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The Mandroid Murders: A Science Fiction Mystery (Quirk & Moth) Paperback – August 8, 2022

by Robin C.M. Duncan (Author)
4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 25 ratings
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They say, “Never work with androids or children.”

Quirk had one job to do, deliver papers to a Milan mafia boss, before leaving Earth for his home in the asteroids. But that was before being tailed, poisoned—oh, yes—and hijacked into raising foulmouthed fourteen-year-old convent girl Angelika Moratti, aka Moth, who'd rather see him asphyxiate in space.

Fleeing assassins, Quirk, Moth and her syRen® android S-0778 ride the space elevator to the Moon, where Quirk hires on to hunt an ex-terra-former who somehow used an android to murder his doctor. But which android of the two hundred under Lunaville’s dome? The trail of bodies grows, time is running out; the only way they can save the dome and the two thousand souls beneath it is to solve The Mandroid Murders.

Genres: Science Fiction / Thriller / Mystery / Adventure / LGBT and Non Binary

Market: Adult

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Previous page
  1. Book 1 of 3
    Quirk & Moth
  2. Print length
    342 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publication date
    August 8, 2022
  5. Dimensions
    6 x 0.86 x 9 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1735076864
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1735076867
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"The story was engaging from beginning to end, making it an easy and captivating read. I look forward to reading the next adventure with these characters!" - Reese Hogan, author of SHROUDED LOYALTIES

"Moth and Quirk's wisecracking escapades are sparkling sci-fi rooted in a love of the noir classics." - Neil Williamson, author of QUEEN OF CLOUDS

"A mismatched pair of bickering detectives romp through a cleverly imagined future. Funny and entertaining. More please!" - Fergus Bannon, author of JUDGEMENT

"Laughter-provoking actions, intriguing dialog, and chilling suspense will move the story line forward as they race to find the answer before the bodies pile up ever higher in this sci-fi setting." - Emily Pennington, VINE VOICE

"If you love sci-fi murder mysteries then you are in for one hell of a read. The intrigue and suspense keeps you hooked chapter after chapter." - Allie Wadsworth

"I love the way Robin C. M. Duncan writes a scifi book, it has a great scifi element that worked perfectly with the characters. ...a great blend of scifi and mystery thriller." - Kathryn

"...one of the best new independently published novels I have read this year. The androids and other technologies are inventive and plausible. The frenemy relationship between Quirk and Moth is a lot of fun. I hope the next novel in the series is well on the way." - Thomas

"...drew me back into the story every time I put it down." - Hal DiF

"A roller coaster journey that commanded me to read it non-stop. Such a compelling story, I couldn't read it fast enough." - Di

"...more twists than a rattlesnake..." - Randy Miller

"Quirk and Moth are a fantastic, hilarious duo. Add in a mystery plot full of suspense, a world with sci-fi elements, and even more great characters and you have one amazing, must read book. I highly recommend this one." - Sara Codair, author of THE EVANSTAR CHRONICLES

About the Author

Robin C.M. Duncan is a Scot born and living in Glasgow, Scotland. A Civil Engineer by profession, he has been writing for decades, but seriously only for the last ten years.Over 30+ years, Robin has completed six novels, and numerous short stories, novellas and novelettes, with copious other projects in various stages of incompletion.In 2019, Robin's short story The NEU Oblivion (presently unpublished) was long-listed for the James White Award which is supported by the British Science Fiction Association (BSFA), and Interzone magazine.In addition to being a member of READ, Robin is a senior member, assistant to the moderator, and minor poohbah of the Reading Excuses critique group, hosted on Brandon Sanderson's official fansite, 17th Shard. He belongs to the Glasgow Science Fiction Writers' Circle (GSFWC), and is a member of the British Fantasy Society (BFS).

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Space Wizard Science Fantasy (August 8, 2022)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 342 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1735076864
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1735076867
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.11 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.86 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.0 4.0 out of 5 stars 25 ratings

About the author

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Robin C.M. Duncan

Robin C.M. Duncan

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Robin C.M. Duncan is a Scot born and living in Glasgow. A Civil Engineer by profession, he has been writing for decades, but seriously only for the last ten years. Robin has completed various novels, numerous short stories, novellas, novelettes, and poems, with copious other projects in different stages of incompletion.

Robin’s short story The NEU Oblivion was long-listed for the 2019 James White Award. His first published works, the novellas Dew Diligence and The Bibliothek Betrayal, appear in the Distant Gardens anthology of 2021, available in pb/eb/audio from Space Wizard Science Fantasy.

Robin belongs to the Glasgow Science Fiction Writers’ Circle, the Reading Excuses critique group, the British Fantasy Society, and the British Science Fiction Association. Robin likes LEGO, gardening, heavy metal, football (soccer), and long walks on the beach. Robin does not own a cat, but is slightly acquainted with one.

Customer reviews

4 out of 5 stars
4 out of 5
25 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Menzie Chase
5.0 out of 5 stars very Entertaining
Reviewed in the United States on June 13, 2023
Verified Purchase
This is part Scorsese mob movie, part android sci-fi and part dystopian evil corporate villain. It’s very entertaining all the way through. Recommended!
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merlin513
4.0 out of 5 stars Great scifi plausible engineering, dubious morally grey characters
Reviewed in the United States on July 22, 2023
I’m in somewhat of a conundrum about my feelings on this book. There are things here that I like, really REALLY like! But also things that drag my rating down. I’ve opted to give ‘The Mandroid Murders’ a 4 star rating as a compromise.

Things I liked:

ALL the tech, from the SyRen’s to the Luna dome, Exo-suited miners and astroid belters is VERY plausible and well presented & executed. Right up there with the best of the hard sci-fi series.

The things I didn’t like are more fleeting and harder to pin down. I’ve still not quite warmed to the main characters but that’s ‘me’ and not for any lack of skill on the author’s part presenting them.

Each of them, Quirk, Moth, Callen, Mary Quan, Uncle Toni, Aunt Giuliana are well rounded, humanly flawed and each operating for their own best interests. I just never really clicked with them. Mary Quan was probably my favorite even tho she’s a corporate lawyer. She has a cat, she can’t be ALL bad. :p

The real enemy here is the corporations and corporate greed. While Callen is obviously off his rocker, his initial grievance is accurate.

Moving on to the second novel. Maybe they’ll stick this time.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
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LindaKimura
3.0 out of 5 stars Snarky SciFi detectives
Reviewed in the United States on August 19, 2023
“The Mandroid Murders” (Quirk & Moth Shambles #1) by Robin C.M. Duncan ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Genre: Snarky SciFi. Location: Earth and the Moon. Time: Alternative 2099.

THE SERIES: Private Detective Quinton Kirby, known as Quirk (33) lives in the asteroid belt. He’s raising foulmouthed Moth (14), aka Angelika Moratti. This is annoying to both of them. Moth comes with S-0778, a violet-eyed syRen android. Quirk used to work for C-Corp, and was married to the boss’s daughter. Until the boss betrayed his daughter, and she betrayed Quirk.

THIS BOOK: Quirk is on Earth quietly doing a paper drop for mob boss Toni De Fantano. When Toni ends up in a deadly situation, he asks Quirk to raise and protect Toni’s niece Moth. He poisons Quirk to guarantee his cooperation, because only Moth has the saliva-based antidote. Fleeing Earth assassins, Quirk, Moth and S-0778 head for the Moon, where Quirk is hired to find Gregor Callan, an ex-terraformer who used an android to murder his doctor.

Author Duncan alternates Quirk and Moth’s current story with chapters from Gregor Callan’s recent past and present. Once Quirk, Moth, and S-0778 get together, the beginning narrative makes more sense. I’m a big fan of world building descriptions, and Duncan does them well. But sometimes this book seems longer on description than plot, with word space given to lists of androids, how things work in detail, etc, instead of summarizing those and getting to the action.

The characters really are the stars. I love how Quirk labels his own expressions, such as the “Please don’t Taser me, I’m a Harmless Detective Smile”, the “Half-Smile of Condensation”, and the “Simple Smile #3: no agenda, just happy to see you”. And how he refers to his suit by its brand (the Merrion”). So it’s long and filled with description overload, but Duncan has created a fun concept and plot with likable, snarky characters, so it’s a solid 3 stars from me🌵📚💁🏼‍♀️
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Nancy Allen (The Avid Reader)
5.0 out of 5 stars Science Fiction...Mystery...Must Read...
Reviewed in the United States on June 14, 2023
The Mandroid Murders is a great start to a brand new series, Quirk & Moth by Robin C. M. Duncan. The Mandroid Murders kept me on my toes racing to the end with all the suspense and twists along the way to keep me tightly glued to the pages not able to lay it down once I started reading.

Quirk & Moth are two very interesting characters that kept me hooked page after page. Quirk & Moth didn’t get along very well with each other. Quirk was hired by Moth’s uncle to raise her. Quirk was not interested in raising a fourteen-year-old girl but I assume the price was right.

Quirk set out on his day to deliver some papers to a Milan mafia boss, before leaving Earth for his home in the asteroids. But he was detained by Moth and her uncle.

When an android kills his doctor Quirk decides to take on the case to find out which android killed the doctor but there are like two hundred under Lunaville’s dome. But before they can find the killer more bodies are found. Can Quirk and Moth find the killer before it is too late for everyone under the dome?

The Mandroid Murders was a great read. I love the world that was created for The Mandroid Murders. I loved the writing style. I loved the blend of a murder mystery, Science Fiction, and a thriller all rolled into one story.

The Mandroid Murders was told from different points of view which I like as I like getting the story from different characters and seeing the world through their eyes.

I do believe that The Mandroid Murders would make a great TV show or movie. I can’t wait to read more about Quirk and Moth’s great adventures in the next book The Carborundum Conundrum.

I would recommend The Mandroid Murders to all science fiction and mystery fans! Grab your copy of The Mandroid Murders today!
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James Lane
4.0 out of 5 stars Good book!
Reviewed in the United States on September 13, 2022
The concept was cool! I really liked the characters including the few laughs. My only issue is with the cussing. Not a fan. If you do not mind the four letter words, this book might be a 5 for you!
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W & T Perry
2.0 out of 5 stars Quirky
Reviewed in the United States on November 13, 2023
Verified Purchase
Just couldn't quite push to the ok column of 3 stars, as I had no love for either Quirk or foul-mouthed Moth, or any of the other characters. Maybe the only character that I like was the android.

Most of the book was slow and "quirky". Understand trying to be sci-fi by using terms like Plass and Pleather, instead of glass and leather. Star Wars does this to an extent, but this was over the top.

The story in the last few chapters got somewhat better, once they were after the main antagonist, but even that fell flat in the end like the rock falling on the dome of Lunaville.

Glad others liked it, but will not be reading the next in the series, even if it was free.
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Top reviews from other countries

Fergus Bannon
5.0 out of 5 stars Rip-roaring SF crime caper
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 11, 2022
Verified Purchase
A mismatched pair of bickering detectives romp through a cleverly imagined future. Funny and entertaining. More please!
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