His enemies are legion, his allies are few, and his only true friend is his robot Dog.
Forced out of the Marshals and into the life of a freelance bounty hunter, Grant Masterson skirts the edges of the law, hunting down the ones responsible for framing him.
When his latest hunt leads him to a conspiracy of cyborg cultists, renegade AI and genetically engineered psychics, Masterson may have to choose between his own survival...and his quest for retribution.
Rick Partlow is that rarest of species, a native Floridian. Born in Tampa, he attended Florida Southern College and graduated with a degree in History and a commission in the US Army as an Infantry officer. His lifelong love of science fiction began with Have Space Suit---Will Travel and the other Heinlein juveniles and traveled through Clifford Simak, Asimov, Clarke and on to William Gibson, Walter Jon Williams and Peter F Hamilton. And somewhere, submerged in the worlds of others, Rick began to create his own worlds. He has written over 70 books in over a dozen different series, and his short stories have been included in many different anthologies.
He currently lives in norther Wyoming with his wife and their dog. Besides writing and reading science fiction and fantasy, he enjoys outdoor photography, hiking and camping.
Forgot to write the review of Book 2. Well, quick take - I liked it even better than Book 1. It expanded the plot and revealed more of the conspiracy behind the gun running and smuggling operations. The hero, Grant Masterson, finds a love interest - and their character arcs are solid and natural. Plus, Grant's snarky robot dog is back. For me, tho, there are a lot of fight and chase scenes, so I did skim a bit to get to the resolution. Still, good writing and storytelling. Of course, start with Book 1, but this is a short, 4 book series, and won't disappoint. This is super solid mil-sf space opera.
The book is an all action frantic journey with the same main faults as the previous book. The main character is a bit of a disappointment as he isn’t really that good at anything and again there were too many last second interventions saving the day. Also in this book the author has decided he needs to introduce a bit of romance/sex, he shouldn’t really have bothered, as it doesn’t add anything to the story.
Retribution is the second novel in Rick Partlow’s new Interstellar Bounty Hunter series, and he really ups the stakes for Grant Masterson, the titular bounty hunter. Masterson has help this time around, secretly from his old boss in the Marshall’s, and also from a Navy intelligence officer, but he’s also got a lot more enemies. Cyborgs, psychics and artificial intelligences all do their best to kill Masterson and Dog and it’s just as entertaining as the first one. Dog continues to be one of my favorite SF characters.
Really good book, excellent in fact. The two main protagonist Masterson and dog are great. They have good camaraderie and great comedic timing between each other. The other characters are good too and the personalities are being flushed out. There’s plenty of action and a lot of intrigue. Excellent series, going on to read the next book.
First and foremost, I want to state that I am not an author. I have no idea what it takes to write a book. I am a consumer with an OPINION, and only an opinion, based on my life experiences. Furthermore, this is mostly written for... myself!
Retribution (Interstellar Bounty Hunter #2) by Rick Partlow
In the second installment of Rick Partlow's Interstellar Bounty Hunter series, the story continues with our bounty hunter protagonist and his AI companion, Dog. The dynamic between them remains a highlight, with their witty banter adding humor to the narrative. The space setting is well-developed, making the universe feel both vast and interconnected. The bounty hunting aspect introduces tension and unpredictability, keeping the plot engaging. Additionally, the potential love interest follows the "enemies to lovers" trope, which adds an interesting layer to the story.
Rating: 3.5/5 stars This sequel maintains the enjoyable elements of the first book, making it a decent read. it's entertaining enough for me to hunt down the next book.
Rating Scale:
5 stars - Exceptional, life-changing 4 stars - Highly enjoyable, likely to reread, would recommend 3 stars - Decent read, might not remember long-term 2 stars - Not for me, struggled to finish 1 star - Poorly written or factually incorrect
As someone who enjoys Mr. Partlow's military sci-fi works, this bounty hunter series hits all the right notes. I especially love the relationship between Grant and Dog. Beneath the snarky witticisms you can tell Dog really does care for the "meatsack" he's been saddled with. I'm hoping we get to know more about what makes Dog tick in the rest of the series.
Masterson is a good fit for the role he’s playing, as his character doesn’t take himself too seriously & not only because he’s snarky enough to roll with the blows but also because he’s cynical enough to be free of false illusions. His new Navy Intelligence cohort seems like a good fit. The power behind Catt starts to come from behind the curtain but things are getting more complicated, not less.
As Grant Masterson and dog follow the clues that would clear his name of the deeds that he's been framed in. He finds that he's actually digging himself deeper into the conspiracy being built against him. He finds evidence and before he gets a chance to exonerate himself from the whole affair... he finds that it's been tainted and released to the public in such a way to make everything seem so much worse.
This has been good reading. The author just shows up the stupidity of people wanting the intimate enemy.... something we design to beat ourselves. Who would know our greatest weaknesses, but ourselves? If we build a mind based on ourselves, but better, it's going to think it's better. Let true AI live with great, great care!
This book was non-stop action from the word go. It was almost physically exhausting how they ran from one confrontation to another, but I enjoyed the pace. I also liked that Partlow introduced a wee bit of romance into the story...Grant deserves it... And at the end of the day, man and his best friend becomes the most important relationship after all...
Grant Masterson and dog again find themselves looking for evidence to take down the mysterious organisation and find out who is running the show. Helped by old friends and new allies, they find themselves up against a formidable enemy.
Great twists and turns, with endearing and vivid characters. Dog is two hoots! First rate. Harlan Ellison once said that science fiction should be good writing, even if you took away the science. Rick Partlow does not disappoint.
It was nice to find out where he got dog from. But ultimately the other Ai, in fact all 3 troupe were too much for me.. made it 73% through but ultimately I'm done with this series.
It’s just plain ole “good writing”. Partlow gets right into it with the right amount of great characters, and their stories unfold gracefully, on the pages. I’m looking forward to the next one.
Better than the first book. The story seemed to flow better but cannot imagine how the omnipotent enemy is going to be handled. Looking forward to the next book.
Corporate corruption meets AI meets foreign interference mixed in with robot slavery. An interesting story worth reading. Hoping to get to the end of the thread.
Was wondering how you were to top the previous book...knew it would be something off the wall,just didn't see 👀that villain coming! Well played Rick,well played👍👏
Novel was true to the series plot. However, filler words and descriptive info was very prevalent throughout the novel. It did make it a very fast read.
It was nice to get back to Dog again, I've a great fondness for dogs in rwal life and a talking wisecracking dog appeals to me. Looking forward to the next book.