Juggler of Worlds: 200 Years Before the Discovery of the Ringworld (Known Space, 2)

For too long, the Puppeteers have controlled the fate of worlds. Now Sigmund is pulling the strings...Covert agent Sigmund Ausfaller is Earth's secret weapon, humanity's best defense against all conspiracies, real and potential - and imaginary - of foes both human and alien. Who better than a brilliant paranoid to expose the devious plots of others?He may finally have met his match in Nessus, representative of the secretive Puppeteers, the elder race who wield vastly superior technologies. Nessus schemes in the shadows with Earth's traitors and adversaries, even after the race he represents abruptly vanishes from Known Space.As a paranoid, Sigmund had always known things would end horribly for him. Only the when, where, how, why, and by whom of it all had eluded him. That fog has begun to lift...But even Sigmund has never imagined how far his investigations will take him - or that his destiny is entwined with the fates of worlds.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

A new look at Niven's Known Space, two hundred years before the discovery of the Ringworld

Kirkus Reviews

Another collaborative prequel (Fleet of Worlds, 2007) to Niven's enduringly popular Ringworld yarns. Amalgamated Regional Militia agent Sigmund Ausfaller, a genius and certified paranoid, labors in the shadowy world of intelligence, keeping Earth and its colonies safe against alien threats. Surprisingly, it's the cowardly, herd-minded Puppeteers that currently represent the greatest danger, since they're obsessed with protecting their species against every conceivable threat, both real and imaginary. General Products, the Puppeteers' commercial arm, sells spaceship hulls that are guaranteed indestructible and proof against all known radiation. So when a scientific vessel turns up with its hull intact but the contents (including crew) mangled almost beyond recognition, Sigmund must find out what happened (it turns out the ship strayed too near a neutron star and was shredded by intense gravity). Meanwhile, the Puppeteers are selling advanced technology to selected individuals, subverting others, spying on everybody-until they discover that the galactic core is exploding. And although they won't be affected for thousands of years, they choose to take immediate action, and all Puppeteers vanish-save for a select few hardy scouts like Nessus, who continue to pull strings to their own mysterious ends. All Sigmund has to do is figure out what and why. The book's first half rehashes, from another point of view, several of Niven's Known Space stories from way back, and the rest isn't much better: slow-turning wheels within wheels within wheels.

For too long, the Puppeteers have controlled the fate of worlds. Now Sigmund is pulling the strings... Covert agent Sigmund Ausfaller is Earth's secret weapon, humanity's best defense against all conspiracies, real and potential - and imaginary - of foes both human and alien. Who better than a brilliant paranoid to expose the devious plots of others? He may finally have met his match in Nessus, representative of the secretive Puppeteers, the elder race who wield vastly superior technologies. Nessus schemes in the shadows with Earth's traitors and adversaries, even after the race he represents abruptly vanishes from Known Space. As a paranoid, Sigmund had always known things would end horribly for him. Only the when, where, how, why, and by whom of it all had eluded him. That fog has begun to lift... But even Sigmund has never imagined how far his investigations will take him - or that his destiny is entwined with the fates of worlds. Two hundred years before the discovery of the Ringworld, covert agent Sigmund Ausfaller represents Earth's secret weapon, humanity's best defense against all conspiracies--real and imagined. Who better than a brilliant paranoid to expose the devious plots of others? Yet he may finally have met his match in Nessus, representative of the secretive Puppeteers, the elder race who wield vastly superior technologies. Nessus schemes in the shadows with Earth's traitors and adversaries, even after the race he represents abruptly vanishes from Known Space.