by Algis Budrys
First published 1968
Dr. Edward Hawks faces an impossible problem. Human explorers have discovered an alien structure on the lunar surface, but no one who enters it survives. The formation kills intruders in brutal, inexplicable ways that defy human understanding. Hawks needs someone willing to die repeatedly to map this lethal maze. He finds his answer in Al Barker, a death-obsessed thrill seeker who craves exactly what the alien construct offers. Using matter transmission technology, Hawks can create perfect copies of Barker, sending duplicate after duplicate into the structure while the original remains safely on Earth. Each copy dies horribly, but their experiences provide crucial data about the alien trap. As Barker's copies face death after death, Hawks must confront his own relationship with mortality and rebirth. The mission becomes a twisted dance between scientific necessity and human psychology, where the line between murder and discovery blurs beyond recognition.
Genres: science-fiction, adventure, thriller, psychological-thriller
Vibes: dark, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: death-obsession, mortality, scientific-discovery
Setting: Moon, Lunar Surface
Period: 20th-century
Paperback · Hodder Fawcett Ltd. (London)
Content warnings: death, violence