THE VOYAGE

A reworking of the story of Jason and the Argonauts' expedition to recover the Golden Fleece: from the author of many military sf outings (The Sharp End, p. 1170, etc.). Drake's main twist on the old yarn is to recast Jason as Lissea, a woman wronged by her Doormann family and the planetary business they run. Her task: to regain a valuable capsule (a teleport device? a matter transmitter?) that vanished half a century ago, along with its inventor, Lissea's great-uncle Lendell; both uncle and capsule were rumored to have turned up on the remote planet Pencahte. Lissea hires a fine shipful of cutthroat mercenaries, chief among whom are ex-Hammer's Slammer Ned Slade, and the adjutant, Tadziki. After various adventures—mythologically inclined readers may amuse themselves by matching Drake's chapters to episodes in the original Argonautica—they arrive on Pencahte to find the capsule guarded by both a hostile planetary ruler and a pair of impregnable alien tanks. And even after the survivors return home, there's still a battle to be fought for control of Doormann enterprises. A well-handled science-fictional retelling, with punchy action and realistic consequences. Should be a hit with the explode-a-mob audience.