Astounding Science Fiction, February 1960 (British Edition)

About this issue

This February 1960 British edition of Astounding Science Fiction contains the first part of "The Best Made Plans" by Everett B. Cole, a serial about conflicting individuals who trigger significant consequences. The story opens with Don Michaels attending a school assembly featuring a dramatic presentation about the city of Oredan, where news coverage reveals Prime Minister Darnel Stern's pursuit of a fugitive terrorist named Harle Waern—a corrupt former police commissioner who has killed guards, released prisoners, caused twenty deaths, and destroyed property while attempting to escape toward the mountains. The narrative shifts to Stern's assault on Waern's summer estate outside Riandar. The issue also includes the novelette "I Was a Teen-Age Secret Weapon" by Richard Sabia and four short stories: Eric Frank Russell's "Panic Button," Rick Raphael's "A Filbert Is a Nut," Christopher Anvil's "Captive Leaven," and Robert Silverberg's "Certainty." Editor John W. Campbell's lead editorial examines Cold War strategy and ideological conflict.