The Invaders Plan (Mission Earth) [Mass Market Paperback]

L. Ron Hubbard (Author)

Book Description

Series: Mission Earth | Publication Date: August 1, 1985

From Lord Invay, Royal Historian, Chairman, Board of Censors, Royal Palace, Voltar Confederacy:

"Let me state it boldly and baldly: there is no such planet as 'Earth.'

"If it ever existed at all, it certainly does not exist today or even within living memory.

"So, away with this delusion.

"On the authority of every highly placed official in the land I can assure you utterly and finally, THERE IS NO PLANET EARTH! And that is final!"

With this emphatic disclaimer, we are introduced to MISSION EARTH, an epic told entirely and uniquely by the aliens that already walk among us. Earth is to be invaded and a Royal combat engineer must cross 22 light years to secretly infiltrate the planet. He is also crossing a scheme to use the resources of Earth's most powerful figure to overthrow the confederacy.

With a convicted murderess who trains giant cat-like animals, a doctor who creates human biological freaks, a madman who controls Voltar's secret police, and clandestine Earth base in Turkey, a bizarre stage is set and narrated by an alien killer assigned to sabotage the mission and Earth - the planet that doesn't exist.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...a big, humorous tale of interstellar intrigue in the classical mold. I fully enjoyed it." -- Roger Zelazny

"An incredibly good story, lushly written, vibrating with action and excitement. A gem." -- A.E. Van Vogt

"On our scale of 1 to 10,... The Invaders Plan comes out at a 10. Its fabulous and fun reading." -- United Press International

About the Author

L. Ron Hubbard's writing career spanned more than half a century of enduring literary achievement and creative influence, encompassing more than 250 published novels, novelettes, short stories and screenplays in every major genre. Among his best-selling and classic speculative fiction trendsetters are "Battlefield Earth," "Fear," and "Final Blackout."

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 615 pages
• Publisher: Galaxy Press (August 1, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592120229
• ISBN-13: 978-1592120222
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.3 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (75 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #727,716 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

With 19 New York Times bestsellers and more than 230 million copies of his works in circulation, L. Ron Hubbard is among the most acclaimed and widely read authors of our time. As a leading light of American Pulp Fiction through the 1930s and '40s, he is further among the most influential authors of the modern age. Indeed, from Ray Bradbury to Stephen King, there is scarcely a master of imaginative tales who has not paid tribute to L. Ron Hubbard.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Dissapointing for such a huge sci-fi work a highschool read., February 5, 1999

By 

Jon Dayton ([e-mail]) (New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Invaders Plan (Mission Earth Series, Vol 1) (Paperback)

If I was still in high school, I probably would have really enjoyed this series and probably overlooked the many holes in Hubbard's writing. In writing a dekalogy (a 10 book series) he had the option to follow in the footsteps of such greats as C.S. Lewis (The Chronicles of Narnia), and especially Frank Herbert (Dune). But instead of spanning the galaxy and thousands of years, he zones in on a character that's basically a secretary and a bumbling one at that. Among the disconcerting lack of details that would make the story truly work, is the fact that everyone in the book seems to eat mostly sweetrolls and soda, with the occasional beer (he did go as far as to create terms for them in the context, "sparklewater" and such). So basically what you have here is a shining opportunity to get really in depth and create a story with the scope of a thousand worlds and the fate of the galaxy. What you actually get is a private window on a bumbling cartoon character who munches on sweet rolls and generally interperets things poorly. It's amusing, but not what I'd call a page turner. But don't let me knock the series too much. My advice is to invest carefully. No sense buying ten books you hate. Just get the first one and see how it sits with you, and may it sit better with you than with me. - Jon Dayon

52 of 77 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Totally useless and a disservice to real science fiction, July 29, 1999

By 

Daniel Waitkoss (St. Charles, Missouri USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Invaders Plan (Mission Earth Series, Vol 1) (Paperback)

I am one of those people who love to read good science fiction and that is what the mess known as "Mission Earth" is not--good science fiction. While the basic plot is OK, Hubbard's use of "satire" is so poor that one begins to root for the psychologists and the psychiatrists that are being lambasted without rhyme or reason. Many of the ideas that appear in the book are on Scientology's hit list and, as in many of his writings, are attacked without being given a chance to tell their side of the story. But this is not the book's (and the series') basic flaw. Hubbard keeps repeating line and words to the point that if a reader would take out a word (say, for example, "riff raff") the book would deflate by half. (The same holds true when Soltan meets the Russian agent later on in the series--the repetition gets so loaded that the story bogs down so that it barely moves. Finally, even in bad satire (and we have one here) a hero cannot be as good as Jettero Heller--readers need heroes and villains they can believe in--both Gris and Heller are so far off the mark that I cannot belive in them. Although Bridge Publications claim that this is the largest series ever written, size does not matter--quality does--and that is what "Mission Earth" lacks--quality in the writing. In so doing, I cannot accept that these books are the best SF written. Readers looking for good, epic space opera and adventure by a true talent can find what they crave in E.E. "Doc" Smith's "Lensman" or "Skylark" series.

8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Review of the Audio Book Version - Rating 4.5, October 7, 2002

By 

Paladin08 (Folsom, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Invaders Plan (Mission Earth Series) (Audio Cassette)

1) Pro: Highest production audio book I've read to date. Multiple cast members playing their identified roles. Nice change from having one actor try and read for every part. This felt like it was an actual play.

2) Pro: Satirical (sp?) humor and engaging characters

3) Pro: I had no idea what to expect next and the first person point of view was excellent for this story

4) Con: Ends with minimal number of things resolved