BARBET, Pierre

   Pseudonym of Dr Claude Pierre Marie Avice (1925-), French writer; under his real name he is a pharmacist and an expert on bionics. He has also used the pseudonyms David Maine and Olivier Sprigel. A highly prolific if derivative popular writer of sf from 1962, PB has published over 35 novels, some of which have been translated into English: Les grognards d'Eridan (1970; trans Stanley Hochman as The Napoleons of Eridanus 1976 US) and its sequel L'Empereur d'Eridan (trans Stanley Hochman as The Emperor of Eridanus 1983 US), which make up a series of SPACE OPERAS based on Napoleon; the PARALLEL-WORLDS story L'empire du Baphomet (1971; trans Bernard Kay as Baphomet's Meteor 1972 US) and assembled with Croisade Stellaire (1974; trans C.J.CHERRYH as "Stellar Crusade" in Cosmic Crusaders [omni 1980 US]); Liane de Noldaz (1973; trans Stanley Hochman as The Joan-of-Arc Replay 1978 US); A quoi songent les psyborgs? (1971; trans Wendayne Ackerman as Games Psyborgs Play 1973 US); La planete enchantee (1973; trans C.J.Richards as The Enchanted Planet 1975 US).