The Gods of Mars.

Mars is not done with John Carter, and the red planet's most sacred secret turns out to be its most monstrous lie. The Gods of Mars is Edgar Rice Burroughs pouring on the spectacle in the second of his Barsoom adventures.

What it's about

Returned to the dying world he loves, the Virginian fighting man John Carter arrives not in safety but in the Valley Dor, the paradise every Martian is taught awaits them in death, only to discover it is a trap sustaining a predatory priesthood. Reunited with old allies and pitted against terrible enemies, he battles across strange landscapes to expose the deception and rescue those he holds dear.

Themes

Burroughs skewers false religion and the exploitation of faith, while celebrating courage, loyalty and defiant love. Beneath the relentless action runs a distrust of authority that claims divine sanction for its cruelty.

Why it still matters

The Barsoom books helped invent planetary romance and left fingerprints on decades of science fiction, film and comics. Their headlong energy and inventive world-building still set the pace for the genre.

Who it's for

Fans of swashbuckling science fiction, sword-and-planet adventure, and readers tracing the roots of modern space fantasy will relish Carter's return.