u/Ed_Robins

What did you read last month, and do you have any thoughts about them you'd like to share?

Whether you talk about books you finished, books you started, long term projects, or all three, is up to you. So for those who read at a more leisurely pace, or who have just been too busy to find the time, it's perfectly fine to talk about something you're still reading even if you're not finished.

(If you're like me and have trouble remembering where you left off, here's a handy link to last month's thread.)

Psst... Bub. Yeah, you. Come 'ere. You like noir books? Sci-fi? 'Cause I got books. Genuine thing. No AI.

See there's this former detective Tom Devoe. He's stuck on a generation ship bound for Tau Ceti, but he'll be dead long before anyone sees that blue sky. All he wants is to drink to forget what a mess his life’s become after he lost his badge and wife. Can't avoid getting dragged back into one murder investigation after another though.

These books are violent. Gritty. Little bit dirty. Got words you can't say in front of mama.

Tell you what I'll do. I'll give you the Justice For a Price and Chivalry Will Get You Dead ebooks FREE. That's right: FREE. The others, well, they're gonna cost you. Only through Monday, Bub.

Justice For a Price - always free novelette. Also on Kobo, B&N, Google Play: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H4BV6PL5

Chivalry Will Get You Dead - free through Monday: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CHQ1Q2JZ/

You wanna talk more about the books or sci-fi noirs in general? Let me know in the comments.

What did you read last month, and do you have any thoughts about them you'd like to share?

Whether you talk about books you finished, books you started, long term projects, or all three, is up to you. So for those who read at a more leisurely pace, or who have just been too busy to find the time, it's perfectly fine to talk about something you're still reading even if you're not finished.

(If you're like me and have trouble remembering where you left off, here's a handy link to last month's thread.)

If you loved Altered Carbon, Halcyon Years, Leviathan Wakes and Titanium Noir, these gritty, fast-paced books may be for you.

Synopsis

The series starts with a FREE novelette, Justice for a Price. It and the first book, Chivalry Will Get You Dead, are straight-forward murder mysteries that introduces the reader to life on the starship Australis, and to the main character, Tom Devoe. Then Murders in the Gray delves into how the population of the ship freed themselves from the drug called Copa they were being administered and what the ruling oligarchy has to do with several recent deaths. A Violent Man confronts Devoe's sordid past as he hunts a serial killer he thought he'd already put down. Finally, Easy As It Gets finds the Tom deeply addicted to Copa before he is forced back into service to find a missing child and mother.

The speculative aspect of these stories has less to do with tech (though there is some) and more about how a society might form under these circumstances. Through Devoe's investigations, the reader gets glimpses of a larger story that's playing out in the background. All he wants is to be left alone, but every step he takes sends ripples through the fabric of life on the Australis.

Style and Characterization

Stylistically, I chose Mickey Spillane as my primary model for Tom. I love Spillane's over-the-top Mike Hammer who seems ready to snap at any moment, and I wanted that kind of restless energy to dominate my narrative as well. I've also long admired the concision and brevity of Elmore Leonard, so sought to emulate many aspects of his style, while breaking a few of his rules.

These stories contain adult language and content.

Availability

Justice for a Price may be read FREE from:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H4BV6PL5/

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/justice-for-a-price

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/justice-for-a-price-ed-robins/1150339428

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=sOHkEQAAQBAJ

The rest of the series is available on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CJ9SV4NR.

Happy to answer any questions about the writing process, themes and characters, or to discuss detective noirs in science fiction in general!

A few years ago, I read James Belmont's novel Lifeline. It's a science fiction thriller set in near future London where a serial killer manipulates the ubiquitous Lifeline system to stalk victims. I enjoyed it enough that I started following the author on social media, and when he asked for ARC readers for the follow-up, I volunteered*.

To my surprise, RAMmed turned out to be a courtroom drama, not about the serial killer from the first book, but an AI robot, Phoenix, fighting for its freedom from the Lifeline system which spawned it. The implications of unleashing such a powerful entity on humanity are terrifying while the choice to keep it chained is anathema.

There are a lot of the same questions of identity, agency and sentience that writers have been asking for decades, but I didn't find the story of how Phoenix came to be, and what to do about it now that it is here, to be derivative. The question is much more about how to handle an intelligence superior to our own. Should humanity hobble a potential consciousness simply because it could be dangerous? And if it is freed, how will the Dead, a sect of pseudo-Luddites, react? There are no easy answers.

One of the things I appreciate most about Belmont's world building is that it stays away from creating either a dystopia or a utopia. The Lifeline future simply is, and the focus is instead on what people (and potentially sentient AIs) do in those circumstances. I'd honestly be hard pressed to determine what Belmont himself thinks of the world he's built as he's quite good at letting us see it through the eyes and desires of his characters instead.

Switching up the genre as Belmont did was a rather large swing, and I think he knocked it out of the park. What other series have you read that switch up genre a bit, and do so well?

* Full disclosure: yes, I am an author, but I do not personally know Belmont. We've had no contact other than to correspond regarding this ARC, and one short exchange regarding a scam on social media. As far as I know–if he's aware I'm an author at all–he has not read my books. He did not ask me to post this or anything else beyond an honest review on the usual sites, nor made any quid pro quo offer. I just enjoyed the books and wished to share them with those who might be interested. Most of this post is a modified version of the review I wrote for the ARC.

If you loved Altered Carbon, Halcyon Years, Leviathan Wakes and Titanium Noir, these gritty, fast-paced books may be for you.

Synopsis

The series starts with a novelette, Justice for a Price. It and the first book, Chivalry Will Get You Dead, are straight-forward murder mysteries that introduces the reader to life on the starship Australis, and to the main character, Tom Devoe. Then Murders in the Gray delves into how the population of the ship freed themselves from the drug called Copa they were being administered and what the ruling oligarchy has to do with several recent deaths. A Violent Man confronts Devoe's sordid past as he hunts a serial killer he thought he'd already put down. Finally, Easy As It Gets finds the Tom deeply addicted to Copa before he is forced back into service to find a missing child and mother.

The speculative aspect of these stories has less to do with tech (though there is some) and more about how a society might form under these circumstances. Through Devoe's investigations, the reader gets glimpses of a larger story that's playing out in the background. All he wants is to be left alone, but every step he takes sends ripples through the fabric of life on the Australis.

Style and Characterization

Stylistically, I chose Mickey Spillane as my primary model for Tom. I love Spillane's over-the-top Mike Hammer who seems ready to snap at any moment, and I wanted that kind of restless energy to dominate my narrative as well. I've also long admired the concision and brevity of Elmore Leonard, so sought to emulate many aspects of his style, while breaking a few of his rules.

These stories contain adult language and content.

Availability

Justice for a Price may be downloaded from Amazon, Kobo, B&N and Google Play.

The rest of the series is available on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CJ9SV4NR.

Happy to answer any questions about the writing process, themes and characters, or to discuss detective noirs in science fiction in general!

Ran across this in my journeys and thought some in the community might enjoy the designs. While I choose an enclosed cylinder similar to the winner for the generation ship in my books, I don't think you can beat the wheel design visually.

Which is your favorite?

On the planet Gaea, opportunities are hard to come by. Setting out for the Tanami frontier, young Dalton Reid hopes to make his fortune with nothing but his horse and the last few bits in his pocket. Before he can even begin, the dastardly Roscoe, professional cattle rustler and murderer, cheats him out of his savings.

There’s no shortage of folks in Hensonville willing to give Reid the education he needs to survive, if he’s willing to play by their rules. Paloma Griswell’s ready to work him to the bone on her ranch. The straight and narrow is what old Marshal Rawlins expects. Bellyaching Chip Reegan just wants to put him in his place. Even Roscoe wants him to join the gang as they plan their biggest heist yet.

Only Reid can decide what type of man he wants to be as he seeks fortune and fame–or will it be infamy?

-----------------

Inspired by classic westerns, the Gunslingers of Gaea series is a science fiction / western mash-up devised in the best traditions of the dime store paperback. It is part of the 10 Cent Universe – a genre-bending macrocosm – that began with the science fiction / mystery series The Starship Australis Mysteries.

Available on Kindle and Kindle Unlimited: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0DTN2TMSS

On the planet Gaea, opportunities are hard to come by. Setting out for the Tanami frontier, young Dalton Reid hopes to make his fortune with nothing but his horse and the last few bits in his pocket. Before he can even begin, the dastardly Roscoe, professional cattle rustler and murderer, cheats him out of his savings.

There’s no shortage of folks in Hensonville willing to give Reid the education he needs to survive, if he’s willing to play by their rules. Paloma Griswell’s ready to work him to the bone on her ranch. The straight and narrow is what old Marshal Rawlins expects. Bellyaching Chip Reegan just wants to put him in his place. Even Roscoe wants him to join the gang as they plan their biggest heist yet.

Only Reid can decide what type of man he wants to be as he seeks fortune and fame–or will it be infamy?

-----------------

Inspired by classic westerns, the Gunslingers of Gaea series is a science fiction / western mash-up devised in the best traditions of the dime store paperback. It is part of the 10 Cent Universe – a genre-bending macrocosm – that began with the science fiction / mystery series The Starship Australis Mysteries.

Trigger Warnings: language, violence, prostitution, sexual situations.

Available on Kindle and Kindle Unlimited: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0DTN2TMSS

What did you read last month, and do you have any thoughts about them you'd like to share?

Whether you talk about books you finished, books you started, long term projects, or all three, is up to you. So for those who read at a more leisurely pace, or who have just been too busy to find the time, it's perfectly fine to talk about something you're still reading even if you're not finished.

(If you're like me and have trouble remembering where you left off, here's a handy link to last month's thread.)

What did you read last month, and do you have any thoughts about them you'd like to share?

Whether you talk about books you finished, books you started, long term projects, or all three, is up to you. So for those who read at a more leisurely pace, or who have just been too busy to find the time, it's perfectly fine to talk about something you're still reading even if you're not finished.

(If you're like me and have trouble remembering where you left off, here's a handy link to last month's thread.)

Hello! I'm Ed Robins, author of Murder on the Starship Australis, a hardboiled detective series set on a generation ship. I recently released a prequel novelette meant to introduce the series to new readers. It is available for free as an ebook on most platforms (links at bottom). Here is the blurb followed by the first chapter:

>"All I wanted was to find the bastard that killed a little girl, but my captain has other plans for me. A young man decided he couldn't handle a lifetime aboard the starship Australis, and took the easy way off. Problem is, his mama can't accept the truth, so now I gotta hold her hand while she grieves.

"Or maybe there's more to the case than it seems."

>Inspired by the hardboiled grit of Mickey Spillane and the concision of Elmore Leonard, Justice for a Price is a sci-fi / mystery mash-up devised in the best traditions of the dime store paperback. This novelette is a prequel to the Murder on the Starship Australis series, itself part of the 10 Cent Universe – a genre-bending macrocosm.

>This story contains adult language, themes and content.

----------Justice for a Price, Chapter One----------

Captain Jefferies headed straight for me, his grim lips telling me I wasn’t gonna like what he had to say. Not that I ever did. I waved my hand across the desktop to close the file on Mick the Mouth. Wasn’t my case and Jefferies had already been up my ass about staying on my side of the treads. Woulda been fine by me except my side only got the crap cases no one else wanted. I had to keep myself entertained, and one of Geno’s henchmen misplacing his heart was a hella thing to pique some interest.

He strode right up to the edge of my desk and stopped with a sharp snap of his heels. I took a bite of my sandwich as he looked down his long nose at me, then he tapped his terminal against my desk. A new folder appeared there and fluttered open. Young man lying on his back in a pool of blood. He’d sliced his wrists.

“This is Mike’s case,” I said, mouth half-full. “Already closed it out, he told me. Pretty obvious suicide.”

“The mother isn’t letting it go,” Jefferies said, “and I need Detective Lorenzo’s focus on baby doll.”

I grimaced. Everyone in the bullpen had wanted the baby doll case, even if we didn’t know what it was all about. Hell, I’d practically begged for the damned thing, but the Captain said I couldn’t be objective. Who the feck could? Little girl named Sophie molested, bound, and killed. We all wanted to catch the sonabitch who did it. Captain gave it to Detective Mike Lorenzo instead–my best friend, practically my brother.

Plenty of weird shit happened on the starship Australis all the time, but most of it was ordinary grotesquery, like that henchman’s missing heart. Seeing Mike’s face after he’d read through the file on baby doll made me second-guess wanting the case after all. Captain and Mike kept their lips tighter than usual about it, too.

“Mike could use some help,” I said.

“Mike’s doing just fine on his own,” Jefferies said, not even waiting for me to finish. “Stick to your case.”

“What case? Badgering old lady can’t accept her boy needed some peace and quiet?”
Oh, he didn’t like that much. Bent down over my desk, eyes burning. “Have some fecking respect, Devoe.”

“Hand-holding ain’t my job.”

“Listening to you belly ache isn’t mine. Review the file and get it closed–for good.”

He stormed off on those stilts he called legs. Left me looking down at images of the young man’s corpse. His name was William Schadler, nineteen. Worked as a mechanic in air purification for the last two years. Father was dead. Mother was Phillipa Schadler, a seamstress, who he still lived with in a four by three meter compartment in the Bradford section. Jesus, wasn’t much space for a grown man and his mommy. Madelyn and I lived in a spot not much bigger when we were first married, and that was tough enough.
I spread my fingers across the desk to enlarge the image. Brought up the medical examiner’s report beside it. Little Will had sliced his wrists about 1300 on a Tuesday while his mama was at work. Just laid down on the deck of their compartment and did the deed. I gave the corpse a quick once-over then switched to a wider image showing more of the compartment. It was tiny for the two of them. Odd considering they were both working. Air purification mechanic didn’t make much less than me, I wagered–Madelyn’s job paid most of our bills–but even in my 20s I coulda afforded something bigger, or a single’s compartment.

Scanned the space. Double-decker beds, top unmade. Clothes in the refresher. Dirty pot on the warmer. Terminal on the table next to a bowl of half-eaten tomato soup. Spread the image again to get in close on the terminal. Guy was reading a book called War and Peace. Monster of a book, not that I’d ever read it. Anything that long might make me want to kill myself, too.

Tapped the image to back out, then panned down to Schadler’s body lying in a pool of blood. Black-handled kitchen knife lying beside him right outta the block on the counter. The lacerations across the wrists weren’t deep, but they didn’t have to be. The right side of his body lay next to the wall of the compartment, and I could see where the gush of blood from his wrist had squirted onto the beige paneling. So he was already lying down when he made the cut. Examiner’s report confirmed the observation. What it didn’t mention was why it appeared both lacerations cut from right to left, from my perspective. I zoomed in and out, spun the image around, tightened my jaw. Both cuts, left to right now, far as I could tell.

Ned, chief medical examiner, had signed off on the report, but his assistant Benton prepared it. Taking out my terminal, I swiped it all from my desk to the device and pocketed it. I dumped the remains of my coffee down my throat and took the rest of the sandwich to go.

I walked into Ned’s lab, I licked the last of the mayo off my fingers. He was bent over the corpse of a young girl. Frog caught in my throat so that I had to clear it. He turned toward me, one of those weird magnifying glasses stuck in his left eye.

“That her?” I asked. Stupid question. Who else would it be but Sophie?

“Captain told me to keep you away from this.”

“Just me? I’m hurt.”

“Everyone,” he said, “but especially you.”

Ouch.

Ned returned to his examination. “What can I do for you, detective?”

“Captain tossed me the Schadler case. Wants it tight as an airlock.”

He guffawed. “Already is.”

“You sure?” That got his attention. He stood up straight, took the glass outta his eye and leaned against the table. I pulled out my terminal and held it up. “Not trying to tell you how to do your job, but things ain’t adding up.”

He rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. I glanced at the girl on the table. It was enough to make anyone tired. Ned motioned me to follow him to the large terminal built into the wall of the lab. Swiping the contents of the file to it, we both peered at the image of the young man.

“Like what?” Ned asked.

“Guy makes himself some soup while starting a three-megabyte book, leaving dirty dishes in the sink and clothes in the refresher, then lays down and slits his wrists. Little weird, right?"

Ned shrugged. “I just examine the bodies.”

“How close did you examine Schadler’s?” I tightened the image on his wrists, one at a time. Waited a few seconds, then said, “See it?”

“No.”

I stepped up and drew boxes around the wrists–swiped them closer together. Didn’t take long for his jaw to drop. He moved in closer. “Feck me.”

“You ain’t my type."

He slashed his pointer finger across the wrists. “These lacerations both begin on the victim’s left side and cut right.”

I held out my arms, pretended to slit my left wrist, left to right, then switched to the other and went right to left. “Two explanations: vic purposefully twisted his left hand into a pretzel so that he could cut his right wrist in the same direction, or–”

“Someone else cut them,” Ned said. “Left handed.”

“Yeah.”

He cupped his jaw in his hand and looked like he was about to cry. “I… I can’t believe we missed that.”

“Ain’t like you, Ned.”

He grew pale and closed his eyes. Leaned back against a lab table. I’d known Ned a long time, and I’d never seen anything bother him. Not like this.

“I haven’t been sleeping. Not since…” He waved his hand at the little body on the table. “That’s no excuse. Benton and I both should have seen it.”

I stepped up to him, put a hand on his shoulder. “Mike’s gonna find the sonabitch.”
He nodded gravely. “I’m sorry, Detective.”

“Far as I’m concerned, this is Benton’s fault.” He gave me a weak smile. “In the meantime, get this report fixed, yeah? Looks like I gotta murder to solve.”

----------Links----------

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H4BV6PL5/

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/justice-for-a-price

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/justice-for-a-price-ed-robins/1150339428

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=sOHkEQAAQBAJ

RoyalRoad: https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/175360/justice-for-a-price

Fictionite: https://fictionite.com/f/justice-for-a-price

If you're a fan of sci-fi and noir, like me, I recently released a novelette titled Justice for a Price. It's a free introduction to my series Murder on the Starship Australis and follows a detective on a generation ship as he investigates a suicide where the facts don't add up.

If you enjoy it, there are four books and another free novelette in the series, and more still to come. These stories are gritty, violent, and a little bit dirty. They tackle some heavy topics like addiction, abuse, and redemption through the eyes on an MC who just wants to drink to forget.

The novelette is free on most major ebook vendors, as well as Royal Road and Fictionite.com

Any feedback in the comments, directly or through reviews is always appreciated!

Justice for a Price, a hardboiled noir on a generation ship, is available FREE on Amazon as well as Kobo, B&N and Google Play!

"All I wanted was to find the bastard that killed a little girl, but my captain has other plans for me. A young man decided he couldn't handle a lifetime aboard the starship Australis, and took the easy way off. Problem is, his mama can't accept the truth, so now I gotta hold her hand while she grieves.

"Or maybe there's more to the case than it seems."

Inspired by the hardboiled grit of Mickey Spillane and the concision of Elmore Leonard, Justice for a Price is a sci-fi / mystery mash-up devised in the best traditions of the dime store paperback. This novelette is a prequel to the Murder on the Starship Australis series, itself part of the 10 Cent Universe – a genre-bending macrocosm.

This story contains adult language, themes and content.

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H4BV6PL5/

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/justice-for-a-price

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/justice-for-a-price-ed-robins/1150339428

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=sOHkEQAAQBAJ