Mostly forgotten today, Henri Falk was a comedy writer who, not unlike Thorne Smith in America, penned several sardonically humorous speculative fiction stories, three of which have been translated and collected here for the first time. In 'The Age of Lead' (1922), the Sun's increased emission of gamma rays cause a universal scourge, the only remedy of which is lead, which suddenly becomes more valuable than gold. 'Master of the Three States' (1911) tells of a scientist who creates a machine that can transform the human body into a liquid or a gas. In 'The Astonishing Adventure of Sebastian Phlipot' (1917), a magician transfers a man's ability to sense pain or pleasure into a small figurine. Brian M. Stableford has been a professional writer since 1965. He has published more than 60 science fiction and fantasy novels, as well as several authoritative non-fiction books. He is also translating the works of Paul Féval and other French writers of the fantastique for Black Coat Press.