The Invincible is sent to investigate the loss of its sister ship, the Condor, on the desert planet. The novel opens with the landing of a vast and powerful space ship, the Invincible, on Regis III. And even if the underlying theme is the same as in a number of Lem's other works – man's understanding with alien intelligence is doomed from the start – the take on it in the Invincible, combining elements from the mystery, horror and action genres and offering a curious environmental angle is both rather unique and makes for a real page turner. 'The Invincible' is a rare and rather successful exception to this, which makes it an excellent introduction to Lem for novice readers. Unfortunately, as philosophizing for Lem often tends to spill over into over-philosophizing, this usually comes at the expense of accessibility and readability. Stanislaw Lem tends to be unrivalled when it comes to philosophical insights into first contact with alien intelligence. An excellent introduction to Lem for novice readers

Stanisław lem the invincible