A Coffin for Jacob

A Coffin for Jacob is a mid-20th century science fiction novel by Edward W. Ludwig that explores themes of guilt, identity, and the quest for freedom. The story follows Ben Curtis, a young astrogation officer who accidentally kills a man and flees to Venus to escape the law. On the planet, he seeks out a group of renegade spacemen led by the enigmatic Jacob, while grappling with his past and the complexities of his relationships. The novel highlights the struggle for redemption and the pursuit of dreams in a vast, interplanetary setting.