Hull Scrappers Volume 1: Shattered Diaspora

by Andrew Seiple

Some Scrappers just can't catch a break.

When a salvage job on an old battlefield goes awry, Kril's left with no crew, no food, a suspiciously-absent client, and far too many enemies. Fortunately, it's a big universe, and he's got a fast ship and the best pilot in twenty light-years to watch his back.

His journey to keep 'er flying and get a crew back together will take him from rescue operations in collapsing freighters to fighting dinosaurs in the sewage canals of pirate paradises, and to points beyond. The odds are stacked against him, but Kril keeps it simple; Get a good crew, do a good job, and look after your own because the Hungry Dark is always waiting.

Genres: Science Fiction

342 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 16, 2023

Reviews

[Dr susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic sci fi adventure!

I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading Hull Scrappers, but I was blown away! The worldbuilding is marvelous, Kril, his sister, and their motley crew are fascinating, and THERE ARE RODENTS. There is graphic, and sometimes gruesome, violence and a significant body count; both of those things don't make me happy, but I loved this book anyway. Kril has secrets but is doing his best to be a force for hope in a shattered galaxy. Lysanda is a lot weird, a lot funny, and awesome. I am definitely looking forward to the sequel. I read the book in KU but will buy it as soon as I can to reread. Hull Scrappers is definitely going on my favorites list.

[Mitchell Lecoultre · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I entered into the galaxy of Hull Scrappers, I was unsure of what to expect. Andrew Seiple, an unknown author to me, and the concept of tagging along with people whose job could be condensed down to a chop shop made me feel a little anxious. But boy was I pleasantly surprised. “Shattered Diaspora” the first installment in the Hull Scrappers series is phenomenal! A fun space cowboy romp through a myriad of human systems and cultures that manages to keep the thrills ‘spun-up.’

I say ‘spun-up’ because it was just one of the fun little phrases that Andrew Seiple integrated into this novel to give the breadth of the galaxy and the characters that inhabit it life. Our main protagonist, Kril Grainger, is your fairly standard knight in shining armor protagonist, but that doesn’t mean he is boring. No, far from it! A marriage between a rough-and-tumble cowboy and a bleeding-heart mercenary Kril became a pretty steady rock from which I could observe the story, and frankly I would love for him—if humanity ever reaches the stars—to be the captain of whatever vessel I may, if ever, happen to be on.

His sister Trin, the pilot, and my personal favorite, Lysanda, are just two of the crew members you will meet along the way, and Seiple manages to make them into individuals I craved to know more about. Lysanda, a sexually androgenous doctor who may or may not use rodents to do the heavy medical work, is an absolute delight. Of course, the crew of a hyperlight vessel requires more than just a doctor and a pilot and Seiple manages to scrap together a varied but pleasant mixture of characters to round out the story and the crew of No Man’s Land. Together these individuals will have to employ their skills—and flaws—to overcome everything from frantic space combat to sewer bound raptors. Yes, that’s right raptors, as in the dinosaurs with the big nasty claws.

So, if you enjoy science fiction, fantasy, or just a fun adventure that manages to gently introduce some pretty heavy world-building then look no further than “Shattered Diaspora”. My only gripe, which is very minor, is the heavy use of a particular word that you will probably understand once you get into it and also some very heavy giveaways of future events that were already foreshadowed quite well. With that and the fact that I prefer for a few more breaks in the action than was given, I am going to give it a 4.5/5.0 stars. A must read and thank you Andrew Seiple for the fun adventure!

[Isaios · Rating 3 out of 5]

This genre is pretty dependent on the rolling drama where the solution to one problem leads to encounter a bigger problem and so on until the story wraps up in a nice denouement where all but one plot point is wrapped, and that one is the one that leads the characters into the next story.

The story delivers in this regard. Just, a little too much of it. The characters come off as fools rather than forced by circumstance. That is, the problems they find while looking for a solution seem unforced in ways that detracts more than it builds.

I'll give book 2 a go, because the Dire series is some of my fav stories ever, but I wasn't all that sold on this first book.

[Carewolf · Rating 2 out of 5]

Somehow a dumber version of Rebel Moon part 1. A classic collect a crew novel, except the author forgets to set up a reason for collecting a crew, and the mcguffin driving the plot, turns out in the end to have nothing to do with all the places they visit. So the whole thing is just random events loosely strung together. The next book could be good, they collected a nice crew in this one, but this book is nothing.

[Horia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Space cowboy classic FTL scrapyard underdog motley crew frontier adventure. Nothing extraordinary, nothing bad, classic SciFi western.

The usual alien super slick spaceship that's in need of TLC and on its last leg piloted by the adventurous maverick antihero, the mad scientist, the crazy alien technology, the impossible mission.

Not gonna continue the series.

[Steven Willmott · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 would probably be fairest. The story telling is a bit basic and obvious in places