"Power Key (Perry Rhodan #78)" by K. H. Scheer
https://www.amazon.com/Power-Key-Perry-Rhodan-78/dp/B0012G1582/

Book number seventy-eight of a series of one hundred and thirty-six
space opera books in English. The original German books, actually
pamphlets, number in the thousands with several spinoffs. The English
books started with two translated German stories per book translated by Wendayne Ackerman and transitioned to one story per book with the sixth
book. And then they transition back to two stories in book #109/110.
The Ace publisher dropped out at #118, so Forrest and Wendayne Ackerman published books #119 to #136 in pamphlets before stopping in 1978. The
German books were written from 1961 to present time, having sold two
billion copies and even recently been rebooted again. I read the well
printed and well bound book published by Ace in 1975 that I had to be
very careful with due to age. I bought an almost complete box of Perry Rhodans a decade or two ago on ebay that I am finally getting to since I
lost my original Perry Rhodans in The Great Flood of 1989. In fact, I
now own book #1 to book #106, plus the Atlan books, and some of the
Lemuria books.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perry_Rhodan

BTW, this is actually book number 86 of the German pamphlets written in
1963. There is a very good explanation of the plot in German on the Perrypedia German website of all of the PR books. There is automatic
Google translation available for English, Spanish, Dutch, Japanese,
French, and Portuguese.
https://www.perrypedia.de/wiki/Der_Schl%C3%BCssel_zur_Macht
There is alternate synopsis site at:
https://www.perryrhodan.us/summaries/86#

In this alternate universe, USSF Major Perry Rhodan and his three fellow astronauts blasted off in a three stage rocket to the Moon in their
1971. The first stage of the rocket was chemical, the second and third
stages were nuclear. After crashing on the Moon due to a strange radio interference, they discover a massive crashed alien spaceship with an
aged male scientist (Khrest), a female commander (Thora), and a crew of
500. It has been over seventy years since then and the Solar Empire has flourished with tens of millions of people and many spaceships
headquartered in the Gobi desert, the city of Terrania. Perry Rhodan
has been elected by the people of Earth to be the World Administrator
and keep them from being taken over by the robot administrator of Arkon.

Perry Rhodan has been informed by Atlan and Khrest that the Robot Regent
of the Arkonide Empire probably has a secret deactivation circuit. And
the Robot Regent is recruiting sentients to replace the robot commanders
of the vast Arkonide spaceship fleets. So Perry Rhodan, Bell, and 200 scientist soldiers change themselves to look like Zalites and transport themselves to the Zalit home world, just three light years away from
Arkon. The groups then are transported to the Arkon home system for integration into the Arkonide space ships.

Two observations:
1. Forrest Ackerman should have put two or three of the translated
stories in each book. Having two stories in the first five books worked
out well. Just having one story in the book is too short and would
never allow the translated books to catch up to the German originals.
2. Anyone liking Perry Rhodan and wanting a more up to date story should
read the totally awesome "Mutineer's Moon" Dahak series of three books
by David Weber.
https://www.amazon.com/Mutineers-Moon-Dahak-David-Weber/dp/0671720856/

My rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Amazon rating: 5 out of 5 stars (1 reviews)

Lynn

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In rec.arts.sf.written Lynn McGuire <lynnmcguire5@gmail.com> wrote:

"Power Key (Perry Rhodan #78)" by K. H. Scheer
https://www.amazon.com/Power-Key-Perry-Rhodan-78/dp/B0012G1582/

<snip>

There is a very good explanation of the plot in German on the
Perrypedia German website of all of the PR books. There is automatic
Google translation available for English, Spanish, Dutch, Japanese,
French, and Portuguese.
https://www.perrypedia.de/wiki/Der_Schl%C3%BCssel_zur_Macht
There is alternate synopsis site at:
https://www.perryrhodan.us/summaries/86#

<snip>

Perry Rhodan has been informed by Atlan and Khrest that the Robot Regent
of the Arkonide Empire probably has a secret deactivation circuit. And
the Robot Regent is recruiting sentients to replace the robot commanders
of the vast Arkonide spaceship fleets. So Perry Rhodan, Bell, and 200 scientist soldiers change themselves to look like Zalites and transport themselves to the Zalit home world, just three light years away from
Arkon. The groups then are transported to the Arkon home system for integration into the Arkonide space ships.

Love lost afflicts an ageless Atlan:

As I jumped aboard the medium-speed transport band, I
glanced back at the gunshop. When I had gone into that
shop the first time I had been attended by a young
Arkonide girl.
I smiled to myself for I could remember how I had
sought for an excuse to meet her again, just before my
departure.
What must have become of her? Where were her mortal
remains resting now? She had only been a few years
younger than I. With crystal clarity I saw her face
appear before my mind’s eye. She had held her breath
when I came into the shop, for the symbol on the chest
of my uniform identified me as the Crystal Prince and
future ruler of the stellar empire.
Someone jostled me. A Zalite officer, having fallen
on the band, apologized disconcertedly.
Never before had I so strongly felt how old, how
terribly old and forgotten I was. I was an oddity: a
young looking being with smooth checks, firm muscles
and a tall, exercise-steeled body.
Only internally was I an old man. My lifetime of
experience ill-matched my appearance of blooming youth.
I had seen great peoples and cultures come and go. I
had stood at the cradle and the grave of the Eastern
Roman Empire and I had desperately tried to save the
lives of Christian martyrs until I realized that they
had not needed me.

Danke,

--
Don.......My cat's )\._.,--....,'``. https://crcomp.net/reviews.php telltale tall tail /, _.. \ _\ (`._ ,. veritas liberabit vos
tells tall tales.. `._.-(,_..'--(,_..'`-.;.' Make 1984 fiction again.


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On 6/12/2025 9:35 PM, Don wrote:

In rec.arts.sf.written Lynn McGuire <lynnmcguire5@gmail.com> wrote:

"Power Key (Perry Rhodan #78)" by K. H. Scheer
https://www.amazon.com/Power-Key-Perry-Rhodan-78/dp/B0012G1582/

<snip>

There is a very good explanation of the plot in German on the
Perrypedia German website of all of the PR books. There is automatic
Google translation available for English, Spanish, Dutch, Japanese,
French, and Portuguese.
https://www.perrypedia.de/wiki/Der_Schl%C3%BCssel_zur_Macht
There is alternate synopsis site at:
https://www.perryrhodan.us/summaries/86#

<snip>

Perry Rhodan has been informed by Atlan and Khrest that the Robot Regent
of the Arkonide Empire probably has a secret deactivation circuit. And
the Robot Regent is recruiting sentients to replace the robot commanders
of the vast Arkonide spaceship fleets. So Perry Rhodan, Bell, and 200
scientist soldiers change themselves to look like Zalites and transport
themselves to the Zalit home world, just three light years away from
Arkon. The groups then are transported to the Arkon home system for
integration into the Arkonide space ships.

Love lost afflicts an ageless Atlan:

As I jumped aboard the medium-speed transport band, I
glanced back at the gunshop. When I had gone into that
shop the first time I had been attended by a young
Arkonide girl.
I smiled to myself for I could remember how I had
sought for an excuse to meet her again, just before my
departure.
What must have become of her? Where were her mortal
remains resting now? She had only been a few years
younger than I. With crystal clarity I saw her face
appear before my mind’s eye. She had held her breath
when I came into the shop, for the symbol on the chest
of my uniform identified me as the Crystal Prince and
future ruler of the stellar empire.
Someone jostled me. A Zalite officer, having fallen
on the band, apologized disconcertedly.
Never before had I so strongly felt how old, how
terribly old and forgotten I was. I was an oddity: a
young looking being with smooth checks, firm muscles
and a tall, exercise-steeled body.
Only internally was I an old man. My lifetime of
experience ill-matched my appearance of blooming youth.
I had seen great peoples and cultures come and go. I
had stood at the cradle and the grave of the Eastern
Roman Empire and I had desperately tried to save the
lives of Christian martyrs until I realized that they
had not needed me.

Danke,

--
Don.......My cat's )\._.,--....,'``. https://crcomp.net/reviews.php telltale tall tail /, _.. \ _\ (`._ ,. veritas liberabit vos tells tall tales.. `._.-(,_..'--(,_..'`-.;.' Make 1984 fiction again.

That was actually fairly cool.

I cannot remember how many years that Atlan spent in the stasis chamber
on Earth.

Lynn


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