The Valley of the Flame

The Valley of the Flame is a science fiction novel by Henry Kuttner first published in 1946.

They warped Time itself to keep their secrets...

The year is 1985 and the location is somewhere in the vast, teeming jungles of the Amazon. Medical scientist Brian Raft and his two colleagues Dan Craddock and Bill Merriday are researching tropical diseases.

Somewhere deeper in the jungle drums have been beating for days and Craddock thinks that they have some sinister purpose.

Out of the unknown comes a canoe propelled by two men with paddles. One of these newcomers is sick, with a temperature far below normal, and appears to have some tropical disease. Then suddenly the two disappear. The next morning Raft, with five natives, sets out up the river in pursuit.

Raft's journey will ultimately take him to the Valley of the Flame…

Valley of the Flame was first published in the March 1946 issue of the magazine Startling Stories. It appeared under the pseudonym "Keith Hammond", which was one of the many names Henry Kuttner published under.

Henry Kuttner (1915–1958) was an American author of science fiction, fantasy and horror, an author who was one of the half dozen or so pillars of the Golden Age of Sci-Fi.

Marion Zimmer Bradley is among many authors who have cited Kuttner as an influence. Her novel The Bloody Sun is dedicated to him. Roger Zelazny has talked about the influence of The Dark World on his Amber series.