Virgil Finlay’s interior art for Raymond F. Jones’ “The Memory of Mars” in Amazing Stories (December 1961)
3.5/5 (Good)
Before Philip K. Dick’s “We Can Remember It for You Wholesale” (1966), Raymond F. Jones wrote the far lesser known “The Memory of Mars” (1961)–his own paranoid thriller about a vacation to Mars that might not have happened exactly as remembered. This is a plot-driven story. There are multiple twists and delusional layers that unfold at lightning speed–some more satisfying than others. You might want to read the story in the December 1961 issue of Amazing Stories, ed. Cele Goldsmith first.
“The Memory of Mars” has all the pieces of a paranoid masterpiece. A journalist named Mel Hastings, trained to be objective, waits for his wife Alice to be released from surgery. As he waits anxiously for news knowing that something has gone wrong, he recalls his wife’s persistent claim that they had gone on a vacation to Mars the first year of their marriage. The simmering terror of his own phobia of space and recurrent nightmares of being chased across the black void suggest there’s more than he remembers. Mel’s called into the surgery room with disturbing news. His wife is dead and something is terribly wrong with her viscera. Vigil Finlay’s top-notch interior art (above) hints at the terror that unfolds as Alice’s inhuman interior is laid bare….
In a state of manic sadness, Mel sets out to discover what happened to his wife. And in a drawer of her ephemera, he discovers a picture album of “Alice at Red sands. Alice at the Phobos oasis. Alice at the Darnella ruins” (27). Had they been to Mars? Or is there another layer to the madness?
Three elements drew me into the story. Other than the last quarter, it’s a tightly wound nightmare that had me itching to find out what happens next. Jones’ treatment of psychiatry bucks a lot of trends of the day where it’s presented as a sinister evil. Instead, “psycho-recovery” utilizing “a cage of terminals […] fitted to his head and a thousand small electrodes adjusted to contact with his skull” reveals secrets Mel has repressed (29). Also, Jones’ suggests that individual billionaires might be responsible for commercial space travel (we, unfortunately, are living in the era of Musk and Bezos).
Like PKD’s “We Can Remember It for You Wholesale,” the ending is a bit too trite. The “I can’t wait to find out what happens next” plot pivots into exposition on a time-worn theme that doesn’t quite work. It’s hard to imagine Alice’s body was the first to yield its secrets. As a rigorously plotted thriller, this almost feels like the real source material for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Total Recall (1990). I don’t mean to push the PKD comparisons too far. These are different stories. Some plot points are similar but they are told in their own distinctive manner.
James Harris also wrote about the “The Memory of Mars” and sang the praises of Jones’ “The Colonists” (1954).
Lloyd Birmingham’s cover for the December 1961 issue of Amazing Stories
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Science Fiction and Other Suspect Ruminations 
Oh, those let-down endings! I’m so bitter when I get a low-likelihood resolution to what was a great story that I’m so much meaner than you are with my rating of it.
I’ll seek this one out anyway…I’m not the world’s biggest fan of “Wholesale” TBH
If I were not so involved in three-fourths of the story I might have been more inclined to give it a 3/5. Jones creates a scenario where only a ridiculous ending is possible.
The stories are different, but it sure is strange how much they overlap – especially an erased memory of a vacation on Mars. I’m not saying PKD cribbed from Jones, but it might be a case of two inventions being concurrently developed or a subconscious influence like Spirit and Led Zeppelin and “Stairway to Heaven.”
Thanks for your original review. When I was skimming the HUGE list of honorable mentions for the 1962 Award for best short fiction, I paused when I saw Jones’ story and realized that I had seen a review of it recently — and lo and behold it was your positive take. I’m a fan of implanted memories, androids, paranoia, etc. so it seemed like something I’d enjoy reading even if the story ended up being average… thankfully it was as involved as you made it out to be although I was not a fan of the ending.
Most of those 1962 stories I haven’t read. I wonder how many of them I would like? There are so many lost treasures out there waiting to be found.
Especially as authors like Jack Sharkey — who has THREE stories on that list, never received a collection of their own.
Oh, by the way, like the new layout. How do you get your listing of older pieces to show just the covers on the right?
Thanks. I have had this format for more than half a year. I use the sidebar option to place an image widget with a link to the post. Your template might not have that option.
I noticed your site was looking different for a while, but it was only just now that I noticed it having so much white space with just cover photos. I should pay more attention.
Oh, no problem! I don’t know if it’s better. I wish it had a third column but there are very few templates with that feature. But I wanted the site to feel updated. I occasionally find myself quickly clicking out of some sites that look really old.
Dear Joachim,
interesting review.
Thanks for sharing
The Fab Four of Cley
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
Thanks for the kind words. What science fiction do you enjoy? Have you read any of Jones’ work?
Dear Joachim,
no, we didn’t.
We are not the typical SciFi readers. Of course we read H.G. Wells, Jules Verne, loved Adam’s “Hitchhiker’s Guide to Galaxy”, Asimov’s books and now we just read for a radio programm and podcasts lots of books about AI.
In general we are not that interested in SciFi and fantasy.
Thanks and cheers
The Fab Four of Cley
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
No problem. I’m not a typical SFF reader either. I lay out my modus operandi here: https://sciencefictionruminations.com/2018/06/15/fragment-s-why-i-read-and-review-50s-70s-science-fiction/