In the Courts of the Crimson Kings In the Courts of the Crimson Kings In the Courts of the Crimson Kings is a 2008 alternate history science fiction novel by American writer S. M. Stirling. The story takes place on the planet Mars in an alternate solar system where probes from the United States of America and the Soviet Union find intelligent life and civilizations on both Venus and Mars. The book is heavily influenced by the works of writers such as Edgar Rice Burroughs, Ray Bradbury, and Leigh Brackett, among others. It is a sequel to "The Sky People", which is set on Venus. Stirling later
Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise "Softly, as in a Morning Sunrise" is a song with music by Sigmund Romberg and Oscar Hammerstein II from the 1928 operetta "The New Moon". One of the best-known numbers from the show, it is a song of bitterness and yearning for a lost love, sung in the show by Philippe (tenor), the best friend of the hero, Robert Mission (baritone). The original song was composed as a tango, and features a dance as accompaniment to the choral reprise, but many versions of the song have changed the tempo completely (there have been many