver · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a typical mix of science fiction, fantasy, and mystery which was very common in its day. Unfortunately, not a one of the included stories grabbed me and held my attention. Too bad, because I wanted to like them. Definitely a pulp book. That being said, there are quite a few interesting ideas contained here-in, especially coming from Mirian Allen de Ford and C. L. Moore, which have been taken up by others since these were written. But it is always a pleasure to revisit the origins of ideas and for that alone potential readers may find this book worth dipping into.

[Bev · Rating 3 out of 5]

Notable, if for nothing else, in the fact that this is a science fiction collection with a story by Agatha Christie.