From a Nebula and Hugo award winner, “one the best-loved authors in SF”: A tale of humans and one robot navigating an alien puzzle-world (Publishers Weekly). Following a conversation with a talking slot machine, Professor Edward Lansing finds himself mysteriously transported to a tavern on a long and empty road. It is immediately obvious to the educator that he is no longer on campus—or even Earth—and that he is not alone. Lansing’s new companions—a female engineer, a military officer, a humorless priest, a poetess, and a robot named Jurgens—all hail from separate alternate realities and share Lansing’s confusion. What is clear, however, is that they must continue down the road together, encountering a series of bizarre sights, dangerous obstacles, and perplexing puzzles along the way: an abandoned, decaying city; a set of doorways; a large blue cube; a tower that sings. Soon it is apparent they are all being tested for some eerie, inexplicable reason, and the choices each must make will determine his or her future. For those who fail, the alien trail will never be seen again. A provocative science fiction allegory, Special Deliverance is Hugo and Nebula Award–winner Clifford D. Simak’s Pilgrim’s Progress—a tale of great trials and hidden agendas that expose the foibles of humanity and a fantastic exploration of the human condition. A science fiction classic brimming with intelligence, invention, and wonder, it is yet another extraordinary creation from one of the genre’s most revered grandmasters.

Malta, 1942. Lieutenant Mike Nicholson commands Ursa, one of the 10th Submarine Flotilla?s boats who, in their time, destroyed more than a million tons of war supplies shipped from Italian ports to Rommel?s Afrika Korps in the Western Desert. German Intelligence has recently warned Berlin that unless drastic measures are undertaken, the Mediterranean and Middle East will be lost to them.But Ursa is a lucky submarine, and Mike is the flotilla?s top scorer. He also has problems of a more personal nature: before leaving England about two years ago he was heavily involved in an affair with the wife of another submariner, who?s now bringing his own new U-class boat, Unsung, to the flotilla . . .