What do you think?
Rate this book
The Sphere of Influence #1
Deep Space Accountant
"...will definitely bring a smile to your face." - Amazon UK reviewer "Accountants CAN be fun" - PJ Lea Could this be the worst job interview in the entire history of the universe? Possibly. So when Elton D Philpotts lands his dream Space Corps accountancy job he can’t help wondering how it happened. And why. Somebody in the Space Corps must need him, and they need him bad. But the work is dull; nothing like the glamour job he expected. Until he sees things he should not have A hidden ledger, dodgy accounting transactions, bogus gate receipts. And when a whole starship disappears, who are they going to blame? A frantic race across the Sphere of Influence takes Elton and his hapless band of followers into adventure and dangers none of them could ever have imagined. Deep Space Accountant is the first book in the forthcoming Sphere of Influence series.
394 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 6, 2016
123 people are currently reading
164 people want to read
About the author
Mjke Wood
18 books15 followersMjke was born on the Isle of Man and now lives in the Wirral, UK.
He began writing in his late twenties, then but took a break in order to concentrate on accountancy exams. He returned to writing in 2007, and became the first winner of the Jim Baen Memorial Writing competition. He followed on from that success by winning the L Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future Competition. His Science Fiction and Fantasy short stories have appeared in many print and online venues. He is an active member of SFWA, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, as well as the British Science Fiction Association (BSFA) and the British Fantasy Society (BFS).
Mjke has worked as a Shop Assistant, a Bus Scheduler and a Finance Manager. He plays alto saxophone and clarinet in several Big Bands and can often be found working in pit orchestras around Merseyside and North Wales. Several of his Fantasy and Science Fiction stories have featured public transport, accountants, and musicians.
Mjke also writes sofa travel, for which he uses the more conventional name, Mike Wood.
He began writing in his late twenties, then but took a break in order to concentrate on accountancy exams. He returned to writing in 2007, and became the first winner of the Jim Baen Memorial Writing competition. He followed on from that success by winning the L Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future Competition. His Science Fiction and Fantasy short stories have appeared in many print and online venues. He is an active member of SFWA, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, as well as the British Science Fiction Association (BSFA) and the British Fantasy Society (BFS).
Mjke has worked as a Shop Assistant, a Bus Scheduler and a Finance Manager. He plays alto saxophone and clarinet in several Big Bands and can often be found working in pit orchestras around Merseyside and North Wales. Several of his Fantasy and Science Fiction stories have featured public transport, accountants, and musicians.
Mjke also writes sofa travel, for which he uses the more conventional name, Mike Wood.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews
March 25, 2021
Just reading the blurb I purchased book 2, 'cause I just knew I'd love the series! And I was right! An aspiring accountant joins Space Corps to make a dream come true, but not everything is at it seems. The plot is creative and the story unravels bit by bit. It's fascinating! A genius in Numbers, trying to save his friends and a planet. The AIs are incredible and so witty and sarcastic( I’d love to have one). I like it that it's more based on the characters’ lives, their social hangovers, normal people, with fun and humorous situations, I couldn’t stop laughing! Thank you, Mjke, for giving me the opportunity to read your great series!
March 21, 2017
The only word I can use to describe the way I read this book would be *gobble*
I read it at lunch, during breaks, on the phone on hold, when nobody was looking, up until nearly 1am, whilst trying to make dinner, and even, (I admit) on the toilet.
The story features a rather ordinary person, most of us sum 30’s will recognise, as an accountant who wants to do more than what his lot in life offers him. A golden opportunity that turns in a bizarre twist of events to a water logged boot sinking to the bottom of the ocean still finds our hero in his dream job, or so he thinks. As little inconsistences that only the most meticulous of accountants would note start frothing up, Elton’s small world rapidly unravels into an adventure he didn’t know he wanted.
The humour in this story is excellent, it comes up behind you, and hits you with the frying pan of the giggles before running away cackling to itself. The sci-fi in it isn’t so much cyberpunk as it is a bleak outlook on what our consumeristic future probably holds. In light of all this, the story carries hope, luck, and fortitude like spare change in its pocket that presents itself at just the right moment.
Well written and thoroughly enjoyable, I will be looking for more from this author.
I read it at lunch, during breaks, on the phone on hold, when nobody was looking, up until nearly 1am, whilst trying to make dinner, and even, (I admit) on the toilet.
The story features a rather ordinary person, most of us sum 30’s will recognise, as an accountant who wants to do more than what his lot in life offers him. A golden opportunity that turns in a bizarre twist of events to a water logged boot sinking to the bottom of the ocean still finds our hero in his dream job, or so he thinks. As little inconsistences that only the most meticulous of accountants would note start frothing up, Elton’s small world rapidly unravels into an adventure he didn’t know he wanted.
The humour in this story is excellent, it comes up behind you, and hits you with the frying pan of the giggles before running away cackling to itself. The sci-fi in it isn’t so much cyberpunk as it is a bleak outlook on what our consumeristic future probably holds. In light of all this, the story carries hope, luck, and fortitude like spare change in its pocket that presents itself at just the right moment.
Well written and thoroughly enjoyable, I will be looking for more from this author.
October 2, 2017
An amusing and entertaining read, well written and decently edited, with few spelling or grammar errors. Although the characters are not all that heavily fleshed-out and also somewhat cliched, that fits well with the tone of the book, which I found droll rather than hilariously funny, though I did experience several laugh-out-loud moments. Comedy and sci-fi don't necessarily always make a good mix but I think the author has made a good job of combining the two here, sufficient at least to persuade me to buy the next in the series.
January 7, 2018
Madcap Space Adventure! Set in the Future!!!
Oh, man! After a really, really long time, I finally got to obsess over a story. I'm going to leave it at this for now. Going to bask in the afterglow and I can tell it's going to a lovely Sunday morning.
I'll be back to review it in depth later. This story deserves one. Later :)
Oh, man! After a really, really long time, I finally got to obsess over a story. I'm going to leave it at this for now. Going to bask in the afterglow and I can tell it's going to a lovely Sunday morning.
I'll be back to review it in depth later. This story deserves one. Later :)
April 21, 2018
Are you dissatisfied with your job? Maybe it has long hours with little praise? Then do what any person would do and sign up to become a Deep Space Accountant! Mjke Wood’s Deep Space Accountant follows Elton and his friend Walther as they journey through the cosmos in search of satisfaction.
As Elton is falsely accused of being a terrorist, he and Walther must flee the police. This is the start of a very whacky adventure, but fun is the name of the game in Deep Space Accountant. The humor and satire are laced throughout this witty planet hopping story and kept me smiling from cover to cover. If you’re in the mood for something akin to Hitchhiker’s Guide, then sign your corporate contract and blast off with Elton!
As Elton is falsely accused of being a terrorist, he and Walther must flee the police. This is the start of a very whacky adventure, but fun is the name of the game in Deep Space Accountant. The humor and satire are laced throughout this witty planet hopping story and kept me smiling from cover to cover. If you’re in the mood for something akin to Hitchhiker’s Guide, then sign your corporate contract and blast off with Elton!
July 16, 2020
I've had this book for quite a while, but even though it was the title that first attracted me, it was the title that kept putting me off trying the book. I presumed the story was meant to be slightly different from your 'typical' SciFi story, perhaps even with a touch of humour.
After about fifty pages I was beginning to despair, I kept going for a while but I really wasn't enjoying the book and it definitely wasn’t amusing.
In the end, even though it’s not fair on the author, I had to admit defeat and give up.
After about fifty pages I was beginning to despair, I kept going for a while but I really wasn't enjoying the book and it definitely wasn’t amusing.
In the end, even though it’s not fair on the author, I had to admit defeat and give up.
August 29, 2017
The title suggests that this is likely to be a funny romp, and it's not wrong!
September 6, 2017
This novel starts out with strong comedic overtones, but as it develops the story becomes closer more like a thriller. The novel is set in the 23rd century, in which humans have abandoned the scoured and polluted ruins of Earth and spread throughout the universe. The sum area of human habitation is known as the Sphere of Influence, but most of Earth’s biodiversity perished with Earth, including all trees and most animals. Lightspeed travel, teleportation, vat-grown meat, and a sentient AI companion called an imentor (using the pronouns Jim or Kim, depending on the gender of the user) are regular parts of life in the 23rd century.
The protagonist, the Deep Space Accountant in question, is Elton D. Philpotts, an everyman nobody sort of character who works a mediocre job as an ordinary ground-bound accountant but aspires to the lofty and glorious position of a deep space accountant. Not being an expert in Relativistic Accountancy (that is, assessing costs involved with lightspeed travel, the wear and tear on spaceships, and so forth), he is utterly unqualified and can only dream. It’s notable that since genetic modification of embryos is a regular part of the future, a botched attempt at making him a superior human left him with the ability to memorize any number he sees. This is useful for his job, but no replacement for Relativistic Accounting experience.
Despite his lack of qualifications, Elton lands an interview with Space Corps for a deep space accountant position, and despite the comical awfulness of the interview, he gets the job, boards a shuttle which promptly explodes, and finds himself fleeing for his life from a sinister corporation which had meant to use him as a scapegoat and pawn in their wicked schemes for…well, if you want to know what the schemes are you’ll have to read the book, because I’d hate to give further spoilers.
The writing is smooth, without the nagging little errors I’ve come to expect from so many indie novels. The humor does fade as the story progresses, but it’s good where it is. Elton, a mediocre accountant who is forced to be a hero, is an entertaining character. With his ticks and quirks and so on, I can imagine him being a character in a Wes Anderson film, which was endearing for me. The secondary characters weren’t all quite as strong, some of them kind of blended together for me, but that’s not so bad. There is a romantic arc to the story which was a little improbable, but it’s a genre of improbable things, so that’s not so bad either. Elton really does have “plot armor”, consistently surviving shootings and crashes and explosions and so forth because the story needs him alive, but being a comedy, this sort of thing is expected. There was one weakness to the story, in my opinion. The main antagonist, a Space Corps bigwig named Martin Levinson, is a pretty clichéd character. He’s a bad guy in a business suit, driven by greed and sociopathy without any meaningful complexity behind him, and characters exactly like him have been oozing their way through the offices of sci-fi in various media for decades.
All in all, the story was a good one. I enjoyed it, and I’d recommend it for fans of comedy (specifically off-beat comedy) and sci-fi (including hard sci-fi, which we so rarely see). I’d especially recommend it for sci-fi fans who are looking for something fresh and different.
The protagonist, the Deep Space Accountant in question, is Elton D. Philpotts, an everyman nobody sort of character who works a mediocre job as an ordinary ground-bound accountant but aspires to the lofty and glorious position of a deep space accountant. Not being an expert in Relativistic Accountancy (that is, assessing costs involved with lightspeed travel, the wear and tear on spaceships, and so forth), he is utterly unqualified and can only dream. It’s notable that since genetic modification of embryos is a regular part of the future, a botched attempt at making him a superior human left him with the ability to memorize any number he sees. This is useful for his job, but no replacement for Relativistic Accounting experience.
Despite his lack of qualifications, Elton lands an interview with Space Corps for a deep space accountant position, and despite the comical awfulness of the interview, he gets the job, boards a shuttle which promptly explodes, and finds himself fleeing for his life from a sinister corporation which had meant to use him as a scapegoat and pawn in their wicked schemes for…well, if you want to know what the schemes are you’ll have to read the book, because I’d hate to give further spoilers.
The writing is smooth, without the nagging little errors I’ve come to expect from so many indie novels. The humor does fade as the story progresses, but it’s good where it is. Elton, a mediocre accountant who is forced to be a hero, is an entertaining character. With his ticks and quirks and so on, I can imagine him being a character in a Wes Anderson film, which was endearing for me. The secondary characters weren’t all quite as strong, some of them kind of blended together for me, but that’s not so bad. There is a romantic arc to the story which was a little improbable, but it’s a genre of improbable things, so that’s not so bad either. Elton really does have “plot armor”, consistently surviving shootings and crashes and explosions and so forth because the story needs him alive, but being a comedy, this sort of thing is expected. There was one weakness to the story, in my opinion. The main antagonist, a Space Corps bigwig named Martin Levinson, is a pretty clichéd character. He’s a bad guy in a business suit, driven by greed and sociopathy without any meaningful complexity behind him, and characters exactly like him have been oozing their way through the offices of sci-fi in various media for decades.
All in all, the story was a good one. I enjoyed it, and I’d recommend it for fans of comedy (specifically off-beat comedy) and sci-fi (including hard sci-fi, which we so rarely see). I’d especially recommend it for sci-fi fans who are looking for something fresh and different.
September 5, 2017
I guess I'm not as easy to please and amuse as those Goodreaders who awarded this one five stars ...
on the non-existent funny-scale 'Deep Space Accountant' ranks a generous 1.5 out of 5. BUT - it is not a bad book at all and I would actually recommend it.
With a title like this one has to expect a comedy, but after a comedic beginning, the story becomes a fairly straightforward well-written drama.
on the non-existent funny-scale 'Deep Space Accountant' ranks a generous 1.5 out of 5. BUT - it is not a bad book at all and I would actually recommend it.
With a title like this one has to expect a comedy, but after a comedic beginning, the story becomes a fairly straightforward well-written drama.
March 23, 2017
My Review Number 139:
This review is on Deep Space Accountant, Sphere Of Influence Book 1 by Mjke Wood ACRA. This is the first book I have read by this Writers of SciFi author.
This novel is funny, quick-witted and smart. I have to say that because I have only read one other science fiction story that made me laugh harder and that was from one of the masters; B.V. Larson’s Steel Worlds (Undying Mercenaries #1). That SciFi story has human mercenary soldiers fighting saurian reptiles. This novel has space accountants playing Hangball with a “Pig” ball!
To qualified Associate Chartered Management Accountants (ACMA), the term ACRA stands for Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Relativistic Accountants, which only deep space accounts can hope to achieve. The main character, Elton D Philpotts, wants desperately to attain the ACRA letters, but his current work position with the transportation system is not the proper track in accountant duties to attain it. One thing going for Elton, though, is his special gift for numbers. He can remember any number he sees. Modified genes at birth gave him this gift.
Walther Blick is Elton’s best friend. He likes country music. Together they suffer the humiliation of losing to all teams at Hangball, but this situation is about to become the least of all their worries. They decide to apply to The Space Corps as accountants.
They work on a planet called Tsanak on one of the twenty-eight inhabited worlds in The Human Sphere of Influence (HSI). Earth is long dead, used up by humans and left barren. No trees, no vegetation, nothing. The Space Corps started out as a military organization to defend against possible alien threats. There are no alien threats, so now the corps just expands its commercial enterprises throughout the HSI, which includes controlling space, its gates, its starships and its people. They are the most powerful corporation in the HSI.
Elton and Walther decide to try and become real Deep Space Accountants by joining The Space Corps. The interviews are set up and off they go. Things happen to Elton on the way to the job interview that would prevent anyone in their right minds from hiring Elton by the time he arrives for his interview. You guessed it! Elton is hired on the spot. You have to wonder why?
This is about the time the story alludes to the very serious nature of The Space Corps. Something in not right and Elton begins to suspect the books are being cooked by one of the top Directors to his advantage. To add mystery to the story, Elton meets a young stranger that belongs to the Bram Lee society, a monk like community of followers that seek donations for their conservative views. You have no idea where this is going and the mysteries only deepen when Elton is sent on his first mission into deep space aboard an old starship. Now you are hooked.
I give this book Five Stars because the story is so entertaining and so well written you don’t want to stop reading it. The characters are well developed, interconnected and likeable. The writing is funny and the dialog flows easily. The smart clothes technology and space science descriptions are all plausible. The plots are carefully constructed and the storyline moves smoothly from one event to the next. The mysteries of The Space Corps unfold masterfully to the final conclusion. I liked this story a lot and look forward to Book 2.
Keep reading good science fiction and let me know when you find an interesting novel or author.
This review is on Deep Space Accountant, Sphere Of Influence Book 1 by Mjke Wood ACRA. This is the first book I have read by this Writers of SciFi author.
This novel is funny, quick-witted and smart. I have to say that because I have only read one other science fiction story that made me laugh harder and that was from one of the masters; B.V. Larson’s Steel Worlds (Undying Mercenaries #1). That SciFi story has human mercenary soldiers fighting saurian reptiles. This novel has space accountants playing Hangball with a “Pig” ball!
To qualified Associate Chartered Management Accountants (ACMA), the term ACRA stands for Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Relativistic Accountants, which only deep space accounts can hope to achieve. The main character, Elton D Philpotts, wants desperately to attain the ACRA letters, but his current work position with the transportation system is not the proper track in accountant duties to attain it. One thing going for Elton, though, is his special gift for numbers. He can remember any number he sees. Modified genes at birth gave him this gift.
Walther Blick is Elton’s best friend. He likes country music. Together they suffer the humiliation of losing to all teams at Hangball, but this situation is about to become the least of all their worries. They decide to apply to The Space Corps as accountants.
They work on a planet called Tsanak on one of the twenty-eight inhabited worlds in The Human Sphere of Influence (HSI). Earth is long dead, used up by humans and left barren. No trees, no vegetation, nothing. The Space Corps started out as a military organization to defend against possible alien threats. There are no alien threats, so now the corps just expands its commercial enterprises throughout the HSI, which includes controlling space, its gates, its starships and its people. They are the most powerful corporation in the HSI.
Elton and Walther decide to try and become real Deep Space Accountants by joining The Space Corps. The interviews are set up and off they go. Things happen to Elton on the way to the job interview that would prevent anyone in their right minds from hiring Elton by the time he arrives for his interview. You guessed it! Elton is hired on the spot. You have to wonder why?
This is about the time the story alludes to the very serious nature of The Space Corps. Something in not right and Elton begins to suspect the books are being cooked by one of the top Directors to his advantage. To add mystery to the story, Elton meets a young stranger that belongs to the Bram Lee society, a monk like community of followers that seek donations for their conservative views. You have no idea where this is going and the mysteries only deepen when Elton is sent on his first mission into deep space aboard an old starship. Now you are hooked.
I give this book Five Stars because the story is so entertaining and so well written you don’t want to stop reading it. The characters are well developed, interconnected and likeable. The writing is funny and the dialog flows easily. The smart clothes technology and space science descriptions are all plausible. The plots are carefully constructed and the storyline moves smoothly from one event to the next. The mysteries of The Space Corps unfold masterfully to the final conclusion. I liked this story a lot and look forward to Book 2.
Keep reading good science fiction and let me know when you find an interesting novel or author.
January 3, 2020
Deep Space Accountant has a lot of humorous elements packed into a neat little story with high stakes and larger-than-life conspiracies. Mjke Wood has done an excellent job editing the story and making sure you won't come head to head with many typos or difficult sentences. Also, clever man, he explains the "ACRA" at the end of his name on the front cover as well as the importance of accountants for deep space travel.
My favorite part was Philpotts's superpower - it wasn't overpowered at all! When I read about a lot of superheroes or badass space marines, they often feel like they've been given abilities that make the story's end results a foregone conclusion. Philpotts's powers? Just lame enough that anything could happen. That allowed Philpotts's character and drive to shine through.
The reason this isn't five stars is because 1) The humor and tone doesn't stay consistent throughout - the story becomes more serious the further it goes and 2) Some pretty serious male gaze shows up in places.
My favorite part was Philpotts's superpower - it wasn't overpowered at all! When I read about a lot of superheroes or badass space marines, they often feel like they've been given abilities that make the story's end results a foregone conclusion. Philpotts's powers? Just lame enough that anything could happen. That allowed Philpotts's character and drive to shine through.
The reason this isn't five stars is because 1) The humor and tone doesn't stay consistent throughout - the story becomes more serious the further it goes and 2) Some pretty serious male gaze shows up in places.
May 9, 2022
Some books are meant to be savored and read slowly. This isn't one of them. It took a bit of determination to stick with the first few chapters. It opens with a pair of social losers involved in a new game that wasn't, thankfully, described in much depth, then develops into a dystopian story where humans no longer live on an Earth that has been turned into cinders. They do, however, thrive on other space colonies. The two opening characters are such losers that they are unknowingly chosen by the most powerful company around to be secretly sacrificed because no one will miss them. I hope this sounds sufficiently gloomy because at this point it was only the author's clever and wry sense of humor that kept me going. But after a while, the story began to grow on me, and then it pulled me along chapter by chapter until I didn't want to stop reading. Little bits of fun and funny storyline were developed and then dropped, only to be brought back in later to become integral to the tale. Author Mjke Wood was very good at this. And it turns out that the two losers---best friends by the way---aren't losers at all, just poor shmucks who had never been given a chance to show their worth. In fact, they are heroes. I felt good for them. I liked their story. Good job, Mjke!
November 20, 2018
I enjoyed this a great deal -- it was funny and madcap and crazy. there were wildly improbable coincidences which the book itself calls out in amusing self-referential ways. There is a dramatic twist in the middle that divides the book into two halves ; though the writing style is consistent throughout it is almost like the two halves are different books in a way. There are many questions raised in the beginning that are answered nicely (a little too nicely) in the end. the machiavellian antagonist is a little too much and it would have been interesting to make him just a little more complicated than straight up evil. It makes one of the minor characters look really like an idiot for no reason because he is so straight up a bad person. one of my favorite scenes is when he really does whip out a calculator while off in space, making him a real deep space accountant. fun read
December 18, 2022
I confess to being a sucker for books about unlikely nerds in space. Mjke Wood’s Deep Space Accountant fits that bill nicely. Elton D. Philpotts has a numeracy gene. His father thought it would make him a good accountant. It doesn’t. It just makes him interested in numbers and able to remember long strings of them. But he scraped by accountancy training and needs to work as an accountant in deep space to earn the coveted letters that will make him a chartered relativistic accountant. A relativistic accountant seems mainly responsible for figuring out the proper depreciation for time-dilated equipment. But jumping through the economy wormhole gate headfirst is not the way he wanted to start his off-planet experience. 3.5 stars.
April 27, 2018
My first e xperience with this Author.
I must say i did really enjoy this book. The way it started i thought i was going down the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy road but it didnt get quite that goofy. Still very enjoyable.
The mains are quite good and the humour is well placed. It even has an actually story that is believable. The development of Elton D Philpotts (our intrepid hero) is rather rapid though. He starts out a bumbling nobody accountant and is practically a super hero in the end was my only grey area of like. That being my only perceived flaw in the story is nothing so give it a go. You will enjoy it.
I will be looking for book two to see how Elton fairs. Cheers
I must say i did really enjoy this book. The way it started i thought i was going down the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy road but it didnt get quite that goofy. Still very enjoyable.
The mains are quite good and the humour is well placed. It even has an actually story that is believable. The development of Elton D Philpotts (our intrepid hero) is rather rapid though. He starts out a bumbling nobody accountant and is practically a super hero in the end was my only grey area of like. That being my only perceived flaw in the story is nothing so give it a go. You will enjoy it.
I will be looking for book two to see how Elton fairs. Cheers
March 17, 2019
3.5 stars
I had hopes from the title that this would be more exciting.
The first half has some misfit characters being forced together as a secret conspiracy is unearthed.
Once it gets going, they're likeable characters and you find yourself rooting for them to succeed.
Elton D. Philpotts is the accountant of the title, and along with his friend Walther they seem to be going nowhere while dreaming of deep space.
The writing is similar to Douglas Adams, with fish-out-of-water main characters finding themselves in odd/perilous situations and working out solutions.
The supporting cast fill in the gaps and help to grow the main characters.
I had hopes from the title that this would be more exciting.
The first half has some misfit characters being forced together as a secret conspiracy is unearthed.
Once it gets going, they're likeable characters and you find yourself rooting for them to succeed.
Elton D. Philpotts is the accountant of the title, and along with his friend Walther they seem to be going nowhere while dreaming of deep space.
The writing is similar to Douglas Adams, with fish-out-of-water main characters finding themselves in odd/perilous situations and working out solutions.
The supporting cast fill in the gaps and help to grow the main characters.
May 9, 2017
Great Fun!!
I owe a thank you to a fellow sci-fi reader for mentioning this book. The writing was solid, the setting original, and the humor had me laughing out loud enough to garner some odd looks from the family. Mr. Wood managed to get slap-stick to work on paper and his characters, particularly Elton and Walther. Elton's development from ungraceful odd-duck-out to a qualified deep space accountant added depth and heart to the story. I'm looking forward to more from Mr. Wood.
I owe a thank you to a fellow sci-fi reader for mentioning this book. The writing was solid, the setting original, and the humor had me laughing out loud enough to garner some odd looks from the family. Mr. Wood managed to get slap-stick to work on paper and his characters, particularly Elton and Walther. Elton's development from ungraceful odd-duck-out to a qualified deep space accountant added depth and heart to the story. I'm looking forward to more from Mr. Wood.
February 12, 2018
After reading Mjke Wood's book of short stories, I was not surprised by how good this book is. Most importantly it has a solid story loaded with very creative technology. I marvel at the things Wood comes up with. The well-developed characters are not what we usually see as space heroes, but they find their way into that category as they do their best with the talents they have. Wood throws in some great humor especially in the first part of the book. I highly recommend this book for a fun and engaging read.
February 13, 2018
Fast-paced and easy to read, Deep Space Accountant, is humorous and engaging. The main character Elton D. Philpotts begins the story in a humorous way, as his interactions with his imentor - Jim, were - for me - reminiscent of hilarious British SciFi, Red Dwarf. The world is very well developed, and the characters were captivating, constantly moving the story forward. I enjoyed every word, right up to (and including), the final paragraph that had me tearing up. Wonderful ending to a wonderful story. Already have book 2. Mjke Wood has a new fan!
August 27, 2018
Based on the cover picture and the blurb I was expecting something of a spoof piece of science fiction, maybe along the lines of Toby Frost’s Space Captain Smith, but in the event I was very much surprised, in a good way, to find a pretty solid SF thriller with a fair bit of humour but more along the lines of Weir’s The Martian (though less snarky). In other words the book is far more about the good plot than the humour. A gamble purchase that has turned out to be pleasantly surprising. There is another book set in the same universe.
January 4, 2019
A humorous romp into the world of deep space relativistic accounting! so
A pair of hapless accountants with aspirations of a better future sign up for the space corp's accounting division. Elton D Philpotts very quickly discovers that all is not as he expected, the job is boring and mundane. When his eyes and mind wonder and start exploring reports Elton realises something is not quite on par!
Fun, enjoyable and light hearted read. Recommend using this as a nice break from heavier Sci-Fi stories. Certainly reminiscent of H2G2 and worth a read.
A pair of hapless accountants with aspirations of a better future sign up for the space corp's accounting division. Elton D Philpotts very quickly discovers that all is not as he expected, the job is boring and mundane. When his eyes and mind wonder and start exploring reports Elton realises something is not quite on par!
Fun, enjoyable and light hearted read. Recommend using this as a nice break from heavier Sci-Fi stories. Certainly reminiscent of H2G2 and worth a read.
August 17, 2017
This is a really well written book, I enjoyed reading, its one of those books where you are really looking forward to picking it up to continue.
I appreciated how Woods assumes you understand (or accept) the level of sci-fi technology in the book without going into too much detail, this allows him to focus on the story and the interaction of the main characters in the story.
I will follow on the story with the next instalment of the Sphere.
September 5, 2017
Loved the bumbling hero
I bought the book as it sounded intriguing, seems accountants can go anywhere. You just had to like the hero as he bumbled through life, trying so hard all the time to be what was expected. There are some laugh out loud moments, corporate intrigue and murder or almost murders and a budding romance or two.
Would read another book from this author. Art work on the cover was great drew you to the book
I bought the book as it sounded intriguing, seems accountants can go anywhere. You just had to like the hero as he bumbled through life, trying so hard all the time to be what was expected. There are some laugh out loud moments, corporate intrigue and murder or almost murders and a budding romance or two.
Would read another book from this author. Art work on the cover was great drew you to the book
September 16, 2017
I was first drawn to this book because of the title and the brilliant cover. It was such a pleasure to read... combining the space theme with witty comedic lines or passages. This one was my fav!
"External auditors are not what most people expect. Most people expect sombre, grey men. They expect the grim reaper with a calculator. "
My office just went through an audit and this is exactly how saw them... grim reapers with calculators lol
"External auditors are not what most people expect. Most people expect sombre, grey men. They expect the grim reaper with a calculator. "
My office just went through an audit and this is exactly how saw them... grim reapers with calculators lol
February 18, 2019
It takes a while to really get into gear, but then it takes off brilliantly. I especially loved that the humour was not too much in-your-face. If there is one thing I did not like, it is the one situation in the book (I won't spoil it) where you can see the resulting development coming from miles away, but it still takes a while (IMO too long) to get there.
Still, a light-hearted, entertaining read that I enjoyed quite a bit.
Still, a light-hearted, entertaining read that I enjoyed quite a bit.
October 18, 2020
Misleading
I would describe this book as misleading. The main character isn’t an accountant and says it over and over, he is a product of some weak genetic manipulation and they gave him a low grade autism type issue. So that’s all fine and good, but the “ chain of events” in this book are just so tenuous at best, it’s just a semi pathetic meandering tale of a guy messing up a lot but of course winning over the bad business owner in the end.
I would describe this book as misleading. The main character isn’t an accountant and says it over and over, he is a product of some weak genetic manipulation and they gave him a low grade autism type issue. So that’s all fine and good, but the “ chain of events” in this book are just so tenuous at best, it’s just a semi pathetic meandering tale of a guy messing up a lot but of course winning over the bad business owner in the end.
August 4, 2017
This is a fun little book, which is surprisingly but pleasingly original. It is slightly comic but, thankfully, not along the THGTTG route. The science is well thought out and the Kim/Jim aspect is an intriguing touch that, I hope, will be further explored. The characters are likeable and their interactions believable. Altogether a good way to spend a few hours.
September 21, 2017
Chuckles abound between worry for our hero accountant.
Great story and characters, top notch writing and lovely humour. Add to that the rarity in ebooks of professional editing and proofreading and this is a winner. Mjke Wood can stand as an equal with Terry Pratchett & Douglas Adams ... love to have been a fly on the wall had they ever had a dinner party.
Great story and characters, top notch writing and lovely humour. Add to that the rarity in ebooks of professional editing and proofreading and this is a winner. Mjke Wood can stand as an equal with Terry Pratchett & Douglas Adams ... love to have been a fly on the wall had they ever had a dinner party.
January 8, 2019
I got this book free from Amazon and let it sit unread for quite a while before reading it. I should have read it earlier!
The humor and absurdity was very good, and implemented with a surprisingly light touch. A decent light sci-fi story with good world (universe) building. I can’t wait to read the next two in the series.
The humor and absurdity was very good, and implemented with a surprisingly light touch. A decent light sci-fi story with good world (universe) building. I can’t wait to read the next two in the series.
January 22, 2017
I've never really been a big fan of humorous science fiction. But I have to admit this author has a smart, witty style that really won me over. Even in the far future we will need our number crunchers! The characters are well developed and the plots moves along nicely. Good job!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews