Wreckers

by George Ellis

A space opera with attitude. And jokes.

At 19 years old, Denver is the youngest wrecker in the verse. His only companion, other than his one-eyed cat Pirate, is an AI navigator named Gary based on classic 21st century sitcom personalities.

That all changes when Denver meets Batista, a mechanic who claims to know what happened to Denver’s missing father and brother.

Following her information, Denver is drawn into trouble with the various forces in the galaxy — bandits, feds and rival wreckers. As complications mount and he’s forced into helping different sides chase the hottest technology in the verse, Denver, once a lone wolf, collects the small crew he never knew he needed. But can he keep them alive?

Genres: Science Fiction

290 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 8, 2021

About the author

George Ellis lives in Austin, where he writes fantasy and science fiction books at night and runs an advertising agency by day. In addition to novels, he writes screenplays, viral videos and Internet memes.

Reviews

[J. T. Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A joyful space adventure

It took a few chapters to finally get into the story, but I'm glad I stuck with it. It was a good story with a intriguing plot. Loved Gary and Denver. And the Mustang's additional crew helped flesh it out.

[Karen Siddall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wreckers is total entertainment! It is one of those books that you’ll want to keep reading through until the very end in one sitting. That’s right! Get ready to stay up late for this one.

Denver Boyd is such a likable guy. His interaction with the AI, Gary, is fun and humorous. Denver’s attachment to his cat was heartwarming and is sure to hit home with many readers. Each addition to the crew brought new issues, unique skills, and more enjoyment. I look forward to reading more about each one of these in future books. I really loved the big guy, Edgar.

Not only did the characters keep me engaged, but the story itself also grabbed from the first page and never let go. I can attest that the action was truly non-stop, even when dipping into the past for Denver’s backstory. The story is told in both a present and past timeframe: both clearly delineated and easy to follow. His relationships with his family, can we say, are complicated at best? I worried for the kid! The author gives him a history with this father and half-brother that would be quite a burden for any 19-year-old to handle. However, Denver is nothing if not resilient. I liked that he had an uncle that stepped in to take him under his wing when things went sideways with the father and brother. And it felt like all he’d been through with his father, brother, and his uncle prepared him to become pretty, pretty, pretty good at what he does.

For SciFi readers that enjoy the technical side of things, there’s a little sumpin’ sumpin’ for you here, too; it’s not all characters emoting and feelings and yadda yadda yadda. There are parts, processes, shoot ‘em ups, spacey stuff, and a lot of throwback to Star Trek (The Original Show, please!) But for those that skim the tech talk, there’s not so much that it will overwhelm this snappy dialogued, character-driven action-adventure at its heart.

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from Reedsy Discovery.

[David P. Duffy · Rating 3 out of 5]

*Amusing Character Driven Story*

“Wreckers: A Denver Boyd Novel” by Mr. Ellis, is an amusing, character driven romp about a Sol System ‘wrecker’ — tow truck op/mechanic — adroit young man, Denver Boyd.

The MC is a humorous, good natured, decent short of a young fellow, off on his own making his way, as he finds himself acquiring eclectic crew members like unwelcome barnacles, as he becomes evermore deeply ensnared in a web spun by powerful players determined to (mis)use him.

The story flows smoothly and goes down fast and easy like a good, cold beer on a hot summer’s day.

There are occasional writing hiccups — overuse of flashbacks, all too much use of contemporary entertainment culture, loss of story continuity — are a few examples, but they are minor blips that don’t derail the fun.

“Wreckers...” was read via Kindle Unlimited and is recommended.

[Eric Prater]

Great read!

Time well spent, I liked the characters, lots of adventures happening, lost family, found family, some betrayals, fun romp through space, looking forward to the sequel!

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

An exceptional story by George Ellis; Denver, at 19 years of age, is the youngest wrecker in the verse. He also has the most powerful ship.
He is called to repair a federation ship and rescues the fed prisoner. She told him she knows what happened to his father and brother.

[Barrie Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good storyline

A very good storyline filled with amazing characters, lots of action with some very different twists and turns to keep you turning pages. Thoroughly enjoyable well worth a read, Baz.

[william j cunningham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good space fiction

Well written, plenty of great characters. An action adventure with a touch of mystery. Reads quickly with plenty of drama

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s OK

The story starts well and finishes well. In between, it’s a mixed bag of poor grammar and editing, mumbling plots and mostly mediocre characters. One annoyance was the constant use of the single word “verse” for the known universe which in this book is actually just our solar system. It added nothing to the storyline. The epilogue sets the reader up for a sequel. I doubt I care enough to read more.

[Noodle The Naughty Night Owl]

1/10: Couldn't get past the first few chapters; not for me.

[Vivian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wreckers is a fun popcorn read. Denver and the rest of the cast are enjoyable characters and its easy to get behind them. I love the whole wreckers, people that cruise around to repair other ships, scene setting really fun and the plot has just enough to keep you interested but its not breaking any new grounds. My main gripe is the regular references to movies and tv shows throughout the book. I get that its meant to be fun easter eggs in a way and is explained by the Stang having this massive catalog that no one else has but personally I found it at best annoying and at worst immersion ruining. I mean seriously one of the characters quotes Schwarzenegger in the middle of what is meant to be an action scene and when the other characters don't get it our main character explains it to everyone. It just stepped over the edge from tongue in cheek to ridiculous for me.

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ellis, George. Wreckers: A Denver Boyd Novel. Zero Atmo Pub., 2021.
Wreckers is a very readable indie space opera. Denver has inherited a spacecraft designed to rendezvous with damaged ships, repair them, or haul them to a repair facility or junkyard. His crew consists of a one-eyed cat named Pirate and a ship’s AI called Gary that tells annoying jokes from ancient sitcoms. When Denver answers a call from a federation warship, he finds himself rescuing a young woman with considerable martial arts skills. She claims to know what happened to Denver’s missing father. Action ensues. Great literature? No. A fun evening. Yep. 3.5 stars.

[Ky Adams · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great story that cost me some sleep. After some VERY INTERESTING developments at the end of the story....there better be a sequel soon! I feel that there is an agreement between a writer and a reader. I will support you through my investment of funds and time but if you make me care about a character or a plot then you have an obligation to not leave me hanging! In other words....are you at your computer finishing the sequel right now? Just kidding....sort of.

Oh, and thank you for a great read and thank you for putting it on KU!

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review

First let me say the book is great read. I really enjoyed the MR and Al computer. I'm not going to reveal any spoiler though but is it one of the best bold I've read in quite some time. However, this book does jump back to past tense here and there so one has to read carefully throughout this book. 👍👍

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're looking for a fun space opera with amusing characters and lots and lots of action, this is the book for you. Not too techy, its a fast well-written read with snappy dialogue that kept me interested from the first to the last page. Surely we'll be seeing more of Denver (and Pirate and Gary) in the future.
I won a copy of this book in a Goodreads giveaway for this honest review.

[Mark F Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Better than expected. I read a lot of series novels and occasionally take a break to read something and someone new in between. I really, really enjoyed this book and the humor in the story. I didn't see that there were any future Denver Boyd novels but would certainly enjoy a continuation of this story and character. I highly recommend it for anyone to read.

[Tom Kolodziej · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read

I really enjoyed the book. There are many twists and turns that keep the story moving. Usually, I like stories where the boy gets the girl in the end. This is not one of them, however, it was enjoyable. I would recommend it.

[Ron Farnsworth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great sci-fi

Not too sciencey to lose me but not just dumb either. Great characters and storyline line with a good mix of seriousness and levity. Looking forward to the next book if there will be one.

[John T Mills · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

Mr. Ellis did a good job here. This was a good book and well written. I didn't catch any grammatical errors. The story was good and the characters well developed. Worth a read.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good read

Not a "military" space opera but a pretty good read non the less. A very good but different outside the box thinking for the hero (gets points for not being like everyone else) check it out

[Terry Bean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok read

this book it seemed at the start of fairly scripted like it was written in parts that were added together. I'm glad to say that by the end the writing was more fluid.

[Scott Tengzelius · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great action packed space opera

Teenage captain with his cat acquired a posse battles the bad guys and warps off to the beyond threat fun read

[Mike Mackey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Space Operas

George Ellis has created some exciting Characters, and a plot that was Great to read. This book is a
Start to a series. A Good Read. Santa Mike

[Grover · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story moved a bit slow for me, so I stopped. Great visuals and premise.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

Very lively interesting characters enjoyed getting to know them. Storyline was very believable and I am really hoping there will be a sequel..soon.

[Ron Nurmi · Rating 4 out of 5]

interesting story of a young man who just wants to be a wrecker (repairman of ships) and how he runs into trouble and gets out of it.

[Scott McDermott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this. When is the follow on book available?

[Mark Grove · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Read

Thanks. You’re a very good writer. Try to use ‘me’ instead of ‘I’, otherwise, a jolly good read. All thumbs up. Bravo!

[M.J. Schwer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really found this book to be a breath of fresh of fresh air! It was a great space opera that kept met me engaged and just a fun read!

[David E. Todd · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Good Start

I like the characters for the most part (not big on the AI). Good story that moves along well. Definitely planning on the next book.

[William Byrd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story!

I can hardly wait to see where this takes us. Thanks for writing this . sequel please.
More like this would be awesome.