Alone on an alien planet

[yodachan]

Stumbled across this forum while looking for help finding a book I read in college. Looks like a lot of knowledge here, so thought I would stop and post.

Plot:
A well off engineer on Earth is contacted by an human looking female alien who tells him her people needs humanity's help to combat a coming evil of some kind. With her help he builds a spaceship and they go to her planet. Once there, she abandons him, alone, in the midst of a wilderness. Her reason is that her people developed psi-like powers by being brought to total despair. In contrast, after many trials etc, he gains the same power except that the key to his breakthrough is rage.

I read this book in 1986 (I think) but could be earlier. Looked like the first novel in a series but it could have been stand-alone.

Any help would be great!

Brent

 

[chrispenycate]

Could this be "Emergence" By David Palmer?
Ordinary aeroplane modified for interstellar travel, trailbike, converts body into a monster on giant planet before taking over an even bigger monster?
Seems to be a stand alone, but problem of universe-devouring force not resolved at end of book?

 

[yodachan]

Actually, I think it is "Threshold", by the same author, but yes, Thanks! A quick google search seems to indicate that it was supposed to be book one of a trilogy, but the other books either never were written, or were really bad and unpublishable. Thanks for the help!

Brent

 

[merritt]

If you liked that read 'Man in the maze " by robert silverberg