Review: Captain Madigan (Tales of the Whiskey Richard Book 1) by Patrick Fullmer – A 2022 Indie Author Review Selection
Description • The Review • Author Interview • More About the Author
Description (from Amazon.com)
Fast-paced, sci-fi action in the spirit of Guardians of the Galaxy!
Smuggling, fighting, killing – the life of a space privateer is a young man’s game. Albert Madigan, captain of the Whiskey Richard, sure as hell knows that description no longer applies to him.
Madigan’s ship is rundown, his crew is made up of men and women just as flawed as their captain and bouncing from shady job to shady job across the solar system is more trouble than it’s worth. Madigan finally has his opportunity to retire when a high paying contract falls in his lap, but his best laid plans are shot to shit when the job turns out to be a deadly setup.
Taking off across the stars, the crew of the Whiskey Richard fights to stay one step ahead of their pursuers as Madigan comes to grips with what he needs to do to see his quest for vengeance through to its inevitable, bloody conclusion.
The Review
There are mashups of various genres that I find appealing, science fiction and the enduring Western being near the top. Some might argue that science fiction is the enduring Western, but without the dust, grime, nasty characters and horses that pepper the setting. Captain Madigan (Tales of the Whiskey Richard Book 1) by Patrick Fullmer is both a science fiction and a Western…without the horses.
When I find characters that are surely flawed up front, I want to know if they change. Within the pages of this novel, you can certain see a gradual shift in the varied cast of privateers who just want to get paid for a quick heist to those who seek vengeance while being chased down to a definite adjustment of personalities near the end. It is not a quick change, either, which remains true to life–we don’t get to make dramatic turnarounds in just a few chapters. We sometimes have to go through Hell.
Told from the perspective of Captain Madigan, this first of a series is a great set up to what I hope will be many more books with many more adventures. The writing is crisp and to the point. As with many stories of this nature, scene setting is necessary and Fullmer does an excellent job bringing us into the world in which the Whiskey Richard exists. It is not a clean world, either. It is one of bars, gambling, shady venues and grit. The dialogue is reflective of this tone, remaining honest to each of the characters.
Overall, Captain Madigan is a gritty science fiction western that holds no punches. It is well worth the read and highly recommended for those who are looking to get their hands dirty with the characters.
Available at Amazon: https://amzn.to/3D9VzMe
Author Interview
Captain Madigan has the unique feel of both a Western and a Science Fiction novel. What books and/or movies inspired you?
The two biggest inspirations were The Expanse by James S.A. Corey and the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, both of which follow a similar “cowboys in space” kind of vibe. There are elements of frontier attitudes and living on the edge of society that are pretty inherent to modern space adventure but those two in particular were the biggest motivations. The initial idea came from the thought of “what if the characters in Guardians of the Galaxy weren’t heroes at the end of the day”. On top of all of that, there are some elements of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia in there as well. There’s the humor aspect, sure, but I wanted the crew of the Whiskey Richard to have some characteristics that were inherently unlikable like the jerks in the FX classic.
Your descriptions of the various establishments are nicely done. Was there any place in particular on which you based them?
There really wasn’t anywhere in particular that I wanted to include in the novel. I tried to make the locations varied in ways that would be interesting for the flow of the story and would serve as a contrast to the characters, but there weren’t any places that I pulled from for inspiration.
Throughout the novel, I reminded myself that this was the first in a series. How far along are you with the follow up?
The follow up is coming along nicely. I recently finished the first draft, and there are two more planned after that.
What kind of research did you do for the novel?
I did a bit of research, but not a ton. The “science” in the novel was hand wavey by design, more in line with Star Wars than The Expanse. More than anything I wanted to make sure that I had the specifics correct. Military ranks, nautical terms, etc. The biggest thing you can do to lose credibility with a reader who has specific knowledge on a subject is to butcher a simple term or concept so any research I did was really geared around ensuring that I avoided that.
Do you have a writing routine?
Yes, I start my day with it. It took me a long time to realize that after a day of work and being a dad (once my daughter was in bed) I simply could not muster up the motivation to put words on the page. Writing first thing in the morning helped me with that hurdle. Those first few weeks with waking up early were rough, but the pace of my writing took off once I started this approach.
I’m a fan of Easter eggs in movies and novels. Did you have any in this one?
Same here! But in this case there wasn’t anything too explicit. A few names are based on some friends and family but nothing wild. The closest that comes to a true Easter egg is Katie Ryder, who I named after the main character in Mass Effect: Andromeda. I didn’t care for the game (or even finish it for that matter) but I liked the last name Ryder and thought it was a good fit for Katie.
Did you edit out anything you wish you would have kept in?
Quite a bit actually. There was an entire chapter I cut from the final version that ended up changing some character relationships throughout the novel. The ending was also significantly reworked because it was originally way too jokey, in a way that bordered on parody. I liked both the chapter and the ending in and of themselves, but they completely nuked the flow and the characters. What’s nice though is that I know these concepts and moments aren’t gone forever. I already know how I can work them into future stories with these characters.
How has this writing journey been for you?
Really eye opening. The biggest thing that jumped out to me is that you have to tell people about your writing. No one is just going to stumble across it. Even with the perfect story, precise editing and an amazing cover you still need to be your biggest advocate.
What advice do you have for Indie authors seeking reviews?
It is a never ending process and really boils down to a numbers game. The hard reality is that very few readers will actually leave a rating, let alone a review. Keep your head down and take advantage of the tools available to you to drive eyeballs on your pages. Kindle Unlimited, making your book free or using timed Kindle promotions (if you are exclusively on Amazon) are great ways to drive downloads, which only helps with reviews. Get a little creative as well, find local book stores or comic shops (depending on your genre) and drop off sample copies. Or better yet, give the owner a copy and after they love your work ask them how many copies they want to purchase to put on their shelves.
More About the Author
Patrick Fullmer is the author of Captain Madigan, the first book in the Tales of the Whiskey Richard series. He lives in Omaha, Nebraska with his wife and daughter. In his free time he enjoys reading, gaming, running and wallowing in the misery that is Nebraska Cornhusker football. Follow @prfullmer on Twitter for news and updates.
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