Dr Elias Wentik is a biochemist researching mind-altering drugs. He works in a secret laboratory located underneath the Antarctic ice. Following an approach from two American government agents he travels with them to a strange clearing in the heart of the Brazilian jungle, where he is suddenly transported to the 22nd Century.

When he reaches the future he is imprisoned and Astourde begins an interrogation although Wentik has no idea why he is being subjected to this treatment.

In this future he discovers that the world has been destroyed on a war that took place shortly after his leaving his own time. And the principal cause of the war is a gaseous version of the drug he was working on.

This is quite a paranoid little tale, the effect of the mind-affecting drugs taking a considerable section of the narrative. This is a intense tale, very representative of one of the main themes in a lot of sixties fiction – drugs.

It shows that Christopher Priest, right from the outset in this his first novel, is a very talented writer. In many ways I am glad I seem to have overlooked his writings until this year as it means that there are still many books for me to read in the future.