Teaser

In the near future, people live on the Moon. It is a hard life, with corporations eager to extract precious helium, society tightly controlled by powerful families, and every breath of air paid for in blood . . .

Review

Luna: New Moon marks part of my ongoing project to reread the handful of science fiction books I read before I started properly tracking my reading habits in 2016. I don’t remember exactly when I read McDonald’s book for the first time, but it was probably around 2014 or 2015. I have very dim memories of talking about it in university. Those same memories tell me that I didn’t particularly care for the book. Completionist that I am, it still deserved a reread so I could judge it with the eyes of a more seasoned science fiction reader. Unfortunately, a fresh set of eyes has not improved my opinions of the book. I can confirm that I still don’t like it very much.

The book markets itself as Game of Thrones in space. That’s largely meaningless because 1) every book from the time is marketed as Game of Thrones in space, and 2) I have neither read nor watched Game of Thrones. the other comparison is Dallas, which I am once again aware of only through reputation. But since the book is so keen to be compared to TV shows, I have another one to throw into the mix. Your Friends and Neighbours. Like this AppleTV drama, I can see the craftsmanship that has gone into it. McDonald’s sentences are as eye-catching as the cinematography of said show. But all the stylish flair in the world can’t escape the fact that I don’t enjoy it.

My central issue with New Moon is also my main complaint with Your Friends and Neighbours. Nothing interesting happens. It’s just an endless cycle of the fantastically wealthy feuding and having sex with one another. In the case of New Moon, that sex is in graphic and unpleasant detail. the feuding isn’t much to remark on either, save that I might have enjoyed it more if Jon Hamm was around to deliver a pithy voiceover. New Moon has far too many characters, far too many families, and no reason to be invested in any of it. Everyone is the same. Rich, good-looking, and nasty. I’m sure there is a market for this. Presumably the same people who are hooked on a heady dose of prestige drama and trashy reality TV. But I am not that market. I don’t live there, and I certainly don’t go shopping there.

There’s the odd saving grace. As I’ve said, MacDonald’s writing has flair, even if he does randomly swap between first- and third-person perspectives, it’s all very readable. The polylingual, multi-ethnic society on the Moon makes for a nice change from the slick white corporatism that I’ve seen elsewhere. MacDonald’s Moon is a vibrant place, and even if he does overdo it on the sex scenes, it’s interesting to read his speculations on the ethics and morality that might develop so far away from Earth.

Overall, though, this is just not my kind of book at all. It’s a promising setting in desperate need of a stronger plotline. Maybe I’m wrong, because it was shortlisted for a couple of awards, but it’s not a book that I recommend. Not when there are better visions of the lunar future out there.

Book Stats

• Luna #1
• Published 2013
• 392 Pages