Manhounds of Antares

Manhounds of Antares

Cover of first edition
Author	Kenneth Bulmer
Cover artist	Jack Gaughan
Country	United States
Language	English
Series	Dray Prescot series
Genre	Sword and planet
Publisher	DAW Books
Publication date	1974
Media type	Print (Paperback)
ISBN
Preceded by	Prince of Scorpio
Followed by	Arena of Antares

Manhounds of Antares is a science fiction novel written by Kenneth Bulmer under the pseudonym of Alan Burt Akers, and is volume six in his extensive Dray Prescot series of sword and planet novels, set on the fictional world of Kregen, a planet of the Antares star system in the constellation of Scorpio. It was first published by DAW Books in 1974.

The Dray Prescot series is made of several cycles of novels, each cycle essentially forming a series within the series. In addition to being the sixth volume in the series as a whole, Manhounds of Antares is also the first of six volumes in the Havilfar Cycle. It is set on the fictional continent of Havilfar.

The 52 completed novels of the Dray Prescot series were written by Bulmer between 1972 and 1997, when a stroke stopped his writing, also the later Dray Prescot books, after 1988, were originally only published in German. The series is in the spirit of Edgar Rice Burroughs John Carter of Mars series.

The book follows on directly on the events of Prince of Scorpio with Prescot, Delia and the Emperor returning to the capital of Vallia, Vondium, after the successful battle at the Dragon's Bones. Upon arrival the small group is attacked by a group of the conspirators and Prescot is able to narrowly defeat the attack, save the Emperor and kill one of the leaders of the rebels. In the following days Dray Prescot and Delia then wed in the capital and are paraded around in Vondium. He is also able to secure titles and offices for his friends Inch and Seg from the Emperor to reward them for their loyalty during the uprising. On their wedding night Delia and Prescot are attacked by assassins but survive. Spending happy days in Vallia together Delia gives birth to twins, a boy named Drak and a girl named Lela. Shortly after however, Prescot is taken away by the Star Lords again.

Dray Prescot finds himself on the island of Faol, in the north of Havilfar, as a slave in a slave pen. He realises that the Star Lords wish him to save one of the slaves but he does not know which one. He decides on a woman who declares herself to be Princess Lilah of Hyrklana and learns that the slaves are kept for the purpose of hunting by wealthy Lords of the region. Prescot encounters a Khamorro for the first time, decipels of a hand-to-hand combat order that despises weapons. He learns of the local guides who supposedly risk their lives to enter the slave pens to help the slaves escape during the hunt. Prescot and Lilah are selected for the hunt and follow a guide who disappears under mysterious circumstances during the night. Prescot also for the first time encounters the Jiklos, dog-like humans specifically breed for hunting, which pursue the group of slaves.