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Sam Space #1
Space for Hire
Sam Space, a hardboiled detective of the future becomes involved in a humorous mystery that takes him to all nine planets of the solar system
174 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1971
6 people are currently reading
121 people want to read
About the author
William F. Nolan
372 books241 followersWilliam F. Nolan is best known as the co-author (with George Clayton Johnson) of Logan's Run -- a science fiction novel that went on to become a movie, a television series and is about to become a movie again -- and as single author of its sequels. His short stories have been selected for scores of anthologies and textbooks and he is twice winner of the Edgar Allan Poe Special Award from the Mystery Writers of America.
Nolan was born in 1928 in Kansas City Missouri. He attended the Kansas City Art Institute and worked as an artist for Hallmark Cards. He moved to California in the late 1940s and studied at San Diego State College. He began concentrating on writing rather than art and, in 1952, was introduced by fellow Missouri native (and established writer) Ray Bradbury to another young up-and-coming author, Charles Beaumont. Moving to the Los Angeles area in 1953, Nolan became along with Bradbury, Beaumont, and Richard Matheson part of the "inner core" of the soon-to-be highly influential "Southern California Group" of writers. By 1956 Nolan was a full-time writer. Since 1951 he has sold more than 1500 stories, articles, books, and other works.
Although Nolan wrote roughly 2000 pieces, to include biographies, short stories, poetry, and novels, Logan’s Run retains its hold on the public consciousness as a political fable and dystopian warning. As Nolan has stated: “That I am known at all is still astonishing to me... "
He passed away at the age of 93 due to complications from an infection.
Nolan was born in 1928 in Kansas City Missouri. He attended the Kansas City Art Institute and worked as an artist for Hallmark Cards. He moved to California in the late 1940s and studied at San Diego State College. He began concentrating on writing rather than art and, in 1952, was introduced by fellow Missouri native (and established writer) Ray Bradbury to another young up-and-coming author, Charles Beaumont. Moving to the Los Angeles area in 1953, Nolan became along with Bradbury, Beaumont, and Richard Matheson part of the "inner core" of the soon-to-be highly influential "Southern California Group" of writers. By 1956 Nolan was a full-time writer. Since 1951 he has sold more than 1500 stories, articles, books, and other works.
Although Nolan wrote roughly 2000 pieces, to include biographies, short stories, poetry, and novels, Logan’s Run retains its hold on the public consciousness as a political fable and dystopian warning. As Nolan has stated: “That I am known at all is still astonishing to me... "
He passed away at the age of 93 due to complications from an infection.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
May 8, 2021
Warning: this book is crazy.
Ignore the idiot reviewers calling this book racist. They're the kind of immature idiots who call everything racist. There is nothing racist in this book. It just so happens that one of the main characters, Dr Umani, a body swapping scientist gets to inhabit the body of a black man. So what? He also inhabits the body of a drunken Irishman, a Cherokee Indian, and a giraffe with a talking head! I'm not joking. The book is weird.
The PI, Sam, our "hero", battles throughout space on different planets with creatures and beings that could have come out of a star wars bar. He gets arrested by Mickey Mouse worshiping mice on the planet Jupiter, brainwashed by Minnie Mouse, has sex with a woman with "winking" nipples, fights a robotic dragon, encounters clones of himself, one of whom he fights almost to the death, in parallel universes whilst trying to solve a mystery of sorts and protect a triple-headed woman and her scientist father, and much more weirdness. Sam is a real chauvinist of the 70's PI type, slapping women around at the drop of a hat. I wonder if William Nolan, the author of Logan's Run, was on LSD when he wrote this book. It's insane. The dialogue is hilarious if this book is a parody. If it's not a parody then it's ridiculous.
Having said all that, the book is a fast read, breakneck, and I read it in one night in a few hours whilst wide awake with insomnia.
A very strange book.
Ignore the idiot reviewers calling this book racist. They're the kind of immature idiots who call everything racist. There is nothing racist in this book. It just so happens that one of the main characters, Dr Umani, a body swapping scientist gets to inhabit the body of a black man. So what? He also inhabits the body of a drunken Irishman, a Cherokee Indian, and a giraffe with a talking head! I'm not joking. The book is weird.
The PI, Sam, our "hero", battles throughout space on different planets with creatures and beings that could have come out of a star wars bar. He gets arrested by Mickey Mouse worshiping mice on the planet Jupiter, brainwashed by Minnie Mouse, has sex with a woman with "winking" nipples, fights a robotic dragon, encounters clones of himself, one of whom he fights almost to the death, in parallel universes whilst trying to solve a mystery of sorts and protect a triple-headed woman and her scientist father, and much more weirdness. Sam is a real chauvinist of the 70's PI type, slapping women around at the drop of a hat. I wonder if William Nolan, the author of Logan's Run, was on LSD when he wrote this book. It's insane. The dialogue is hilarious if this book is a parody. If it's not a parody then it's ridiculous.
Having said all that, the book is a fast read, breakneck, and I read it in one night in a few hours whilst wide awake with insomnia.
A very strange book.
October 23, 2014
Basically Mike Hammer doing a time twist with plenty of humor. Short & fun.
January 31, 2015
Truth be told I liked this alot. Even after reading all the negative reviews I fully enjoyed this short 1971 sci-fi novel.
Getting into a mind state of an early 70's teenage boy would've helped a lot more but even without that I got some pleasure from this.
Every stereotypical "macho space" idea is explored here, at length, and I can see why people hated it. I'm not saying that I'm going to go search out the rest of this series but I'm not upset I read this.
Would I recommend this to a friend? Maybe depending on what they like. Would I recommend this to a stranger? Probably not.
All in all, I didn't really gain anything out of this book but I also didn't expel much energy to read it. Fair enough trade off.
Getting into a mind state of an early 70's teenage boy would've helped a lot more but even without that I got some pleasure from this.
Every stereotypical "macho space" idea is explored here, at length, and I can see why people hated it. I'm not saying that I'm going to go search out the rest of this series but I'm not upset I read this.
Would I recommend this to a friend? Maybe depending on what they like. Would I recommend this to a stranger? Probably not.
All in all, I didn't really gain anything out of this book but I also didn't expel much energy to read it. Fair enough trade off.
February 16, 2019
Taking on the case //
Violent worlds and timelines //
Girls' winking nipples
Violent worlds and timelines //
Girls' winking nipples
November 18, 2009
The Good: Not much. Some of the ways in which Nolan incorporates inter-dimensional and time travel are amusing.
The Bad: Failed absurdist farces like this one really demonstrate just how good Douglas Adams was. Space for Hire is neither funny, cutting-edge science fiction, nor an intriguing mystery. As an homage to the hard boiled genre it is one of the worst collections of cliche ever assembled. The episodic structure and "anything goes" humor quickly become tiresome. Were this a better book, the ending would be one of the biggest cop outs in literature.
The Ugly: There's some very intrusive racism and sexism throughout.
The Bad: Failed absurdist farces like this one really demonstrate just how good Douglas Adams was. Space for Hire is neither funny, cutting-edge science fiction, nor an intriguing mystery. As an homage to the hard boiled genre it is one of the worst collections of cliche ever assembled. The episodic structure and "anything goes" humor quickly become tiresome. Were this a better book, the ending would be one of the biggest cop outs in literature.
The Ugly: There's some very intrusive racism and sexism throughout.
August 30, 2013
Seriously one of the stupidest books I have ever encountered. The "homage" to the pulpy noir fiction of Hammett and Chandler comes across as lampooning, and the diolague seems written by a racist twelve year old.
I was ready for a fun read, which I knew would be stupid and pulpy, but this was just...well, stupid.
Dumb stupid.
not fun stupid.
I was ready for a fun read, which I knew would be stupid and pulpy, but this was just...well, stupid.
Dumb stupid.
not fun stupid.
October 17, 2014
Quite possibly the worst book I've ever read.
If the Big Book of Ethnic Slurs, a rape "joke" and a muddy, confused story were to be fused into 174 pages of brain-damaging dreck, this is what you would get.
The only positive thing I can say about Space For Hire is that since it's cold out I can use it for kindling.
If the Big Book of Ethnic Slurs, a rape "joke" and a muddy, confused story were to be fused into 174 pages of brain-damaging dreck, this is what you would get.
The only positive thing I can say about Space For Hire is that since it's cold out I can use it for kindling.
January 17, 2026
Non ricordo di aver mai incontrato il termine soft-scifi; così, se non ci ha pensato ancora nessuno, lo propongo io in questa occasione. Se l'hard-scifi è una forma di cura estrema per i dettagli tecnici, qui siamo abbondantemente agli antipodi: l'autore non si dà la benché minima premura di giustificare tutte le fantasie che gli vengono in mente, in barba a leggi fisiche, matematiche e persino al banale buonsenso. Leggere questo romanzo è come osservare un ragazzino di talento che imbratta una tela, senza avere alcuno studio sulla prospettiva e le proporzioni alle spalle: vedi le potenzialità ma ti appaiono sprecate. Ci sono tantissime idee: Nolan va a briglia sciolta nell'inventare termini, armi, modi di dire alieni e soprattutto creature assurde. Tutto questo fioccare di invenzioni produce un ambaradan incredibile, con il protagonista che viaggia tra le dimensioni e il tempo senza alcun criterio, incontrando personaggi che - come lui - agiscono totalmente d'istinto e senza troppa logica. Per inventiva, questo romanzo ricorda la Fuga di Logan e ha sicuramente qualche momento riuscito (vedi: popolo dei topi che idolatra Disney). A mancare è una strutturazione solida e, soprattutto, una scrittura valida. Vorrei dire che questa è l'ultima volta che leggo un romanzo di Nolan ma dall'aldilà potrebbe serenamente rispondermi un bel "grazie al cazzo, ne ho scritti solo due".
D'altra parte, posso dire che lo ringrazio per avermi portato alla decisione di non leggere più soft-scifi e soprattutto romanzi scritti in maniera tanto dilettantistica. Da lettore assiduo ho maturato una certa insofferenza per letture che si basano solo su buone idee e pochissima tecnica di scrittura, meno ancora quando mi trovo davanti autori che abusano della sospensione dell'incredulità. E per fortuna, come in questo caso, spesso è facile rendersi conto di ciò a poche decine di pagine dall'inizio.
D'altra parte, posso dire che lo ringrazio per avermi portato alla decisione di non leggere più soft-scifi e soprattutto romanzi scritti in maniera tanto dilettantistica. Da lettore assiduo ho maturato una certa insofferenza per letture che si basano solo su buone idee e pochissima tecnica di scrittura, meno ancora quando mi trovo davanti autori che abusano della sospensione dell'incredulità. E per fortuna, come in questo caso, spesso è facile rendersi conto di ciò a poche decine di pagine dall'inizio.
August 1, 2018
Definitely a sexist, offensive product of it time. Few amusements, Ships names President Agnew and President Reagan. This was published in 1972 so who knew Nolan was able to see the future? (At least half of it)
January 1, 2023
Sam Space, detective. He is a "Sam Spade" like detective in the future. It was good, not great.
January 2, 2024
This book managed to do it. I have lost my motivation to hit my reading goal for the year.
I think I have had an authentic 70s sci-fi experience though. If only I was a horny hormonal teen boy who liked tits…
I think I have had an authentic 70s sci-fi experience though. If only I was a horny hormonal teen boy who liked tits…
December 21, 2024
DNF: made me uncomfortable. I had a feeling it would be crazy insensitive. I bought it for like a dollar so whatever.
December 3, 2025
A silly forgettable spoof on hard boiled deceive novels. Unknowingly, this was my second read.
The author manages to keep track of all the loose ends.
The author manages to keep track of all the loose ends.
April 10, 2009
Wow! I'll say one thing for this book...it keeps moving! Makes me think of what would happen if Dirk Gently and Arthur Dent had a child, but that would be extremely insulting to the genius of Douglas Adams. If you want to be offended early-1970s style, check out this book by the CO-author of Logan's Run. Be sure to read to the end or you'll miss the best part...the Lake of Desire!
June 11, 2011
Not a bad book, just not a great book. Lots of fun silliness with a good "hard boiled" detective story feel to it. Lots of mentions of sex, so not for children or immature teenagers. Didn't care for the ending. If you are looking for something goofy and like psuedo science, then you will probably enjoy this book. Otherwise, look elsewhere.
April 13, 2015
An outlandish assortment of crazy SciFi characters involved in a futuristic murder mystery that imagines what would it be like if the classic film noir detective Sam Spade worked the Galaxy. A good read.
June 10, 2022
I ordinarily don't go for parody, but this book has enough of its own thing going to keep it interesting.
Our hero, Sam Space (narf) is investigating a threat to the universe with the help of his selves from alternate realities.
Our hero, Sam Space (narf) is investigating a threat to the universe with the help of his selves from alternate realities.
April 9, 2012
Awesome 70's old-school pulp sci-fi. Held up well since I originally read it in the mid-70s.
May 1, 2012
Misogynistic, racist, derivative trash.
May 19, 2012
Film noir style detective updated to the space age... quite entertaining
September 4, 2013
Hammett re-written by Douglas Adams. A completely unnecessary and very silly book. Exactly what I needed.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews