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Shadowrun Novels #73.1
Shadowrun: Chaser
STREETS ON FIRE…
A vicious magical attack on a street gang isn’t a case paranormal P.I. Jimmy Kincaid would normally pick up. But when a fellow private eye asks him to look into it, and he learns the gang was doing a charity run for a church—a church Jimmy knows quite well—when they were attacked, his professional curiosity is raised.
But his investigation quickly leads to a tangled maze of clues and dead-ends. Someone—or something—is prowling the streets of Puyallup, looking to incinerate whoever crosses their path. And Jimmy’s got to find them—and stop them—before the entire neighborhood goes up in flames.
But whoever’s looking to light innocent victims on fire made one mistake—they’re doing it in Kincaid’s backyard. And Jimmy’s never taken kindly to trespassers...
A vicious magical attack on a street gang isn’t a case paranormal P.I. Jimmy Kincaid would normally pick up. But when a fellow private eye asks him to look into it, and he learns the gang was doing a charity run for a church—a church Jimmy knows quite well—when they were attacked, his professional curiosity is raised.
But his investigation quickly leads to a tangled maze of clues and dead-ends. Someone—or something—is prowling the streets of Puyallup, looking to incinerate whoever crosses their path. And Jimmy’s got to find them—and stop them—before the entire neighborhood goes up in flames.
But whoever’s looking to light innocent victims on fire made one mistake—they’re doing it in Kincaid’s backyard. And Jimmy’s never taken kindly to trespassers...
- GenresCyberpunk
120 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 13, 2020
15 people are currently reading
27 people want to read
About the author
Russell Zimmerman
45 books46 followersRussell ("Rusty" when he's not working) got started in writing as a freelancer for wargames like Warmachine, and since then has contributed to dozens of projects including fan-favorite fiction in Shadowrun and writing the international award-winning PC game Satellite Reign.
His most noteworthy work has been for the Shadowrun role-playing game and associated properties, and in more recent years he's become a regular contributor to the universes of BattleTech and Warhammer 40,000, as well.
During his career he's spilled some ink for a wide variety of genres and games, including Vampire 20th Anniversary, Earthdawn, Mutants & Masterminds, Gangs of the Undercity, multiple video games, and more! By working for Shadowrun, BattleTech, and Earthdawn, he's finished the old-school FASA trifecta, and is as such officially unstoppable.
His most noteworthy work has been for the Shadowrun role-playing game and associated properties, and in more recent years he's become a regular contributor to the universes of BattleTech and Warhammer 40,000, as well.
During his career he's spilled some ink for a wide variety of genres and games, including Vampire 20th Anniversary, Earthdawn, Mutants & Masterminds, Gangs of the Undercity, multiple video games, and more! By working for Shadowrun, BattleTech, and Earthdawn, he's finished the old-school FASA trifecta, and is as such officially unstoppable.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
January 3, 2022
I just really like any Shadowrun book.
August 14, 2022
My biggest problems with this book were first, the pretentious badassery that sounded just childish to me. This might have been partially due to the over-the-top audiobook narration. The narrator overemphasizes every brutal and/or visceral detail like he is desperately trying to convince the audience of extreme badassery. It sounds like a kid that is role-playing his favorite superhero but with the voice of a grown-ass man trying to sound like batman. It's a real shame because the narrator is clearly talented and capable and has a wonderful narration voice too. I guess it's a classic case of the narration amplifying a problem in the writing.
Second, the constant blunt and repetitive foreshadowing one-liners that do nothing beyond sounding ominous like in TV shows that want to keep your attention beyond the next ad break. This is a BOOK. The next chapter isn't behind an ad break. This is something I see everywhere. Authors just imitate TV show writing without understanding its purpose.
Third, there are a few very awkward exposition segments where a character describes what happened to them. But it's written like a present-tense first-person narration of that character's perspective, not like a spoken account of it. It's clearly an attempt at a more dramatic delivery which utterly fails because people just don't talk like that. It's just immersion-breaking instead of riveting.
I am honestly very tired of the general "everyone is blatantly racist" theme. Yes, we know, racism is bad. But if you try to write a book that addresses this how about at least a tiny bit more nuance?
No book will convince a hard-core raging racist to change his mind and circle-jerking about how much more enlightened we are by not being disgusting racists has gotten old decades ago and is honestly kind of pathetic. If the only thing you can praise yourself for is not being racist what the hell are you doing with your life?
And if the only point of the racism is to have bad guys the audience can hate then I call that lazy, one-dimensional, and just utterly shallow. Complex and layered antagonists are at least as important as complex protagonists! And I get that this is not going to be the deepest of books with its 120 pages. But I think defining characters as more than "a racist" is not asking for too much.
Maybe I am too harsh on just 120 pages but I just really hate the racist trope in futuristic settings. I choose to believe that viewpoints like that will become rarer instead of more common in the future as has continuously been the case since the abolishment of US black slavery in the 19th century.
After all that negativity, I want to say that I generally enjoyed the book. I liked the main character and his magic companion. I kind of expected yet another dresden files imitation but that is not at all the case. It's more about people with hard lives still trying to make Good choices at the fringes of society and the law which I appreciate.
Second, the constant blunt and repetitive foreshadowing one-liners that do nothing beyond sounding ominous like in TV shows that want to keep your attention beyond the next ad break. This is a BOOK. The next chapter isn't behind an ad break. This is something I see everywhere. Authors just imitate TV show writing without understanding its purpose.
Third, there are a few very awkward exposition segments where a character describes what happened to them. But it's written like a present-tense first-person narration of that character's perspective, not like a spoken account of it. It's clearly an attempt at a more dramatic delivery which utterly fails because people just don't talk like that. It's just immersion-breaking instead of riveting.
I am honestly very tired of the general "everyone is blatantly racist" theme. Yes, we know, racism is bad. But if you try to write a book that addresses this how about at least a tiny bit more nuance?
No book will convince a hard-core raging racist to change his mind and circle-jerking about how much more enlightened we are by not being disgusting racists has gotten old decades ago and is honestly kind of pathetic. If the only thing you can praise yourself for is not being racist what the hell are you doing with your life?
And if the only point of the racism is to have bad guys the audience can hate then I call that lazy, one-dimensional, and just utterly shallow. Complex and layered antagonists are at least as important as complex protagonists! And I get that this is not going to be the deepest of books with its 120 pages. But I think defining characters as more than "a racist" is not asking for too much.
Maybe I am too harsh on just 120 pages but I just really hate the racist trope in futuristic settings. I choose to believe that viewpoints like that will become rarer instead of more common in the future as has continuously been the case since the abolishment of US black slavery in the 19th century.
After all that negativity, I want to say that I generally enjoyed the book. I liked the main character and his magic companion. I kind of expected yet another dresden files imitation but that is not at all the case. It's more about people with hard lives still trying to make Good choices at the fringes of society and the law which I appreciate.
June 27, 2020
With Chaser, Russell Zimmerman has proven, once again, that he is one of my favorite Shadowrun authors. And this is in a list that includes Tom Dowd, Nigel Findley, Michael Stackpole! Russell shows that he knows the SR universe deeply, and that he knows his characters deeper still.
I absolutely love reading about Kincaid. Broken, cynical, yet trying his best to do the right thing, there are so many things about Kincaid that speak to me. There is a raw honesty to how Kincaid's mind works, and how he does what he does, that shines brightly during his books, and Chaser is no exception.
This is all testament to Zimmerman's skill as a writer, who makes the story flow smoothly, paints the world with the bleak color of Shadowrun, with plenty of subtext that emanates naturally without bogging down the well crafted path of the story.
Kincaid begins to investigate flaming attacks on metahumans in his beat, and two things add up: hatred and magic.
This could be said that it connects to the Adversary short story, thematically speaking, but expanded 10 fold.
The investigation feels gritty and real (for a story in Shadowrun), and we see how Kincaid hits the pavement and investigates.
We also feel the horror and sadness of the things he finds. There is a scene where he goes into the apartment of some victims, and it is emotionally harsh for Kincaid. And as a reader, man, that scene truly got to me. Another example of Zimmerman's talent.
The bigotry, the deaths, the Knight Errant negligence, or outright abuse, the fighting back Kincaid does, it all resonates with the things we are living now, and it burns brightly with one of the underlying themes of the Shadowrun universe. Systemic hatred exists, but there are those that will forever fight it.
I absolutely loved Chaser. It was short and sweet, and although I would have loved to read more, I am happy with the news that the next two novels of the Kincaid series are on the way, so I won't have to wait too much longer to get my grubby paws on it.
I absolutely love reading about Kincaid. Broken, cynical, yet trying his best to do the right thing, there are so many things about Kincaid that speak to me. There is a raw honesty to how Kincaid's mind works, and how he does what he does, that shines brightly during his books, and Chaser is no exception.
This is all testament to Zimmerman's skill as a writer, who makes the story flow smoothly, paints the world with the bleak color of Shadowrun, with plenty of subtext that emanates naturally without bogging down the well crafted path of the story.
Kincaid begins to investigate flaming attacks on metahumans in his beat, and two things add up: hatred and magic.
This could be said that it connects to the Adversary short story, thematically speaking, but expanded 10 fold.
The investigation feels gritty and real (for a story in Shadowrun), and we see how Kincaid hits the pavement and investigates.
We also feel the horror and sadness of the things he finds. There is a scene where he goes into the apartment of some victims, and it is emotionally harsh for Kincaid. And as a reader, man, that scene truly got to me. Another example of Zimmerman's talent.
The bigotry, the deaths, the Knight Errant negligence, or outright abuse, the fighting back Kincaid does, it all resonates with the things we are living now, and it burns brightly with one of the underlying themes of the Shadowrun universe. Systemic hatred exists, but there are those that will forever fight it.
I absolutely loved Chaser. It was short and sweet, and although I would have loved to read more, I am happy with the news that the next two novels of the Kincaid series are on the way, so I won't have to wait too much longer to get my grubby paws on it.
January 29, 2022
Shadowrun: Chaser is a cyberpunk novella from 2020 that shows Russell Zimmerman’s ability to combine fantastical elements with a classic noir, cyberpunk tone. It’s a world where everyone has SIN (system identification numbers issued at birth) and where remnants of modern society like soykaf, a coffee substitute, exist beside the latest tech.
The story follows detective Jimmy Kincaid, who is trying to solve a series of murders as he investigates scenes, argues for jurisdiction, and encounters suspects. The fantasy really sets the series apart as something unique. Even in the short space available, Zimmerman explains how the magic works for those unfamiliar with the series.
The most intriguing fantastical element are the ally spirits -- codependent incarnates summoned by the gifted. What makes them cool is how they reflect the summoners’ personalities, taking on their best and worse characteristics from love and protection to rage and destruction.
The ending is quite fun. The novelette doesn't push the genre forward, but it's an entertaining short read one can digest in an hour, and is a joy to read.
Full review here:
https://www.markeverglade.com/shadowr...
The story follows detective Jimmy Kincaid, who is trying to solve a series of murders as he investigates scenes, argues for jurisdiction, and encounters suspects. The fantasy really sets the series apart as something unique. Even in the short space available, Zimmerman explains how the magic works for those unfamiliar with the series.
The most intriguing fantastical element are the ally spirits -- codependent incarnates summoned by the gifted. What makes them cool is how they reflect the summoners’ personalities, taking on their best and worse characteristics from love and protection to rage and destruction.
The ending is quite fun. The novelette doesn't push the genre forward, but it's an entertaining short read one can digest in an hour, and is a joy to read.
Full review here:
https://www.markeverglade.com/shadowr...
May 17, 2020
Once again Zimmerman gives a look into the conflicted protagonist that we love so much.
Jimmy Kincaid is a great character because he has so much internal struggle and strife.
He wants to be the good guy and save the day, but since his magic was drained by a Vampire he turned to the Adversary (Satan or whatever) for power.
He has Cyberware to help him with his job. It looks up data and catalogs it for him. It records his experiences and haunts him. He can't fully erase his memories and when he plays them back they are in vivid detail. They keep him up at night.
He is a recovered addict, but is clearly an alcoholic.
He saves the day because he works so damn hard, screws up and barely survives.
This time Jimmy is hired to invest a magical arsonist that is burning meta-humans and other Sixth World changed people.
Kincaid is such a well developed character I would read a story of him painting his office.
Bonus: There is a chunk of the long "lost" Kincaid book, promising that it is coming soon.
Jimmy Kincaid is a great character because he has so much internal struggle and strife.
He wants to be the good guy and save the day, but since his magic was drained by a Vampire he turned to the Adversary (Satan or whatever) for power.
He has Cyberware to help him with his job. It looks up data and catalogs it for him. It records his experiences and haunts him. He can't fully erase his memories and when he plays them back they are in vivid detail. They keep him up at night.
He is a recovered addict, but is clearly an alcoholic.
He saves the day because he works so damn hard, screws up and barely survives.
This time Jimmy is hired to invest a magical arsonist that is burning meta-humans and other Sixth World changed people.
Kincaid is such a well developed character I would read a story of him painting his office.
Bonus: There is a chunk of the long "lost" Kincaid book, promising that it is coming soon.
July 13, 2020
Once again Mr. Zimmerman tosses us into a world of cyberpunk fantasy noir. Jimmy looking for a metahunan terrorist must confront more than hate crime as he faces off against pain from his past.
I am not an elf fan, usually seeing them as the "too perfect" fantasy race, but set in a near future, uncaring America, being an elf is not a ticket to the good life. So I identify with an imperfect protagonist doing his best in a far from perfect world.
I am not an elf fan, usually seeing them as the "too perfect" fantasy race, but set in a near future, uncaring America, being an elf is not a ticket to the good life. So I identify with an imperfect protagonist doing his best in a far from perfect world.
February 9, 2021
More great reading by Zimmerman
A Shadowrun great, his Jimmy K. stories keep you coming back for more. If you like hardboiled detective stories with a flair of cyberpunk and magic, this is for you
A Shadowrun great, his Jimmy K. stories keep you coming back for more. If you like hardboiled detective stories with a flair of cyberpunk and magic, this is for you
August 9, 2020
Quick read continuing the story of Jimmy Kincaid.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews