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Jiao Tu’s Endeavour: Episode 1: The Kidnapped Mousling
On a multigenerational colony ship five hundred years off course, a lagomorph warrior must survive using only his wits and his sword.
Jiao Tu has been hired to rescue a young kidnapped mousling. A tip leads him to the Below, home to the engines that keep the world in motion. His mission has hardly begun when an encounter with a monstrous being plunges him into the midst of a struggle not only for control of the Below but for the world itself.
Teamed with an untested ratling warrior and the ratling leader of a gang of thugs, Jiao Tu must stop the monster and save the mousling—and the world—before it is too late.
Drawing inspiration from sources as diverse as Leigh Brackett’s planetary romances, Gene Wolfe’s Book of the Long Sun, Robert E. Howard’s Solomon Kane stories, Hideyuki Kikuchi’s Vampire Hunter D, Stan Sakai’s Usagi Yojimbo, and the wuxia tradition starting with Water Margins and Journey to the West, Uitvlugt has created a world all his own that promises a far-future adventure unlike any other.
— “Jiao Tu's Endeavour is a rarity in the Sword & Planet genre. It's like nothing that came before it. Drawing from John Carter, Usagi Yojimbo, and Orphans in the Sky, Uitvlugt has created a fantastic tale no fan of pulp adventure should miss.”
— Henry Vogel, author of the Scout series
— “In a world filled with anti heroes, Jiao Tu is a breath of fresh air. His virtues are on display for all to see. The mysteries around him unfold at just the right time. A real page turner.”
— A.M. Able, author of the Uplift Protocol series
— “An adventure of mystique and mystery in an industrial jungle. Every moment drips with intrigue!”
— T.J. Marquis, author of Life City
— “A loving homage to the pulps of old, an intriguing blend of Sword, Sorcery, and Planet. A story where the hero is morally strong, not just skilled and of strong will, is a delight.”
— D.J. Schreffler
This volume contains the complete first story arc compiled from the web serial Jiao Tu’s Endeavour, as well as the bonus stories “The Festival of Sweets” and “The Last Oracle.” Read more about the lagomorph warrior and his adventures at
Jiao Tu has been hired to rescue a young kidnapped mousling. A tip leads him to the Below, home to the engines that keep the world in motion. His mission has hardly begun when an encounter with a monstrous being plunges him into the midst of a struggle not only for control of the Below but for the world itself.
Teamed with an untested ratling warrior and the ratling leader of a gang of thugs, Jiao Tu must stop the monster and save the mousling—and the world—before it is too late.
Drawing inspiration from sources as diverse as Leigh Brackett’s planetary romances, Gene Wolfe’s Book of the Long Sun, Robert E. Howard’s Solomon Kane stories, Hideyuki Kikuchi’s Vampire Hunter D, Stan Sakai’s Usagi Yojimbo, and the wuxia tradition starting with Water Margins and Journey to the West, Uitvlugt has created a world all his own that promises a far-future adventure unlike any other.
— “Jiao Tu's Endeavour is a rarity in the Sword & Planet genre. It's like nothing that came before it. Drawing from John Carter, Usagi Yojimbo, and Orphans in the Sky, Uitvlugt has created a fantastic tale no fan of pulp adventure should miss.”
— Henry Vogel, author of the Scout series
— “In a world filled with anti heroes, Jiao Tu is a breath of fresh air. His virtues are on display for all to see. The mysteries around him unfold at just the right time. A real page turner.”
— A.M. Able, author of the Uplift Protocol series
— “An adventure of mystique and mystery in an industrial jungle. Every moment drips with intrigue!”
— T.J. Marquis, author of Life City
— “A loving homage to the pulps of old, an intriguing blend of Sword, Sorcery, and Planet. A story where the hero is morally strong, not just skilled and of strong will, is a delight.”
— D.J. Schreffler
This volume contains the complete first story arc compiled from the web serial Jiao Tu’s Endeavour, as well as the bonus stories “The Festival of Sweets” and “The Last Oracle.” Read more about the lagomorph warrior and his adventures at
344 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 16, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 2, 2025
Uitvlugt states, "It started as a challenge on Twitter." Three friends spit-balling ideas on social media. One friend wants to write a story with a space opera setting and Uitvlugt encourages him but adds, "If I were to try it, I'd probably make it furry and go all Space Usagi with it..." To which another friend states, "Dooo eeeet! Because the world needs more Rabbit Ronin in it." This idea of a rabbit swordsman refused to remain unwritten. In the spirit of the pulps Uitvlugt began serializing the story online @ jiaotusendeavour.wordpress.com.
As a fan of many genres of fiction, I still find it hard to pin a label to this collection. This world is a massive spacecraft peopled by sentient bi-pedal animals. This existence has persisted for so long that there are myths and legends about the creation of this world. At some point the world went off course until the day a new oracle or pilot is born.
In the first story, The Kidnapped Mousling, we are introduced to Jiao Tu of the Mid Decks, a wandering swordsman. Jiao Tu has been hired to locate and return a young female who has been taken. With little to go on, he ventures below seeking answers. At every turn he seems to only unearth more questions. Eventually he will be confronted by a creature seemingly made of mist that has been hunting and terrorizing the locals, leaving a wake of dead in its path. What connects the abducted female, Jiao Tu's sword, and the mist creature? The Cult of Reclamations holds many of the answers.
The second story, The Festival of Sweets, is a direct continuation of the events that transpired in the first story. While visiting a prosperous farm Jiao Tu is told of a specter that has been haunting the premises. The matron dismisses the stories as fiction. Undaunted, Jiao Tu seeks answers. The success of the farm hangs in the balance.
The final story, The Last Oracle, is about all new characters. The action starts immediately. Insurrectionists are murdering the oracles and burning down their home. One lone female manages to escape with help from an inner voice and generous people along the way. Lieutenant Lang, leader of the Insurrectionists, refuses to let her escape and hunts her across the world. An animals is most dangerous when it has become cornered.
Jiao Tu's Endeavour was a welcome change of pace for me. I eagerly look forward to Episode 2 later this November.
As a fan of many genres of fiction, I still find it hard to pin a label to this collection. This world is a massive spacecraft peopled by sentient bi-pedal animals. This existence has persisted for so long that there are myths and legends about the creation of this world. At some point the world went off course until the day a new oracle or pilot is born.
In the first story, The Kidnapped Mousling, we are introduced to Jiao Tu of the Mid Decks, a wandering swordsman. Jiao Tu has been hired to locate and return a young female who has been taken. With little to go on, he ventures below seeking answers. At every turn he seems to only unearth more questions. Eventually he will be confronted by a creature seemingly made of mist that has been hunting and terrorizing the locals, leaving a wake of dead in its path. What connects the abducted female, Jiao Tu's sword, and the mist creature? The Cult of Reclamations holds many of the answers.
The second story, The Festival of Sweets, is a direct continuation of the events that transpired in the first story. While visiting a prosperous farm Jiao Tu is told of a specter that has been haunting the premises. The matron dismisses the stories as fiction. Undaunted, Jiao Tu seeks answers. The success of the farm hangs in the balance.
The final story, The Last Oracle, is about all new characters. The action starts immediately. Insurrectionists are murdering the oracles and burning down their home. One lone female manages to escape with help from an inner voice and generous people along the way. Lieutenant Lang, leader of the Insurrectionists, refuses to let her escape and hunts her across the world. An animals is most dangerous when it has become cornered.
Jiao Tu's Endeavour was a welcome change of pace for me. I eagerly look forward to Episode 2 later this November.
June 22, 2022
I’d like to share my thoughts on Donald Jacob Uitvlugt’s Jiao Tu’s Endeavour: Episode 1: The Kidnapped Mousling. It is good fun, great for teens and young adults. Great for young men especially. It feels like ’90s Saturday morn cartoons + chivalric adventure + young-adult anime. Action that keeps going. Check it out! Donald Jacob Uitvlugt’s bonus stories provide good fun and entertainment for those looking for light-hearted adventure that does at times get fairly dark and/or mature.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 2, 2022
I loved the world-building in this book. A generation ship is maintained by various races of uplifted/engineered sentient animals. The journey has gone on so long, a kind of mythology has replaced the history of what they are doing and what their destination is. Despite what the title and the cover art might make you think, this is not a kids' book or Narnia pastiche. This is a richly developed, thoughtful, sci-fi novel. (Although it is compact.) I promise you, in the first few pages, you'll know you are in the hands of an author who has done his homework--if you give this book a try.
The characters with their swords and personal combat are compelling. We get a fascinating blend of the mythic and the post-industrial in this setting of a vast spaceship--big enough to get lost in--that has gone to seed. Where are the people in charge on this multi-century voyage? There's a melancholy sense these characters are orphaned and struggling to find their way, literally and spiritually, in a forlorn, semi-apocalyptic environment.
Highly recommended.
The characters with their swords and personal combat are compelling. We get a fascinating blend of the mythic and the post-industrial in this setting of a vast spaceship--big enough to get lost in--that has gone to seed. Where are the people in charge on this multi-century voyage? There's a melancholy sense these characters are orphaned and struggling to find their way, literally and spiritually, in a forlorn, semi-apocalyptic environment.
Highly recommended.
May 1, 2023
This volume of stories is an imaginative retelling of a Ronin story about a rabbit looking for a kidnapped mouse in the lower parts of a Generational ship. Imagine TMNT if it was in space with a cool history mixed up. The story feels like a slowburn but the action will keep it going. Very original and worth a try.
March 13, 2023
This collection contains one novella and two other complete related space-opera tales. It chronicles the exploits of genetically engineered, intelligent animals who inhabit a vast interstellar ship, large enough to be a de facto planet. The population of this ship has been traveling so long that the reason for its journey, and the identity of those who created the entire edifice and its citizens, has been long forgotten.Over the generations, a simple agrarian culture, heavily influenced by the culture and traditions of ancient China, has developed.
As the story opens, all is not well. The hero, a stoic lop-eared, sword-wielding rabbit, has been hired to rescue a missing mouse female. The kidnapped mousling is the key to the plans of a power-hungry cult of fanatics, and thus many factions and obstacles stand between Jiao Tu and his goal. As he battles his way through the bowels of the vast ship and back again, he is aided and abetted by a cast of characters familiar from traditional quest tales.
The stories are well-paced, the actions scenes just the right length, the prose is crisp and streamlined. Overall, I was thoroughly engrossed in this little book. With such an ambitious setting, I think there is plenty of room for even more world-building, but what's here certainly provides a rich, imaginative field to show off the character's dilemmas, characters that are nicely fleshed-out and relatable. Their very human-like depths of nobility and perseverance, greed and violence, recalled the Redwall books, or even Watership Down.
I'll admit I am unfamiliar with some of the other literary trends that influenced this story, such as the Japanese wandering warrior, or the whole “furry” genre. However, I am a fan of dressed animals having epic adventures, and “Jiao Tu's Endeavor” is certainly a worthy heir to that tradition. Recommended.
As the story opens, all is not well. The hero, a stoic lop-eared, sword-wielding rabbit, has been hired to rescue a missing mouse female. The kidnapped mousling is the key to the plans of a power-hungry cult of fanatics, and thus many factions and obstacles stand between Jiao Tu and his goal. As he battles his way through the bowels of the vast ship and back again, he is aided and abetted by a cast of characters familiar from traditional quest tales.
The stories are well-paced, the actions scenes just the right length, the prose is crisp and streamlined. Overall, I was thoroughly engrossed in this little book. With such an ambitious setting, I think there is plenty of room for even more world-building, but what's here certainly provides a rich, imaginative field to show off the character's dilemmas, characters that are nicely fleshed-out and relatable. Their very human-like depths of nobility and perseverance, greed and violence, recalled the Redwall books, or even Watership Down.
I'll admit I am unfamiliar with some of the other literary trends that influenced this story, such as the Japanese wandering warrior, or the whole “furry” genre. However, I am a fan of dressed animals having epic adventures, and “Jiao Tu's Endeavor” is certainly a worthy heir to that tradition. Recommended.
November 17, 2025
Overall view, it was thoroughly fine. Competent and an enjoyable read but I never felt wowed.
On the plus side, and my favorite part of the book by far, was the world building. The introduction tells you that the Endeavour is a sleeper ship with a crew of uplifted animals but other than that, the world is revealed very organically through the story. It's rarely explicitly spelled out or revealed in a info dump but I got a good feel for how this world works. Like I've at least got a feel for what Reclamations, Systems and Oracles all are. It made for an interesting puzzle to understand how things work and how they're supposed to work. And it tantalized me enough that I'm intrigued to learn more.
Though that gets to the next part, I was never terribly surprised or interested in what was happening. Maybe it's that Jiao Tu felt detached from the plot and so I was detached? It might've been the prose style. Heck, maybe I'm just jaded. It feels like this should've been a more engaging plot than it was but I just wasn't sucked in.
And finally, I found the characters pretty good. Stand out to me, was the lower decks gang leader Chooha. He provided a fun, cynical counterpoint to Jia Tu's more stereotypical upstanding hero or Zhu Song's earnest newbie. Overall, they were all well done and made for an engaging trio that bounced off each other well.
So, overall a lot was done well in here but it lacked that engaging factor to get me really interested. I'm interested in how this story progresses right now but I don't think I'm hooked enough to still be interested when the next book comes available.
On the plus side, and my favorite part of the book by far, was the world building. The introduction tells you that the Endeavour is a sleeper ship with a crew of uplifted animals but other than that, the world is revealed very organically through the story. It's rarely explicitly spelled out or revealed in a info dump but I got a good feel for how this world works. Like I've at least got a feel for what Reclamations, Systems and Oracles all are. It made for an interesting puzzle to understand how things work and how they're supposed to work. And it tantalized me enough that I'm intrigued to learn more.
Though that gets to the next part, I was never terribly surprised or interested in what was happening. Maybe it's that Jiao Tu felt detached from the plot and so I was detached? It might've been the prose style. Heck, maybe I'm just jaded. It feels like this should've been a more engaging plot than it was but I just wasn't sucked in.
And finally, I found the characters pretty good. Stand out to me, was the lower decks gang leader Chooha. He provided a fun, cynical counterpoint to Jia Tu's more stereotypical upstanding hero or Zhu Song's earnest newbie. Overall, they were all well done and made for an engaging trio that bounced off each other well.
So, overall a lot was done well in here but it lacked that engaging factor to get me really interested. I'm interested in how this story progresses right now but I don't think I'm hooked enough to still be interested when the next book comes available.
January 26, 2024
Adventure-packed anthropomorphic tales inspired by wuxia literature and classic Sword & Planet fare--author Uitvlugt combines both in this adventure-packed anthropomorphic tale. Fans of Stan Sakai's Usagi Yojimbo will surely come to appreciate the book's titular character, himself a lop-eared langomorph. The "planet" is a generation ship, into the bowels of which our hero is tasked to descend to redress wrongdoing and to protect innocents. There, with allies made along the way, he will fight for righteousness, remove oppressors, and bring retribution for past misdeeds--all tried-and-true wuxia themes. The addition of mystical tech, horrific monsters, and heart-wrenching plot twists make for a thrilling, fast-paced story.
May 15, 2025
Hard to put down
I was surprised that a tale about animals who walked, spoke and lived like humans would be a page-turner, but so it was for me. And I found myself caring for the protagonists as strongly as the human characters in similar sci-if/fantasy novels. Uitvlugt is indeed a gifted storyteller.
I was surprised that a tale about animals who walked, spoke and lived like humans would be a page-turner, but so it was for me. And I found myself caring for the protagonists as strongly as the human characters in similar sci-if/fantasy novels. Uitvlugt is indeed a gifted storyteller.
October 15, 2022
My initial experience with Donald Jacob Uitvlugt’s The Kidnapped Mousling was upon its release it in serialized form on his web page. At the time, I read several episodes, and enjoyed them. At some point, however, I decided I didn't like the serialized format in general—this isn't a reflection on the work—and stopped reading. I think it was simply a function of wanting to read at my own leisure, and not wanting to have to wait for new episodes to be released.
As the title suggests, the story is about Jiao-Tu (our protagonist) and his mission to rescue a kidnapped mousling. A little background on the characters—they're what the book refers to as uplifted animals. This means a population of anthropomorphic animals genetically engineered by, presumably, humans who do not appear in the story.
This includes at least one rabbit, our hero Jiao Tu, and the mousling. But other animals are represented, including rats, civets, canines, among others. So these are all intelligent individuals who play a role in the story.
They all live on a generational colony ship constructed by The Builders, presumably humans, bound for somewhere—we're not told where. However we are told that the ship has gone off course.
We're provided more background (done very organically by the way) about the ship and its inhabitants. The ship is run by a number of factions. We have, for example, the systems faction, reclamations, fabricators, drive, and perhaps others. As the names suggest, these factions are responsible for different aspects of the ship's operation.
From what I can tell, different uplifted animals can serve on different factions. So, it doesn't seem the case where, if you're a mouse, you are required to serve on such and such a faction.
So, with that background out of the way, and trust me when I say its related in a much more organic fashion than the way I just related it, the basic story is Jiao Tu and his missions to rescue a mousling kidnapped from one of the villages in the mid, where Jiao Tu is also from.
Another digression, Jiao Tu and the mousling, and presumably others, are from the mid. This refers to other levels of the ship. Other levels come into play as the story progresses, including the below, and the pit.
The story begins with Jiao Tu in the below at the beginning of his mission to find the mousling. Throughout the mission, he meets other characters who either help or hinder him in his mission - notably the young ratling Zhu Song, the rogue-like ratling Chooha, and the story's chief antagonist Lord Zabad, the civet leader of the Reclamations faction.
With his allies Zhu Song and Chooha, Jiao Tu searches the Below and the Pit for the mousling, discovering another force at work in the below. But what is it, and what does it want?
What we have here is a quest story, which is appropriate since Jiao Tu is a very chivalrous and knight-like character. He has a strong set of values, among them a sense of honor. These values give him the strength he needs to find and rescue the mouse and be a leader to his little band. Of interest is his sword, Black Fang. Initially, I was reminded of Elric's sword Stormbringer but as the story went on it became clear this was more a piece of technology than a supernatural artifact.
His little band includes Zhu Song, a young ratling to whom Jiao Tu plays the role of mentor. There's also Chooha, another ratling of a different class—essentially a rogue character.
But the story is very much Jiao Tu's story. Perhaps because it was so episodic, I was never bored, and was always interested in what was coming up next for Jiao Tu and his band. It was, in turns, exciting, fun, and funny, and charming.
At times, it was deadly serious, and there were several effective scenes involving body horror.
There was also a bit of romance, as the young ratling, Zhu Song, falls for the Farrah, the mousling and the object of Jiao Tu's mission.
One of the aspects I enjoyed the most was the subtle world-building. I never felt that I was being hit over the head with it, and it was never delivered in an expository fashion. That's one of the books great achievements given the scope of the world.
An example of this is the subtle use of language. Since we're dealing with uplifted animals and not humans, there's a certain modulation of the language. So, instead of the word handful the story uses “pawful.” That's but one example, but many abound throughout the story.
So, overall, a wonderful story, and I know that the author is currently working on the second episode.
Finally, I'll mention the two additional stories in the book, which were fantastic as well. One was a sort of Ghost Story for Christmas, in the tradition of M. R. James, and takes place after episode 1. It's a charming and fun story.
The final story is a story called The Last Oracle. It takes place well before the events of episode 1. Not quite a prequel but provides some of the background.
So, wonderful stuff overall, and a definite recommended read!
As the title suggests, the story is about Jiao-Tu (our protagonist) and his mission to rescue a kidnapped mousling. A little background on the characters—they're what the book refers to as uplifted animals. This means a population of anthropomorphic animals genetically engineered by, presumably, humans who do not appear in the story.
This includes at least one rabbit, our hero Jiao Tu, and the mousling. But other animals are represented, including rats, civets, canines, among others. So these are all intelligent individuals who play a role in the story.
They all live on a generational colony ship constructed by The Builders, presumably humans, bound for somewhere—we're not told where. However we are told that the ship has gone off course.
We're provided more background (done very organically by the way) about the ship and its inhabitants. The ship is run by a number of factions. We have, for example, the systems faction, reclamations, fabricators, drive, and perhaps others. As the names suggest, these factions are responsible for different aspects of the ship's operation.
From what I can tell, different uplifted animals can serve on different factions. So, it doesn't seem the case where, if you're a mouse, you are required to serve on such and such a faction.
So, with that background out of the way, and trust me when I say its related in a much more organic fashion than the way I just related it, the basic story is Jiao Tu and his missions to rescue a mousling kidnapped from one of the villages in the mid, where Jiao Tu is also from.
Another digression, Jiao Tu and the mousling, and presumably others, are from the mid. This refers to other levels of the ship. Other levels come into play as the story progresses, including the below, and the pit.
The story begins with Jiao Tu in the below at the beginning of his mission to find the mousling. Throughout the mission, he meets other characters who either help or hinder him in his mission - notably the young ratling Zhu Song, the rogue-like ratling Chooha, and the story's chief antagonist Lord Zabad, the civet leader of the Reclamations faction.
With his allies Zhu Song and Chooha, Jiao Tu searches the Below and the Pit for the mousling, discovering another force at work in the below. But what is it, and what does it want?
What we have here is a quest story, which is appropriate since Jiao Tu is a very chivalrous and knight-like character. He has a strong set of values, among them a sense of honor. These values give him the strength he needs to find and rescue the mouse and be a leader to his little band. Of interest is his sword, Black Fang. Initially, I was reminded of Elric's sword Stormbringer but as the story went on it became clear this was more a piece of technology than a supernatural artifact.
His little band includes Zhu Song, a young ratling to whom Jiao Tu plays the role of mentor. There's also Chooha, another ratling of a different class—essentially a rogue character.
But the story is very much Jiao Tu's story. Perhaps because it was so episodic, I was never bored, and was always interested in what was coming up next for Jiao Tu and his band. It was, in turns, exciting, fun, and funny, and charming.
At times, it was deadly serious, and there were several effective scenes involving body horror.
There was also a bit of romance, as the young ratling, Zhu Song, falls for the Farrah, the mousling and the object of Jiao Tu's mission.
One of the aspects I enjoyed the most was the subtle world-building. I never felt that I was being hit over the head with it, and it was never delivered in an expository fashion. That's one of the books great achievements given the scope of the world.
An example of this is the subtle use of language. Since we're dealing with uplifted animals and not humans, there's a certain modulation of the language. So, instead of the word handful the story uses “pawful.” That's but one example, but many abound throughout the story.
So, overall, a wonderful story, and I know that the author is currently working on the second episode.
Finally, I'll mention the two additional stories in the book, which were fantastic as well. One was a sort of Ghost Story for Christmas, in the tradition of M. R. James, and takes place after episode 1. It's a charming and fun story.
The final story is a story called The Last Oracle. It takes place well before the events of episode 1. Not quite a prequel but provides some of the background.
So, wonderful stuff overall, and a definite recommended read!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews