L. P. Davies (1914–1988)

It's 1966 in a small village in the English countryside. Alan Fraser is a science fiction writer who has lived here all his life and is recovering from an accident under the care of a housekeeper and his chummy next door neighbor, along with frequent visits from the town doctor. Every day has a strict routine that is barely hidden behind casual "coincidences" surrounding the movement of the very small population of townspeople. And then things start to crack. Alan answers the phone and a strange man says a very familiar name to him, but he doesn't know where he heard the name before. He hears the doctor arrive like he does every day, but when he peeks out the window, the car is facing in the wrong direction. And then he goes for a very long walk in the countryside and runs into a young woman named Karen who he has never seen before. And she notices some very odd things about his village that just don't add up. She is drawn to him and wants to help, and not just because he gives her a real tobacco cigarette -- the kind you can't get anymore in 2016 (!!). This is a very fun science fiction novel with a heavy dose of spycraft, and just when you think you've figured out what is behind everything, the ground shifts a bit with a new twist. Bought this one for the cover and it ended up being an extremely fun read!… (meer)

British sensibilities. The action is curiously energetic and gripping, for all that the critical plot line requires a YA suspension of disbelief for it to work. First you have a poltergeist, then a human in a distant part of the galaxy, then a switch of bodies--revivifying a dead body, then super-weapons made from tube radios and electrical stuff laying about...all ending with the body being dead again and the perpetrator being united within himself completely unaware of the havoc he's left behind. And all this takes place somewhere in staid England where there is a multitude of unexplored caves to contain the action. As hokey as the story is...I enjoyed it (maybe because I lived in Great Britain for several years and could recognize the characters and connect with them; not to mention that this is a quick and painless read, for 1966 and only slightly "over the top").… (meer)