Snowstorm on Mars by Jacques Jean Ferrat [Pseudonym of Sam Merwin, Jr.] _We might have known it would be dangerous to publish a science fantasy novel as well-liked as Jacques Jean Ferrat’s_ NIGHTMARE TOWER, _followed by a sequel in much the same exciting vein. Unhappily for us the popularity of_ THE WHITE RAIN CAME _spread in widening circles all the way to Mars and brought dire threats of telepathic reprisal for our delay in enlivening our pages once again with Lynne and Rolf Marcein in Martian splendor arrayed. Here then is a second sequel, made mandatory by our desire to keep all such threats at bay._ =So bright and fateful was Lynne Marcein’s destiny that it set her apart from all other women. She was soon to have a baby--on Mars!= Lynne Fenlay Marcein was the most conspicuous landmark at Nampura Depot--or, for that matter, on all of Mars. Although the Red Planet was sparsely populated, with only a little over a million men and women to cultivate its vast, waterless land-area, she could go nowhere outside of the Depot itself without finding a crowd of the curious, the awestruck, and the morbidly pessimistic about her. She had long since given up her weekly visits to New Samarkand, the Martian metropolis and capital city. She could not enter a store, a theater, or an office without finding herself a focus of a mass interest that brought all normal traffic to a standstill. Women eyed her with sympathy and disbelief, men with downright incredulity. For Lynne was the only visibly pregnant woman on the entire planet. “Not only visible, but apparently downright shocking,” she told her husband, Rolf Marcein, over the Earth-Mars radarphone during their weekly conversation. “Hold on tight, _vinral_,” Rolf told her, using the Martian term of supreme endearment. She longed to see his face, but so far there was no vidar communication between Mars and the mother planet. With obvious concern, he asked, “How soon?” “Dr. Smetana says another two weeks, at least,” she replied. “Don’t worry, darling. If that little snip Rana Willis could have her baby here on Mars, I can be lucky too.” Rolf said, “I could kill these _ferkab_ VIP’s in Paulo City for their _czanworm_ sluggishness. We’ve had their E-source taped for a solid Martian month. It’s right smack under the Eastern Siberian topsoil. I’ve laid down a reserve power-program, but they won’t let me go until they’ve adapted it officially. Right now the date seems as far away as ever.” “I know,” said Lynne soothingly. “You stick there until the job is done. I’m doing wonderfully well, according to Dr. Smetana. It’s just that I’m getting a little tired of being a freak.”