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Cache from Outer Space/Celestial Blueprint
One of those Ace books with one story reading one way and the second story reading the other way. "Cache from Outer Space" is a novel described on the cover as "The secret of civilization was buried in that spaceship". "The Celestial Blueprint" is four short stories: "Rastignac the Devil", "The Celestial Blueprint", "They Twinkled Like Jewels" & "Totem and Taboo", described on the cover as "They challenged the standards of many worlds".
- GenresScience FictionFiction
253 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1962
62 people want to read
About the author
Philip José Farmer
614 books877 followersPhilip José Farmer was an American author, principally known for his science fiction and fantasy novels and short stories. He was born in Terre Haute, Indiana, but spent much of his life in Peoria, Illinois.
Farmer is best known for his Riverworld series and the earlier World of Tiers series. He is noted for his use of sexual and religious themes in his work, his fascination for and reworking of the lore of legendary pulp heroes, and occasional tongue-in-cheek pseudonymous works written as if by fictional characters.
Farmer is best known for his Riverworld series and the earlier World of Tiers series. He is noted for his use of sexual and religious themes in his work, his fascination for and reworking of the lore of legendary pulp heroes, and occasional tongue-in-cheek pseudonymous works written as if by fictional characters.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
January 10, 2013
I read Farmer for the insanity first and the ridiculous violence second. The occasionally awkward phrasing doesn't bother me, but the dubious racial posturing and regressive sexism do. But not enough for me to stop enjoying the insanity and ridiculous violence.
Cache from Outer Space is a reasonably satisfying early-mid career Farmer, from 1964. It's all action. The backdrop of far-future, technologically primitive, post-disaster stone-age America has lots of fun details, and it's lots of fun figuring out what the super-slurred place names and words are supposed to have linguistically degenerated from. There's a lot of military and political intrigue and a fair amount of people getting destroyed in violent ways.
The four stories in the other half are all from 1954, and I liked all of them better than Cache. Rastignac the Devil has cars with legs, genetically engineered, non-sentient geese that lay golden eggs, a female lead who is an insult to womanhood, friendly giants with feathers who emit sparks instead of laughing and crying, and a society that gets more confusing with every page.
The Celestial Blueprint and They Twinkled Like Jewels both feel like sci-fi magazine pieces, with pulpy characters and easily recognizable tropes. Celestial Blueprint smites a luddite apocalypse cult with an artifice to fulfill its prophecies, but double-crosses the author of this holocaust with his own undoing.
They Twinkled Like Jewels is my favorite of the bunch, a somber and chilling little tale of an alien invasion that uses psychology as its weapon.
Totem and Taboo is a fun finish that plays with animal metaphors for people.
Cache from Outer Space is a reasonably satisfying early-mid career Farmer, from 1964. It's all action. The backdrop of far-future, technologically primitive, post-disaster stone-age America has lots of fun details, and it's lots of fun figuring out what the super-slurred place names and words are supposed to have linguistically degenerated from. There's a lot of military and political intrigue and a fair amount of people getting destroyed in violent ways.
The four stories in the other half are all from 1954, and I liked all of them better than Cache. Rastignac the Devil has cars with legs, genetically engineered, non-sentient geese that lay golden eggs, a female lead who is an insult to womanhood, friendly giants with feathers who emit sparks instead of laughing and crying, and a society that gets more confusing with every page.
The Celestial Blueprint and They Twinkled Like Jewels both feel like sci-fi magazine pieces, with pulpy characters and easily recognizable tropes. Celestial Blueprint smites a luddite apocalypse cult with an artifice to fulfill its prophecies, but double-crosses the author of this holocaust with his own undoing.
They Twinkled Like Jewels is my favorite of the bunch, a somber and chilling little tale of an alien invasion that uses psychology as its weapon.
Totem and Taboo is a fun finish that plays with animal metaphors for people.
October 14, 2009
What I most recall about this Ace Science Fiction Double is the cover with the angry lady in the metal, ah, brassiere. It fascinated me.
July 20, 2019
The first thing to note was the peculiar style these two books were published. Once you finished one set of stories, you flipped the book over and got a new cover. The text of the previous story you have read is now upside-down relevant to what you are reading now. A nice oddity, but I can see why this trend wasn't continued.
For the first story, Cache from Outer Space, I would actually give it four stars. It was an interesting story of humans living in a post-apocalyptic world with the plot centered on the struggles of a community living in remains of the Phoenix valley. The modern names we are familiar with today have been distorted by oral tradition.
While this story is not politically correct by modern standards, it had a plot that developed well, ideas that my 21st century mind could grasp, and world that was well thought out.
On the flip side (literally), I would give the Celestial Blueprint and Other Stories only two stars. Instead of solid world building that absorbs my entire imagination, the focus seemed to be on a displaying out of this world, far fetched ideas. Peter F. Hamilton took the time in his Commonwealth Saga to explain the big picture history of his alien species. Even though they were from a deep crevice in the world of imagination, they were a part of his universe that he created and not some wild idea that seemed to be hastily inserted into the story.
For the first story, Cache from Outer Space, I would actually give it four stars. It was an interesting story of humans living in a post-apocalyptic world with the plot centered on the struggles of a community living in remains of the Phoenix valley. The modern names we are familiar with today have been distorted by oral tradition.
While this story is not politically correct by modern standards, it had a plot that developed well, ideas that my 21st century mind could grasp, and world that was well thought out.
On the flip side (literally), I would give the Celestial Blueprint and Other Stories only two stars. Instead of solid world building that absorbs my entire imagination, the focus seemed to be on a displaying out of this world, far fetched ideas. Peter F. Hamilton took the time in his Commonwealth Saga to explain the big picture history of his alien species. Even though they were from a deep crevice in the world of imagination, they were a part of his universe that he created and not some wild idea that seemed to be hastily inserted into the story.
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April 11, 2023Vastly enjoyed, probably my favorite PJF book outside of World of Tiers. The novel (novelette) is very much based on ERB, very readable, fast-paced, action packed. The short stories are funnier, slyer. Rastignac almost like Lafferty or Vance, others like Dick or Bester. My only complaint is that my very old copy with brittle yellowed pages kept deteriorating in my hands while I turned the pages. Need a better copy of this gem.
January 26, 2019
Non male, ma ti lascia l'impressione che sia stato lasciato a metà.
March 11, 2013
Ace Double - Cache from Outer Space
later slightly rewritten and retitled as The Long Warpath
backed with - The Celestial Blueprint
which collects these 4 short stories:
"Rastignac the Devil" , "The Celestial Blueprint" , "They Twinkled Like Jewels" and "Totem and Taboo"
all first published in 1954.
later slightly rewritten and retitled as The Long Warpath
backed with - The Celestial Blueprint
which collects these 4 short stories:
"Rastignac the Devil" , "The Celestial Blueprint" , "They Twinkled Like Jewels" and "Totem and Taboo"
all first published in 1954.
October 25, 2012
Ace Double Novel F165
Cache From Outer Space grade C-
Celestial Blueprint grade C
Cache From Outer Space grade C-
Celestial Blueprint grade C
November 15, 2014
Solid but far from his best
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews