The Pirates of Ersatz tells the story of Bran Hodder, a one-time engineer who sets out on a career of interstellar piracy ostensibly to further more legitimate goals. The revised version of this tale was nominated for the 1960 Hugo Award for Best Novel. Frederik Pohl reviewed Pirates favorably, saying "It would not seem possible that after thirty years of space-pirate stories any writer could make one come alive; but Bron Hoddan is a rather unique space pirate, and Murray Leinster is a nearly unique science-fiction writer".