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Black Ocean #10
Collusion Course
The biggest problem with employing criminals is that they're criminals.
What's a guy gotta do to get a little respect? As the head of an up-and-coming criminal empire, Carl Ramsey just can't seem to catch a break. Stranded in the middle of nowhere, he is forced to rely on loyalty, savvy, and the promise of a big payday to keep the rank and file in line. But how can he deliver on his promises while overseeing repairs on a dead ship, praying that his lover and best friend can recover their lost loot, and keeping the galaxy's most notorious crime lord at bay over long-range comm?
And to make matters worse, his parents dropped in for a visit and have settled in while he's away. It's going to take all the fast talking Carl can manage, and he still might need a little help from his friends.
Collusion Course is the 10th mission of Black Ocean, a science fantasy series set in the 26th century. Do you wish there had been a second season of Firefly? Do you love the irreverent fun of Guardians of the Galaxy? Have you ever wondered how Star Wars would have turned out if Luke and Obi-wan had ditched the rebellion to become smugglers with Han and Chewie? Then Black Ocean is the series for you!
Pick up your copy of Collusion Course, and aim to misbehave with the crew of the Mobius.
What's a guy gotta do to get a little respect? As the head of an up-and-coming criminal empire, Carl Ramsey just can't seem to catch a break. Stranded in the middle of nowhere, he is forced to rely on loyalty, savvy, and the promise of a big payday to keep the rank and file in line. But how can he deliver on his promises while overseeing repairs on a dead ship, praying that his lover and best friend can recover their lost loot, and keeping the galaxy's most notorious crime lord at bay over long-range comm?
And to make matters worse, his parents dropped in for a visit and have settled in while he's away. It's going to take all the fast talking Carl can manage, and he still might need a little help from his friends.
Collusion Course is the 10th mission of Black Ocean, a science fantasy series set in the 26th century. Do you wish there had been a second season of Firefly? Do you love the irreverent fun of Guardians of the Galaxy? Have you ever wondered how Star Wars would have turned out if Luke and Obi-wan had ditched the rebellion to become smugglers with Han and Chewie? Then Black Ocean is the series for you!
Pick up your copy of Collusion Course, and aim to misbehave with the crew of the Mobius.
5 pages, Audible Audio
First published June 25, 2016
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 - 26 of 26 reviews
June 26, 2019
This really deserves more of a 2.5 rating. It would have been a fine story if mashed together with the previous one, which this was just really part 2 of. Eventually I just didn't care anymore who got out of the jungle, who got saved from a derelict ship, if Roddy really quit drinking, etc. Which is why it took me so long to finish it. I'm not giving up on the series. Hey, I've got all these in one huge audiobook, after all. But I will be waiting a while before I pick up #11.
May 18, 2019
This is becoming a bit harder to read.
Not that I'm not enjoying it, I actually am.
It's just starting to feel a little stale.
Collusion Course is short, the Mobius crew is going through some growing pains, the set up for what's to come is still happening. Honestly, most of this should've been added with the 9th book.
The real highlight for me though was this wizard fight.
3.10 / 5
Not that I'm not enjoying it, I actually am.
It's just starting to feel a little stale.
Collusion Course is short, the Mobius crew is going through some growing pains, the set up for what's to come is still happening. Honestly, most of this should've been added with the 9th book.
The real highlight for me though was this wizard fight.
3.10 / 5
May 15, 2023
Another fun book. Not amazing, but lots of action and interesting plot.
March 9, 2018
The 10th book in the series sees Carl in a spot of bother with his new team.
They had a wonderful plan to get some bio-matter, and then sell it, raking in a bucket load of money. However, in the process of trying to ‘liberate’ the goods, the ships they were on received critical damage, and now, they are all linked up in space, whilst the ship with the goodies, floats happily away, full of holes, about to crash and explode and ruin all their fun.
And if that wasn’t enough to ruin their day, back at base, Don Rucker, notorious gangster, and Tanni’s Dad, has turned up looking for her, because he hasn’t heard from her, and what is even worse, he brought Carl’s Dad Chuck with him. Carl’s life just can’t get any worse.
That is until some of his old Navy buddies decide that maybe they have had enough and turn on him…
In the meantime, Mort, having run into Don and placated him for a short time, is off God Hunting again, and this leads to an epic show down.
This book is seriously full on. It is kind of the culmination of the serious of events that started with Book 8, and moved forward with the intro of Carl’s old crew in Book 9, and now, in this story, it is all coming together, in a storm of fury, and not everyone is going to survive, there are going to be changes (that’s all I'm going to say)
Again, Morin has done a magnificent job with not just creating an epic story that just continues to get better with each new episode (I mean this is book number 10, or 12 if you want to include the bonus stories, and it is only getting better and better, there are very few stories on this scale that can say that), and the other factor is still his amazing character work. I say this in pretty much every review, but again, not just with the Mains, but with the extras as well, Don and Chuck, and the old crew of Carls, they all have such depth to them, they are real people, it is like Morin has sat down and generated full bio’s for each of these people, or found an existing real life person, and just brought them to life on the page. It gives his stories so much extra credibility, and realism. There are a lot of this type of genre, with half decent storylines, but very few with this level of character work that bring the story to life like this, and that is what makes Morin such a standout, and stories like Black Ocean a must read.
As with all these books, they are also a lot of fun, Morin creates a fantastic universe that does take the story seriously for the most part, but he also has a lot of fun and humour throughout as well.
If you love a good bit of Sci-Fi, if you love Firefly, or if you been watching ‘The Orville’, this is definitely for you.
They had a wonderful plan to get some bio-matter, and then sell it, raking in a bucket load of money. However, in the process of trying to ‘liberate’ the goods, the ships they were on received critical damage, and now, they are all linked up in space, whilst the ship with the goodies, floats happily away, full of holes, about to crash and explode and ruin all their fun.
And if that wasn’t enough to ruin their day, back at base, Don Rucker, notorious gangster, and Tanni’s Dad, has turned up looking for her, because he hasn’t heard from her, and what is even worse, he brought Carl’s Dad Chuck with him. Carl’s life just can’t get any worse.
That is until some of his old Navy buddies decide that maybe they have had enough and turn on him…
In the meantime, Mort, having run into Don and placated him for a short time, is off God Hunting again, and this leads to an epic show down.
This book is seriously full on. It is kind of the culmination of the serious of events that started with Book 8, and moved forward with the intro of Carl’s old crew in Book 9, and now, in this story, it is all coming together, in a storm of fury, and not everyone is going to survive, there are going to be changes (that’s all I'm going to say)
Again, Morin has done a magnificent job with not just creating an epic story that just continues to get better with each new episode (I mean this is book number 10, or 12 if you want to include the bonus stories, and it is only getting better and better, there are very few stories on this scale that can say that), and the other factor is still his amazing character work. I say this in pretty much every review, but again, not just with the Mains, but with the extras as well, Don and Chuck, and the old crew of Carls, they all have such depth to them, they are real people, it is like Morin has sat down and generated full bio’s for each of these people, or found an existing real life person, and just brought them to life on the page. It gives his stories so much extra credibility, and realism. There are a lot of this type of genre, with half decent storylines, but very few with this level of character work that bring the story to life like this, and that is what makes Morin such a standout, and stories like Black Ocean a must read.
As with all these books, they are also a lot of fun, Morin creates a fantastic universe that does take the story seriously for the most part, but he also has a lot of fun and humour throughout as well.
If you love a good bit of Sci-Fi, if you love Firefly, or if you been watching ‘The Orville’, this is definitely for you.
June 12, 2020
All he really wanted to do was make a little dishonest living...you know...enough to keep the Mobius flying and the crew feed...and enough Earth's Preferred for Roddy!!! So why is it the universe simply doesn't want to cooperate. A simple shell game mission with millions of credits the take. Now he ends up with not one but THREE disabled ships and one of his crew facing death by a lack of air!! And...to make matters worse, his Dad and his Ex Father-In-Law are running free back "home" in his recently created criminal empire. And who KNOWS what that may mean when... or if... he ever returns. Not to mention one of the most powerful wizards in the Black Ocean has decided to make it his personal mission to end the magical interference that is dividing the survivors of his recently liberated moon. Oh well... all in a days work in the BLACK OCEAN.
Mission 10 of the crew of the Mobius. Jeff Morin's creation has taken on a life of its own as his characters... and the universe they live in... continue to find new ways and new problems that readers will enjoy watching them find their way through. Morin is the type of author that doesn't want his characters - and by translation his readers - to get too comfortable. And just when you thought things were all copacetic and 5x5 the next "gremlin on the wing" finds its way into the story. But...that's what makes this such a great and fun thrill ride.
And he keeps on writing more...!!!
Mission 10 of the crew of the Mobius. Jeff Morin's creation has taken on a life of its own as his characters... and the universe they live in... continue to find new ways and new problems that readers will enjoy watching them find their way through. Morin is the type of author that doesn't want his characters - and by translation his readers - to get too comfortable. And just when you thought things were all copacetic and 5x5 the next "gremlin on the wing" finds its way into the story. But...that's what makes this such a great and fun thrill ride.
And he keeps on writing more...!!!
April 17, 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.
February 18, 2019
Captain Carl Ramsay and his burgeoning criminal empire encounter some growing pains. Unfortunately for the series, the most interesting characters are those generally NOT named "Captain Carl Ramsay." More colorful characters like the wizard Mort and the mechanic Rode breath more life into the stories with their little subplots (Mort's wizard fight and Rode's brush with celebrity are highlights here). But otherwise, the sections where Ramsay is front and center tend to grate as his character is neither roguish or honorable enough to be really interesting. He's just kind of there.
Here, he tries to pull off another score while keeping both his parents and former father-in-law (who happens to be a crimelord himself) at bay. It almost works.
Here, he tries to pull off another score while keeping both his parents and former father-in-law (who happens to be a crimelord himself) at bay. It almost works.
September 7, 2026
I honestly feel like these are starting to really flow together and are becoming less episodic, which I'm not really a fan of. I don't mind it if they were edited as one book with a nice long continuous story being told, but instead it's like they're trying to keep it episodic but storylines are just merging one to another and not in a good concise way, in my opinion.
I'm still liking a lot of the stories being told and many of the characters, but I'm also having a hard time tracking all of these new characters and their two minutes but seemingly important level of screentime, the whole thing is just not really working for me and I hope it gets back on course.
Audio narration continues to be excellent.
I'm still liking a lot of the stories being told and many of the characters, but I'm also having a hard time tracking all of these new characters and their two minutes but seemingly important level of screentime, the whole thing is just not really working for me and I hope it gets back on course.
Audio narration continues to be excellent.
October 16, 2023
3.5 stars rounded down to 3
This story finally sees the conclusion of the "Mort hunts a god" storyline. A small wrench is thrown into the workings of Carl's new syndicate when Don Rucker and Carl's parents show up on the moon while he's out running a job--a job which goes sideways (as usual). This one feels like a proper conclusion to the previous story, and it seems like they only split them up to keep to the "novella" length for all of these books. All in all, it was a fun one, and it shakes things up a bit for Carl--as the syndicate begins to settle in, the core crew of the Mobius is in for some changes.
This story finally sees the conclusion of the "Mort hunts a god" storyline. A small wrench is thrown into the workings of Carl's new syndicate when Don Rucker and Carl's parents show up on the moon while he's out running a job--a job which goes sideways (as usual). This one feels like a proper conclusion to the previous story, and it seems like they only split them up to keep to the "novella" length for all of these books. All in all, it was a fun one, and it shakes things up a bit for Carl--as the syndicate begins to settle in, the core crew of the Mobius is in for some changes.
January 2, 2020
While Carl Ramsey and the Mobius are trying to salvage the job that went to pieces on them, Mort is on Ithaca keeping Tanny's father Don Rucker at bay and entertaining Carl's father Chuck. He's also got a lead on the whereabouts of the so-called god that has been causing them so many problems with their tech. We're in for a bumpy ride with the Carl, the Mobius crew and Mort, but things have a way of working out, one way or the other, for all of them, and I love seeing how it all shakes out.
February 26, 2021
This was really the concluding part from the previous book, as Carl tries to build his new crime syndicate. Stuck trying to conclude his latest scam, his dad and former father in-law are causing issues back at his new base. Good book, as the new characters bed in and some of the old favourites take a back step.
January 7, 2019
The highlight of this sci-fi novella and "episode" of the Black Ocean series is a wizard fight.
I need a guilty pleasure shelf in my library. Nonetheless, I'll be reading this series to the end.
I need a guilty pleasure shelf in my library. Nonetheless, I'll be reading this series to the end.
December 13, 2017
Love this series but this one was a bit of a stumble. Not sure that I like the developments. We'll see what the next chapter brings.
May 25, 2018
The Mobius crew starts to feel some growing pains.
May 9, 2019
This finishes out what was basically set-up in the previous few books. I found it a good story. Mort finally really hits into some real wizard type stuff and some big things shift for the team.
August 6, 2019
A fine entry for fans of the series. Provides more background and depth to the characters, but mostly it just serves to set up the plot for the next book.
November 1, 2019
read this in the omnibus version (audible)
April 27, 2021
This was the second part of the last story. The series feels like it's really stumbling to me but I'll see what happens in the next one.
January 7, 2022
I love these characters
June 2, 2024
Well, this one was eventful, with a full on wizard battle, featuring Mort. It was definitely one of the more eventful stories.
June 6, 2025
The new arc seems to be picking up steam.
July 20, 2017
I really enjoyed this. The story is fast paced. Lots of action. The characters are still likable.
May 25, 2023
Man, where to start. So much happens in this book good and bad. I'm upset about some things but you have to 5 star this for the depth and emotions. Best of the books so far.
February 4, 2018
Another great story - this time someone's patents pop up to meddle in their offspring's affairs, a certain crime lord brings a birthday present and a certain wizard saves the day. Sort of.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews