Tower of the Medusa

Tower of the Medusa is a sword and planet science fiction novel by American writer Lin Carter, the third in his Tales of the Near Stars series. It was first published in paperback by Ace Books in November 1969 together with the unrelated George H. Smith novel Kar Kaballa as the "Ace Double" anthology, Kar Kaballa/Tower of the Medusa. The first stand-alone edition was issued in trade paperback and ebook by Wildside Press in February 2011. The first British edition was issued as an ebook by Gateway/Orion in November 2018.^[1]

In the far future, when science has become indistinguishable from magic, Kirin, a thief dealing in precious relics, is forced to land on an alien world. After an attack by death dwarfs he finds himself involved in a quest to steal a magical gem from the Tower of the Medusa, crawling with guards and lethal traps, and reputedly impregnable. In an adventure replete with chases and battles, Kirin and his confederates must overcome the evil Witch Queen, a beautiful sorceress. Taken prisoner and held in her palace, he is aided by a captivating slave. After more fast paced action, events culminate in a battle highlighted by the intervention of ancient gods.

While Carter considered the book a component of his Tales of the Near Stars series, critic John Clute has linked it to Carter's History of the Great Imperium series, along with an additional Carter science fiction novel, The Star Magicians (1966).^[2] That series is more usually considered to consist solely of The Man Without a Planet (1966), Star Rogue (1970), and Outworlder (1971).

The book was reviewed by Anthony R. Lewis in Locus no. 44, Dec. 17, 1969, and Paul Walker in Science Fiction Review, Jan. 1971.^[1]