Review: Space Fandango: Backstabber’s Blues by Henry Mosquera

On the scorching, misfit-filled planet Abraxias, an enigmatic doctor assembles a crew of brawlers, outcasts, and outlaws to deliver a stolen, dangerous payload to the other side of an area known as Freespace. Cops, assassins and criminals give chase, while the crew of the Acheron participate in bar-fighting, starring in a murderous reality show, and competing in brawl ball, the number one sport in the universe.

In Space Fandango: Backstabber’s Blues, an incredibly wild and entertaining novel, author Henry Mosquera conjures up an array of beings for readers to fascinate over, making each character as page-turning as the story itself – from Mani Montana, the human with a metallic eye and a cannon for an arm to Arash Folen, a Xartian with enhanced psychic powers and stellar mechanical skills, a military special ops officer whose implant makes her a musician, and a muscular Rhegglar on a manhunt who always is ready for a fight. There’s also a sexbot with hidden code and a thief hoping to free her sister.

This action-packed sci-fi adventure delightfully entertains with unexpected twists throughout. The tight narrative effortlessly weaves the reader across the rich landscape of Freespace, and when the big events happen, they are chaotic and cathartic, propelling the story forward. Mosquera displays smooth prose that is up to the challenge of capturing his wholly imaginative story. The descriptions of his otherworldly creatures are easily visualized, from horns and see-through blobs, to creatures who glow inside multi-colored skins.

The novel is a page-turner through and through, as there are suspenseful moments on nearly every page. There might be assassins around the corner, or monsters hidden in a ship. Crack pilots defeat enemies while deftly dancing around space junk. There’s victory and defeat among this varied cast of characters – smashed chairs, busted faces, and shoot-outs fly out of almost every chapter – and as they fight together, dispatching most comers and forging hard-won intimacies, they reveal to one another past lives and motivations. Friendships form over lives saved, and sparks also fly as crew members find carnal companionship in each other’s quarters.

Space Fandango resembles a fun 60s Western, with an extra degree of creative lunacy. Frankie the sexbot, like a goodhearted saloon barmaid, falls for the Xartian who pieced her back together and protects her, while the gunslingers defeat hordes of enemies at each stop on the way to Wurnn. Tough guys get redeemed and bad guys win for a while but in the end get what’s coming to them. Like in a Western, the reader leaves happy, glad to have spent time with such a great gang of flawed heroes.

Throughout the story, Mosquera plants plot points that blossom just at the right time. He gives his characters constant surprises to handle, keeping the book crackling with energy, letting the most intriguing mystery linger and build. When finally uncovered, the revelation explodes the action, finalizes the story, and satisfies the reader.

Putting a fast-paced, high-octane spin on science fiction adventure novels, Space Fandango: Backstabber’s Blues is not to be missed.