Gateway

Frederik Pohl

1976

This book was an instant hit with both professional and fan commentators, winning the Hugo, Nebula and John W Campbell awards in 1977.

The story is told from the point of view of Robinette Broadbent, who had started life as a shale miner in the wreckage of Wyoming. His only way out was the trip to Gateway when he won the lottery that would let him pay for a ticket out to the mysterious asteroid.

Interspersed with Rob’s recollections of his time on Gateway are his therapy sessions for some unspecified guilt. It is clear that he has made it big in some fashion, but his absolute terror of the ships left behind by the Heechee, or rather the potential results of going out on them, it is difficult to see how he could have come into such success.

The Gateway Corporation awarded those who would risk travelling in the abandoned ships according to the value of the find at their destination, each person aboard the ship getting a share. Each surviving member that is. It was up to the prospector whether they took out a single person ship, a three-person vessel or a five-person vessel.

Only the terminally desperate would consider a One. Think loneliness. Think on the poor course selections. Think of the really poor return rate! on the other hand, if you did find anything, think of the rewards!!

Threes were much better bet with two other people to get along, better course selection and some of the ships are even armoured to give the crew a chance to survive the dangers at destination’s end.

Missions involving Fives should give the best balance between crew size, a chance of a good destination (i.e. one that had usable science or Heechee remains) and more of them were armoured.

Of course there were the risks inherent to any trip out from Gateway. The ships are a Big Unknown in their own right. No-one knew what fuelled them, or how to tell if if the fuel’s about to run out. Each trip’s duration was unknown and you counted the days til turn around very carefully!

But the rewards were vast, with the search on for working and explicable Heechee technology. Big bonuses were available for working ships bigger than a Five, for such small crews could not exploit many of the scientific finds. For extra-terrestrial life, you could retire wealthy beyond your dreams. Find a Heechee and you could name your own reward…!

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This is part of the Science Fiction Masterworks seriers.

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