So, Steven Caldwell on the cover there? Same guy as Stewart Cowley, the man behind Terran Trade Authority. He produced the Galactic Encounters series (six volumes!) under pseudonym, using art that didn’t quite fit into the TTA books (these feel a lot more like the Transylvania book, honestly but that might just be the presence of Les Edwards’ work). Regardless, the fictional universe the books are set in is essentially the same as TTA, and they use the same guidebook-with-anecdotes approach.

This is the first volume, Aliens in Space (1979) and it is honestly a natural addition to the TTA, especially for me, who ranks creatures above tech in my own personal hierarchy of needs. There is less consistency here — lotta barbarians in space, suddenly, and the inclusion some of Les Edwards’ “face” paintings really stick out like a sore thumb, as does the one Nick Bantock painting (painted under the pseudonym Nick Fox and elements of which are recycled for Griffin & Sabine). There’s also a painting that is clearly of Cthulhu (his face is in the spine gutter, tho, so I didn’t shoot it).

Still, I find the Galactic Encounters books slightly more fun when it comes down to it. The TTA books suffer a little for the pains taken to hide the patchwork quality, where GE kind of revels in it.