Mobility Mom Bookshelf: Cosmic Cargo Carnival by: Jack Bodett (Audio Review)

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Grab your copy HERE!!

Book Description

Life's a carnival when you're hauling the rides...

Rusty here, back on the galactic road with another cargo bay full of surprises. This time around, we're haulin' an alien carnival, complete with rides to make ya scream, games to bruise your ego, and enough sweet treats to give a dentist night terrors. And once it's up and runnin', we plan to enjoy every last thrill, spill, and sugar crash with our friends. Let me tell ya, there's nothin' like sharing a roller-coaster with a bark-skinned daredevil, a blob with motion sickness, and a robot who screams like dial-up internet.

But it ain't all funnel cakes and Ferris wheels. On our last run, Nessie's starboard engine swallowed enough asteroid debris to turn it into a king-sized rock tumbler, and we're not goin' anywhere until we fix 'er up. I didn't expect the repair to be hard, but I also didn't expect it to be… squishy. Never a dull moment when you call a vintage alien spaceship home.

Between the rides, the rust, and the rocket fuel, this is gonna be a heck of an adventure.

No Stress Space Express is a series about finding your true family, told with the common-sense wisdom of Jerry Boyd's Bob and Nikki series (Bob's Saucer Repair), and the low-stakes world building of Travis Baldree's Legends & Lattes. Join Rusty and his crew for a heart-warming, laugh-out-loud adventure with no tension, and no drama. Just good clean fun, great friendships, and a little romance too.

About Jack Bodett

Jack Bodett lives at the corner of duct tape and destiny. His humorous science-fiction tales are populated by folks who are equally good at building spaceships and building friendships. He believes that with a good sense of humor, a willingness to help others, and a well-stocked tool belt, anyone can bang together their own happy ending.

My Thoughts

Jack Bodett returns with Cosmic Cargo Carnival, the delightful fifth installment in his No Stress Space Express series. After a couple of previous entries pushed the limits of the series' "low-stakes" promise, this book marks a wonderful return to form.

The story follows the familiar couples of Rusty and Piper, alongside Mike and Jenna, as they go about their interesting lives hauling freight from their massive city-like mothership home base. After their vintage alien spaceship, Nessie, swallows a bit too much asteroid debris, the crew faces some delightfully unusual, "squishy" engine repairs before delivering the critical components for a wildly popular interstellar carnival called the Prindle Traveling Wondershow.

As payment for their services, Rusty and his crew receive VIP passes, allowing them and their extended outer-space found-family to enjoy the carnival firsthand. That is exactly what this heartwarming slice-of-life sci-fi adventure is all about: good clean fun, great friendships, and a touch of romance.

Rather than fighting soul-crushing oppressors or killer cyborgs, the reader gets to watch the crew share roller-coasters with bark-skinned daredevils, motion-sick blobs, and dial-up-screaming robots. Bodett excels at putting an imaginative, humorous alien spin on familiar concepts, with a particularly fantastic sci-fi twist on Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots that will make you wish it existed in real life.

The audiobook narration by Neill Thorne and Rebecca Winder is exceptionally well done, capturing the playful spirit and comforting tone of the story perfectly.

While some might wonder how a book with absolutely no villains, no tension, and no drama could be anything but boring, Bodett proves it can be incredibly engaging. Filled with humorous regular living, good food, true friends, and fascinating details on repairing impossible space tech, this book delivers on everything a cozy sci-fi fan could want. It is a highly recommended, playful romp that will leave you wanting to visit a carnival yourself and eagerly anticipating Book #6.

Other books I've read by Jack Bodett HERE!!