Review: “Mercenary” by Mack Reynolds (1962 novella)

Posted on January 26th, 2008

UPDATED- See postscript at bottom.

Novella that is basis for the novel Mercenary From Tomorrow (also 1962), which I will review shortly. Two other novels followed in the same setting with some of the same characters: The Earth War (1963) and Time Gladiator (1964). Note that this author is published as Dallas McCord Reynolds as well as other names.

“Mercenary” is a novella set in a dystopian corporatist future where people are born into castes that are difficult to leave; the only caste advancement is through the military or the priesthood. On the other hand, basic necessities such as food, clothing, and housing are all provided by the government.

Large corporations settle disagreements by hiring mercenaries and staging battles where the arms are limited to weapons technologies existing before 1900. The middle and lower class public, like in 1984 or Brave New World, spend their days high on trank parked in front of the television watching the arranged battles.

Joe Mauser is a career mercenary, one who has spent two decades in his profession, but still remains a minor celebrity on the war circuit. Seeking advancement to the top caste, he signs on with Vacuum Tube Transport, a corporation facing certain loss in an imminent engagement. The corporation is willing to back Mauser’s advancement if his plan is super-secret battle plan is successful.

Mauser’s plan succeeds brilliantly, but circumstances conspire against Mauser’s advancement, although he (maybe) ends up with the girl.

There is quite a bit of exposition here on the economic and social structures of the world. Probably too much if truth be told. However it is interesting that Reynolds maintains the old the East and West communist/capitalist ideologies while expressing them as distinctions without differences: both are controlled by ruling classes defending their own positions. The recognition of living in that stagnant oligarchy, and the desire to change it, is what provides Mauser common ground with the upper caste woman with whom he is romantically interested.

There was a bit much exposition, but the mercenary/adventure portions were engaging enough. Because this story interested me enough to see it continued in the other novels of the series, I rate it:

Good/Recommended. You don’t even need to sign up to get it at Project Gutenberg in a couple formats or at Manybooks.net in more.

P.S.- I was able to get a copy of Mercenary From Tomorrow and read it. It turns out that MFT is a combination of “Mercenary” and another novella, “Frigid Fracas,” basically stuck together, although they do take place chronologically. In addition, there are some areas of “Mercenary” that have been fleshed out, such as certain subplots that do not appear in a straight reading of “Mercenary.” That first half is an improvement over the novella; it almost looks like the novel was written first and then edited for a shorter length.

The transition from the “Merc” section to the “Fracas” section is abrupt and should have been massaged. The pacing of MFT definitely suffered because of the two discrete story arcs, and the eventual conclusion as a bit more upbeat than the wayReynolds left the end of “Merc.”

I have a copy of Time Gladiator, but now I want to read Earth War first, which I do not have. Looks like it’s time to do some digging. If any of the series shows up on Project Gutenberg, I will post it.

Tags: free science fiction, public domain science fiction, Review, speculative fiction
Filed under Free Stuff, Military SF, Review, Reynolds, Mack, Science Fiction & Fantasy (SFF) |

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