A bicycle is watching us

[Edzo]

Hello,

I read this book around 1980, so the details maybe a little sketchy. The last few pages were missing (arrgh) and I never was able to finish it.

Roughly: A man leaves earth, in a spaceship, with a woman along. They didn't get along. They were captured by aliens (unseen). They ended up alone on a planet, a sort of 'Garden of Eden' setting. They were being watched over by a 'Bicycle'.

That's all I remember.

Thanks in advance.

 

[The Ace]

Sounds vaguely familiar. Did they travel in a solid gold ship ?

 

[gully_foyle]

Elements are familiar, sounds like a mix of Sirens of Titan and Slaughterhouse 5 by Kurt Vonnegut.

 

[HareBrain]

Are you sure you didn't dream it? My advice: less cheese before bed.

 

[AE35Unit]

Are you sure you didn't dream it? My advice: less cheese before bed.

LOL, yea, i was thinking that!

 

[Edzo]

Are you sure you didn't dream it? My advice: less cheese before bed.

Usually cheese will give me gas, not dreams of bicycles in Eden...but, thanks for caring, HareBrain.

 

[Dave]

Elements are familiar, sounds like a mix of Sirens of Titan and Slaughterhouse 5 by Kurt Vonnegut.

It does sound like a mixture of those.

 

[The Ace]

No, I remember reading a couple of books in the mid eighties where the hero ended up as the captain of a ship made of solid gold. I remember a planet inhabited by human/cat hybrids (ownership of which was contested by a group of people who turned out to be dogs) and a kangaroo girl in one book helping the hero to get human rights for her people.

The bicycles were provided for the hero and his female companion at one point and they were unaware that the bikes were being used to spy on them until one attacked him during an argument.

If it helps, at one point they were attempting to get across the concept of a sea anchor to a ship on ancient Earth but a man was thrown overboard who turned out to be Jonah.


Now it's driving me up the wall.

 

[Ursa major]

After a certain amount of investigation, I believe that the book may be The Broken Cycle by A. Bertram Chandler.

Being lost in space was no new experience to John Grimes, whose career as an interstellar officer had brought him into many such dilemmas. But being lost inside a colossal alien spacecraft had no precedent.

Complicating the matter was the discovery that the very universe was not their own but an alternate and that their captor seemed to be the omnipotent force of that entire other cosmos.

As Grimes' only companion was the comely policewoman, Una Freeman, the fate that the Alien God selected for them required the creation of a Garden of Eden. But there were two serpents in this one—both of them bicycles!

From The Broken Cycle by A. Bertram Chandler-WebScriptions
​

(The book was written in 1979, I believe.)



EDIT: I found it by searching for novel SF "gold ship", Chris, and I also first found "Far Traveler". Well recalled, Ace.

 

[chrispenycate]

From Aces analysis, would anyone bet on A Bertram Chandler "A Broken Cycle"? (believe it or not, I got there through the kangaroo in "The far traveller"

And there you go. Minutes of websearch, and the silver medal.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

Well, you can always award yourself the platinum medal in its place, Chris.