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Assignment Darklanding Book 01 Kindle Edition

4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 381 ratings

A frontier world. One Sheriff. And all the action one Spaceport can't hold. Darklanding is the wild, wild west of known space. Sheriff Thaddeus Fry will never completely leave the battlefields of Centauri Prime. His new assignment, the Sheriff's office of Darklanding, could be a do-nothing job, or it could get him killed.

The first thing he learns is that his predecessor's headquarters were bombed, creating the vacancy that led to his appointment. The Company Man, is not who he expected, to say the least. His new accommodations are right in the center of Darklanding's misfits. He finds one native of Ungwilook willing to talk to him and tries to make him a deputy.

What really matters on Darklanding, are the mines. Faced with a dangerous collapse that could kill hundreds of workers, he leaps into action and gets the story of Darklanding started. Fans of Firefly, Bonanza, and Tombstone will love this new series. Join us today and every 18 days, you’ll get a new episode of Darklanding.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"After my beloved Firefly went away I didn't think I would ever find that just right combination of western meets science fiction. But this Darklanding series is filling that void left when Mal and pals were given the boot. Just the right combination of danger, anxiety, chuckles and satisfying conclusions." "Louis Lamour meets Battlestar Galactica. What a fun read! You don't even have to be a sci-fi fan to enjoy these Darklanding stories! Just a good old fashioned pleasurable read. Grab your favorite beverage, find a comfy spot to sit, open the latest episode and enjoy spending the next few hours in the company of Sheriff Thad."

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0788538BB
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Craig Martelle, Inc (December 18, 2017)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 18, 2017
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2.2 MB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 79 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 381 ratings

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Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
381 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the story interesting and enjoyable. They describe the book as an easy, well-written read with likable characters and clever dialogue patterns. Many consider it a solid start to a series. The book keeps moving quickly at around 30K words. Opinions differ on the length, with some finding it quick and others mentioning it's pretty short.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

27 customers mention "Story quality"22 positive5 negative

Customers enjoy the story's quality. They find the characters engaging and the plot well-developed. Many praise the science fiction elements and world-building, mentioning that there are hints of backstory throughout.

"...It had a reasonable ending like a TV episode; no cliffhanger. Plus this is priced right at about $1...." Read more

"...There are hints of backstory sprinkled throughout, enough to keep you wanting to come back to see what shakes out of it all...." Read more

"...It is not a world I would want to inhabit, but it is a very interesting world. I do recommend this to anyone that enjoys a good science fiction story." Read more

"...I enjoyed this short story a great deal. It being a mixture of sci-fi and a western was very unique...." Read more

23 customers mention "Enjoyment"23 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the book. They find it an enjoyable read with few fillers. The book is a quick, worthwhile read for fans of the genre.

"...These are new authors to me, but they delivered an unexpectedly good read. The Sheriff will seem realistic to ex-military (for a change.)..." Read more

"A fun title about a soldier, going civi... taking a job as a sherrif because no one else wants it, or him...." Read more

"...towns, saloons,etc, but I liked the characters and want to read more.good stuff" Read more

"...I took a few chapters to really start enjoying the book but it was worth the grind ." Read more

18 customers mention "Readability"18 positive0 negative

Customers find the book easy to read and enjoyable. They appreciate the well-written story and character development for a short novel. The writing flows smoothly and the main character is likable.

"...The dialogue flows smoothly and the descriptions have an almost visual quality. I actually look forward to buying, and reading, the next volume...." Read more

"...The indigenous people on this planet are well thought out. It is not a world I would want to inhabit, but it is a very interesting world...." Read more

"...It reads smoothly and the main character, Thaddeus Fry, is as likable as he brave...." Read more

"...Thank you for that. I enjoyed this short story a great deal. It being a mixture of sci-fi and a western was very unique...." Read more

17 customers mention "Character development"17 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the well-developed characters and fascinating storyline. They find Thaddeus Fry likable and brave, and appreciate clever dialogue patterns that give them an alien nature.

"...It did have a nice western in space feel and I liked the characters. It had a reasonable ending like a TV episode; no cliffhanger...." Read more

"...It reads smoothly and the main character, Thaddeus Fry, is as likable as he brave...." Read more

"...I liked all the different characters and the hardships they faced. I look forward to the coming issues. Sincerely,..." Read more

"...The Sharif has me drawn in, he's honorable with a lot of character. But, I see him as tough and gridy when he needs to be...." Read more

9 customers mention "Start"9 positive0 negative

Customers find the book a solid start to a series. They describe it as an intriguing series of short books reminiscent of Wild West serials.

"...I've never read any work by Martelle or Moon, but the series sounded intriguing, so I thought I'd give it a whirl...." Read more

"This is a solid start to a series of shorter books that are reminiscent of the wild west serials of old but with aliens and starships...." Read more

"Good beginnings but left hanging at end. Seems designed to get you to purchase more books to find out anything." Read more

"...Scot has made a good start to the series and now I'll have to continue. Come on Thad! Make things right here!" Read more

5 customers mention "Pace"5 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the book's quick pace and length. They mention it keeps moving quickly, with an empathic Sheriff and alien characters.

"...I enjoy the quick pace and length (around 30K). The plot moves along, but not at the expense of character development...." Read more

"When I made time to read this it went quick and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute!..." Read more

"Keeps moving quickly, a Sheriff you can empathize with, and an Alien you can learn to love. Even the "Company Man" is human!..." Read more

"Quick and easy read with style..." Read more

8 customers mention "Length"3 positive5 negative

Customers have different views on the book's length. Some enjoy the quick pace and around 30K words, while others say it's pretty short.

"No had s lot of fun with this story. It's pretty short, but if the episodic delivery works, I think it will be great and I'm on board for more...." Read more

"...I enjoy the quick pace and length (around 30K). The plot moves along, but not at the expense of character development...." Read more

"...There is violence. The book is very short. It tells the start of the story but don't expect much due to the length." Read more

"This was a fun and interesting read. It was short and I was disappointed that book 2 wasn’t out yet, but I highly recommend giving it a try...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2018
    So many new authors; so many mediocre books. Predictable plots, unrelated events, poor dialog, bad grammer and atrocious spelling abound in the new digital publishing world. But not here! I have many Volume 1's, but few Volume 2's.

    These are new authors to me, but they delivered an unexpectedly good read. The Sheriff will seem realistic to ex-military (for a change.) The dialogue flows smoothly and the descriptions have an almost visual quality. I actually look forward to buying, and reading, the next volume. It's been a while since I said that.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2018
    I enjoyed this story. It did have a nice western in space feel and I liked the characters. It had a reasonable ending like a TV episode; no cliffhanger. Plus this is priced right at about $1. BUT ... to continue on with additional episodes learning more about these characters and there exploits the price goes up to about $3. That is overpriced for around 100 pages that is the equivalent of a TV episode. It may seem fair to take away a star from this story for the price on future stories, but to me it is a negative that I won't get to know the characters better because I consider it too expensive.
    3 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2018
    I've still been in this kind of rut.

    Or maybe it's not a rut, but a serious lack of attention. Maybe I'm suffering some sort of Millennial ADD... Whatever it is, it has been affecting my ability to finish a novel. I usually get bored about halfway through and end up setting the story aside. So lately I've just been reading short stories and novellas when I have free time.

    Imagine my rut-like surprise when I discovered a new series being launched: Darklanding. The hook of the series is Firefly meets Tombstone. I'm one of the last people on Earth that has never watched Firefly, so the hook means nothing to me. But each Darklanding release is an 'episode' which generally means less than novel-sized. That meant something to me. I've been looking for a series of shorter reads, not three-book arcs like are popular nowadays. I've never read any work by Martelle or Moon, but the series sounded intriguing, so I thought I'd give it a whirl.

    Thaddeus Fry is a man's man (I'm not sure if this still means what I think it means, but I'm using it anyway). He's a no nonsense dude who accepts the job as sheriff of a frontier town. Imagine the frontier town is a mining colony on a planet far removed from the hustle and bustle of civilized planets. The Old West, but out in space. The Old Space, I guess.

    The first episode introduces you to Thad and a few other characters; the Company Man, bartenders, and mine workers. As the story goes along you begin to see wonderful flaws in each character. There are also aliens, and so far they're friendly. In the first episode our hero (Thad) is quickly thrown into peril, which is a good thing, story-wise.

    I enjoy the quick pace and length (around 30K). The plot moves along, but not at the expense of character development. There are hints of backstory sprinkled throughout, enough to keep you wanting to come back to see what shakes out of it all.

    There are mild curse words, no sex, and a couple minor suggestive moments. I hope this trend continues.

    This is a series I can invest in, each bite-sized episode able to be enjoyed and wrapped up over a couple of sittings. It's great for those who are looking for entertaining reads without having to devote time plodding through a novel-sized story or a multi-book arc.
    6 people found this helpful
    Report
  • Reviewed in the United States on May 27, 2018
    This was a good short story about a military man moving to the very edge of the galactic frontier to become the new sheriff. It follows his first 2 days as he begins to learn about the people and his new job. The indigenous people on this planet are well thought out. It is not a world I would want to inhabit, but it is a very interesting world. I do recommend this to anyone that enjoys a good science fiction story.
  • Reviewed in the United States on April 5, 2018
    This is a solid start to a series of shorter books that are reminiscent of the wild west serials of old but with aliens and starships. It centers around a new sheriff's first day on the job at a corporate mining facility. It reads smoothly and the main character, Thaddeus Fry, is as likable as he brave. It reminds me of the old Gunsmoke television show if it had been set on an alien world. Highly recommend!
  • Reviewed in the United States on October 3, 2018
    A fun title about a soldier, going civi... taking a job as a sherrif because no one else wants it, or him. As he tries to settle in, he endeers himself to the locals during a cave in where the company puts more on profit than the "people" trapped. I greatly enjoyed this title and was a little surprised it ended so quickly. The best part about this read was that it showed that no matter what we are trying to recover from, when you have even the slightest sliver of your humanity, there is hope. Looking forward to book 2!
  • Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2018
    I received this complementary copy to read and review from it he author. Thank you for that.

    I enjoyed this short story a great deal. It being a mixture of sci-fi and a western was very unique.
    I liked all the different characters and the hardships they faced.
    I look forward to the coming issues.
    Sincerely,
    Alan McDonald (and my daughter who reads to me due to my vision problems)
    One person found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on January 28, 2018
    Although there was not any obvious cliffhanger, I can't wait it to get the next one to see how this goes. I have never read any of Scott Moons stuff, but I have read Martelle and he does not do junk..The story seems so simplistic as to almost be a joke and a couple of the characters are laughable...BUT...you get the feeling that this is like an Iceburg, the deeper you read the more there is. I am hoping that to be the case..if not, I will be sure and tell in the next review........let's keep our fingers crossed, this could be the start of something special, very special.
    One person found this helpful
    Report

Top reviews from other countries

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  • famadio@cogeco.ca
    5.0 out of 5 stars Totally Addictive and Completely Entertaining!
    Reviewed in Canada on March 14, 2018
    I have fallen in love with this series! It's a Western, no, wait, it's a space opera, no, it's about aliens, no, wait, it's a....well, what it is, is brilliantly written, with captivating characters (forgive the alliteration) and fascinating story lines. Read Episode one - if you're not hooked, stick around for Episode 2...this series gets better and better.
  • nw
    5.0 out of 5 stars cool
    Reviewed in Germany on June 18, 2018
    Interessanter Start einer hoffentlich interessant bleibenden Serie.
    Das Setting fand ich sehr ansprechend obwohl ich gar nicht so an Western interessiert bin.
    Macht definitiv Lust auf mehr!
    Report
  • Ian Titler
    5.0 out of 5 stars The idea of a war veteran with baggage taking a ...
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 16, 2018
    The idea of a war veteran with baggage taking a job no-one wants on a remote mining base appealed to me. Perhaps reminded me of a Sean Connery film? Outland? This barely lets the Marshal get in before the trouble starts, and shows him integrating into the community in the middle of a disaster, making a few friends, putting others on notice. This has the makings of a very interesting series.
  • AA Lee
    4.0 out of 5 stars The Fryman is Interesting
    Reviewed in Canada on December 10, 2019
    "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be watching my chair!" Thaddeus Fry is proving to be an interesting man of action. He manages to accomplish a lot on his first day on the job as Darklanding's new sheriff but still knows his priorities. What will he do on Day 2?
  • Gazzmann
    4.0 out of 5 stars An interesting start.
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 26, 2018
    A bit short but an interesting start to a series. I've downloaded the next one and will be reading it as soon as I finish this review. I like Thaddeus and Mast Jotham. It was a busy first day for the job and a little funny here and there. Looking forward to his next adventure. Cheers!

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