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1 of 1 copy available
“The zippier, zanier side of space opera.” —B&N Sci-Fi & Fantasy Blog
Fergus Ferguson has been called a lot of names: thief, con artist, repo man. He prefers the term finder. His latest job should be simple. Find the spacecraft Venetia's Sword and steal it back from Arum Gilger, ex-nobleman turned power-hungry trade boss. He’ll slip in, decode the ship’s compromised AI security, and get out of town, Sword in hand.
Fergus locates both Gilger and the ship in the farthest corner of human-inhabited space, a backwater deep space colony called Cernee. But Fergus’ arrival at the colony is anything but simple. A cable car explosion launches Cernee into civil war, and Fergus must ally with Gilger’s enemies to navigate a field of space mines and a small army of hostile mercenaries. What was supposed to be a routine job evolves into negotiating a power struggle between factions. Even worse, Fergus has become increasingly—and inconveniently—invested in the lives of the locals.
It doesn’t help that a dangerous alien species Fergus thought mythical prove unsettlingly real, and their ominous triangle ships keep following him around.
Foolhardy. Eccentric. Reckless. Whatever he’s called, Fergus will need all the help he can get to take back the Sword and maybe save Cernee from destruction in the process.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
April 2, 2019 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9780756415112
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9780756415112
- File size: 2278 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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February 18, 2019
Fergus Ferguson, a professional repo man in a spacefaring future, chases a stolen spaceship to a backwater colony, incidentally becomes the catalyst for a civil war, and draws the attention of dangerous alien neighbors in Palmer’s riotous sci-fi debut. A chance meeting with an old woman in a cable car puts Fergus at odds with Gilger, the man whose ship he’s pursuing, but also allows him the opportunity to make helpful contacts in a family of lichen farmers and the arms dealer they share a habitat with. Humor deployed in the service of the plot, good dialogue, and evocative descriptions make up for a slight lack of depth in the characters as Fergus’s newfound allies evolve into friends and he gets an unexpected opportunity to save the colony and complete his mission. Palmer makes short-distance space travel feel as comfortable as riding a bicycle, and concludes this entertaining caper with a clever resolution and a hint of intrigue. Fans of space adventure will find this a fine example of the form. Agent: Joshua Bilmes, JABberwocky Literary. -
April 1, 2019
DEBUT Fergus Ferguson likes his job finding things that have gone missing in space. Called a glorified repo man, he's located and returned some unusual and dangerous cargo in his day, but this assignment is particularly tricky. He must find a stolen, armed spaceship, and wrest it away from a local gangster on the brink of warfare with a well-known arms dealer. Those caught in the middle include the families of miners and merchants, and an all-female community of lichen farmers. Cracking esoteric codes, improvising transportation and weapons, and being involved in knife fights in zero gravity is all part of a day's work. Palmer, a Hugo Award winner for her short fiction, has created a pulp-style space opera debut complete with aliens, stinging space roaches, and lethal spores that ramp up the dread and increase the hurdles for the heroes. VERDICT Salted with a bit of humor here and there, a clear cadence, and conventional ending, this will please anyone who embraces outer-space yarns.--Russell Miller, formerly with Prescott P.L., AZ
Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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