The Absconded Ambassador: Genrenauts Episode 2

by Michael R. Underwood

Overview

Last Week, She Was Working Open Mics. Now She’s Headed to Outer Space.

Rookie Genrenaut Leah Tang gets her first taste of space flight when the team scrambles to fix a story breach in Science Fiction World, the domain of starships, weird aliens, and galactic intrigue.

On the space station Ahura-3, Ambassador Kaylin Reed is on the verge of securing a peace treaty to guarantee the end of hostilities between some of the galaxy's most ferocious races. When Ambassador Reed is kidnapped the morning before the signing, it throws the station into chaos.

So now it’s up to Leah and her team to save the day and put the story to rights.

At any cost.

The second episode of Genrenauts, a science fiction series in novellas. If you like Leverage, Redshirts, or Quantum Leap, check out Genrenauts for a brand-new adventure.


"If you like the TV show Leverage or the books of Jasper Fforde, Genrenauts is absolutely the series for you. Exploring genre tropes while saving the world has never been more fun." — Between the Covers

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780765387905
Publisher:	Tor Publishing Group
Publication date:	02/23/2016
Series:	Genrenauts , #2
Pages:	176
Product dimensions:	4.90(w) x 7.90(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Michael R. Underwood has circumnavigated the globe, danced the tango with legends and knows why Thibault cancels out Capo Ferro. He also rolls a mean d20. His novels include Geekomancy, Celebromancy and Shield and Crocus. He lives in Baltimore with his wife and an ever-growing library, and when he's not writing/gaming/living the dream he's the North American Sales and Marketing Manager for Angry Robot Books.

He's also part of the Hugo-nominated podcast, The Skiffy and Fanty Show.

Editorial Reviews

Praise for Episode 1 in the series: THE SHOOTOUT SOLUTION

"Who hasn't wanted to imagine themselves parachuting into a story gone wrong and putting it back on track? It's storytelling as heroism, genre savviness as power. Endless fun. Catnip for genre geeks." — Marie Brennan, World Fantasy nominated author of A Natural History of Dragons

“A clever, exciting, and seriously fun twist on portal fantasy that sends a geeky stand-up comedian into the Wild West. Sign me up to be a Genrenaut, too!” —Delilah S. Dawson, author of the Blud series and Hit

"A Tardis of a novella, The Shootout Solution is packed full of ideas... The possibilities are endless... Tor.com continues to blaze a bookish trail in terms of both originality and diversity. More like this, please."
- Geek Syndicate

"Snappy dialogue, twisting plot turns, and efficiently written action scenes combine with a strongly realized protagonist that reminds me of a old friend from my art school days, not a cardboard cut-out of the “strong female character” trope."
- Polychromantium

"The entire book is just FUN"
- Page Turners Inc.

"A wonderfully executed idea that uses the strengths and background of the writer to great effect… An excellent start to an exciting series, and another highlight of Tor’s novella program.”
- SF Signal

"The Shootout Solution is Genre blending fun."
- Fangirl Nation

“I enjoyed this book tremendously. Leah is a smart, savvy, snarky young woman whose character nicely balances the calm goodheartedness of Shirin, the experienced competency of King, and the attractive cockiness of Roman. They make a great team.”
- Fang Fiction

"We like nerdy Leah and were able to immediately identify with her. She should return for many more episodes!"
- Bull Spec

"I can see this really appealing to readers who are into browsing TV Tropes, or who liked Ready Player One but want a more satisfying experience."
- One Last Sketch

"The concept of Genrenauts is awesome."
- The Book Plank

"It’s told with a light touch — the debt to Leverage and The Librarians is obvious (and readily acknowledged), with a good dose of action, a hint of a looming catastrophe/conspiracy. There’s a good deal of literary/narrative theory under-girding this whole project — it’s not as frivolous as it may seem."
- Irresponsible Reader

"It’s got a clever, rather cool central idea. It has a plot built around that which keeps up suspense, whilst giving you a protagonist to care about, portrayed well, in a world which feels believable – perhaps by virtue of the setting for that world. I’d like to see more of all of the characters, and really, more of the setting in general, but that’s more recommendation than complaint!"
- SF & F reviews

From the Publisher

02/15/2016
Leah Tang (first introduced in series opener, The Shootout Solution) is a new recruit to the genrenaughts, who repair damage in the story worlds. This time she and her team are headed to the sf universe where peace treaty negotiations among warring alien races have deteriorated.—MM

Library Journal