missingvolume | Entries tagged with science fiction

This series just keeps getting crazier and crazier. Faction Wars is now the focus of the ninth floor and thanks to Carl and Donut crawlers now have formed a team and the NPCs also have their own team led by Juicebox and Ferdinand. The big surprise to everyone is the former crawlers who made it out of the previous crawls have come back to join Carl to help him win and possibly take down the entire system of AI and Dungeon Crawls. There is a lot of plotting between people that Carl isn’t privy to, and I think we may see more of what is happening off planet since so much happened off system in this book. People do die that are close to the duo but I don’t think it spoils anything to say that Carl and Donut make it to the tenth floor. Now to sit and wait impatiently for book 8.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss

A man wearing a cape, kneepads and heart covered boxer shorts running toward the viewer with a woman with butterfly wings behind him on one side and a large round thing with blue eyes on the other.

A talented AI that is an investigative reporter wakes up and finds they are missing over a week of memories and have no idea what they were working on. A bit of sleuthing on their part has them back on the path of what xir were doing on the moon. I liked the idea that Scorn has both parents in xir life and an older AI sibling. The setting and mystery was good and I would like to see more in this setting.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss

The title of the book superimposed over an image of the moon. The title is vertical over the moon.

The third mystery has Pleiti going to help a former classmate now at a rival university. She goes to recruit Mossa’s help against the plagiarism charges on her friend’s cousin’s academic work. Mossa is depressed and sends Pleiti away offering no support and just wants to be left alone to wallow in her melancholy. Pleiti arrives at the university and uses the mantra “What would Mossa do” to guide her to help Villette find the person slandering her and stop her from receiving a donship from Stortellen University. It was fun to see the role of primary investigator on Pleiti’s shoulders.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss

Two shadowed figures standing apart turned away and reaching a hand to each other against a backdrop of a futuristic cityscape and the planet Jupiter in the sky.

A good solid ending to this trilogy with Ada and Rian on Earth to stop the nanobots launching with the software that will hold the restoration of the climate hostage to constant payments to keep it working. Rian still doesn’t believe that Ada is just doing it only so the correct software is updated. He thinks she will still manage a heist as well. Ada does pull off what she plans to do as she has for the previous two books and hopefully Rian will come after her and her heart.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley
A man and woman in silhouette facing each other with a sunset in the background and water below them

Carl and Donut are still alive and on the 6^th floor. There are outside groups that are not happy with how he finished the 5^th floor but now for now he has made some bargains and gotten a lawyer to represent him in court cases since the lawsuits are flying thick outside the game. There is more of the outside world politics and the events that happened on the surface at the end of the previous book will come into play on this floor. I got a laugh at Carl having to leave to go to a convention about the crawl as a guest . Now to track down the next book.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss

A man in white boxers with hearts wearing a bandanna over his face holds a sex doll’s head above him about to throw it. A sunglasses cat leaping on one side and goat headed robe wearing human on the other side.

This novella is from Zane’s point of view. At the Summer Solstice party and charged with giving a gift to a woman his grandmother expects him to wed for a financial alliance for his house. When the Techwave breaks into the research lab of the house hosting the party Zane is right on them to figure out what technology they are trying to steal. But the mystery gets even more interesting when he sees Asterin Armas, his potential bride in the lab as well. The Techwave grabs her as a hostage and but Zane is able to free her, but the Techwave gets away and has what they are looking for. Zane has several interesting conversations after all the action and you get a new spin on his character.

A green and black cover with a man holding a sword among trees with 2 moons in the starry sky.

The Count of Monte Cristo in space is the elevator pitch for this book. The story works in the framework and adds in colonies fighting for independence. Virika is an officer on a ship who is framed for the death of her captain by someone that she had refused his advances. The story was good and used the framework of Monte Cristo but didn’t slavishly stick to it, just don’t look for a happy ending.

A woman with long hair wearing a cape standing in fog with a planet in the background. All done in shades of purple.

Vesper is now in charge of the company she used to work for after exposing her boss’s treachery. But she is still hiding her bond with Kyrion from him and Lord Holloway. When the Techwave kidnaps her to use her technical expertise Kyrion realizes the bond between them is still active. Now the two of them are on the run and trying to avoid death by having the power of their bond siphoned off by Lord Holloway. A fun followup to the previous book.

An armed man and woman stand in shadow against a red and black background that includes trees, a distant building, star, and a spaceship

Worlds that are mined for a valuable mineral that makes current technology available are being destroyed by something unknown there is a lot of hate against the powerful families that control the mining tech. People can have their bodies and minds reprinted with the tech but it is expensive and one of the pluses of working for these families is having that benefit. But spies can print into bodies not their own and that is what happens at the start of the book. The ship arrives to what is supposed to be a pristine world to find it already destroyed and their sister ship attacking them. Now spy and scion of a powerful family have to band together to survive on the decimated world to get back to civilization and let people know what is going on.

Two figures on a decimated planet with two large moons in the sky.

Another mystery for Mossa to solve that she involves Pleiti in the work. When a missing person case uncovers not one but many people missing and once again there are university students involved so there is a reason for Pleiti to be involved. The reader gets to see more of Giant and how things work on the colony. There is some aftermath of what happened in the previous book that comes up in this one. Can’t wait to see what happens next for the both of them.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss

Two figures standing in front of an outline of a science fiction skyline done in blues and purples

Humans no longer live on either Earth or Mars but on Jupiter now called Giant. Rings have been built in the upper atmosphere with trains running between stations built along it. Pleiti is a professor studying old Earth literature to get a comprehensive list of plants and animals that lived in certain areas of Earth before the collapse. Mossa is her former college lover now investigator that show up on her doorstep working a disappearance of a man that had connections to the university Pleiti works at. The two work together to solve the mystery and the reader gets to learn about life on Giant.

Two figures walking in a spaceport against a two tone orange backdrop.

Two figures walking in a spaceport against a two tone orange backdrop.

Carl and Princess Donut have made it to the fourth floor with Katia still with them working on her levels at the request of Hekla. But due to Mordecai attacking someone from his past they lose him as a resource for most of this level. The 4^th floor is based on trains and trying to find the right station where the stairs to the next level can be found. There is the usual grind and figuring out what are the clues to defeat the new monsters. One of the things Carl has won out of his boxes is a book that he passes off as a dud but it turns out it is a guidebook written by previous crawlers that is passed down to crawlers that meet certain class selections. There is a lot of great info, but he must use it sparingly and make it look like everything he is doing is by accident instead of following a recipe. The pace doesn’t let up and things get a bit crazy in order to get through this level.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss

A man and a cat riding a raptor running in front of a train,

Carl and Princess Donut have survived the first two levels of the game run by aliens that have taken over Earth. The AI that runs the game really has it in for them and they are working on new powers and skills as they continue to level up and survive. The game is set to be as cruel as possible to the players and the employees of the corporation working in the game. They have a few allies and lots of fans watching them on the show, but it will take everything they are learning to be able to survive.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss
A cat wearing tiara and a man running from a mushroom cloud.

A huge spaceship that cruises the planets on a set course that hasn’t varied for years attracts a lot of interesting guests and the occasional conference. The beginning focuses on introducing much of the crew and how they arrived at working on the Abeona. As the character intros continue to guests onboard the ship, we start to see the plot and the reason for the ship’s course of ports. The ending felt a bit rushed compared to the slow unfolding of all the people working on the ship.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley
A blue and gold spaceship in front of a planet.

Carl is having a bad night when his soon to be ex girlfriend’s cat slips out the window on a cold winter night. Racing outside to rescue Princess Donut wearing nothing but boxers, a leather jacket and the girlfriend’s crocs, the world as he knows it comes to an end. Carl finds himself fighting for his life in a dungeon game show with Princess Donut by his side who has been given human intelligence. Everything is over the top and the game is rigged. And yet the reader is rooting for Carl and Princess Donut no matter what happens and what they must do to survive to the next level. The aliens that are running the game are doing it for ratings and sponsorship money as they strip mine Earth.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through Edelweiss

A man and a cat running in a mouth of teeth

Fergus Ferguson has been in hiding the last three years when he is found by one of his alien acquaintances to be used to free another alien he knows. The reason that he is the ransom instead of being turned in for all the bounties on his head is the pirate that wanted him knows about Fergus’ ability to find things that are almost impossible to be found. The impossible job is to find the Pirate’s sister that has gone missing for over a decade. The reward for this is something that Fergus can’t refuse. The plot hinges on Fergus’ run of luck and as usual it is damn entertaining. I don’t want to say what Fergus’ reward is because it is part of a previous book’s plot. A fun read and I really hope there will be more some day.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley

A spaceship flying towards a planet.

Ada is quickly running out of air and is rescued at the end of her air by a ship sent to recover the ship she has already started salvage on. Rian is on a classified mission and is very curious as how did this one-woman salvage operation find this ship and did she find what they came to get off this unstable planet. Ada seems so helpful with her high tech suit and agrees to grab the data they came to extract from the wreck. But of course Ada isn’t what she seems even though she has won over some of the crew. A good tight story and a great hook at the end about what is going on in this universe and you have to wonder if they will cross paths again. Good entertaining audio book

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley

A man and woman back-to-back in silhouette against an orange sky and red foreground with a crashed spaceship at the bottom

A man and woman back-to-back in silhouette against an orange sky and red foreground with a crashed spaceship at the bottom

This collection of all of Kage Baker’s short stories set on Mars reads wonderfully together. Colonization with corporations and what can go wrong, new religions sprouting up in a new land and people wanting more than just work every day, they want arts and entertainment. Stories of a what might happen if we go to Mars. A great collection and shorter than what we deserved due to the loss of the writer way too soon.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley

A large ornate purple building on a Martian landscape.

In this one we get a new pack to learn about and a hidden child from one of the former councilors. Remy is a leopard changeling of a pack that is taking over an area that has been held in trust. On patrol he finds that one of his new neighbors is Psy, but she isn’t quite normal for a Psy. Auden Scott has been kept away from the public since she was a disappointment to her powerful parents. And it turns out she is a pawn in a plan set in motion by her mother from beyond the grave. As usual the story builds on what has happened previously in the world among humans, Psy and Changelings. This might be a better book to step into the series so late in the game since the focus is on a new pack we haven’t seen much of before.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher on Edelweiss

A green and black forest with silhouette of a main kissing a woman’s forehead.

Cyn has a reputation as a tough bounty hunter that spaced a ship full of pirates, but the real story isn’t quite as ruthless. She keeps to herself and has been looking for the man that kidnapped and killed her sister years ago. When she gets a job she can’t’ refuse tracking down the notorious kidnapper she is eager to take it. But it puts her back in contact with a ship full of people that knew her under another name from a previous bounty she worked undercover. Back on her home world and with feelings growing stronger between her and one of the crew things get rougher dealing with her past and a second bounty job she can’t refuse, bring in one of the crew of the ship she is working with.

More shenanigans from the ruling families move parts of the plot but you don’t have to read the first book to get what is happening in this one. A fun romantic SF story.

Digital review copy provided by the publisher through NetGalley

A man and a woman in space suits clutching each other with shooting stars all around them

A man and a woman in space suits clutching each other with shooting stars all around them

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missingvolume

The Missing Volume

June 2025

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
1	2	3	4	5	6	7
8	9	10	11	12	13	14
15	16	17	18	19	20	21
22	23	24	25	26	27	28
29	30

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Page Summary

#13 This Inevitable Ruin by Matt Dinniman
#10 Emergent Properties by Aimee Ogden
#7 The Potency of Ungovernable Impulses by Malka Older
#6 Last Chance to Save the World by Beth Revis
#76 The Butcher's Masquerade by Matt Dinniman
#75 Only Hard Problems by Jennifer Estep
#62 Countess by Suzan Palumbo, Chanté McCormick (narrator)
#57 Only Good Enemies by Jennifer Estep
#31 The Blighted Stars by Megan E. O'Keefe
#27 The Imposition of Unnecessary Obstacles by Malka Older
#26 The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Ann Older
#24 The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook by Matt Dinniman
#23 Carl's Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman
#20 Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis
#18 Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman
#17 Ghostdrift by Suzanne Palmer
#16 Full Speed to a Crash Landing by Beth Revis
#14 Maelstrom and Other Martian Tales by Kage Baker
#8 Primal Mirror by Nalini Singh
#7 Fiasco by Constance Fay

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Entries tagged with science fiction

#13 This Inevitable Ruin by Matt Dinniman

#10 Emergent Properties by Aimee Ogden

#7 The Potency of Ungovernable Impulses by Malka Older

#6 Last Chance to Save the World by Beth Revis

#76 The Butcher's Masquerade by Matt Dinniman

#75 Only Hard Problems by Jennifer Estep

#62 Countess by Suzan Palumbo, Chanté McCormick (narrator)

#57 Only Good Enemies by Jennifer Estep

#31 The Blighted Stars by Megan E. O'Keefe

#27 The Imposition of Unnecessary Obstacles by Malka Older

#26 The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Ann Older

#24 The Dungeon Anarchist's Cookbook by Matt Dinniman

#23 Carl's Doomsday Scenario by Matt Dinniman

#20 Floating Hotel by Grace Curtis

#18 Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman

#17 Ghostdrift by Suzanne Palmer

#16 Full Speed to a Crash Landing by Beth Revis

#14 Maelstrom and Other Martian Tales by Kage Baker

#8 Primal Mirror by Nalini Singh

#7 Fiasco by Constance Fay