Mercury's Light

"Leigh Brackett's well-rounded characterizations and plots are/were a delight."
—Anne McCaffrey

". . . Of all those many science fantasies which have taken their cue from Lowell's Mars . . . Leigh Brackett's is one of the best, blended and spiced like a splendid oriental dish."
—Brian Aldiss

". . . everything about her early stories—their colour, their narrative speed, the brooding forthrightness of their protagonists—made them an ideal and fertile blend of traditional space opera and sword and sorcery. She was a marked influence upon the next generation of writers."
—John Clute, The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction

". . . one of the true godmothers of the New Wave. Anyone who thinks they're pinching one of my ideas is probably pinching one of hers."—Michael Moorcock

Cover Art by Doug Chaffee

Paperback
This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional, and any resemblance to real people or incidents is purely coincidental.

First printing, June 2008

A Baen Books Original
Baen publishing Enterprises
P.O. Box 1403
Riverdale, NY 10471
https://www.baen.com

Electronic version by Baen Books
https://www.baen.com

ISBN-13: 978-1011250059
ISBN-10: 1011250052

Copyright© 2008 by Leigh Brackett

"The Demons of Darkside" Copyright ©1941 by Leigh Brackett, First published in Startling Stories, June 1941

"A World is Born" Copyright ©1941 by Leigh Brackett, First published in Comet magazine, July 1941
"Cube From Space" Copyright ©1942 by Leigh Brackett, First published in Super Science Stories, August 1942
"Shannach—the Last" Copyright ©1952 by Leigh Brackett, First published in Planet Stories November 1952

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form.