September 22, 2016

Serial Killers in Space

A review of Star Watch Book 5: Space Chase by Mark Wayne McGinnis. 5/5 s.




A creepy psychological murder mystery wrapped in, you guessed it, a high speed race through outer space. While there's, of course, a greater plot to upset the balance of the universe, the main event is the serial killer hillbilly Orloff Picket, who's out for the blood of Nan Reynolds' nephew, Ryan Chase. A skilled hunter, Orloff's killer instincts kick in when Ryan accidently crashes into his multi-million dollar tanker conversion. From there it's all Ryan can do to survive long enough for help from Star Watch — and he's on his own in his Consignment Freight Delivery Van, with nothing but his wits and a smartalec AI to help him. A gripping read, and just when you think Jason, undercover as a mining broker, has it covered — watch out for the twist. Not your usual from the SW series, but lovers of horror and serial murderers will get their fix along with a dose of intergalactic action.

Mark's science fiction site here includes plans of Scrapyard Ship and Star Watch spacecraft and new 3D models of some of the ships.