The Metal Monster
Encyclopedia
The Metal Monster is an Abraham Merritt fantasy
novel
. It was first serialized in Argosy All-Story Weekly in 1920 and features the return of Dr. Goodwin who first appeared in The Moon Pool
.
The epic adventure starts with a foreword where Merritt is assigned the duty to relay Dr. Walter T. Goodwin's incredible tale of his encounter in the Trans-Himalayan mountains to the world, to let everyone know the terrible fate Goodwin's group barely escaped and the possibility of other such monsters out there.
The group is saved by a magnificent woman they get to know as Norhala. She commands the power of lightning and controls strange metal animate Things, living, metallic, geometric forms; an entire city of sentient cubes, globes and tetrahedrons, capable of joining together and forming colossal shapes, and wielding death rays and other armaments of destruction.
They are led to a hidden valley occupied by what they name "The Metal Monster", a strange metal city occupied by the metal animate Things Norhala commands. This city is governed by what they call the Metal Emperor, assisted by the Keeper of the Cones.
Ruth is slowly being converted by Norhala to become like her; her little sister. Martin, her brother, tries shooting the Metal Emperor, who retaliates with a ray blast, putting Martin in a comatose state.
Closed in between the Metal Monster and the Persians, it falls to Goodwin and Drake to find a way to escape their predicament.
, though he at first avoided the revised version, at the suggestion of C. M. Eddy, Jr.
. According to his March 6, 1934 letter to James F. Morton:
for this story has expired in the United States and, thus, now resides in the public domain
there. The text is available via Project Gutenberg
.
The second version is named "The Metal Emperor", appearing in 1927 in Hugo Gernsback
's Science and Invention magazine. It is an abridged version of the first story, with the leading character's name changed to Louis Thorton.
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
. It was first serialized in Argosy All-Story Weekly in 1920 and features the return of Dr. Goodwin who first appeared in The Moon Pool
The Moon Pool
The Moon Pool is a fantasy novel by Abraham Merritt . It originally appeared as two short stories in All-Story Weekly: "The Moon Pool" and its sequel, "Conquest of the Moon Pool" . These were then reworked into a novel released in 1919. The protagonist, Dr...
.
The epic adventure starts with a foreword where Merritt is assigned the duty to relay Dr. Walter T. Goodwin's incredible tale of his encounter in the Trans-Himalayan mountains to the world, to let everyone know the terrible fate Goodwin's group barely escaped and the possibility of other such monsters out there.
Plot summary
Dr. Goodwin is on a botanical expedition in the Himalayas. There he meets Dick Drake, the son of one of his old science acquaintances. They are witnesses of a strange aurora-like effect, but seemingly a deliberate one. As they go out to investigate, they meet Goodwin's old friends Martin and Ruth Ventnor, brother and sister scientists. The two are besieged by Persians as Darius III led when Alexander of Macedon conquered them more than two thousand years ago.The group is saved by a magnificent woman they get to know as Norhala. She commands the power of lightning and controls strange metal animate Things, living, metallic, geometric forms; an entire city of sentient cubes, globes and tetrahedrons, capable of joining together and forming colossal shapes, and wielding death rays and other armaments of destruction.
They are led to a hidden valley occupied by what they name "The Metal Monster", a strange metal city occupied by the metal animate Things Norhala commands. This city is governed by what they call the Metal Emperor, assisted by the Keeper of the Cones.
Ruth is slowly being converted by Norhala to become like her; her little sister. Martin, her brother, tries shooting the Metal Emperor, who retaliates with a ray blast, putting Martin in a comatose state.
Closed in between the Metal Monster and the Persians, it falls to Goodwin and Drake to find a way to escape their predicament.
Publication history
- 1941, USA, AvonAvon (publishers)Avon Publications was an American paperback book and comic book publisher. As of 2010, it is an imprint of HarperCollins, publishing primarily romance novels.-History:...
, , Pub date 1941, Paperback, Murder Mystery Monthly No. 41 - 1974, USA, Hyperion Press, , Pub date 1974, Classics of Science Fiction series, reprint of 1946 Avon edition, with introduction by Sam MoskowitzSam MoskowitzSam Moskowitz was an early fan and organizer of interest in science fiction and, later, a writer, critic, and historian of the field.-Biography:...
- 2002, USA, Hippocampus PressHippocampus PressHippocampus Press is an American publisher of fantasy, horror and science fiction, and specializes in reprints or first editions of work by authors such as H. P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith. One of its major projects is the 5-volume set of Lovecraft's Collected Essays...
, , Pub date 2002, in the Lovecraft's Library series, introduction by Stefan Dziemianowicz
Legacy
This book was a favorite of H. P. LovecraftH. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
, though he at first avoided the revised version, at the suggestion of C. M. Eddy, Jr.
C. M. Eddy, Jr.
Clifford Martin Eddy, Jr. was an American author best known for his horror and supernatural short stories. He is best remembered for his work in Weird Tales magazine.- Career :...
. According to his March 6, 1934 letter to James F. Morton:
Copyright
The copyrightCopyright
Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
for this story has expired in the United States and, thus, now resides in the public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
there. The text is available via Project Gutenberg
Project Gutenberg
Project Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...
.
Revisions
Three versions of the story exist.The second version is named "The Metal Emperor", appearing in 1927 in Hugo Gernsback
Hugo Gernsback
Hugo Gernsback , born Hugo Gernsbacher, was a Luxembourgian American inventor, writer, editor, and magazine publisher, best remembered for publications that included the first science fiction magazine. His contributions to the genre as publisher were so significant that, along with H. G...
's Science and Invention magazine. It is an abridged version of the first story, with the leading character's name changed to Louis Thorton.
External links
- The Metal Monster at Project GutenbergProject GutenbergProject Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...
- The Metal Monster at the University of Virginia
- Featured Review: The Metal Monster, SF Site