James H. Schmitz

James H. Schmitz was the author of a number of science fiction fantasy novels and stories. After his death, his out-of-print works retained an enthusiastic following and were republished in the 1980's. They are remarkable for their bold female characters (surprising even by today's standards), and also for the author's deft handling of psionics. Many of Schmitz' writings fall into one of two universes and have many interlocking characters. He wrote one set of tales set in the universe of the "Agent of Vega" series. He created a different universe in the "Federation of the Hub" series which includes over two dozen stories and novels. His writings exist as eight novels and fifty-odd stories in several collections, most of which were published between 1960 and 1974.

Partial list of works

• The Universe Against Her (1964)
• The Lion Game (1973)
• A Tale of 2 Clocks (1962)
• The Witches of Karres (1966)
• Agent of Vega (1960)
• The Eternal Frontiers (1973)
• The Demon Breed (1969)
• A Pride of Monsters (collection of five stories, 1970)
• The Best of James H. Schmitz (posthumous collection, 1991)

More publications

• The Other Likeness (Analog, July 1962)
• The Tuvela (2-part, Analog, Sept. and Oct. 1968)
• The Custodians (Analog, Dec. 1968)
• Resident Witch (Analog, May 1970) - a Telsey Amberdon adventure
• Compulsion (Analog, June 1970)
• The Telzey Toy (Analog, Jan. 1971)
• Company Planet (Analog, May 1971)
• Glory Day (Analog, June 1971) - Telsey and Trigger
• Poltergeist (Analog, July 1971)
• The Lion Game (2-part, Analog, Aug. and Sept.1971)
• Child of the Gods (Analog, March 1972)
• The Symbiotes (Analog, Sept. 1972)

A Tale of 2 Clocks

A Tale of 2 Clocks was published in 1962. It is a Trigger Argee adventure, and touches on Quillan, Pilch, plasmoids, and Old Galactics.

The story is a mystery, which Trigger Argee eventually unwinds almost by accident. Trigger is one of two recurring female lead characters for Schmitz. Like Telzey, she is privileged and extremely capable, but unlike Telzey, she has little or no psionic ability. Instead, she is equipped with above average intelligence, training, and a dollop of creativity.

Several of Schmitz' strengths as a writer come out in this yarn. Human perception gets questioned, as the alleged culprits turn out to have a very unexpected nature and motivation. Qualities of "good" and "bad" are played with ironically. Pilch is one example: powerful and unrelenting enough to take on a forbidding mien to Trigger and others, but Schmitz makes clear that she is basically benign. She also appears in other works, as does the resourceful free-lance, semi-criminal detective, Quillan.

This story does not move as quickly as some other works, but is nevertheless a thought-provoking and satisfying read.