Retrieval Artist Books

In a strange world in which humans and aliens coexist, the Retrieval Artists, private detectives who help the lost return home, become embroiled in a bizarre case involving a triple murder, the kidnapping of two human children, and a woman on the run, a reluctant outlaw who is out to teach everyone a lesson. Original.

The short novel that started the entire Retrieval Artist series, The Retrieval Artist introduced Miles Flint to the world. Hugo-nominated, chosen as one of the best stories of the year, The Retrieval Artist created an entire universe, and Flint himself became what IO9 calls one of the top ten science fiction detectives ever. This book also contains the stories "Dancers Like Children" and "Alien Influences," which together became the novel "Alien Influences." The last three stories are "Results," "Reflections on Life and Death," and "Flowers and the Last Hurrah."

While searching for the Disappeared - criminals on the run for commiting unspeakable acts of violence against alien cultures - Retrieval Artist Miles Flint investigates two suspicious deaths, leading him to a demented scientist who is now one of the Disappeared. Original.

Retrieval Artist Miles Flint brought one of the Disappeared out of hiding, believing she would be safe. But then she's murdered, plunging Flint into a mystery involving an enigmatic alien race-and the fate of the entire solar system.

Investigating the discovery of a skeleton on Mars that is believed to have been one of the Disappeared, outlaws wanted for crimes against alien civilizations, forensic anthropologist Aisha Costard and Retrieval Artist Miles Flint stumble upon a dark secret that could destroy the universe. Original.

When Paloma, the woman he owes his very life to, is murdered, Retrieval Artist Miles Flint, after the police refuse his assistance, launches his own investigation and stumbles upon a link between her death and the Moon's largest law firm, who have a secret they will do anything to protect. Original.

When a Recovery Man kidnaps Rhonda Shindo after tormenting her brilliant thirteen-year-old daughter, Talia, the authorities on Jupiter's moon Callisto search for Rhonda, while her employers, trying to gain custody of Talia, make a shocking discovery that sheds new light on this case. Original.

When a journalist working with him is murdered and his daughter Talia goes missing, Retrieval Artist Miles Flint, on a mission to destroy a corrupt law firm, discovers that Talia's quest to find her other five clones and his search for a killer are somehow connected. Original.

Hadad Yu “recovers” things for a living. Things, not people, not animals. Things. Until he gets in trouble and must work for the alien Gyonnese. They want a person to answer for her crimes, and they want to use Yu to get her. He reluctantly agrees, and sets off events that will change his life and the lives around him forever. A companion piece to Recovery Man, The Recovery Man’s Bargain explores the motivations of one of the stranger characters in the Retrieval Artist universe.“Rusch’s story is a powerful and engaging exploration of the pitfalls of moral compromise.” —SF Gospel“… has a Golden Age vibe … (an) impressive tale.”—Tangent Online“Rusch has constructed a disturbing psychological SFnal crime thriller, set in a universe where powerful corporations and individuals can twist the laws to their own profit. Haddad Yu is a well-realized and complex character…” —Internet Review of Science Fiction

The short novel that started the entire Retrieval Artist series, The Retrieval Artist introduced Miles Flint to the world. Hugo-nominated, chosen as one of the best stories of the year, The Retrieval Artist created an entire universe, and Flint himself became what io9 calls “one of the top ten science fiction detectives ever.”Part CSI, part Blade Runner, and part hard-boiled gumshoe, the retrieval artist of the series title, one Miles Flint, would be as at home on a foggy San Francisco street in the 1940s as he is in the domed lunar colony of Armstrong City.—The EdgeIt feels like a popular TV series crossed with a Spielberg film—engaging…—Locus on The DisappearedRusch mounts hard-boiled noir on an expansive sf background with great panache.—Booklist on Consequences

All of his short life, Paavo Deshin has seen ghosts. The same two ghosts who have now approached him on the school playground, ghosts who look older and actually smell bad. Paavo’s cry for help brings the authorities, a few lawyers, and Retrieval Artist Miles Flint, who learns some secrets about the ghosts—and about Paavo’s parents. This short stand-alone science fiction novel in the Retrieval Artist series received a Special Mention from the prestigious international UPC contest.“The Possession of Paavo Deshin” is a masterfully crafted story. Definitely don't miss this one.—Tangent OnlineA custody battle like no other, where every side has its own agenda. An engaging story, a title very apt.—Internet Review of Science FictionRusch mounts hard-boiled noir on an expansive sf background with great panache.—Booklist on Consequences

To pay off her law school debts, Kerrie works in the public defender’s office at the Interspecies Court. Her workload includes more clients than she can defend, most of them from cultures she does not understand. The public defender’s office loses almost all of its cases, but sometimes it gets a win. Kerrie thinks she has a winner. But does she? Or will winning the case mean she loses at everything else? “Readers of police procedurals as well as fans of SF should enjoy this mystery series.” —Kliatt

From the award-winning, bestselling Retrieval Artist Universe comes a story about a pulse-pounding race for survival and a foreshadowing of dangerous events yet to unfold. Takara Hamasaki made plans to leave the far-flung starbase for weeks, but something always stopped her. Until today. Now, she finds herself running for her life as bodies fall all around her, cut down by dozens of identical-looking men. If only she can reach her ship, maybe she can escape. Because one thing seems perfectly clear: The men attacking the starbase plan to leave no survivors. “Sole Survivor,” first published in Fiction River: Pulse Pounders, appears in a different form in Book Seven of the Anniversary Day Saga, Starbase Human. “Fans of Rusch’s Retrieval Artist universe will enjoy the expansion of the Anniversary Day story, with new characters providing more perspectives on its signature events, while newcomers will get a good introduction to the series.” —Publishers Weekly on A Murder of Clones

Years before the Anniversary Day crisis, Armstrong Police Detective Noelle DeRicci investigates a body dumped in a compost bin. But what seems like a regular murder case suddenly puts everyone she knows at risk. And it poses a very political question: How far should she push for the rights of clones? Winner of the 2015 Asimov’s Readers’ Choice Award for Best Novella. “Inhuman Garbage,” first published in Asimov’s, appears in a different form in Book Seven of the Anniversary Day Saga, Starbase Human. “We get some surprising revelations in a story rich with intrigue mixed with science fiction and police procedural. Rusch is so good at this sort of thing. This will be on my Hugo Short List for Novella next year.” — Sam Tomaino, SF Revu “…Well done with a good twist and a surprising conclusion.” —Eric “The Mailman’s” Book Blog “The story manages to weave an interesting mystery, and while it leaves a few characters sure that they’ve lost, it pulls off a fairly fitting ending.” —Tangent “Set in the not too distant future, the latest entry in Rusch’s popular sf thriller series combines fast-paced action, beautifully conflicted protagonists, and a distinctly ‘sf noir’ feel to tell a complex and far-reaching mystery.” —Library Journal on Anniversary Day “Anniversary Day is an edge-of-the-seat thriller that will keep you turning pages late into the night and it’s also really good science fiction. What’s not to like?” —Analog on Anniversary Day “… the Anniversary Day Saga could become a milestone in the field.” —Amazing Stories