Masters, John
Entry updated 12 September 2022. Tagged: Author.
(1914-1983) Indian-born soldier and author, in the UK from an early age; after serving in World War Two, gaining an OBE in 1945, he resigned his commission with the rank of lieutenant-colonel, moved to the US in 1948 and began a series of novels (theoretically thirty-five in number) about British rule in India; the best-known of these is probably Bhowani Junction (1954). Of sf interest are Near Future thrillers like The Breaking Strain (1967), whose storyline traverses much of the northern hemisphere at a very fast clip; The Rock: An Epic (1970), whose fictionalized narrative of the history of Gibraltar reaches into the future; and The Himalayan Concerto: A Novel of Adventure (1976), which treats the Himalayas as a focus point for future international conflicts leading possibly to World War Three. [JC]
Lieutenant-Colonel John Masters, OBE
born Calcutta, India: 26 October 1914
died Albuquerque, New Mexico: 7 May 1983
works (selected)
- The Breaking Strain (London: Michael Joseph, 1967) [hb/Bernard Higton]
- The Rock: An Epic (London: Michael Joseph, 1970) [hb/Arthur Gilpin]
- The Himalayan Concerto: A Novel of Adventure (London: Michael Joseph, 1976) [hb/]
links
previous versions of this entry