Reward for Retief (56 page)

BAEN

BOOKS

REWARD FOR RETIEF

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.

Copyright © 1989 by Keith Laumer

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

A Baen Book

Baen Publishing Enterprises

260 Fifth Avenue

New York, N.Y. 10001

First Baen printing, February 1989

ISBN: 0-671-69804-4

Cover art by Gary Ruddell

Printed in the United States of America

Distributed by

SIMON & SCHUSTER

1230 Avenue of the Americas

New York, N.Y. 10020

* * * * * *

Back cover

"In
Zany-Doo did Jame Retief

a stately
pleasure dome decree ..."

            Retief's latest assignment
is on Zany-Doo, a wild, undeveloped planet whose residents have a marked
dislike for Terrans. The caterpilleroid natives seem to have something to hide,
but neither Ambassador Spoilsport nor Retief's ineffable boss, Ben Magnan, can
figure out what it might be. Then Retief and Magnan stumble into an idyllic
enclave unlike anything else they've seen—and realize just how special Zany-Doo
is. The planet is at the center of a trans-temporal flux where the very nature
of reality can be transformed by a thought.

            But even in a world where
reality is subject to whim, honor, courage and determination will carry the
day. After all, Retief is just a state of mind ...