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The Shirker
Abandoning another man's conflict is a choice. Abandoning your own conflict is not.
Recently discharged from the Aeronautical Expansion Defense and secretly suffering from PTSD, Vio Recarey arrives on the frontier world Obcasio II. All Vio wants is an opportunity to forge a life for himself in the wealthy city of New Luucrum, but with no money and no connections he instead quickly makes acquaintances in LowLuu, the vagabond city formed in the abandoned mining tunnels below New Luucrum. But when Vio saves the lives of an influential philanthropist and his wife, Vio gets the opportunity he's been looking for, much to the disapproval of his LowLuu friends. This new lifestyle attracts complications, ones which set Vio on a path that anchors him to the planet, thrusting him into situations where his actions, or inactions, could have long lasting and grave circumstances for everyone on Obcasio. Vio begins to realize he's traded one life of loneliness and violence for another, and no matter how hard he tries, he can't outrun his trauma.
Recently discharged from the Aeronautical Expansion Defense and secretly suffering from PTSD, Vio Recarey arrives on the frontier world Obcasio II. All Vio wants is an opportunity to forge a life for himself in the wealthy city of New Luucrum, but with no money and no connections he instead quickly makes acquaintances in LowLuu, the vagabond city formed in the abandoned mining tunnels below New Luucrum. But when Vio saves the lives of an influential philanthropist and his wife, Vio gets the opportunity he's been looking for, much to the disapproval of his LowLuu friends. This new lifestyle attracts complications, ones which set Vio on a path that anchors him to the planet, thrusting him into situations where his actions, or inactions, could have long lasting and grave circumstances for everyone on Obcasio. Vio begins to realize he's traded one life of loneliness and violence for another, and no matter how hard he tries, he can't outrun his trauma.
335 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 12, 2023
10 people are currently reading
19 people want to read
About the author
Mark J. Schultis
19 books3 followersCommunity leader. Particle physicist. International Assassin. Mark J Schultis is none of these. He wrote his first story in elementary school and has spent a lifetime keeping that childhood passion of storytelling alive, studying theatre and filmmaking before eventually earning his writing degree from the University of Pittsburgh.
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/mark-...
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
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September 2, 2025DNF, stopping at 10% because although the premise was promising-ish, and the cover is great, there are peculiarities I find too distracting. Transitions from one scene to the next are odd, interactions are more like sketches than scenes, and it is off-putting that no one ever needs a bathroom between waking and going to do stuff. Are they human, or are they not? (They're supposed to be.) And then the favorite prostitute 'pranced' to the MC, and that was it.
Pranced. WTF.
Pranced. WTF.
April 14, 2024
I read this story all the way through without stopping. No notes, no pauses for reflection. I just enjoyed the tale and the characters.
I must admit, there were times when I was reading that I said, “Wait a minute. That’s not right. You can’t do that!” And you can’t do that in a Space Opera. But this isn’t just a Space Opera. It’s a three-part novel. Each part could be an opera in itself. But put together, they are so much more.
Oh, there is enough Space Opera material to satisfy the ardent fan. A galaxy of plundered planets with deteriorating societies, abandoned by rapacious interstellar corporations. Wild-West type settings with all the cobbled-together hi-tech gadgets you can scrounge. Slums and abandoned machinery and bordellos and bars with all their denizens. And, of course, a smattering of the ultra-rich feeding off the suffering of all. Lots of conflict, lots of action, and more than enough death and destruction. Life is cheap on the Outer Planets.
This situation just cries for someone like Vio, a romantic former military pilot — with all the ensuing mental baggage — who is a tragedy waiting for a place to happen. But he is the opposite of a tragic hero. They turn their backs on society, go their own paths, and fail in the end. He goes his own way, but he always tries to do his best for society. It takes him three stories and twenty years or more to get there, but finally he makes it in the same manner he has lived his life: sort of, after a fashion and always on his own terms.
But along the way the author has time to show us some up-close portraits of people trying to do their best in an unfair world. Vio himself is an in-depth study of PTSD. Most of the secondary characters are rounded and sympathetic. Even the less-than savoury ones. Who, come to think of it, constitute most of the cast.
This novel is mainstream Sci-Fi masquerading as Space Opera and giving us all the advantages of both. Highly recommended.
This review was originally published on Reedsy Discovery.
I must admit, there were times when I was reading that I said, “Wait a minute. That’s not right. You can’t do that!” And you can’t do that in a Space Opera. But this isn’t just a Space Opera. It’s a three-part novel. Each part could be an opera in itself. But put together, they are so much more.
Oh, there is enough Space Opera material to satisfy the ardent fan. A galaxy of plundered planets with deteriorating societies, abandoned by rapacious interstellar corporations. Wild-West type settings with all the cobbled-together hi-tech gadgets you can scrounge. Slums and abandoned machinery and bordellos and bars with all their denizens. And, of course, a smattering of the ultra-rich feeding off the suffering of all. Lots of conflict, lots of action, and more than enough death and destruction. Life is cheap on the Outer Planets.
This situation just cries for someone like Vio, a romantic former military pilot — with all the ensuing mental baggage — who is a tragedy waiting for a place to happen. But he is the opposite of a tragic hero. They turn their backs on society, go their own paths, and fail in the end. He goes his own way, but he always tries to do his best for society. It takes him three stories and twenty years or more to get there, but finally he makes it in the same manner he has lived his life: sort of, after a fashion and always on his own terms.
But along the way the author has time to show us some up-close portraits of people trying to do their best in an unfair world. Vio himself is an in-depth study of PTSD. Most of the secondary characters are rounded and sympathetic. Even the less-than savoury ones. Who, come to think of it, constitute most of the cast.
This novel is mainstream Sci-Fi masquerading as Space Opera and giving us all the advantages of both. Highly recommended.
This review was originally published on Reedsy Discovery.
December 23, 2025
A masterful, immersive, and deeply empathetic science fiction epic that delivers all the thrilling spectacle of Space Opera while exploring serious, profound themes with remarkable depth. Mark J. Schultis crafts a sprawling, three-part narrative across decades, following the romantic, PTSD-afflicted former pilot Vio as he navigates a galaxy of plundered planets, corporate rapacity, and Wild-West outer planets. While packed with action, cobbled tech, and conflict, the novel’s true power lies in its nuanced, sympathetic character portraits especially Vio’s moving journey and its thoughtful examination of trauma, society, and integrity. A brilliant, page-turning read that satisfies on every level and transcends its genre.
January 22, 2024
I got this e-book from Amazon with Kindle unlimited
May 15, 2024
Schultis paints a very vivid picture throughout the entire book of the world in which the characters live in. A wild west somewhere in deep space. From the moment I started reading this book, I was completely hooked. Great characters and imagery will keep you excited for the whole roller coaster The Shirker takes you on. This book is Hollywood material for sure!! Be ready to get emotional as you read the victories and crazy setbacks of the main characters life. Highly recommend.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews