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Shakedowners #1
Shakedowners
Some starship captains explore strange new worlds, seeking out new life and new civilisations. Some lead missions of discovery through wormholes to the other side of the galaxy. Then there's Captain Iridius B. Franklin, someone who spent too long seeking out strange new bars and new alien cocktails.
After graduating bottom of his class at Space Command Academy Iridius Franklin hasn't had the glamorous career he envisioned, instead he hauls cargo ships full of mining waste, alien land whale dung, and artificially intelligent toy dogs across the stars.
Iridius does have talent though - he is exceptionally good at breaking starships. So, when not hauling freight, he is captain of a shakedown crew, a skeleton crew used to test newly constructed ships for faults before the real crew takes over.
While on a routine shakedown mission aboard the FSC Gallaway, soon to be pride of the Federation Fleet, Earth is attacked by an unknown alien life-form. With the galaxy in chaos, Captain Iridius B. Franklin finds himself, unqualified, understaffed and completely unprepared, in command of the most advanced starship in the galaxy.
Now, he just needs to not break it.
After graduating bottom of his class at Space Command Academy Iridius Franklin hasn't had the glamorous career he envisioned, instead he hauls cargo ships full of mining waste, alien land whale dung, and artificially intelligent toy dogs across the stars.
Iridius does have talent though - he is exceptionally good at breaking starships. So, when not hauling freight, he is captain of a shakedown crew, a skeleton crew used to test newly constructed ships for faults before the real crew takes over.
While on a routine shakedown mission aboard the FSC Gallaway, soon to be pride of the Federation Fleet, Earth is attacked by an unknown alien life-form. With the galaxy in chaos, Captain Iridius B. Franklin finds himself, unqualified, understaffed and completely unprepared, in command of the most advanced starship in the galaxy.
Now, he just needs to not break it.
Audiobook
Published February 1, 2022
336 people are currently reading
979 people want to read
About the author
Justin Woolley
20 books124 followersJustin Woolley has been writing stories since he could first scrawl with a crayon. When he was six years old he wrote his first book, a 300 word pirate epic in unreadable handwriting called 'The Ghost Ship'. He promptly declared that he was now an author and didn't need to go to school. Despite being informed that this was, in fact, not the case, he continued to make things up and write them down.
Today Justin is the author of the Australian set dystopian trilogy The Territory Series consisting of the novels A Town Called Dust, A City Called Smoke and A World of Ash, the young-adult science fiction adventure We Are Omega, the science-fiction comedy series Shakedowners consisting of the novels Shakedowners, Shakedowners 2: The Vinyl Frontier and Shakedowners 3: Slack to the Future, and is now adding to the darkness of the 41st millennium for Black Library.
Justin lives in Hobart, Australia with his wife and two sons. In his other life he's been an engineer, a teacher and at one stage even a magician. His handwriting has not improved.
Today Justin is the author of the Australian set dystopian trilogy The Territory Series consisting of the novels A Town Called Dust, A City Called Smoke and A World of Ash, the young-adult science fiction adventure We Are Omega, the science-fiction comedy series Shakedowners consisting of the novels Shakedowners, Shakedowners 2: The Vinyl Frontier and Shakedowners 3: Slack to the Future, and is now adding to the darkness of the 41st millennium for Black Library.
Justin lives in Hobart, Australia with his wife and two sons. In his other life he's been an engineer, a teacher and at one stage even a magician. His handwriting has not improved.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 121 reviews
February 22, 2022
Absolutely Psycho Hilarious Fun!!!
I loved this book. Reminds me of Douglas Adams at his best. Great writing, fun, fast-paced plot. Takes all the space opera themes and twists then into hilarious caricatures. Like Galaxy Quest this book hits all the beats of an awesome fight for the survival of the universe with a wildly hilarious spin.
I loved this book. Reminds me of Douglas Adams at his best. Great writing, fun, fast-paced plot. Takes all the space opera themes and twists then into hilarious caricatures. Like Galaxy Quest this book hits all the beats of an awesome fight for the survival of the universe with a wildly hilarious spin.
June 19, 2021
Fabulous new series. Some Starship Captains look for new places and then some prefer to drink. I really got caught up in the story and looking forward to more.
June 5, 2023
Fun enough, a run-of-the-mill space opera with the usual cliched cast of characters. The plot was entertaining if not particularly original, but I wasn’t interested enough to keep reading the series. Great for a quick space adventure when the mood strikes.
July 25, 2021
There are some authors that I know will create quality work every time, and Justin Woolley is one of them. Shakedowners is a really fun space romp, that had me laughing and gasping on a regular basis. I may have even been teary at one particular part towards the end.
I absolutely loved the characters, especially Ensign Rangi who managed to be both a delight and a whopping pain in the butt at the same time. The relationships between the OG crew, and with the Gallaway crew, were well-developed and I really enjoyed how they grew and changed over time. The poor crew face a lot of challenges that no one believes they can handle, and watching them take their unique perspectives and skills and make things work was really inspiring and satisfying. As someone who also does not always approach problems from a typical perspective, it was encouraging to see people who had generally been written off getting up and doing their thing really bloody well.
The worldbuilding was very nicely done. There was exactly enough background to tell the story, and while I would like to know more about everything (especially the Aegix - their personal logic leaves a lot to be desired and I want to know why), I do recognise that's my preference and it has absolutely no impact on the story.
The crowning glory of this book for me was the prose. It is so smoothly written that I flew through it in just a few hours of reading time. The humour was on point, and while I'm sure there were several references I didn't get, that did not affect my enjoyment at all. This is very exciting for me, because I often don't find humourous books to actually be funny.
At the end of the day, if you have any kind of fondness for space adventures, I highly recommend picking up this book. I really hope that this is going to be book 1 in a series, because I would absolutely love to keep adventuring around the galaxy with this crew.
I absolutely loved the characters, especially Ensign Rangi who managed to be both a delight and a whopping pain in the butt at the same time. The relationships between the OG crew, and with the Gallaway crew, were well-developed and I really enjoyed how they grew and changed over time. The poor crew face a lot of challenges that no one believes they can handle, and watching them take their unique perspectives and skills and make things work was really inspiring and satisfying. As someone who also does not always approach problems from a typical perspective, it was encouraging to see people who had generally been written off getting up and doing their thing really bloody well.
The worldbuilding was very nicely done. There was exactly enough background to tell the story, and while I would like to know more about everything (especially the Aegix - their personal logic leaves a lot to be desired and I want to know why), I do recognise that's my preference and it has absolutely no impact on the story.
The crowning glory of this book for me was the prose. It is so smoothly written that I flew through it in just a few hours of reading time. The humour was on point, and while I'm sure there were several references I didn't get, that did not affect my enjoyment at all. This is very exciting for me, because I often don't find humourous books to actually be funny.
At the end of the day, if you have any kind of fondness for space adventures, I highly recommend picking up this book. I really hope that this is going to be book 1 in a series, because I would absolutely love to keep adventuring around the galaxy with this crew.
August 11, 2022
4.5 stars:
A great Sci Fi romp through space - well written, fast paced and with plenty of humour.
Knowing the writer is Australian may help some people to better understand said humour - seems to me some reviewers think Shakedowners is too derivative of prior works, but in reality Justin Woolley is just exhibiting a pretty standard Aussie sense of humour - a strong leaning to self-derogatory, with occasional outbursts of delusions of grandeur. I also get that some people find the omnicide hard to take, and when it seems such omnicides may become continual throughout the book, the thought of losing all sentient life on a planet starts to lose its power (from a rollicking narrative perspective) which is the ONLY flaw I can find in this fabulous novel, and to be fair, it course-corrects pretty quickly. I believe we have a new, smart & fun Sci Fi writer on the scene - one who seems (to me) to be the type who improves with each novel. Can't wait to start the next one! Thanks JW.
A great Sci Fi romp through space - well written, fast paced and with plenty of humour.
Knowing the writer is Australian may help some people to better understand said humour - seems to me some reviewers think Shakedowners is too derivative of prior works, but in reality Justin Woolley is just exhibiting a pretty standard Aussie sense of humour - a strong leaning to self-derogatory, with occasional outbursts of delusions of grandeur. I also get that some people find the omnicide hard to take, and when it seems such omnicides may become continual throughout the book, the thought of losing all sentient life on a planet starts to lose its power (from a rollicking narrative perspective) which is the ONLY flaw I can find in this fabulous novel, and to be fair, it course-corrects pretty quickly. I believe we have a new, smart & fun Sci Fi writer on the scene - one who seems (to me) to be the type who improves with each novel. Can't wait to start the next one! Thanks JW.
June 14, 2021
Really enjoyed the book Shakedowners by Justin Woolley. Especially the character of Iridius, captain of the FSC Diesel Coast.
My kind of guy! I was really into the story and loved his way of "communicating".
I often found myself laughing out loud.
What also triggered me was the "Tiggy"game, he is telling about on page 162.
Justins grandfather is from Holland and we have a game overhere which is called "tikkie" and that is exactly how Justin decribes it in his book. I am not sure if "Tiggy" comes from his imagination or that is has a direct link to our Dutch game!
My suggestion to you all out there, go and read it!
I loved it!
Astrid
My kind of guy! I was really into the story and loved his way of "communicating".
I often found myself laughing out loud.
What also triggered me was the "Tiggy"game, he is telling about on page 162.
Justins grandfather is from Holland and we have a game overhere which is called "tikkie" and that is exactly how Justin decribes it in his book. I am not sure if "Tiggy" comes from his imagination or that is has a direct link to our Dutch game!
My suggestion to you all out there, go and read it!
I loved it!
Astrid
May 7, 2022
It may not seem fair, writing a review for a book that I gave up on.
I'll keep it brief: Justin Woolley is not Douglas Adams. Trying to be funny is usually not a good thing.
I'll keep it brief: Justin Woolley is not Douglas Adams. Trying to be funny is usually not a good thing.
January 29, 2023
If you are looking for a sci-fi comedy, this may be it! This book follows a captain of a hauler ship that always causes the ships he’s on to malfunction. While on a mission to test a new ship, things go a little awry. Since this was so heavy on the comedy, it was a miss for me because it just wasn’t my style of humor. I also didn’t feel much of a connection to the characters, and in combination with the humor and how rarely space-forward sci-fi works for me, it really wasn’t for me, though I can absolutely see how it would be a hit for anyone who is into those things!
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September 20, 2025DNF at just 7%. These characters aren't smart enough for my anxiety to stay reasonable. If you like sf, you might like this, it has promise. It's just not for me.
October 31, 2023
Amateurly written--telling where showing was needed, shaky pacing, a camera POV that flattens the narrative, and weak humor that doesn't manage to be funny but does demolish dramatic tension. The plotting is mildly competent, even engaging toward the end.
You can say it's a hard sci-fi but only because it's plotted in that unimaginative way where you get the mandatory rogue AI that in light of Chat GPT already aged badly, a Star Trek weaksauce of technobabble (with all the ST weaknesses and none of the strengths), standard FTL drives and plasma engines, and all the plot promises fulfilled EXACTLY the way you saw them 4 thousand times in D category movies and tv shows, down to the ramming of the ship into the enemy and the last second save of the main guy.
I was going to give it a 3 star, maybe even 3.5 rounded up to 4 because it ended with a genuinely exciting narrative promise, namely that the next book will treat the invasion of the race the AI came to prepare the galaxy against. I was actually about to press buy on the next one but then a pathologic mix of dread and paranoia made me check the blurbs and, lo and behold, the author decided to make them about something else, something MUCH LESS INTERESTING. Some trite time travel crap he's confident he can write probably from memory.
I'm bored of incompetent authors who can't identify their own narrative promises.
Gets 2* because I managed to finish it, which usually happens if the author didn't add anything terribly annoying or toxic. Granted, it was free on Audible, or I wouldn't have picked it up by the blurb to being with (it's obvious it's nothing original).
You can say it's a hard sci-fi but only because it's plotted in that unimaginative way where you get the mandatory rogue AI that in light of Chat GPT already aged badly, a Star Trek weaksauce of technobabble (with all the ST weaknesses and none of the strengths), standard FTL drives and plasma engines, and all the plot promises fulfilled EXACTLY the way you saw them 4 thousand times in D category movies and tv shows, down to the ramming of the ship into the enemy and the last second save of the main guy.
I was going to give it a 3 star, maybe even 3.5 rounded up to 4 because it ended with a genuinely exciting narrative promise, namely that the next book will treat the invasion of the race the AI came to prepare the galaxy against. I was actually about to press buy on the next one but then a pathologic mix of dread and paranoia made me check the blurbs and, lo and behold, the author decided to make them about something else, something MUCH LESS INTERESTING. Some trite time travel crap he's confident he can write probably from memory.
I'm bored of incompetent authors who can't identify their own narrative promises.
Gets 2* because I managed to finish it, which usually happens if the author didn't add anything terribly annoying or toxic. Granted, it was free on Audible, or I wouldn't have picked it up by the blurb to being with (it's obvious it's nothing original).
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January 20, 2023SPSFC Quarter Finalist Review
Bloodlines
Peter Hartog
Do you like detective stories? How about detective stories with heavy noir vibes? How about detective stories with heavy noir vibes and a dash of vampires and the undead? That’s Bloodlines.
I was very eager to read this book when I found out that it was one of the titles assigned to my team for SPSFC. I love a good detective story, and when you throw in sci-fi/fantasy elements, what could go wrong?
Bloodlines is the start to The Guardian of Empire City series, and while the story does find our main character coming to a new point in his life, he is already a grizzled and battle-worn detective by the start of the novel. It was interesting to watch him grapple with what is expected of him and how it often falls outside the bounds of what he is expected of himself. He very much fit into the stereotypes of the cynical, snarky, noir detective- for better or worse.
I had fun with this novel, but I wish I had had a bit more, as well. The action scenes were well done, the mystery was through and intricate- but I WANT MORE OF THE SFF GOODNESS. That’s just me, though. 😂
If you are looking for a fun detective story with a dash of something special too, this may be just what you are looking for!
Disclaimer: I am part of a team of judges, and my opinions are my own and do not fully represent those of my team.
Bloodlines
Peter Hartog
Do you like detective stories? How about detective stories with heavy noir vibes? How about detective stories with heavy noir vibes and a dash of vampires and the undead? That’s Bloodlines.
I was very eager to read this book when I found out that it was one of the titles assigned to my team for SPSFC. I love a good detective story, and when you throw in sci-fi/fantasy elements, what could go wrong?
Bloodlines is the start to The Guardian of Empire City series, and while the story does find our main character coming to a new point in his life, he is already a grizzled and battle-worn detective by the start of the novel. It was interesting to watch him grapple with what is expected of him and how it often falls outside the bounds of what he is expected of himself. He very much fit into the stereotypes of the cynical, snarky, noir detective- for better or worse.
I had fun with this novel, but I wish I had had a bit more, as well. The action scenes were well done, the mystery was through and intricate- but I WANT MORE OF THE SFF GOODNESS. That’s just me, though. 😂
If you are looking for a fun detective story with a dash of something special too, this may be just what you are looking for!
Disclaimer: I am part of a team of judges, and my opinions are my own and do not fully represent those of my team.
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October 16, 2021As the blurb suggests, this is a humorous SF adventure. It's a fast-paced romp where Franklin and his team play a game of cat and mouse in space with what we might see as a souped-up dog.
The prose was straightforward and easy to read, and I didn't notice any typos. The SF elements, plot logic and discoveries weren't massively plausible, but I don't think that's a handicap for this style of book.
The team members were as described on the tin: snarky but talented, brilliant but buckles under stress, a killing machine with a soft heart and so on. They felt more like types than people, but again that goes with the territory. Despite wholesale destruction going on in the background, the characters never seemed to act as if they were worried about the perils they faced.
Of course, humour is a very subjective thing. My sense of humour isn't strong. The banter and fourth wall breaking didn't appeal to me, but I'm sure many readers will appreciate it. I wonder if it might work better on screen than on page.
The prose was straightforward and easy to read, and I didn't notice any typos. The SF elements, plot logic and discoveries weren't massively plausible, but I don't think that's a handicap for this style of book.
The team members were as described on the tin: snarky but talented, brilliant but buckles under stress, a killing machine with a soft heart and so on. They felt more like types than people, but again that goes with the territory. Despite wholesale destruction going on in the background, the characters never seemed to act as if they were worried about the perils they faced.
Of course, humour is a very subjective thing. My sense of humour isn't strong. The banter and fourth wall breaking didn't appeal to me, but I'm sure many readers will appreciate it. I wonder if it might work better on screen than on page.
June 20, 2021
Despite a few hiccups along the way, a pretty enjoyable read! And a nice change from the all too many stodgily serious SF reads out there, honestly, lol. ;)
It did manage to have its serious moments as well, but brought a nice lightening levity to most of itself even in its most shadowy chapters. I appreciated most of the snarky sarcasm of the main ragtag crew, and look forward to rejoining and reading about them again in future installments. It was a little strange that none of them picked up on the fairly apparent in-character hinting at a sequel (i.e. that however devastating these alien critters were they were not, in fact, the real Big Bad behind everything)...but I’m sure they’ll figure it out soon enough.
I’d recommend this as a worthwhile light read to most science fiction fans out there. I did get an ARC of this to review, but knowing that I’ll want to reread it at least a few more times I readily bought a “proper” copy as well. ;)
It did manage to have its serious moments as well, but brought a nice lightening levity to most of itself even in its most shadowy chapters. I appreciated most of the snarky sarcasm of the main ragtag crew, and look forward to rejoining and reading about them again in future installments. It was a little strange that none of them picked up on the fairly apparent in-character hinting at a sequel (i.e. that however devastating these alien critters were they were not, in fact, the real Big Bad behind everything)...but I’m sure they’ll figure it out soon enough.
I’d recommend this as a worthwhile light read to most science fiction fans out there. I did get an ARC of this to review, but knowing that I’ll want to reread it at least a few more times I readily bought a “proper” copy as well. ;)
June 14, 2021
Iridius is almost an antihero from the start. Arrogant and never to blame he captains a hauler called the Diesel Coast, an unattractive space freighter. His crew, too, are oddballs, misfits and totally loyal to their captain and their ship. The book follows Iridius as he adventures his way through the big black of space. There are some edge of seat moments and immense space battles. An almost love interest and lots of humour make it fun even in the sad or scary bits. I loved the humour. Didn’t care much for the Captain at the start but he grew on me pretty quickly. This really was a great read!
June 14, 2021
Loved this laugh out loud sci-fi adventure!
Justin Woolley somehow managed to take a high stakes sci-fi adventure and add just the right amount ot humor to create a laugh out loud page turner. There is an eclectic cast of characters that feel grounded in the universe created, but all react so differently, but naturally in Capt. Frankin's orbit. I look forward to the next entry, the is a crew, and a glaxay I want to revist again and again!
Justin Woolley somehow managed to take a high stakes sci-fi adventure and add just the right amount ot humor to create a laugh out loud page turner. There is an eclectic cast of characters that feel grounded in the universe created, but all react so differently, but naturally in Capt. Frankin's orbit. I look forward to the next entry, the is a crew, and a glaxay I want to revist again and again!
February 18, 2023
The galaxy must be prepared.
A really fun and well-constructed old-fashioned space adventure, full of kablooeys, aliens of all ilk and a mysterious threat to life as we know it! Justin Woolley's "Shakedowners" was just what I needed after several days of reading some really deep and borderline emotionally scarring fantasy! It was a great joy to sit back, watch the Earth be destroyed and wonder if things would still somehow work out in the end. Answer: still open on that last bit. But hey, if the guy that finished last at the Academy because he was a lazy drunk can't save us, then who can?
Let’s see if we can’t act as the postman here and survive being chased by an enormous ravenous dog that wants to annihilate us and convert the galaxy to pink slime.
The story itself is quite well-written and -edited and Woolley's pacing was spot on! Although I wouldn't call the humo(u)r necessarily "laugh out loud" funny, it did do the job when required. In fact, of the couple of nits I would pick about this offer, the biggest would be the dramatic oversell of the original ad that brought this book to my attention in the first place! Whereas I would agree obviously with the assessments (or quotes or blurbs or whatever they were) that this was indeed a fun read, I wouldn't go as far as to place it on the same categorical level as, quote, "Douglas Adams at his best." First of all, I don't think that's achievable and secondly, it wasn't really needed because this was a much more serious space adventure than Adams was ever interested in penning!
Stop praising him for that pun. That’s an order.
And whereas I'm usually quite glad when an author, particularly in the realm of sci-fi, doesn't "waste" (um, spend?) a lot of time explaining all the technical bits, particularly when it comes to something like FTL travel, Woolley left me more than a bit confused in some cases. For example, the whole BAMF'ing about struck me as just a tad contradictory (yeah, THAT is the thing we can't understand!) when if we'd left it as simply "a really cool thing that works somehow", I would have been quite happy. Case in point, at one stage the author comments that in the alternate reality created for travelling that "nothing, not even subatomic particles, existed to support life." And yet, we learn earlier that when a ship comes out of said BAMF'ing, it "(caused) eleven hundred species that had evolved, developed intelligence and formed advanced civilisations inside the bubble universe to blink out of existence." So be brief, sure, even be weird… but be consistently so! Now I'm going to go have a good lie down and try to flush those brain cells dedicated to same out my ear canals...
The (ship) slowed to a stop before encasing itself in another universe and vanishing with a middle finger to the laws of physics, leaving the universe utterly confused about what had just happened.
I also found myself wishing we had spent a little more time getting to know this motley crew (why are those two words always associated with each other?) in more detail than what was needed to explain a given behavior or reaction to what was going on around them. Probably just me wanting to rush forward with some bits that will become clearer as the trilogy progresses. But I mean, come on, one of them is a living walking tumor (yes, Arnold Blackennegger, it IS a tumor this time!). How cool is that? Still, no matter how well we got to know everyone, you have to admit that witnessing the destruction of our lovely blue-green homeworld (among others) with nothing more than a bit of a shrug and "well that sucks" was a bit of a muted reaction.
A long pause followed – not so much a pregnant pause; more like a pause that had eaten too many burritos.
Having gotten that off my thorax, I would be amiss if I didn't acknowledge a score of terrific parts that should be appreciated, saluted and even scratched on the wall of a rest station pay toilet. I definitely enjoyed the cultural references, especially in terms of the plethora of Star Trek (“Good luck. No red shirts.”) and Star Wars nods. Heck, I even like to think I spotted several X-Men/Marvel (uh BAMF? Anyone?) and even a well-noted Red Dwarf reference or three! Heck, the return of Heck: if you pay attention, you might even notice the strong Brooklyn Nine-Nine vibe at one point (it was cool, cool, cool)! So bonus points from this reader for all of that as well! I'm sure I missed a lot but let's be honest: I did try to stay drunk through most of my reading experience (I wanted to put myself in the Captain's shoes, honest)!
The ship was throwing a screaming, thrashing tantrum about being forced to overload its engines when all it wanted was to have an ice cream and not explode.
Bottom-line is this was a good scifi story that should please all but the hardest of hardcore fans (e.g. the ones that will write you and tell you just how wrong your estimation of railgun calibre and range would be in space). There is a lot of potential left to be explored, particularly in terms of crew dynamic (heck, even the promise of some serious SnuSnu is worth it) and the variety of threats that are still "out there"! I'm excited to continue the trilogy and see how it all turns out! Talk to you soon. Live long and may the Force prosper, you smegheads!
A really fun and well-constructed old-fashioned space adventure, full of kablooeys, aliens of all ilk and a mysterious threat to life as we know it! Justin Woolley's "Shakedowners" was just what I needed after several days of reading some really deep and borderline emotionally scarring fantasy! It was a great joy to sit back, watch the Earth be destroyed and wonder if things would still somehow work out in the end. Answer: still open on that last bit. But hey, if the guy that finished last at the Academy because he was a lazy drunk can't save us, then who can?
Let’s see if we can’t act as the postman here and survive being chased by an enormous ravenous dog that wants to annihilate us and convert the galaxy to pink slime.
The story itself is quite well-written and -edited and Woolley's pacing was spot on! Although I wouldn't call the humo(u)r necessarily "laugh out loud" funny, it did do the job when required. In fact, of the couple of nits I would pick about this offer, the biggest would be the dramatic oversell of the original ad that brought this book to my attention in the first place! Whereas I would agree obviously with the assessments (or quotes or blurbs or whatever they were) that this was indeed a fun read, I wouldn't go as far as to place it on the same categorical level as, quote, "Douglas Adams at his best." First of all, I don't think that's achievable and secondly, it wasn't really needed because this was a much more serious space adventure than Adams was ever interested in penning!
Stop praising him for that pun. That’s an order.
And whereas I'm usually quite glad when an author, particularly in the realm of sci-fi, doesn't "waste" (um, spend?) a lot of time explaining all the technical bits, particularly when it comes to something like FTL travel, Woolley left me more than a bit confused in some cases. For example, the whole BAMF'ing about struck me as just a tad contradictory (yeah, THAT is the thing we can't understand!) when if we'd left it as simply "a really cool thing that works somehow", I would have been quite happy. Case in point, at one stage the author comments that in the alternate reality created for travelling that "nothing, not even subatomic particles, existed to support life." And yet, we learn earlier that when a ship comes out of said BAMF'ing, it "(caused) eleven hundred species that had evolved, developed intelligence and formed advanced civilisations inside the bubble universe to blink out of existence." So be brief, sure, even be weird… but be consistently so! Now I'm going to go have a good lie down and try to flush those brain cells dedicated to same out my ear canals...
The (ship) slowed to a stop before encasing itself in another universe and vanishing with a middle finger to the laws of physics, leaving the universe utterly confused about what had just happened.
I also found myself wishing we had spent a little more time getting to know this motley crew (why are those two words always associated with each other?) in more detail than what was needed to explain a given behavior or reaction to what was going on around them. Probably just me wanting to rush forward with some bits that will become clearer as the trilogy progresses. But I mean, come on, one of them is a living walking tumor (yes, Arnold Blackennegger, it IS a tumor this time!). How cool is that? Still, no matter how well we got to know everyone, you have to admit that witnessing the destruction of our lovely blue-green homeworld (among others) with nothing more than a bit of a shrug and "well that sucks" was a bit of a muted reaction.
A long pause followed – not so much a pregnant pause; more like a pause that had eaten too many burritos.
Having gotten that off my thorax, I would be amiss if I didn't acknowledge a score of terrific parts that should be appreciated, saluted and even scratched on the wall of a rest station pay toilet. I definitely enjoyed the cultural references, especially in terms of the plethora of Star Trek (“Good luck. No red shirts.”) and Star Wars nods. Heck, I even like to think I spotted several X-Men/Marvel (uh BAMF? Anyone?) and even a well-noted Red Dwarf reference or three! Heck, the return of Heck: if you pay attention, you might even notice the strong Brooklyn Nine-Nine vibe at one point (it was cool, cool, cool)! So bonus points from this reader for all of that as well! I'm sure I missed a lot but let's be honest: I did try to stay drunk through most of my reading experience (I wanted to put myself in the Captain's shoes, honest)!
The ship was throwing a screaming, thrashing tantrum about being forced to overload its engines when all it wanted was to have an ice cream and not explode.
Bottom-line is this was a good scifi story that should please all but the hardest of hardcore fans (e.g. the ones that will write you and tell you just how wrong your estimation of railgun calibre and range would be in space). There is a lot of potential left to be explored, particularly in terms of crew dynamic (heck, even the promise of some serious SnuSnu is worth it) and the variety of threats that are still "out there"! I'm excited to continue the trilogy and see how it all turns out! Talk to you soon. Live long and may the Force prosper, you smegheads!
August 23, 2021
Less than Expected
The storyline manages to devolve rapidly from a well placed beginning. While the author’s intent might have been for SciFi comedy, this simple failed to deliver for me. I struggled to stay interested and eventually just quit.
The storyline manages to devolve rapidly from a well placed beginning. While the author’s intent might have been for SciFi comedy, this simple failed to deliver for me. I struggled to stay interested and eventually just quit.
December 9, 2023
Good, light sci-fi entertainment, *very* reminiscent of The Orville, only slightly less goofy - but also without the occasionally surprising depth of that show. Interested to see what happens beyond this "pilot episode".
partly-read
June 25, 2021I just don't find gruesome deaths of the innocent and hapless to be hilarious.
July 5, 2021
I received a copy of this book from the author. I had the opportunity to review or not.
A motley crew fills the space between the covers of this book. It is, without a doubt, a fun filled tale. Action is its second name and adventure its first. We are taken on a trip through universes filled with danger and excitement. A new type of alien intelligence is attempting to take over everything and it is up to Captain Iridius B. Franklin to prevent them. Disgraced and commanding the freighter the FSC Diesel Coast supply ship, Captain Franklin has a lot to contend with. He has been relegated to command nothing too important, except supply ships are important, aren't they? He is a great pilot, but a complete mess up.
Until there is only him to counter a universal disaster.
The question is, can he measure up? Come aboard the Diesel Coast with a crew that you will never find on Captain Kirk's ship and discover them. Who are they? Why are they with Captain Franklin? The imagination of Justin Woolley knows no bounds as he takes us on an incomparable journey through space.
This book is filled with humor, fun, adventure and exhilarating danger. The strong characters that Woolley builds pull you in. You become invested in their well-being and success. They are just not the type of heroes we are used to reading about. I enjoyed the humor and comradery of this group of space travelers. Even as they faced inevitable destruction they hung together as they chased, or fled, from an enemy never before seen. I will definitely read more of Mr. Woolley's writing. He made my day with this tale.
A motley crew fills the space between the covers of this book. It is, without a doubt, a fun filled tale. Action is its second name and adventure its first. We are taken on a trip through universes filled with danger and excitement. A new type of alien intelligence is attempting to take over everything and it is up to Captain Iridius B. Franklin to prevent them. Disgraced and commanding the freighter the FSC Diesel Coast supply ship, Captain Franklin has a lot to contend with. He has been relegated to command nothing too important, except supply ships are important, aren't they? He is a great pilot, but a complete mess up.
Until there is only him to counter a universal disaster.
The question is, can he measure up? Come aboard the Diesel Coast with a crew that you will never find on Captain Kirk's ship and discover them. Who are they? Why are they with Captain Franklin? The imagination of Justin Woolley knows no bounds as he takes us on an incomparable journey through space.
This book is filled with humor, fun, adventure and exhilarating danger. The strong characters that Woolley builds pull you in. You become invested in their well-being and success. They are just not the type of heroes we are used to reading about. I enjoyed the humor and comradery of this group of space travelers. Even as they faced inevitable destruction they hung together as they chased, or fled, from an enemy never before seen. I will definitely read more of Mr. Woolley's writing. He made my day with this tale.
June 17, 2024
Hitchhikers guide to the universe with less stakes and more short term memory issues. A case example why military has intelligence requirements and standards for recruitment. Space swashbuckler is not intelligent, brings a virus that spells doom to the planet to Earth - like, come on, - even irl in 20th century isolation wards and quarantine procedures were in place (in civilized America, not so much in the communist hell pit of the USSR) for returning to Earth from the space.
Story doesn't present itself seriously so why would readers take it seriously. If Shakedowners offered solid characters or motives, or novelty in this genre then the ever less serious action sequences could be excused, but as it is, Douglas Adams original trilogy offers all the good and much less of the bad that Shakedowners suffers from. As for sci-fi, only fiction is present, and beyond being a randomly selected setting the space force aspect is thrown outboard for the farcical comic story. Similar but worse to such movies as Monty Python, series Black Udder, both of which accomplish what Shakedowners does but much better.
Conclusion: 1/5. Listened on Audible included in plus catalogue. Narrated by: Grant Cartwright.
No originality, utterly whimsical and clownish. Got nothing to do with the sci-fi. Terrible value for the length of the book - 2.45 $/hour (21.49$ / 08 hrs 47 mins ).
Values:
Terrible: >1.66 $/hour
Bad: 1 - 1.66 $/hour
Good: <1 $/hour
Dream: 0.4 - 0.27 $/hour
Story doesn't present itself seriously so why would readers take it seriously. If Shakedowners offered solid characters or motives, or novelty in this genre then the ever less serious action sequences could be excused, but as it is, Douglas Adams original trilogy offers all the good and much less of the bad that Shakedowners suffers from. As for sci-fi, only fiction is present, and beyond being a randomly selected setting the space force aspect is thrown outboard for the farcical comic story. Similar but worse to such movies as Monty Python, series Black Udder, both of which accomplish what Shakedowners does but much better.
Conclusion: 1/5. Listened on Audible included in plus catalogue. Narrated by: Grant Cartwright.
No originality, utterly whimsical and clownish. Got nothing to do with the sci-fi. Terrible value for the length of the book - 2.45 $/hour (21.49$ / 08 hrs 47 mins ).
Values:
Terrible: >1.66 $/hour
Bad: 1 - 1.66 $/hour
Good: <1 $/hour
Dream: 0.4 - 0.27 $/hour
May 20, 2025
There is a strong possibility that: 1) this is not my type of humor and 2) I read way too much really really well written books.
Let me explain.
1)
I dont like The Office. I find it cringe. I think this book might have that same type of humor? I don't exactly know. I just know a lot of people like The Office and shows of that caliber and I dont find them funny.
2) I'm seeing several comparisons to Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy. There is no one that I know who is a bigger Douglas Adams fan than I am. The books are funny and zanny. Things make sense in the galaxy that Adams builds. Its a space adventure, where you understand that things are not going to make sense. Its easy to just read the story and get lost in it. I'd also say that's because its really well written.
I just could not bear this plot any longer and this is one of the few DNF books in my list. The MC tells another starfleet captain that this other person was his lover and that phrase just took all my interest out of the book. There is no way that character should have said that. It's super cringe.
Anyone in their right mind would NEVER EVER have brought their ship back to the home planet. "Oh I just found a planet turned to red goo by nano bots that attacked me. SURLY they cant survive vacuum. Yeah, sure hes a fuckup. But no sorry. I don't want to read that anymore.
Let me explain.
1)
I dont like The Office. I find it cringe. I think this book might have that same type of humor? I don't exactly know. I just know a lot of people like The Office and shows of that caliber and I dont find them funny.
2) I'm seeing several comparisons to Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy. There is no one that I know who is a bigger Douglas Adams fan than I am. The books are funny and zanny. Things make sense in the galaxy that Adams builds. Its a space adventure, where you understand that things are not going to make sense. Its easy to just read the story and get lost in it. I'd also say that's because its really well written.
I just could not bear this plot any longer and this is one of the few DNF books in my list. The MC tells another starfleet captain that this other person was his lover and that phrase just took all my interest out of the book. There is no way that character should have said that. It's super cringe.
Anyone in their right mind would NEVER EVER have brought their ship back to the home planet. "Oh I just found a planet turned to red goo by nano bots that attacked me. SURLY they cant survive vacuum. Yeah, sure hes a fuckup. But no sorry. I don't want to read that anymore.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 2, 2023
SPSFC 2 Semi-Finalist Review.
My Rating: 7.5/10 (or rounded to 4/5 on a 5 point scale)
This is a comedy-forward space opera set about 200 years in the future. Comedy is shockingly hard to write in a way that will appeal to everyone (or even to most, as all is probably impossible). Overall I feel Woolley mostly did a good job of it, though there were times where the humor fell flat to me or just felt so forced or inappropriate to the circumstances that it pulled me out of the book. Like many comedies, some of the setups are a bit over-the-top ridiculous in a way that doesn't always appeal to my own sense of humor.
The book does move along at a good pace and tends not to bog down, which I did appreciate. I also liked the break from some of the doom and gloom. Dystopian is not my favorite subgenre, but there's a lot of it out there right now. Although some pretty awful things happen in the course of this book, the gloom is not the central aspect at all.
Our protagonist who carries the book forward is Captain Iridius B. Franklin. Iridius barely scraped through the Space Academy but he does find himself as the Captain of a starship now – a 50 years out of date hauler that gets all the glamorous assignments like hauling rocks, space trash, and toy dogs on a “humanitarian mission” to a colony which suffered a recent disaster. We'll come back to the dogs later.
Along with the usual freight runs, occasionally Iridius gets assignments that spice up his life when he gets to take new ships out on their shakedown cruise. He gets these assignments because he has an unholy gift for making ships show their malfunctions, affectionately known as “Franklinisms”. He's also, to be fair, pretty cool under the pressure these malfunctions cause.
As we meet Iridius and his crew of charming misfits, they are the first to discover a new threat to the galaxy that leaves people as piles of pink goo. After bringing word of the threat to the Federation, Iridius is assigned to take the brand new FSC Galloway out on her shakedown cruise. Hijinks ensue as the shakedown cruise doesn't go as planned (but when do they?). The threat to the galaxy that surfaces is equal parts ridiculous and terrifying, but I don't want to spoil it for you!
The banter between Iridius and his own crew of misfits, plus the crew of the FSC Galloway is generally amusing. Some of the distinctly current pop-culture references worked for me and some fell flat. I did enjoy (mostly) the interactions between Iridius and the intended captain of the FSC Galloway, Iridius' ex-girlfriend from their Space Academy days, Captain April Idowu. Some of that conflict was fun, but some of Iridius' internal commentary about April was a real turnoff for me – especially one passage where he reflected on how seeing her take command of the ship was sexy. Iridius' inability to deal with emotion in a mature way also didn't quite hit the right comedy notes for me, which I believe was intended.
I did enjoy that a few alien races were included in the cast of characters. They seemed fun and interesting but weren't explored in depth.
Overall an enjoyable read, though it didn't quite hit all the right notes for me. If this matches up with your sense of humor you'll probably love it.
Recommended for: Fans of old school Star Trek – especially if you were in it for Captain James T. Kirk, fans of Guardians of the Galaxy (but who isn't?) or Galaxy Quest
My Rating: 7.5/10 (or rounded to 4/5 on a 5 point scale)
This is a comedy-forward space opera set about 200 years in the future. Comedy is shockingly hard to write in a way that will appeal to everyone (or even to most, as all is probably impossible). Overall I feel Woolley mostly did a good job of it, though there were times where the humor fell flat to me or just felt so forced or inappropriate to the circumstances that it pulled me out of the book. Like many comedies, some of the setups are a bit over-the-top ridiculous in a way that doesn't always appeal to my own sense of humor.
The book does move along at a good pace and tends not to bog down, which I did appreciate. I also liked the break from some of the doom and gloom. Dystopian is not my favorite subgenre, but there's a lot of it out there right now. Although some pretty awful things happen in the course of this book, the gloom is not the central aspect at all.
Our protagonist who carries the book forward is Captain Iridius B. Franklin. Iridius barely scraped through the Space Academy but he does find himself as the Captain of a starship now – a 50 years out of date hauler that gets all the glamorous assignments like hauling rocks, space trash, and toy dogs on a “humanitarian mission” to a colony which suffered a recent disaster. We'll come back to the dogs later.
Along with the usual freight runs, occasionally Iridius gets assignments that spice up his life when he gets to take new ships out on their shakedown cruise. He gets these assignments because he has an unholy gift for making ships show their malfunctions, affectionately known as “Franklinisms”. He's also, to be fair, pretty cool under the pressure these malfunctions cause.
As we meet Iridius and his crew of charming misfits, they are the first to discover a new threat to the galaxy that leaves people as piles of pink goo. After bringing word of the threat to the Federation, Iridius is assigned to take the brand new FSC Galloway out on her shakedown cruise. Hijinks ensue as the shakedown cruise doesn't go as planned (but when do they?). The threat to the galaxy that surfaces is equal parts ridiculous and terrifying, but I don't want to spoil it for you!
The banter between Iridius and his own crew of misfits, plus the crew of the FSC Galloway is generally amusing. Some of the distinctly current pop-culture references worked for me and some fell flat. I did enjoy (mostly) the interactions between Iridius and the intended captain of the FSC Galloway, Iridius' ex-girlfriend from their Space Academy days, Captain April Idowu. Some of that conflict was fun, but some of Iridius' internal commentary about April was a real turnoff for me – especially one passage where he reflected on how seeing her take command of the ship was sexy. Iridius' inability to deal with emotion in a mature way also didn't quite hit the right comedy notes for me, which I believe was intended.
I did enjoy that a few alien races were included in the cast of characters. They seemed fun and interesting but weren't explored in depth.
Overall an enjoyable read, though it didn't quite hit all the right notes for me. If this matches up with your sense of humor you'll probably love it.
Recommended for: Fans of old school Star Trek – especially if you were in it for Captain James T. Kirk, fans of Guardians of the Galaxy (but who isn't?) or Galaxy Quest
February 21, 2022
This book is a well written parody of Star Trek and other space adventures. I should have liked it, but for some reason it really felt like a slog to get through.
I think part of my struggle was that I really didn't like Captain Iridius in the beginning, and I was not very interested in reading his story. He grew on me slightly as the story progressed but I don't think I ever really forgave him for being a "lazy, often drunk, unambitious, waste of talent", blundering his way into causing planetary-level destruction.
I liked the side characters well enough (and was delighted by the idea of an entity that's part of a race of malignant tumor) but they didn't manage to recover the story for me. They all felt like the surface level tropes they were each representing (e.g. arrogant ace pilot, high achieving/hard working rival starship captain, etc.), without a whole lot more depth. I liked the ending and the kind of found family vibes in the last chapter, but I'm not really interested in reading future books in this series.
If you read a sample and like Iridius in the beginning, I think you'll like the book. If not, give it a miss...
Received a copy as a Goodreads Giveaway!
I think part of my struggle was that I really didn't like Captain Iridius in the beginning, and I was not very interested in reading his story. He grew on me slightly as the story progressed but I don't think I ever really forgave him for being a "lazy, often drunk, unambitious, waste of talent", blundering his way into causing planetary-level destruction.
I liked the side characters well enough (and was delighted by the idea of an entity that's part of a race of malignant tumor) but they didn't manage to recover the story for me. They all felt like the surface level tropes they were each representing (e.g. arrogant ace pilot, high achieving/hard working rival starship captain, etc.), without a whole lot more depth. I liked the ending and the kind of found family vibes in the last chapter, but I'm not really interested in reading future books in this series.
If you read a sample and like Iridius in the beginning, I think you'll like the book. If not, give it a miss...
Received a copy as a Goodreads Giveaway!
October 1, 2025
Good story, great characters and fun to read
I have read all sorts of science fiction books and greatly enjoy the genre in all its forms. From hard sci fi to space operas to the predictive and speculative to the meditative. This is clearly in the action hard sci fi probably more opera categories. However it’s classified, it was great. Yes it’s somewhat predictable and has many familiar beats found thought the genre and action adventure books. Ok it is almost formulaic. Sandwiches are formulaic too - they all have the same basic structure - yet we keep eating them and still appreciate a good one. That’s what we have here. A good sandwich that will satisfy a craving. This book takes you along for a fun adventure with Iridius and his odd crew. It contains a fun story with a great main character and supporting cast that will keep you engaged. If you can imagine a ship looking like a giant toy dog attacking the galaxy, then you’re at the right place. It’s that kind of vibe.
I have read all sorts of science fiction books and greatly enjoy the genre in all its forms. From hard sci fi to space operas to the predictive and speculative to the meditative. This is clearly in the action hard sci fi probably more opera categories. However it’s classified, it was great. Yes it’s somewhat predictable and has many familiar beats found thought the genre and action adventure books. Ok it is almost formulaic. Sandwiches are formulaic too - they all have the same basic structure - yet we keep eating them and still appreciate a good one. That’s what we have here. A good sandwich that will satisfy a craving. This book takes you along for a fun adventure with Iridius and his odd crew. It contains a fun story with a great main character and supporting cast that will keep you engaged. If you can imagine a ship looking like a giant toy dog attacking the galaxy, then you’re at the right place. It’s that kind of vibe.
September 1, 2021
A fun romp with enough references to make most sci-fi fans happy.
October 27, 2023
You know when you get a new Brandon Sanderson book and you start reading and at first you're all "Ah! He does comedy again. It's not even serious. I am not going to like this book!" and by the end you're in love with the characters and want to know more, regardless? That's what Justin Woolley pulled in Shakedowners.
Starting as an obvious satire to Star Trek, with a lot of Lower Decks energy, it turns into a really fun and captivating "brave captain saves the galaxy" story. There were places where I felt the enormity of what was written did not fit at all with the laid back Aussie attitude, but most of the time it was just a lot of fun. I finished it in a day and I am curious enough to want to read the rest of the series.
Bottom line: the perfect palate cleanser after a darkly satirical view of humankind that made me have misanthropic genocidal thoughts for days, a book that lifts spirits and reminds one that Trekkies are not gone.
Starting as an obvious satire to Star Trek, with a lot of Lower Decks energy, it turns into a really fun and captivating "brave captain saves the galaxy" story. There were places where I felt the enormity of what was written did not fit at all with the laid back Aussie attitude, but most of the time it was just a lot of fun. I finished it in a day and I am curious enough to want to read the rest of the series.
Bottom line: the perfect palate cleanser after a darkly satirical view of humankind that made me have misanthropic genocidal thoughts for days, a book that lifts spirits and reminds one that Trekkies are not gone.
September 19, 2024
Need to preface this by admitting that I have never read Twilight…
But there is a line of dialogue in this book, set in space, presumably in the distant future, in which a character says, “still a better love story than Twilight.”
It’s a reference that only the reader understands. It has no real place in the story other than to stroke the author’s own sense of humour, which appears to belong to a 12 year old boy.
I’m being nit-picky here because I think there is an unwritten (possibly even unspoken) rule that if you are going to take little swings at other franchises or whatever, then you gotta make sure that you are better than what you are swinging at.
This is a book that has characters as flat and as thin as the pages their story is printed on.
The humour felt forced.
It’s usually not a good sign when you can feel the author projecting through their characters to the extent that none of them felt like their own person.
But there is a line of dialogue in this book, set in space, presumably in the distant future, in which a character says, “still a better love story than Twilight.”
It’s a reference that only the reader understands. It has no real place in the story other than to stroke the author’s own sense of humour, which appears to belong to a 12 year old boy.
I’m being nit-picky here because I think there is an unwritten (possibly even unspoken) rule that if you are going to take little swings at other franchises or whatever, then you gotta make sure that you are better than what you are swinging at.
This is a book that has characters as flat and as thin as the pages their story is printed on.
The humour felt forced.
It’s usually not a good sign when you can feel the author projecting through their characters to the extent that none of them felt like their own person.
September 24, 2021
I think this book could be an enjoying read depending on what you like. It kinda reminds me of Galaxy Quest mixed in with Star Trek. Meant to be a sci-fi comedy. If you like those kinds of sci-fi movies, tv shows or books - this could be a book you enjoy, even though it was a good book for me.
If the language and some of the content had been a little more age appropriate I think this would have made a really good middle grade novel. I made a lot of notes while reading this book, some of the notes could be scene as petty, but I wanted to take my review seriously. While it does have some funny moments, there are some scenes that are a little more violent and even some wording that could be done a little more tactfully.
I was given a free copy for this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
If the language and some of the content had been a little more age appropriate I think this would have made a really good middle grade novel. I made a lot of notes while reading this book, some of the notes could be scene as petty, but I wanted to take my review seriously. While it does have some funny moments, there are some scenes that are a little more violent and even some wording that could be done a little more tactfully.
I was given a free copy for this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
July 18, 2022
I love good Sci Fi, and especially if there is some humor in it. For example the Star trek episode Trouble with Tribbles, or the movie about coming back to earth to save the whales. This book is like that on steroids. There is humor, satire, quirky characters and a downright great story that keeps on moving. The premise alone gives an idea of the wackiness of the story:ban old cargo space ship carrying AI dogs to a distant planet accidentally infects the universe with a dangerous alien. So it falls to Capt Iridius Franklin, who finished at the bottom of his class at the Academy, and his crew of misfits, to help save the galaxy. With starships named the Dumbledore, the Betteljuice and the Shatner among others, you know this is going to be good. The story line is fast and although there is a follow on book, this can be read alone... but i am reading it now.
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