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Black Ocean #4.5
Guardian of the Plundered Tomes
A short story about why Mort is on the run in 4.5 guardian of the plundered tomes.
28 pages, ebook
Published October 8, 2015
About the author
J.S. Morin
196 books634 followersI am a creator of worlds and a destroyer of words. As a fantasy writer, my works range from traditional epics to futuristic fantasy with starships. I have worked as an unpaid Little League pitcher, a cashier, a student library aide, a factory grunt, a cubicle drone, and an engineer--there is some overlap in the last two.
Through it all, though, I was always a storyteller. Eventually I started writing books based on the stray stories in my head, and people kept telling me to write more of them. Now, that's all I do for a living.
I enjoy strategy, worldbuilding, and the fantasy author's privilege to make up words. I am a gamer, a joker, and a thinker of sideways thoughts. But I don't dance, can't sing, and my best artistic efforts fall short of your average notebook doodle. When you read my books, you are seeing me at my best.
My ultimate goal is to be both clever and right at the same time. I have it on good authority that I have yet to achieve it.
Through it all, though, I was always a storyteller. Eventually I started writing books based on the stray stories in my head, and people kept telling me to write more of them. Now, that's all I do for a living.
I enjoy strategy, worldbuilding, and the fantasy author's privilege to make up words. I am a gamer, a joker, and a thinker of sideways thoughts. But I don't dance, can't sing, and my best artistic efforts fall short of your average notebook doodle. When you read my books, you are seeing me at my best.
My ultimate goal is to be both clever and right at the same time. I have it on good authority that I have yet to achieve it.
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
December 2, 2020
He knew that they might find the book was missing...eventually. But...there was no way that he was going to allow ANYONE to touch the book...more or less read any of the damning words that it held. 3 days to ensure that they would never find it...or him. But what about Nancy...or Cedric...Cassandra? And yet, those were nothing compared to what could happen if that book was ever actually used. So, that meant sacrificing everything he held dear.
One of the wonderful things about Jeff Morin's BLACK OCEAN stories is the incredible amount of back story and history that he has produced to support why his characters do they things that they do and what makes them who they are. This short, eBook only entry is no exception. Here are the first meetings with players that will make the 48 books and counting the phenonium that it is. And if you ever wondered how Mort became the Mort that we all loved, here's some of the first steps towards that curmudgeonly old soul.
One of the wonderful things about Jeff Morin's BLACK OCEAN stories is the incredible amount of back story and history that he has produced to support why his characters do they things that they do and what makes them who they are. This short, eBook only entry is no exception. Here are the first meetings with players that will make the 48 books and counting the phenonium that it is. And if you ever wondered how Mort became the Mort that we all loved, here's some of the first steps towards that curmudgeonly old soul.
May 7, 2018
It is a Mort-story short-story.
Sorry. I couldn't resist.
Sorry. I couldn't resist.
March 30, 2026
My Slightly Sarcastic But Ultimately Honest Book Rating System:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 Stars): This book achieved legendary status in my personal library. I will likely reread it until the pages fall out (or my e-reader spontaneously combusts). Consider this my enthusiastic endorsement – you should probably read it unless you actively dislike joy.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 Stars): A truly excellent read! I enjoyed it immensely and would heartily recommend it to fellow bookworms. You might even catch me subtly pushing it into their hands.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 Stars): Yep, it was a book I read. I turned the pages, absorbed the words, and emerged...unchanged. It was a pleasant enough journey, like a scenic detour that you wouldn't necessarily take again, but didn't regret.
⭐️⭐️ (2 Stars): This book existed. I finished it. That's about the highest praise I can offer. If you're looking for something truly captivating, maybe keep scrolling. This one's more of an "it filled the silence" kind of experience.
⭐️ (1 Star): Oh dear. This book and I did not get along. It was a literary tumbleweed in the vast desert of good books. Consider this a strong "do not recommend," unless you're conducting research on what not to do in storytelling.
Disclaimer: My enjoyment of the narrator is based on my listening speed. I only leave 5 stars for books I've read/listened to or will read/listen to multiple times. If you like this review please consider giving it a Helpful Vote below.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5 Stars): This book achieved legendary status in my personal library. I will likely reread it until the pages fall out (or my e-reader spontaneously combusts). Consider this my enthusiastic endorsement – you should probably read it unless you actively dislike joy.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 Stars): A truly excellent read! I enjoyed it immensely and would heartily recommend it to fellow bookworms. You might even catch me subtly pushing it into their hands.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 Stars): Yep, it was a book I read. I turned the pages, absorbed the words, and emerged...unchanged. It was a pleasant enough journey, like a scenic detour that you wouldn't necessarily take again, but didn't regret.
⭐️⭐️ (2 Stars): This book existed. I finished it. That's about the highest praise I can offer. If you're looking for something truly captivating, maybe keep scrolling. This one's more of an "it filled the silence" kind of experience.
⭐️ (1 Star): Oh dear. This book and I did not get along. It was a literary tumbleweed in the vast desert of good books. Consider this a strong "do not recommend," unless you're conducting research on what not to do in storytelling.
Disclaimer: My enjoyment of the narrator is based on my listening speed. I only leave 5 stars for books I've read/listened to or will read/listen to multiple times. If you like this review please consider giving it a Helpful Vote below.
April 4, 2021
This fun, short, book explains why Mordecai The Brown (known as Mort to “anyone without a stick up their ass”) left his comfortable life as a wizard for a precarious existence aboard a starship on the edge of legality.
I have read several of J S Morin’s Black Ocean series, and on the whole I have enjoyed them a lot. His particular choice of space opera tropes and high fantasy always blends together in an intriguing and fun mixture. Alongside the full-length books he has also written a bunch of shorter stories which sit alongside the main series books which are offered for free to subscribers of Morin’s newsletter.
When Mort was first introduced in the original Black Ocean book “Salvage Trouble” he was a bit of an enigma. A wizard, much more powerful than might be expected, with a dark past, who had for some reason chosen a life surrounded and kept alive by the technology he hated. A grumpy beer-swilling exterior with a diamond-hard core. As the series progressed we got to learn a bit more about this mysterious character, but never really got to the heart of what he was doing here at all.
This book explains that, and we learn how a spoonful of hubris led to his self-imposed exile from the Convocation, the world-spanning and almost omnipotent association of wizards, and we even get a glimpse of the wife and family he left behind. As a bonus, we also find out how Mort came to be associated with Carl Ramsey, Tania Rucker and The Mobius, via an unexpected meeting with Carl’s father Chuck.
This series has always had plenty of influences from classic games and shows. In this one, as well as the Firefly influences which can be seen throughout the series, we also get a hint of Traveller, the first mass market sci-fi roleplaying game with its character-creation mechanic of serving several tours in the military before leaving the service and picking up an old starship. We get to meet the young, idealistic, and flirtatious Carl and Tanny with the military behind them and a life of opportunities ahead.
Mort appears in many books in the Black Ocean universe, but he is always a conundrum, powerful yet private, sociable yet damaged. This short story helps us see a little way into his inner sadness, and the loss he feels every day. An excellent character study
I have read several of J S Morin’s Black Ocean series, and on the whole I have enjoyed them a lot. His particular choice of space opera tropes and high fantasy always blends together in an intriguing and fun mixture. Alongside the full-length books he has also written a bunch of shorter stories which sit alongside the main series books which are offered for free to subscribers of Morin’s newsletter.
When Mort was first introduced in the original Black Ocean book “Salvage Trouble” he was a bit of an enigma. A wizard, much more powerful than might be expected, with a dark past, who had for some reason chosen a life surrounded and kept alive by the technology he hated. A grumpy beer-swilling exterior with a diamond-hard core. As the series progressed we got to learn a bit more about this mysterious character, but never really got to the heart of what he was doing here at all.
This book explains that, and we learn how a spoonful of hubris led to his self-imposed exile from the Convocation, the world-spanning and almost omnipotent association of wizards, and we even get a glimpse of the wife and family he left behind. As a bonus, we also find out how Mort came to be associated with Carl Ramsey, Tania Rucker and The Mobius, via an unexpected meeting with Carl’s father Chuck.
This series has always had plenty of influences from classic games and shows. In this one, as well as the Firefly influences which can be seen throughout the series, we also get a hint of Traveller, the first mass market sci-fi roleplaying game with its character-creation mechanic of serving several tours in the military before leaving the service and picking up an old starship. We get to meet the young, idealistic, and flirtatious Carl and Tanny with the military behind them and a life of opportunities ahead.
Mort appears in many books in the Black Ocean universe, but he is always a conundrum, powerful yet private, sociable yet damaged. This short story helps us see a little way into his inner sadness, and the loss he feels every day. An excellent character study
May 21, 2022
This is a short story, ‘bout 30 pages, about the backstory behind the wizard in the recurring Black Ocean Series. Seems he managed to annoy the powers that be at the time and ran away. Story felt a bit rushed, while it mainly covered the wizard, it also introduced two other characters from the series.
The story is handy as it introduces a conflict which can play out in future books.
Guardians of the Plundered Tome by J. S. Morin
Black Ocean Series #4.5
An ok story 2/5.
…
Key: bad 1/5, ok 2/5, good 3/5, great 4/5, unusually outstanding 5/5
The story is handy as it introduces a conflict which can play out in future books.
Guardians of the Plundered Tome by J. S. Morin
Black Ocean Series #4.5
An ok story 2/5.
…
Key: bad 1/5, ok 2/5, good 3/5, great 4/5, unusually outstanding 5/5
February 12, 2019
An VERY short story giving us a little background into the Mobius's interstellar mechanic/wizard Mort the Brown and his inauspicious departure from his wizard conclave and eventual signing on to the Mobius. It involves Mort being responsible for locating an extremely rare book that goes missing and he may have had something to do with it. The story is over before it begins so it's not even a real short-story, it's more like a long chapter.
January 2, 2019
My first read of the year. I'm 1/2 way into the Black Ocean series. This short novella features some interesting background information about one of the main characters, Mort, the ship's wizard. I know... there shouldn't be wizards in sci-fi, but I'm getting used to it.
December 29, 2019
The story of how wizard Mordecai The Brown hooked up with first Carl Ramsey's father Chuck and family, and then how he ended up on the Mobius. It was all too short, I would have loved a little more background on Mort, but it was an interesting story that filled in some blanks.
April 3, 2021
A novella which does what novellas are intended to do. And now grateful to know more about the how's and why's and of course the what's when it comes to Mort. The Convocation too on some level, though of course Mort's past and present with them.
May 7, 2026
I enjoyed this a lot, it gave a much-needed look into Mort's backstory and how he finds himself on the Mobius. I wish it had had a bit more substance, maybe some action or some sense of tension or stress, but at least what we did get was character-building and emotional to a degree. Wanted more, but still solid.
September 14, 2018
A bit short but in a bundle still worth it, I'm still curious whats in that book.
November 3, 2018
This is the story of why Mort went on the run and how he met Carl.
November 20, 2018
Actually better than the full novels. Maybe I just felt that way because I'm partial to prequels...
January 10, 2019
Mort's back story
March 6, 2019
Good short story that gives us a little inside on mort
April 30, 2019
Love a great origin story and this one is a good on. Covers a slim of Mr Browns past and the start of the crew. Enjoyed it.
August 24, 2019
Short but interesting
January 9, 2020
Short story that details how Mort came to be on the run and meet up with Carl. Nice little filler to give more depth to Mort, the crew's creation and how Mobius got its name.
April 13, 2021
Very short story about Mort's joining the crew.
December 26, 2021
A short story about how Mort came to be working with Carl and what happened to him to make him as Mort like as he is!
Informative and enjoyable.
Informative and enjoyable.
September 19, 2023
Nice little back story for how Mort ended up on the crew of the Mobius. Pretty straight forward.
January 10, 2024
3.25 stars
June 1, 2025
Getting the backstory on the ship's wizard--had a few surprises for me. Short, but fun.
July 22, 2020
8/10 (Great)
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews