Reader's Review: "Red Dog Conspiracy" Series: A Prequel Double Feature!

Synopsis from Amazon:

A broken man. A broken world. Which will prevail?

Donald Kerston's life up to now could only be described as a nightmare. But what he wakes up to suddenly becomes much worse.

Struggling for survival, for the first time he finds friends and a future - only to be confronted with the one thing he didn't ever want to face.

Gutshot: The Catastrophe is a 17,000-word story which takes place 1899 years before The Jacq of Spades: Part 1 of the Red Dog Conspiracy.

My Review:

It's one thing to rewrite an actual historical era--it's quite another to reinvent the advancement of history completely from scratch. Loofbourrow does this by wiping out the modern era completely with a cataclysmic event called The Catastrophe... whereupon humanity starts again, and advances as one would expect over the next 1899 years, until we arrive at the state of things as they are for the setting of the Red Dog Conspiracy series. There is mention of that Catastrophe, and in some ways Loofbourrow makes it pretty tricky to reckon exactly when the neo-Victorian era actually takes place, since reckoning of time basically started over at the Catastrophe... but this novella is that story!

It was pretty exciting as a post-apocalyptic survival adventure story... a marked contrast to the steampunkish vibe of the series that's supposed to be in the far future of this contemporary era... but I think the most clever thing about it was the way that, slowly and subtly, Loofbourrow manages to insert different plot devices that are most definitely references to things that would become foundational to Bridges as a society. I can't say what those are, but I can say that this story is fun to read at any point in your foray into the Red Dog Conspiracy series, whether you want to read it before reading the series, so you can get the full effect of the references I mentioned... Or if you want to start reading the series first, you can always come back and read about the Catastrophe that different characters mention, the "technological reset", and different aspects of their practices and beliefs will become more significant and comprehensible!

Rating: ****

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Synopsis from Amazon: 

Eleanora Bryce faces prison for a crime she didn’t commit.
In the far future domed city of Dickens, no mercy is given.
So when Eleanora Bryce finds her husband dead at his own hand, she finds herself trapped between the truth and his mountain of debt. When Eleanora refuses to speak with the constable investigating the case, he suspects her of murder.
Eleanora faces prison - or worse - unless she can find a way out of Dickens. But can she bear to return to the city which ruined her husband and murdered her son?
It seems all hope is lost, until one small clue is found.
A 6,000 word short companion story to the Red Dog Conspiracy steampunk crime fiction series.
If you love sweet Regency romance or the works of Charles Dickens, you'll love Vulnerable.

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My Review:

Two things I realized when reading this one: first, it genuinely is a prequel to the Red Dog Conspiracy series. Second, it's more of a "longish short story" than a novella like Gutshot was.

Vulnerable outlines the story of Eleanora Bryce--a side character from the main series who holds a close bond with main character Jacqui Spadros. Especially reading it after reading Gutshot, I get more of a sense how much the world changed after The Catastrophe, the way humanity tried to move forward from it, the way some things in society didn't change... The death of her husband brings to light his massive debts that unscrupulous swindlers are calling in, preying on the desperate widow who can't even afford to mourn and grieve as she wants to--and it's her own tenacity that drives her back to the city that carries so much heartache... It's a fast read, but Loofbourrow packs in plenty of emotional punch, and has me wondering how the details covered here will come into play as the series progresses. (Side note: The author recommends that this story is best understood at any point after starting Book 1 of the Red Dog Conspiracy series) 

One thing is for sure: Patricia Loofbourrow doesn't waste her plot twists on moments that don't matter!

Rating: *****

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Further Reading: (Also By This Author/Steampunk/New Worlds/Post-Apocalyptic/Alt-History)

The Red Dog Conspiracy--Patricia Loofbourrow
        -Gutshot: The Catastrophe (*This review)

       -The Alcatraz Coup 
       -Vulnerable (*This review)
       -Jacq of Spades 
       -Queen of Diamonds 
       -Ace of Clubs 

The Untamed Series--Madeline Dyer
       -Untamed 
       -Fragmented 

The Vemreaux Trilogy--Mary E. Twomey
       -The Way 
       -The Truth 
       -The Lie 

The Children of Dreki--N. R. Tupper
       -TYR 

Dawn of Steam Trilogy--Jeffrey Cook
      -First Light
      -Gods of The Sun 
      -Rising Suns 

-Adaline--Denise Kawaii 

-Black Train--Clareesa Savka

The Therian Way--Kimberly Rogers
       -Leopard's Heart 
       -Wolf's Path 
       -Tiger's Shadow

Talented Series--Amy Hopkins
     -A Drop of Dream 
     -A Dash of Fiend 
     -A Splash of Truth