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The Chessman of Mars (A Del Rey book) (Mass Market Paperback)

by E.R. Burroughs (Author) "TARA of Helium rose from the pile of silks and soft furs upon which she had been reclining, stretched her lithe body languidly, and crossed..." (more)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Mass Market Paperback: 220 pages
  • Publisher: Del Rey Books; Reissue edition (1 Dec 1992)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0345350383
  • ISBN-13: 978-0345350381
  • Product Dimensions: 17.1 x 10.8 x 1.3 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 1,413,407 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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First Sentence
TARA of Helium rose from the pile of silks and soft furs upon which she had been reclining, stretched her lithe body languidly, and crossed toward the center of the room, where, above a large table a bronze disc depended from the low ceiling. Read the first page
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The most creative of all the ERB pulp fiction novels, 27 Aug 2003
By Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)      
This review is from: The Chessmen of Mars (Hardcover)
"The Chessmen of Mars" is the fifth novel in the Edgar Rice Burroughs Martian (a.k.a. John Carter of Mars, Barsoom) series. Originally published serially in "Argosy All-Story Weekly" in 1921 and in hardback the following year it is arguably one of ERB's most imaginative stories. This reputation rests on two things. The first is the relationship between the Kaldanes "heads" and the headless Rykors who are the "descendants of exceedingly stupid humanoid creatures bred by the Kaladane over eons for strength, health, beauty and microcephaly." True, this makes no sense from an evolutionary standpoint, but it is one of the more imaginative parasitic relationships in science fiction history. The second is jetan, the Martian version of chess, which is usually played on a 10 x 10 game board of alternating black and orange squares in the cities of Barsoom, but in the city of Manator is played with living pieces in a giant arena. Of course in the living version of the game a moving piece is not guaranteed a square but has to fight for it.

The framing device for "The Chessmen of Mars" is told by John Carter, Warlord of Barsoom, on a visit home to Earth to see his nephew (rather remarkable given how long it took Carter to get back to Barsoom after his first adventure). Over a game of chess Carter tells of jetan and the adventures of his daughter, Tara of Helium, in Manator. As was the case with the previous Martian novel, "Thuvia, Maid of Mars," ERB introduces a new hero for this adventure in Gahan, Jed of Gathol. The novel opens with the two of them dancing at a royal function in Helium. She has her eyes set on Djor Kantos, sons of her friend's best friend, but he is interested in somebody else. When Gahan declares his love for her, Tara throws a fit and we know these two are meant for each other. Taking her flier on an unadvised flight during a Gale, the princess ends up blown across Barsoom and as happened with both her mother and her sister-in-law, her hero has to track her down and effect a rescue.

The combination of the Kaladanes jumping from one Rykor to the next with the jetan game to the death is quite captivating. For many readers of ERB's pulp fiction yarns "The Chessmen of Mars" is a favorite and while it has the standard hero rescues beloved plot that is a Burroughs staple it is layered with all this interesting stuff. Actually, the romance is the least interesting part of the story. This is far and away the most memorable volume in the Martian series, which is saying something because from start to finish it is ERB's best. With the Tarzan series you can basically leave off once he meets La of Opar, but the Martian series is the one worth reading from start to finish and "Chessmen" is the highpoint.

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars So-called "Pulp Fiction" that's definitely worth reading!, 29 Jul 1998
By A Customer
The Chessmen of Mars is the fifth book in the "Mars" series written by Edgar Rice Burroughs. This book focuses on Tara of Helium, John Carter's daughter. Strange creatures who play deadly games of martian chess decide to use her in one of their live games. As always, Burroughs described everything with such clarity that you can nearly see it. Also, at the end of the book, there is a list of the rules for "jetan", or Martian chess. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Grand adventure with Tara, Gahan and Ghek on ERB's Mars, 16 Jan 1998
By A Customer
Fifth book in the series of eleven, Chessmen of Mars paints three main charaters: Tara (daughter of John Carter of Mars), Gahan (Jed of Gathol, disguised as Turan the panthan), and Ghek the Kaldane (a man-like creature). It was written in 1922, but in 1996 a Kaldane action figure along with other Mars, Pellucidor and Tarzan action figures came on the market assocated with Tarzan, the Epic Adventures, etc. I enjoyed the character of Ghek the Kaldane so much during my college years that I have used it as my nickname and handle in the modem world since 1981. Storyline: Carried away in a great storm, Tara is lost on mars with but a slim dagger to guard herself...only to fall into the hands of the strange Kaldanes who happen to consider human flesh a delicacy (when nicely fattened up, of course). Also visited is Manator, where the dead are preserved as lifelike statues and where Jetan (martian chess - rules for play are included in the book) is played with living warriors contesting for possion of a square when a move is made. George Lucas admits that 1/3 of the inspiration for Star Wars came from the Books of ERB, especially the Mars series and in Robert A. Heinleins's "The Glory Road", Oscar, the main character wished several times for the hurtling moons of (ERB's) mars...read for yourself the books that inspired them. Love, romance, adventure, action and strange cultures are all waiting for you.
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