Rarely does a sequel live up to the original, but in this case it surpassed it quite significantly. I've read a few Pohl novels now and they're always good, but this is a great one. The amount of plot crammed into this relatively short book is immense yet it still doesn't feel rushed. The journey of Tenny is an epic roller-coaster of emotions, built in a dystopian world, peppered with comedy throughout. Part of why this sequel manages to be better than the original when many don't its because it's not a sequel with the same characters, just the same world, and it's more of a retelling of the original but worth improvements. The characters and the plot are more engaging than the first and I can't wait to pick up another Pohl novel. The only reason it's not 5 stars is I wanted more, once I was truely invested it ended too quickly, it's a good negative to have though. I have his "The world at the end of time" 4.5 stars and I can't rate this higher so it sits at 4.5. For context I gave the original space merchants 3.5 starts.