Edison's Conquest of Mars

In 1897 H G Wells created one of the greatest science fiction masterpieces ever written 'The War Of The Worlds'. The story was serialised in newspapers across America and proved to be so popular that the Hearst newspaper group commissioned a sequel, to be written by their own science editor -- Garrett Putnam Serviss. This sequel appeared in February of 1898 and quickly entered into the annals of science fiction history. It is one of the rarest and possibly one of the most important stories ever to appear in the genre. Serviss procured the co-operation of the famous inventor Thomas Edison and wove a totally distinct and astonishing tale of humans invading Mars. Whereas Wells had composed a story of human suffering, Serviss invented the space techno-thriller. This book contains the first space battle to ever appear in print. It is the first alien abduction story. The birthplace of the hand-held phaser-gun. It has asteroid mining and the first truly functional spacesuits. It is a cornucopia of technical ingenuity. The hero of the story is Edison himself. This is the first time this story has appeared, complete and unabridged with the original illustrations since the winter of 1898. First appearance ever outside the USA. Comes with a 13-page essay by editor Robert Godwin and original cover art by Tom Miller. Includes first appearances in fiction: Science: Functional space suits, Manned manoeuvring EVA guns, Using the moon to train for Mars, Using the Martian moons as staging posts, Asteroid mining for platinum group metals, Exploration and accurate description of an asteroid, Accurate description of light and shadow in space, Scientist-astronauts, Accurate understanding of the moons history. Folklore: Space combat, Alien abductions, Disintegrator guns, Aliens building the pyramids, Oxygen pills, Cigar-shaped alien spacecraft.