Keith Laumer (1925–1993)

Author of A Plague of Demons

262+ Works 15,434 Members 208 Reviews 16 Favorited

About the Author

Keith Laumer was born John Keith Laumer in Syracuse, New York on June 9, 1925. Before becoming a full-time writer, he was an officer in the U.S. Air Force and a U.S. diplomat. He is best known for the Bolo stories and Retief series. His other works include The Other Side of Time, A Trace of Memory, show more Dinosaur Beach, and A Plague of Demons. He suffered a stroke in 1971, which negatively affected the quality of his work and his career declined. He was also a model airplane enthusiast, and published two dozen designs between 1956 and 1962 in the magazines Air Trails, Model Airplane News, Flying Models, and Aero Modeler. In 1960, he published How to Design and Build Flying Models. He died on January 23, 1993 at the age of 67. (Bowker Author Biography) show less

Includes the names: K. Laumer, Keith Laumer, Keith Laumer, KIETH LAUMER, Keuth Laumer, Keith Laumer, Keith Lauwer, Anthony Lebaron, Keith Laumer ed., John Keith Laumer, Keith Laumer et al, Keith and others Laumer, Keith Laumer, Illustrated by Cover Art

Image credit: www.keithlaumer.com/

Series

Works by Keith Laumer

Popular Recent

A Plague of Demons (1965) 401 copies

Bolo: Annals of the Dinochrome Brigade (1960) 377 copies

Retief's War (1965) 370 copies

Retief! (A Collection of Stories) (2002) 345 copies

Retief: Emissary to the Stars (1975) 341 copies

Retief and the Warlords (1968) 321 copies

Retief of the CDT (1985) 296 copies

The Time Bender (1966) 293 copies

Retief at Large (1978) 291 copies

Honor of the Regiment (1993) 288 copies

The World Shuffler (1970) — Author — 286 copies

Earthblood (1955) — Author — 283 copies

A Trace of Memory (1962) 280 copies

Worlds of the Imperium (1962) 279 copies

The Great Time Machine Hoax (1963) 279 copies

Envoy to new worlds (1963) 275 copies

Dinosaur Beach (1971) — Author — 265 copies

Star Colony (1981) 260 copies

The Compleat Bolo (1990) — Author — 244 copies

Retief : Diplomat at Arms (1982) 244 copies

The Return of Retief (1984) 232 copies

Retief to the Rescue (Jaime Retief Series #12) (1983) 230 copies

Galactic Odyssey (1967) 228 copies

The Star Treasure (1971) 219 copies

The Unconquerable (1994) 219 copies

Keith Laumer: The Lighter Side (2002) 215 copies

Rogue Bolo (1986) 214 copies

Retief and the Pangalactic Pageant of Pulchritude (1986) — Author — 213 copies

Retief in the Ruins (1986) 212 copies

The Ultimax Man (1978) — Author — 203 copies

Retief Unbound (1979) 202 copies

The Glory Game (1973) 193 copies

Old Guard (2001) 192 copies

A Plague of Demons: & Other Stories (1959) 187 copies

The Shape Changer (1972) 185 copies

Knight of Delusions (1972) 184 copies

The Long Twilight (1969) 184 copies

Five Fates (1970) 183 copies

Reward for Retief (Jaime Retief Series #15) (1989) 179 copies

The Infinite Cage (1972) 172 copies

The Triumphant (1995) 170 copies

The Galaxy Builder (1984) 165 copies

Last Stand (1997) 161 copies

The Monitors (1966) 161 copies

Worlds of the Imperium / The War Against the Yukks / Worldmaster (1962) 159 copies

Time Trap (1970) 156 copies

The Stars Must Wait (Baen Books) (1990) 149 copies

Odyssey (2002) 148 copies

End as a Hero (1985) 135 copies

Legions of Space (2004) 133 copies

The Other Side of Time (1965) 131 copies

Beyond the Imperium (1981) 127 copies

Imperium (2005) 116 copies

Nine By Laumer (1960) 115 copies

Future Imperfect (2003) 112 copies

Planet Run [Expanded Edition] (1982) — Author — 108 copies

Retief and the Rascals (1993) 108 copies

Zone Yellow (1990) — Author — 102 copies

The Best of Keith Laumer (1976) — Author — 102 copies

The House in November (1970) 100 copies

The Invaders (1967) 99 copies

Galactic Diplomat (1965) 98 copies

Catastrophe Planet (1966) 97 copies

Judson's Eden (1991) 97 copies

Retief's Ransom (1971) 96 copies

Assignment in Nowhere (1968) 94 copies

The Breaking Earth (1981) 93 copies

Greylorn (1968) 90 copies

Once There Was a Giant (1600) 90 copies

Planet Run (1967) 86 copies

Retief: Ambassador to Space (1967) 82 copies

Alien Minds (1991) 78 copies

Timetracks (Ballantine books science fiction) (1972) 77 copies

Back to the Time Trap (1992) 75 copies

It's A Mad, Mad, Mad Galaxy (1965) — Author — 69 copies

Dangerous Vegetables (1998) 68 copies

The Day Before Forever and Thunderhead (1968) 64 copies

The Long Twilight and other stories (1992) 61 copies

The House in November and The Other Sky (1968) 60 copies

THe undefeated (1974) — Author — 60 copies

Chrestomathy (1984) 59 copies

The Universe Twister (2008) 58 copies

The Frozen Planet and Four Other Science-Fiction Novellas (1966) — Contributor — 57 copies

Seven From the Stars / Worlds of the Imperium (Ace Double F-127) (1962) — Author — 52 copies

The Big Show (1972) 49 copies

Envoy to New Worlds / Flight From Yesterday (1963) — Author — 46 copies

The Drowned Queen (1968) 42 copies

Earthblood & Other Stories (2008) — Author — 39 copies

The Afrit Affair (1968) 37 copies

Fat Chance (1974) 32 copies

The Gold Bomb (1968) 30 copies

The Day Before Forever [novella] (1969) 28 copies

The Invaders: Enemies from Beyond (1967) 27 copies

Gambler's World (2009) 21 copies

The Yillian Way (2009) 18 copies

De Komst van de Chaos & Invasie uit de Dimensies (1980) 18 copies

Ruimte-Odyssee (1975) 17 copies

In strijd met de chaos (1988) 13 copies

In the Queue [short story] (1970) 13 copies

Het laatste bevel (1977) 13 copies

Embassy (1965) 12 copies

SF 130 GTX de Luxe (1978) — Contributor — 11 copies

Dinochroom (1973) 11 copies

Galaxy Science Fiction 1965 April, Vol. 23, No. 4 (1965) — Author — 10 copies

The Last Command [short story] (1966) 9 copies

It Could Be Anything (2009) 9 copies

Doorstep (1961) 8 copies

Bolo Night Of the Trolls (1963) 8 copies

Test to Destruction [short fiction] (1967) 8 copies

Cultural Exchange (2016) 7 copies

The King Of The City (2016) 7 copies

Prototaph 7 copies

The Hounds of Hell 7 copies

Aide Memoire (2020) 6 copies

Bolo: Rogue Bolo (2020) 6 copies

Keith Laumer Super Pack: 44 (Positronic Super Pack Series) (2020) 6 copies

Star-Sent Knaves (1963) 6 copies

Saline Solution (2020) 6 copies

The 35th Golden Age of Science Fiction MEGAPACK®: Keith Laumer (2016) 5 copies

A Bad Day For Vermin (2019) 5 copies

De andere hemel (1988) 5 copies

How to design and build flying models (1975) 5 copies

The Frozen Planet (2016) 4 copies

The Keith Laumer MEGAPACK®: 21 Classic Stories (English Edition) (2020) 4 copies

Courier (1961) 4 copies

Once There Was A Giant [short story] 4 copies

Hybrid 4 copies

The Long Remembered Thunder (2020) 4 copies

The Castle Of Light 4 copies

The Brass God 4 copies

Of Death What Dreams (1970) 4 copies

Palace Revolution 3 copies

The Desert and the Stars (2020) 3 copies

Protocol 3 copies

El gran espectáculo (1972) 3 copies

Policy 3 copies

Worldmaster 3 copies

The Devil You Don't 3 copies

Native Intelligence 3 copies

Beyond the Moons of Neptune: A Keith Laumer Collection (2010) 3 copies

The Garbage Invasion (1991) 3 copies

Combat Unit (1960) 3 copies

Wicker Wonderland 3 copies

Thunderhead (1967) 3 copies

The Negotiators (1975) 3 copies

Ballots And Bandits 3 copies

Sealed Orders 3 copies

Mechanical Advantage 3 copies

Giant Killer 3 copies

The Planet Wreckers 3 copies

The Forest In The Sky 3 copies

The Other Sky [short story] 2 copies

Pime Doesn't Cray 2 copies

Dam Nuisance 2 copies

The Forbidden City 2 copies

Grime And Punishment 2 copies

The Keith Laumer SciFi Collection, Greylorn, It Could Be Anything, Gambler's World, Retief: The Yillian Way (2011) 2 copies

A Trip To The City 2 copies

Goobereality 2 copies

Once There Was A Giant and No Ship Boots In Fairyland 2 copies

Gambler's World and Other Science Fiction Stories 2 copies

Cocoon (2020) 2 copies

A Hoax in Time (2014) 2 copies

The Exterminator 2 copies

Message To An Alien 2 copies

Retief of the Red-Tape Mountain (2020) 2 copies

Niss Soul Buyer 2 copies

Un resto de memoria (1977) 2 copies

Mind Out Of Time 2 copies

El largo crepúsculo (1969) 2 copies

The Lawgiver {short story} 2 copies

Protest Note 2 copies

Internal Affair 2 copies

Street Scene (1968) 2 copies

Founder's Day 2 copies

The Body Builders 2 copies

The Prince And The Pirate 2 copies

Trick Or Treaty 2 copies

Fantalmanacco 2 copies

Placement Test 2 copies

The Troubleshooter 2 copies

The Walls (2020) 2 copies

Greylorn [short story] (1959) 2 copies

Ultimatum 2 copies

Three Blind Mice 2 copies

The Piecemakers 2 copies

The Works of Keith Laumer [Illustrated] (2010) 2 copies

The Hoob Melon Crisis 2 copies

Gambler's World and Other Works by Keith Laumer (Unexpurgated Edition) (Halcyon Classics) (2010) 2 copies

Gambler's World & The Yillian Way (2016) 1 copy

Devil You Don't 1 copy

Choice 1 copy

The All-Together Planet 1 copy

The Governor of Glave 1 copy

The Madman From Earth 1 copy

The Choice 1 copy

Mightiest Qorn 1 copy

Body Builders 1 copy

L'Ordinateur désordonné: roman (1964) 1 copy

Three By Laumer: Worlds of the Imperium, Retief: Envoy to New Worlds, Bolo (2017) 1 copy

Bolo: The Stars Must Wait (2020) 1 copy

Der Mann vom CDT: Fünf neue Planetenabenteuer mit James Retief, dem Diplomaten der Galaxis (1971) 1 copy

The Keith Laumer Megapack: 21 Classic Stories 1 copy

Bolos: Last Stand, Honor of the Regiment, Unconquerable, Triumphant, and Complete Bolo (1995) 1 copy

Science Fiction Special 37 (1981) — Contributor — 1 copy

Overpopulation 1 copy

Terra Science Fiction Nr. 143: Das große Zeitabenteuer 1 copy

Keith Laumer's Retief 1 copy

The Essential Keith Laumer (Giants of Sci-Fi Collection Book 7) 1 copy

(Galaxia 47) Envío a nuevos mundos 1 copy

ll Clandestino dei Mondi 1 copy

King Of the City 1 copy

Dugo zapamćena grmljavina ; Kralj grada ; Kućni prag (2019) 1 copy

Corrup©ʹ©Đo nas gal©Łxias 1 copy

Colony 1 copy

Corrupção nas Galáxias 1 copy

Avontuur in ruimte & tijd nummer 4 1 copy

Exterminator 1 copy

Minaccia Dagli Hukk 1 copy

Planet Wreckers 1 copy

The Half Man 1 copy

Fantastic Vol 12 #12 Dec '63 featuring The Soul Buyer 1 copy

Bolos Series - Five books: Bolos I: Honor of the Regiment, Bolos II: The Unconquerable, Bolos III: The Triumphant,… (2001) 1 copy

The Time Bender; The World Shuffler; The Shape Changer; The Galaxy Builder (Lafayette O'Leary) (1966) 1 copy

Diplomat-at-arms [short story] 1 copy

The War Against the Yukks [novelette] 1 copy

De onnavolgbare 1 copy

Truce Or Consequences 1 copy

The Plague 1 copy

Birthday Party 1 copy

Il vecchio dei serpenti e altri racconti 1 copy

A Plague of Demons & the Best of 2 Paperbacks 1 copy

Field Test [short story] (1976) 1 copy

A Relic of War [short story] (1969) 1 copy

End as a Hero [novelette] (1963) 1 copy

The Wonderful Secret (Part 1 of 2) [serial] (1977) 1 copy

The Wonderful Secret (Part 2 of 2) [serial] (1977) 1 copy

Keith Laumer's Retief #1 1 copy

The Wonderful Secret 1 copy

Fantastic Vol 20 #2 Dec '70 featuring The Shape Changer 1 copy

Retief: Issue 1 1 copy

Retief Sealed Orders 1 copy

Retief Piecemakers 1 copy

Retief Saline Solution 1 copy

Retief Retief's War 1 copy

Retief Retief's Ransom 1 copy

Retief Protocol 1 copy

Retief Protest Note 1 copy

Retief Prince and the Pirate 1 copy

Retief Policy 1 copy

Retief Pime Doesn't Cray 1 copy

Retief Palace Revolution 1 copy

Fantastic Stories Presents the Worlds of If Super Pack #2 1 copy

Retief Aide Memoire 1 copy

Retief Wicker Wonderland 1 copy

Retief Ultimatum 1 copy

The Big Show [short story] 1 copy

Le Stelle Aspetteranno 1 copy

Il clandestino dei mondi: romanzo 1 copy

Keith Laumer's Retief: The Worlds of If Collection (2020) 1 copy

Worlds of If Super Pack #3 (2017) 1 copy

Drowned Queen, The 1 copy

Work Explorer

Associated Works

Dangerous Visions: 33 Original Stories — Contributor — 1,879 copies

Alchemy and Academe (1970) — Contributor — 571 copies

Partners in Wonder (1971) — Contributor — 461 copies

Bolo! (2005) — Created by, some editions — 425 copies

100 Great Science Fiction Short Short Stories (1978) — Contributor — 405 copies

Old Soldiers (2005) — Created by, some editions — 347 copies

The World Turned Upside Down (2005) — Contributor — 217 copies

A Century of Science Fiction (1962) — Contributor — 190 copies

Dangerous Visions 3 (1967) — Contributor — 181 copies

Nebula Award Stories Six (1971) — Contributor — 135 copies

My Favorite Science Fiction Story (1999) — Contributor — 133 copies

Analog: The Best of Science Fiction (1982) — Author — 126 copies

Isaac Asimov's Magical Worlds of Fantasy, Volume 3: Cosmic Knights (1954) — Contributor — 121 copies

The Year 2000 (1970) — Contributor — 112 copies

Dogs of War: Ten Classic Stories of Men and Machines in War (2002) — Contributor — 110 copies

Combat SF (1951) — Author — 106 copies

Time Wars (1986) — Contributor — 101 copies

The Second IF Reader of Science Fiction (1957) — Contributor — 84 copies

Orbit 7 (1970) — Contributor — 80 copies

The Best of the Bolos : Their Finest Hour (2010) — Contributor — 76 copies

Citizens (2011) — Contributor — 71 copies

Best SF: 1967 (1968) — Contributor — 68 copies

The Infinite Arena: Seven Science Fiction Stories About Sports (1977) — Contributor — 68 copies

Orion's Sword (1980) — Contributor; Contributor — 66 copies

The Many Worlds of Science Fiction (1971) — Contributor — 65 copies

Young Extraterrestrials (1984) — Contributor — 62 copies

The Mammoth Book of New World Science Fiction: Short Novels of the 1960's (The Mammoth Book Series) (1991) — Author — 60 copies

The IF Reader of Science Fiction (1966) — Author, some editions — 59 copies

100 Astounding Little Alien Stories (1996) — Contributor — 59 copies

A Pocketful Of Stars (1971) — Contributor — 48 copies

Turning Points: Essays on the Art of Science Fiction (1977) — Contributor — 46 copies

Analog 7 (1966) — Contributor — 36 copies

Sense of Wonder: A Century of Science Fiction (2011) — Contributor — 29 copies

Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow ... (1974) — Contributor — 29 copies

Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact: Vol. XCVII, No. 10 (October 1977) (1977) — Contributor — 26 copies

Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact: Vol. XCVII, No. 9 (September 1977) (1977) — Contributor — 25 copies

Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact: Vol. XCVI, No. 3 (March 1976) (1976) — Contributor — 24 copies

The Bank Street Book of Science Fiction (1989) — Contributor — 22 copies

Analog Science Fiction/Science Fact: Vol. XCV, No. 2 (February 1975) (1975) — Contributor — 21 copies

Gates to Tomorrow: An Introduction to Science Fiction (1973) — Contributor — 21 copies

The Best from Fantastic (1973) — Contributor — 21 copies

The Best from Amazing Stories (1973) — Contributor — 20 copies

Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine: Vol. 2, No. 1 [January-February 1978] (1978) — Author — 15 copies

Galaxy Science Fiction 1969 January, Vol. 27, No. 6 (1969) — Author — 12 copies

Alfa Vier: SF-Verhalen (1976) 12 copies

Worlds of If Science Fiction 152, January/February 1971 (Vol. 20, No. 9) (1971) — Contributor — 11 copies

International Relations Through Science Fiction (1978) — Contributor — 11 copies

SF Inventing the Future (1972) — Contributor — 11 copies

Fantastic. No. 131 (January 1966) (1966) — Contributor — 10 copies

Worlds of Tomorrow No. 01, April 1963 (1963) — Contributor — 10 copies

Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazin I. (1978) — Contributor — 10 copies

Worlds of If Science Fiction 153, March/April 1971 (Vol. 20, No. 10) (1971) — Contributor — 9 copies

Alfa vĳf : sf-verhalen (1976) — Contributor — 9 copies

Worlds of If Science Fiction 156, September/October 1971 (Vol. 21, No. 1) (1971) — Contributor — 8 copies

Worlds of If Science Fiction 85, December 1964 (Vol. 14, No. 7) (1964) — Contributor, some editions — 7 copies

Worlds of Tomorrow No. 22, February 1967 (1967) — Author — 7 copies

Worlds of Tomorrow No. 02, June 1963 (1963) — Contributor — 7 copies

Worlds of If Science Fiction 68, May 1962 (Vol. 12, No. 2) (1962) — Contributor — 4 copies

Die besten Stories aus The magazine of fantasy and science fiction. Folge 24. Der letzte Krieg (1969) — Author, some editions — 4 copies

American Government through Science Fiction (1974) — Contributor — 4 copies

Worlds of If Science Fiction 111, February 1967 (Vol. 17, No. 2) (1967) — Contributor — 4 copies

Worlds of Tomorrow No. 24, Summer 1970 (1970) — Contributor — 3 copies

Thrilling Science Fiction, April 1974 (1974) — Contributor — 3 copies

Thrilling Science Fiction, October 1974 (1974) — Contributor — 1 copy

Tagged

alternate history (38) anthology (999) Baen (40) Bolo (70) Bolos (69) C (60) calibre (47) collection (174) diplomacy (72) ebook (367) fantasy (354) fiction (1,417) hardcover (58) Harlan Ellison (53) humor (299) Keith Laumer (37) Lafayette O'Leary (35) Laumer (59) magazine (40) military (85) mmpb (82) novel (100) own (87) paperback (312) PB (118) read (174) Retief (235) retief series (40) science fiction (4,495) Science Fiction/Fantasy (96) series (73) sf (1,784) sff (417) short stories (777) space opera (99) speculative fiction (93) stories (58) time travel (83) to-read (341) unread (137)

Common Knowledge

Canonical name: Laumer, Keith
Legal name: Laumer, John Keith
Other names: LeBaron, Anthony
Birthdate: 1925-06-09
Date of death: 1993-01-23
Burial location: Florida National Cemetery, Bushnell, Sumter County, Florida, USA
Gender: male
Nationality: USA
Birthplace: Syracuse, New York, USA
Place of death: Brooksville, Florida, USA
Places of residence: Brooksville, Florida, USA
Education: Indiana University
Stockholm University
University of Illinois (BA - Architecture)
Occupations: science fiction writer
Relationships: Laumer, March (brother)
Laumer, Frank (brother)
Organizations: United States Army (1943 - 1946)
United States Air Force (1953 - 1956, 1960 - 1965)
United States Foreign Service (vice-consul & 3rd secretary in Rangoon, Burma, 1956 - 1958)
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America
Agent: Robert P. Mills

Members

Discussions

Found: Classic scifi book alien abduction. in Name that Book (June 2021)

SciFi - Story about a guy named Dammy in Name that Book (July 2012)

"Surrogates"-esque sci-fi short story in Name that Book (February 2012)

Reviews

Five Fates by Keith Laumer

The set up here is that each contributing author has a short narrative to begin, and they must finish the story from there - the given narrative has a character going into a government administered euthanasia center and accepts his fate. But what fate? The best of the stories comes from [[Poul Anderson]], a surprise for me because I haven't otherwise enjoyed his work. Anderson takes the character through multiple, ever-changing iterations of an after-life - the purpose, to learn from these varying waters how to keep the destabilizing world on track. [[Harlan Ellison]]'s take was near undigestible altogether. The other three were passable, if a little strained for working too hard at the tasking. On balance, I expected more from these luminaries.

2 bones!!… (more)

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blackdogbooks | 5 other reviews | Dec 3, 2023 |

The Essential Keith Laumer (Giants of Sci-Fi… by Keith Laumer

Some of the best shorts

Some of the best shorts from a wide variety of styles and settings. These are all world lines independent of any of Laumer's major works. Written in the sixties, yet they still have punch

Flagged

acb13adm | Sep 13, 2023 |

Alien Minds by Laumer

Sometimes a bit raucous, sometimes serious, always thoughtful. Surprisingly not yet dated, these SF Masterpieces should not be passed by.

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acb13adm | 1 other review | Sep 13, 2023 |

A Trace of Memory by Keith Laumer

Old but good

A little more of an action/drama type than I normally like, but still solid science fiction. An early work of Laumer, his later novels are better

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acb13adm | 3 other reviews | Sep 13, 2023 |

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