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Spaceship in a Bottle
A salvager discovers an alien starship, but that’s only the beginning.
Wiz Zumwalt has sunk his Navy pension into a beat-up ship in hopes of finding riches in the asteroid belts.
Only the days of the Asteroid Cowboys are over. Big Mining now has a firm grip on the mineral riches, and their economies of scale and resources make it almost impossible for the indie miner to survive.
Now, he has two days before his ship will be repossessed unless he can find a miracle.
And boy, does he find one.
On a nameless hunk of rock, his sensors detect the faintest traces of, well . . . something.
Not a human ship, but something alien. A long-running secret that upturns everything he’s always believed, one that could impact humanity’s very existence.
Mankind always believed it was alone. Every probe it ever sent out beyond the Oort Cloud sent back the same results… except those were a lie, created to trick humanity into believing the galaxy was empty.
But that was far from the truth.
As the alien ship takes off and sends Wiz across the stars and out of the solar system, he soon discovers the universe is teeming with life. Empires are at war, countless species among them, and humanity has been left on the sidelines.
The only question is, why? Why was humanity placed inside of a bubble?
Join Wiz on his amazing journey of discovery, danger, and enormous stakes as he uncovers the secrets of the universe, so far from his home. From multiple Nebula and Dragon Award finalist and USA Today Bestselling author Jonathan P. Brazee comes a brand new scifi series unlike any before it.
Wiz Zumwalt has sunk his Navy pension into a beat-up ship in hopes of finding riches in the asteroid belts.
Only the days of the Asteroid Cowboys are over. Big Mining now has a firm grip on the mineral riches, and their economies of scale and resources make it almost impossible for the indie miner to survive.
Now, he has two days before his ship will be repossessed unless he can find a miracle.
And boy, does he find one.
On a nameless hunk of rock, his sensors detect the faintest traces of, well . . . something.
Not a human ship, but something alien. A long-running secret that upturns everything he’s always believed, one that could impact humanity’s very existence.
Mankind always believed it was alone. Every probe it ever sent out beyond the Oort Cloud sent back the same results… except those were a lie, created to trick humanity into believing the galaxy was empty.
But that was far from the truth.
As the alien ship takes off and sends Wiz across the stars and out of the solar system, he soon discovers the universe is teeming with life. Empires are at war, countless species among them, and humanity has been left on the sidelines.
The only question is, why? Why was humanity placed inside of a bubble?
Join Wiz on his amazing journey of discovery, danger, and enormous stakes as he uncovers the secrets of the universe, so far from his home. From multiple Nebula and Dragon Award finalist and USA Today Bestselling author Jonathan P. Brazee comes a brand new scifi series unlike any before it.
518 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 30, 2025
419 people are currently reading
15 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
August 14, 2025
Navy Veteran praises Marine for accuracy
The Chaplain Corps of the US Navy serves time between Navy and Marine units. Twelve of my 24 years were "green side" from Vietnam to Desert Storm. The familiar "faIr skies and following seas " departure from an alien world deeply touched me. The same words were said at my retirement due to injury. I did not serve at Tun Tavern in Philadelphia, so I am not sure where the author decided to call an enlisted sailor a blue shirt. As an officer on, above and below the sea the different shirts indicated special ratings or qualifications, especially on an aircraft carrier. Enlisted below the rank of Chief Petty Officer were usually called "black shoe." Dress uniform for officers was a mandatory white from head to toe. Using military occupation specialty numbers in the book allows me to tease 0311's with my favorite clean joke. I was a Jewish chaplain who claimed that my MOS was designated ES. When the usual came of never hearing that rating, my reply would be "You never heard of Moses?"
The Chaplain Corps of the US Navy serves time between Navy and Marine units. Twelve of my 24 years were "green side" from Vietnam to Desert Storm. The familiar "faIr skies and following seas " departure from an alien world deeply touched me. The same words were said at my retirement due to injury. I did not serve at Tun Tavern in Philadelphia, so I am not sure where the author decided to call an enlisted sailor a blue shirt. As an officer on, above and below the sea the different shirts indicated special ratings or qualifications, especially on an aircraft carrier. Enlisted below the rank of Chief Petty Officer were usually called "black shoe." Dress uniform for officers was a mandatory white from head to toe. Using military occupation specialty numbers in the book allows me to tease 0311's with my favorite clean joke. I was a Jewish chaplain who claimed that my MOS was designated ES. When the usual came of never hearing that rating, my reply would be "You never heard of Moses?"
September 1, 2025
Quite Different
This was not as expected from the description and preview. The storyline and plot have their ups-and-downs, and there were bits that just didn’t quite seem to fit, but at book’s end it all pretty much came together and left me hoping for a next installment.
I don’t see one listed, unfortunately, but this is my appeal to Jonathan Brazee to consider writing one, if has hasn’t already got it started. There is a lot of scifi available and this has been better than much that I have tried recently on KU.
This was not as expected from the description and preview. The storyline and plot have their ups-and-downs, and there were bits that just didn’t quite seem to fit, but at book’s end it all pretty much came together and left me hoping for a next installment.
I don’t see one listed, unfortunately, but this is my appeal to Jonathan Brazee to consider writing one, if has hasn’t already got it started. There is a lot of scifi available and this has been better than much that I have tried recently on KU.
October 5, 2025
so boring
In terms of grammar, spelling, punctuation, and format the editing is good.
Pacing needs a drastic edit. I made it about half way though the book before I tapped out. Nothing happens. It’s just the two characters and brief appearances by others.
And the problem is Wiz and his sidekick are just not interesting. We could cut somewhere between 30 and 60% of the book out and nothing of significance will be lost.
The pacing is just agonizingly slow . I will not be finishing this book, or seeking anything else from the series.
TL;DR skip this book.
In terms of grammar, spelling, punctuation, and format the editing is good.
Pacing needs a drastic edit. I made it about half way though the book before I tapped out. Nothing happens. It’s just the two characters and brief appearances by others.
And the problem is Wiz and his sidekick are just not interesting. We could cut somewhere between 30 and 60% of the book out and nothing of significance will be lost.
The pacing is just agonizingly slow . I will not be finishing this book, or seeking anything else from the series.
TL;DR skip this book.
September 9, 2025
I cannot in all honesty recommend this book. I got as far as I could but had to give up approximately one quarter of the way through the book. It seemed to drag along really saying nothing and going nowhere. I put it down and came back later and found I could just not continue. I didn’t even find myself skipping forward to the end to find out how it ended out of curiosity. It just did not hold my interest.
September 19, 2025
They broke OUT!
Our story starts a little slow But then we take and see the development of the characters and the plot finally gets exposed and now we sit on the edge of our chairs waiting for the author to continually expand on what he has started This book is truly to be Embraced
Our story starts a little slow But then we take and see the development of the characters and the plot finally gets exposed and now we sit on the edge of our chairs waiting for the author to continually expand on what he has started This book is truly to be Embraced
November 1, 2025
slow start but well paced. Looking forward to the next installment.
Worth the read. Interesting character introduction and filling out of the central players. Pacing just enough to keep me reading.
Worth the read. Interesting character introduction and filling out of the central players. Pacing just enough to keep me reading.
November 12, 2025
Excellent
I gave it 5 stars mostly to honor the work the author put in writing it. The first few chapters had me glued to the book. But then it got to be a little bit boring and soon I found myself scanning. It's a fascinating story but could have ended sooner.
I gave it 5 stars mostly to honor the work the author put in writing it. The first few chapters had me glued to the book. But then it got to be a little bit boring and soon I found myself scanning. It's a fascinating story but could have ended sooner.
August 13, 2025
A very good read
A very good read, though it dragged a bit about 2/3 of the way through. All in all, though, I’d buy a sequel, if one was to be offered.
A very good read, though it dragged a bit about 2/3 of the way through. All in all, though, I’d buy a sequel, if one was to be offered.
September 1, 2025
more then 50% through the book and basically nothing has happened. the protagonist has zero agency and just keeps going along with the story rather than creating his own. is boring
September 9, 2025
Fantastic start to this amazing series!
I am ready for more hopefully there is a book 2 already out there for me to read? A new fan?
I am ready for more hopefully there is a book 2 already out there for me to read? A new fan?
October 17, 2025
Asteroid miner on his fiscal last leg finds an alien advanced space ship is solar systems interment zone.Borrowed with Kindle Unlimited, read with Alexa audio assist.
October 30, 2025
A nicely different approach to a first contact!
“Wiz” is a down on his luck belt independent hoping to find the scraps left behind by the bigger mining companies that consider them not worth the effort to harvest.
First he makes what he thinks is an amazing find, only to wind up with his life on the line simply trying to survive.
But then he meets some strange individuals & corrupt people who want what he found. Then things get worse…
“Wiz” is a down on his luck belt independent hoping to find the scraps left behind by the bigger mining companies that consider them not worth the effort to harvest.
First he makes what he thinks is an amazing find, only to wind up with his life on the line simply trying to survive.
But then he meets some strange individuals & corrupt people who want what he found. Then things get worse…
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews