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Boundless
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Boundless is currently only available to newsletter subscribers. Subscribe to the J.D. Cunegan newsletter or my Substack, and you'll receive a copy of Boundless for free.
A little more than two years before the events of Bounty, Jill Andersen makes a life-altering decision. But this decision comes with consequences she didn’t foresee, and her first night as the vigilante Bounty winds up being something for which she was wholly unprepared.
A crisis of faith eventually gives way to certainty: both in terms of discovering who killed a young man named Johnny Ruiz and in terms of coping with the latest change in her own life.
Along the way, Jill defies death and discovers just how deep the city’s corruption runs. But will she survive the experience long enough to decide if a life of vigilantism is for her?
A little more than two years before the events of Bounty, Jill Andersen makes a life-altering decision. But this decision comes with consequences she didn’t foresee, and her first night as the vigilante Bounty winds up being something for which she was wholly unprepared.
A crisis of faith eventually gives way to certainty: both in terms of discovering who killed a young man named Johnny Ruiz and in terms of coping with the latest change in her own life.
Along the way, Jill defies death and discovers just how deep the city’s corruption runs. But will she survive the experience long enough to decide if a life of vigilantism is for her?
44 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 16, 2015
58 people want to read
About the author
J.D. Cunegan
16 books143 followersFiction is the weapon I wield against an unjust world I am powerless to change.
J.D. Cunegan has a unique writing style that introduces the reader to his comic book-inspired storytelling and fast-paced prose. A lifelong storyteller with a passion for writing, Cunegan has an extensive background in journalism, media relations, and marketing. Cunegan currently lives in Hampton, Virginia, with his cat, and next to stories, his big passion in life in auto racing. When not hunched in front of a keyboard or with his nose stuck in a book, Cunegan can be found at a racetrack or watching a race on TV.
DISCLAIMER
None of my work contains material or content originating from Generative AI. My novels, short stories, non-fiction books, and the covers representing them were created solely by human writers and artists, and I do not condone or consent to the use of my material, or the material of the cover artists with whom I’ve worked, in training any Generative AI program.
Email: jdcunegan@gmail.com
J.D. Cunegan has a unique writing style that introduces the reader to his comic book-inspired storytelling and fast-paced prose. A lifelong storyteller with a passion for writing, Cunegan has an extensive background in journalism, media relations, and marketing. Cunegan currently lives in Hampton, Virginia, with his cat, and next to stories, his big passion in life in auto racing. When not hunched in front of a keyboard or with his nose stuck in a book, Cunegan can be found at a racetrack or watching a race on TV.
DISCLAIMER
None of my work contains material or content originating from Generative AI. My novels, short stories, non-fiction books, and the covers representing them were created solely by human writers and artists, and I do not condone or consent to the use of my material, or the material of the cover artists with whom I’ve worked, in training any Generative AI program.
Email: jdcunegan@gmail.com
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 15, 2015
Tonight’s book review is a two-for-one special, since both the novel Bounty and the novella Boundless by J. D. Cunegan are very quick reads and part of the same series.
I really enjoyed both these books, in an adrenaline-saturated, violence-for violence’s-sake, action flick type of enjoyment. The narratives are one part police procedural, one part espionage thriller, two parts near-future science fiction suspense. The protagonist is snarky good fun, her personality somewhere halfway between Deadpool and Lara Croft, with a little Wolverine thrown in.
Sometimes the action scenes veer into the physically unrealistic, but the author largely accounts for these moments of creative physics, after the fact, with explanations that make them more plausible and less distracting for readers who don’t suspend disbelief as effortlessly as most. Sometimes the characters are a little more camp and reminiscent of film noir than I was expecting them to be, with how gritty and modern the action itself is, but I quickly found this to be really charming.
The editing is superb; the pace is rapid in a way that makes both works really easy to follow, without one’s attention drifting away during expository moments in dialogue. The stories wrap up their immediate plot arcs in really satisfying ways, yet they leave enough loose ends hanging open that one feels eager for the next book in the series. The secondary characters are really likable, and the antagonists are the kind I love to despise.
I’ll be honest, I read Boundless, which comes second, before I read Bounty.
You know what? That was actually pretty great. The novella makes a really fantastic, fast-paced, engaging introduction to the characters and plot, and while it definitely meant I ran across some major spoilers from the novel, it also meant I already knew I enjoyed these characters and wanted to know more about how they came to be where they are. If you’re not sure about this series, but you’re curious, don’t hesitate to pick up Boundless; it won’t diminish your enjoyment of Bounty, if you decide to get it later. It’s an all-around really great sample of this story universe and these characters, and it’s a quick enough read that you are unlikely to set it down unfinished, even if you find it takes a little more time for it to work its magic on you.
I recommend both books for fans of the action and detective story side of the early Anita Blake novels by Laurell K. Hamilton. Jill, the protagonist, will feel really familiar to you when she’s on the job, even if her private life has nothing in common with Anita’s. She’s very career-focused and tough as nails.
I also recommend both books for people who enjoyed James Patterson’s Maximum Ride series, or his When the Wind Blows & The Lake House. No, Jill doesn’t have giant bird wings, but her origin story and the ways she adapts to her altered life are going to ring familiar in an enjoyable way.
I really enjoyed both these books, in an adrenaline-saturated, violence-for violence’s-sake, action flick type of enjoyment. The narratives are one part police procedural, one part espionage thriller, two parts near-future science fiction suspense. The protagonist is snarky good fun, her personality somewhere halfway between Deadpool and Lara Croft, with a little Wolverine thrown in.
Sometimes the action scenes veer into the physically unrealistic, but the author largely accounts for these moments of creative physics, after the fact, with explanations that make them more plausible and less distracting for readers who don’t suspend disbelief as effortlessly as most. Sometimes the characters are a little more camp and reminiscent of film noir than I was expecting them to be, with how gritty and modern the action itself is, but I quickly found this to be really charming.
The editing is superb; the pace is rapid in a way that makes both works really easy to follow, without one’s attention drifting away during expository moments in dialogue. The stories wrap up their immediate plot arcs in really satisfying ways, yet they leave enough loose ends hanging open that one feels eager for the next book in the series. The secondary characters are really likable, and the antagonists are the kind I love to despise.
I’ll be honest, I read Boundless, which comes second, before I read Bounty.
You know what? That was actually pretty great. The novella makes a really fantastic, fast-paced, engaging introduction to the characters and plot, and while it definitely meant I ran across some major spoilers from the novel, it also meant I already knew I enjoyed these characters and wanted to know more about how they came to be where they are. If you’re not sure about this series, but you’re curious, don’t hesitate to pick up Boundless; it won’t diminish your enjoyment of Bounty, if you decide to get it later. It’s an all-around really great sample of this story universe and these characters, and it’s a quick enough read that you are unlikely to set it down unfinished, even if you find it takes a little more time for it to work its magic on you.
I recommend both books for fans of the action and detective story side of the early Anita Blake novels by Laurell K. Hamilton. Jill, the protagonist, will feel really familiar to you when she’s on the job, even if her private life has nothing in common with Anita’s. She’s very career-focused and tough as nails.
I also recommend both books for people who enjoyed James Patterson’s Maximum Ride series, or his When the Wind Blows & The Lake House. No, Jill doesn’t have giant bird wings, but her origin story and the ways she adapts to her altered life are going to ring familiar in an enjoyable way.
February 23, 2017
I recently had the opportunity to interview Cunegan for my blog. His answers intrigued me and the Bounty series found a home in my reading pile. I was looking for something a little different from my normal preferences and I definitely found it.
It makes sense, in my opinion, to read a prequel first. I enjoy knowing the backstory before delving into the main plot line. For that reason, I chose to start with Boundless: A Bounty Short.
This Novella/Novelette tells the story of Jill Anderson. If you like strong female protagonists, you are going to love Jill. She’s a homicide officer by day and vigilante by night, with some impressive abilities. Having been in the military, she agreed to a secret operation that, in essence, made her a mash-up of Wolverine, Robocop and Nancy Drew. She has a mystery to solve and what she can do legally in the daytime, she has no problem finishing without the law behind her when the sun goes down.
Picking a genre to place Cunegan’s work into isn’t any easy task. There’s an aspect of: Sci-fi, Mystery, Thriller, Fantasy and a bit of Horror. As you can imagine that’s a lot to pack into a short. The action starts on page one and keeps going all the way through. In fact, the one problem I had was perhaps it had a little too much going on all at once in some places, especially early on.
The fight scenes are incredibly detailed – you can visualize every punch, slice and bullet.
I did end up wondering – was her brother’s Canadian comic book hero Superman or Captain Canuck?
Readers should be aware of scenes with violence, resulting in blood splatter and/or loss, as well as strong language.
Four & a half out of five stars. Recommended read for all action lovers.
It makes sense, in my opinion, to read a prequel first. I enjoy knowing the backstory before delving into the main plot line. For that reason, I chose to start with Boundless: A Bounty Short.
This Novella/Novelette tells the story of Jill Anderson. If you like strong female protagonists, you are going to love Jill. She’s a homicide officer by day and vigilante by night, with some impressive abilities. Having been in the military, she agreed to a secret operation that, in essence, made her a mash-up of Wolverine, Robocop and Nancy Drew. She has a mystery to solve and what she can do legally in the daytime, she has no problem finishing without the law behind her when the sun goes down.
Picking a genre to place Cunegan’s work into isn’t any easy task. There’s an aspect of: Sci-fi, Mystery, Thriller, Fantasy and a bit of Horror. As you can imagine that’s a lot to pack into a short. The action starts on page one and keeps going all the way through. In fact, the one problem I had was perhaps it had a little too much going on all at once in some places, especially early on.
The fight scenes are incredibly detailed – you can visualize every punch, slice and bullet.
I did end up wondering – was her brother’s Canadian comic book hero Superman or Captain Canuck?
Readers should be aware of scenes with violence, resulting in blood splatter and/or loss, as well as strong language.
Four & a half out of five stars. Recommended read for all action lovers.
August 17, 2015
This was an awesome short story for the Novel Bounty.
If you wonder how Jill Anderson came up with 'Bounty' as the name for her alter ego, this gives you the answer.
It's just really awesome and because it's like a prequel to Bounty it doesn't matter if you haven't read that one yet
If you wonder how Jill Anderson came up with 'Bounty' as the name for her alter ego, this gives you the answer.
It's just really awesome and because it's like a prequel to Bounty it doesn't matter if you haven't read that one yet
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews