Chester W. Chester the IV has recently inherited his uncle's rambling old mansion along with three million dollars in IRS debts associated with the property. An inspection of the mansion turns up only a wine seller and a huge secret underground super computer that Chester's uncle was developing at the time of his death. After drinking liberally from the wine cellar Chester and his friend Case Mulvihill hatch an impossible plan to hoodwink the IRS using some of the computer's rather unusual capabilities. Their plan goes awry almost immediately and the two are off on an unexpected wild romp of an adventure and nothing will ever be the same. A Hoax in Time was originally serialized in Fantastic Stories of the Imagination in 1963. Keith Laumer was nominated for both the Hugo and nebula Awards on multiple occasions.