James Henry Schmitz as a writer of science fiction combines acceptable improbabilities with good prose. His work, often republished, is obviously enjoyed by his readers, and the comments of the editors of anthologies indicate that his appeal extends to writers as well. Schmitz was born of American parents in Hamburg and spent the first twenty years of his life in Germany. He studied briefly in the United States and then returned to work in Germany for a few years. After serving in the U.S. Air Force during World War II, he began his career as a writer in 1943. He did not become a full-time writer until 1959.

The hallmarks of a Schmitz story are capable agents who, even under the most stringent circumstances, never forget an important detail or piece of equipment and who, therefore, bring their missions to successful ends; involved, obscure dangers; convincingly inimical "monsters"; and...