Sunspots

Sunspots #1

by Gary Martin

Bored, lazy, and slightly incompetent, John Farrow is an unlikely hero.
Working as shift manager on Sunspot 2, a battered old cargo spaceship that takes the Earth's rubbish and dumps it in the Sun's corona, John’s limited skills are put to the test when he wakes up on a routine voyage to find half the crew missing, and the ship at a standstill. A situation made more irritating for John as he's not even supposed to be there.
Now that everything has gone wrong, John realises how completely out of his depth he is. The remaining crew don't trust him as a leader, he doesn’t trust himself as a leader, and yet he knows he has to get the crew working together if they have any chance of survival against an unknown threat...

'Writing from a first-person perspective allows for the sort of sharp writing that makes this book shine. The dialogue is colloquial and fast-paced, packed with frustration and foul mouths, but it energizes the story. A unique and entertaining novel." Self-Publishing Review, 4 Stars

'Sunspots is a well-crafted story that keeps the reader fully engaged and curious to know more.' - Onlinebookclub.org

'A dark and suspenseful tale set in the confines of a garbage scow in space, SUNSPOTS is an intense and intelligent thriller.' - IndieReader.com

Genres: Science Fiction

268 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 6, 2015

About the author

Gary Martin was born in the small market town of Devizes, Wiltshire in 1978. Back then, the maternity ward was on the same site as the mental health hospital, and some of his friends would probably say that explains a lot. He still lives in Devizes with his wife and their idiot dog. In his real life he works as a printer, he says the hours are long, the shift pattern is awkward, and ultimately it's very dull. He spends most of his free time making sci-fi models, binge watching TV shows on netflix, painting, writing, going down the pub, recording music, and playing in three bands. Drums in two of them and bass in the other. He's played guitar and sung in a few bands in the past, but the less said about that the better. He's also made a couple of very low budget sci-fi films with a friend, that are on Youtube somewhere. Gary has always had a soft spot for the more naive sci-fi of the 50's 60's and 70's, with their monsters of the week, and the man in a bad suit attacking miniature spaceships, submarines, or cities. He wrote 'Sunspots' on his days off, between his other hobbies over the course of a year. The original idea behind 'Sunspots' was for it to be vaguely similar to Star trek, (which he loves all of) but with swearing and knob gags. He then developed it from there. A lot of the ideas came to him while working the night shift. He says that between 2am and 4am is a very odd time to still be awake, and the brain starts thinking in odd ways, so he jotted anything down that may just work in the story. He is currently working on the 'Sunspots' sequel, which he thinks will probably done by late 2016. Probably.

Reviews

[Miriam Smith (A Mother’s Musings) · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Sunspots" is a cracking debut novel from author Gary Martin, I don't tend to read Sci-Fi but I'm glad I did as this is an excellent story, funny, interesting with the right amount of emotion in the correct places and I particularly enjoyed the banter and comaraderie between John, Jacob and Terrell in the duo story line running parallel to the main plot. I can well imagine a time our rubbish is transported to the sun to be burned and the author captures the idea perfectly. I look forward to the next installment by this very imaginative author and would recommend to anyone.
I would like to thank the Goodreads Giveaways for my signed copy of the book.

[Anthony · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well.written sci fi.

Very well written and a highly believable look into the possible future. Can see a bit of most people in the hero John. I would recommend this book to any sci fi fan and am looking forward to reading the sequel.

[Luisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a honest review. i won a copy on goodreads of this book. Interesting story, but it needed more to it. I felt that the characters could have been developed more and the story about John's recent past that lead to his current situation could have been developed further. I also felt that the ending could have been stronger as well left a lot of confusion for me. I also didn't like the use of profanity (personal taste). Not really my cup of tea, but those who like space stories may enjoy this.

[Steve Bender · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this ebook in a Goodrfeads Giveaway in exchange for an honest review. This wasw a neat Sci Fi novel about a man who had problems in his lovelife and on his job. He wasw a shift manager on a spaceship that dumped waste into the sun. Not well trained and with a laxadaisical crew. when something goes wrong he appears lost. You find yourself rooting for him. Surprise ending and good characterizations. Recommended.

[David Pospisil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and bizarre story.
All unlikeable characters and not much action.
There were some tense moments during the spacewalk.

[Tena · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won a kindle version #GoodreadsGiveaway

[Jolene Modd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read. Very relatable thriller. Light bed time reading that I keep on my book shelf 😴

[J.P. Paradise · Rating 4 out of 5]

A promising début from the author and a somewhat less-than-glamorous approach to sci-fi. In most sci-fi books / films / tv the ships and crew are spotless, smooth and shiny. In Sunspots you travel with the crew of what is essentially a huge skip in space, going on a long-haul flight to chuck all the crap into the sun. The 'hero' is a complete anti-hero; a man out of depth, barely competent to do the job he's paid to do, much less handle the pressure when it all goes wrong. Which it does. Quite badly. And if you like stories with a happy ending, best not start this one. Have I said too much?

[Chris Bullock · Rating 2 out of 5]

A well written, interesting story. Some characters were believable, but others lacked any personality. I found the frequent use of swearing pointless and off-putting - I assume it was put in for effect as it only appears in certain scenarios, but it just becomes annoying. Also, I thought the ending was very shallow. almost as if the author just wanted to get the story out of the way, and couldn't think of any suitable ending. Overall, these negative points were a bit of a shame, as there clearly is some talent in the story telling - so cut out the swearing; and end with a bang, not a whimper, please.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book for free through Goodreads Giveaways.

It was an interesting story / concept. The characters weren’t likable - they were rude to each other constantly, definitely didn’t feel like friendship (I’m referring to the space crew here). John’s whole back story seemed unnecessary (at least until the end). The best part was in the end when everything finally tied together. But the final ending was a massive letdown.

In short, it’s an interesting idea that just needs a bit more development.

[Thistle · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unlikeable characters. At first the story held my interest, but soon enough my attention wandered away and was never pulled back. The author described the book as:

The original idea behind 'Sunspots' was for it to be vaguely similar to Star trek, (which he loves all of) but with swearing and knob gags.

Star Trek + cursing and dick jokes? Pass.

His whole author's blurb was full of so many typos (as you can see from "Star trek" in that quoted line).

[Skylar · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book through a Goodreads giveaway. The best thing I can say about it is that I did not see the ending coming. Unfortunately that is because the characters, in addition to being completely unlikable, are disconnected from the plot, which itself is barely connected with a thread. The ending itself came too suddenly, and without much involvement of the protagonists.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gary Martin has created a character in John Farrow who is instantly likeable, despite all his self-perceived flaws. I was transfixed in his rich and immersive environments; each one a perfect backdrop to his zany exploits. Clever in so many ways, and so much fun to read!

[Sadie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great easy read with moments that make you laugh, leave you gob smacked and some that make you go Ewwww! Would definitely recommend.

[Dave Bensette · Rating 5 out of 5]

VERY interesting!!

[Susan Csoke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sunspot 2 is an old cargo spaceship. John Farrow is the shift manager, while on a routine voyage he wakes up to find half of his crew missing. He realizes something has gone terribly awry. A page turning intense, dark suspenseful thriller!!!!! THANK YOU GOOD READS FIRST READS FOR THIS FREE BOOK!!!!!

[Catherine Milmine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was a lucky winner on Goodreads and recieved a signed copy of this book. Was not sure I would like this book but I was pleasantly surprised. Enjoyed the story and characters and the pages just kept turning.

[Ellie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book, was an interesting quick read. I felt there was enough about all aspects of the story to leave me fulfilled once I'd finished it, and enough twists and turns throughout to keep my interest. Worth a read!

I received this as a giveaway in return for an honest review.