The Chessmen of Mars vs The Master Mind of Mars: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Dejah Thoris, John Carter, Extraterrestrial beings, Life on other planets, Historical Fiction, Science Fiction
The Chessmen of Mars
“TARA of Helium rose from the pile of silks and soft furs upon which she had been reclining, stretched her lithe body languidly, and crossed toward the center of the room, where, above a large table a bronze disc depended from the low ceiling.”
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SHEA had just beaten me at chess, as usual, and, also as usual, I had gleaned what questionable satisfaction I might by twitting him with this indication of failing mentality by calling his attention to the nth time to…
The Master Mind of Mars
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Ulysses Paxton an American goes to Mars where he meets Ras Thavas, the greatest physician upon the planet and becomes embroiled in his grisly and amazing experiments.
Side by side
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- The Master Mind of Mars is the quickest read — about 2 hours vs 4 for The Chessmen of Mars.
- The Chessmen of Mars has the widest readership — 8291 ratings behind its score.
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Scores by source
| The Chessmen of Mars | The Master Mind of Mars | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 3.8 (8291) | 3.9 (5258) |
| Hardcover | 3.6 (20) | 3.7 (19) |
| Apple Books | 5.0 (18) | 4.0 (57) |
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Reception
| The Chessmen of Mars | The Master Mind of Mars | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 8291 | 5258 |
| Editions | 313 | 130 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | 4769 | 3821 |
| Reading it now | 436 | 454 |
| Written reviews | 355 | 193 |
| Wikipedia attention | 1481 | 828 |
| Pages | 234 | 126 |
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Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: The Chessmen of Mars or The Master Mind of Mars?
The Master Mind of Mars has the higher combined reader rating across sources (The Master Mind of Mars 3.9/5, The Chessmen of Mars 3.8/5).
Which is shorter to read: The Chessmen of Mars or The Master Mind of Mars?
The Master Mind of Mars is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Master Mind of Mars (126 pages, ≈ 2 h 20 m); The Chessmen of Mars (234 pages, ≈ 4 h 20 m).
Which is harder to read: The Chessmen of Mars or The Master Mind of Mars?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — The Chessmen of Mars: Challenging; The Master Mind of Mars: Challenging.