Harmless Idiots of the Star Verge

By Sal Riff

The galaxy's last hope is its biggest mistake. Being competent is overrated. Being a "Harmless Idiot" is a survival strategy.

Beckett "Beck" Holt had a simple plan: graduate the Academy, fly a shiny cruiser, and retire with a full pension. Instead, he's the captain of a scout ship that smells like scorched cinnamon and old laundry, held together by industrial-grade spite and fungal spores.

When Beck and his crew salvage a "dead" alien from a high-security Sentinel wreck, they accidentally stumble into a conspiracy that threatens the very core of individual thought. Admiral Butly is weaving "The Harmony"-a psionic hive-mind designed to silence the "noise" of the universe. To stop him, Beck will have to navigate a labyrinth of unpaid debts, elite assassins, and planetary ore-grinders, all while trying to find his favorite mug.

Hunted by elite Vow-Hunters and tracked by a psionic beacon, the crew of the Drift-Runner has one tactical advantage: the government's official intelligence report states they are Harmless Idiots. In a galaxy full of masterminds and warriors, it turns out that being a complete disaster is the best way to save the world.

Why You'll Love This Book

Blending the gritty, "Used-Future" aesthetic of Firefly with the absurdist wit of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, The Harmless Idiots of the Star Verge is an action-packed space opera about found family, high-stakes heists, and the beautiful, messy noise of being an individual.

Inside Book 1, you'll find:

A Ragtag Crew: A Human captain with no hat, a Valkyr pilot with social anxiety, a Krell auditor who bills for "Stupidity Taxes," and a sentient fungus who writes poetry.

Space Western Thrills: High-speed dogfights through ship graveyards and radioactive nebulas.

Absurdist Humor: From "theological plumbing" to "Stink-Bomb Gambits," the solutions are never what you expect.

Cozy Stakes: A massive galactic threat experienced through the lens of people just trying to afford real coffee.

Step into the noise. Grab your chipped mug, strap into the memory-gel seat, and join the Harmless Idiots as they save the galaxy-mostly by accident.

Start the adventure today. The Star Verge is waiting.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0H2HH5NT7
• ISBN13: 9798197911735
• Release Date: May 2026
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 360 Pages
• Weight: 1.07 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.9" x 6.0"