In a dystopian world where the once powerful countries are now scrambling for fuel, the helium3-rich fields of the moon are a godsend. But when an American miner turns up dead, it may become the new front in a war, not just for control of the Earth, but also the galaxy.

“Cold enveloped him. He opened his eyes in Moon shadow and had to blink to make sure they weren’t closed.” pg 5

This is a story that could have been a thriller, but it gets bogged down in the technical aspects of life on the moon. I imagine the science is sound, but, unlike “The Martian”, I felt like it slowed the action down to a crawl rather than speeding it along.

The characters were problematic. There are half a dozen of them and I couldn’t seem to connect with any.

“Dechert wondered for the hundredth time if the people back home had any clue what it was like to live on the Moon.” pg 15

The mystery wasn’t all that mysterious and is tied up in one paragraph towards the end. I was disappointed. I like my mysteries with more twists and turns, an unexpected bump or two.

“I’m going to catch a quick two hours,” he said. “Wake me up if something bad happens.” pg 29.

A nap was starting to sound pretty good to me too.

I read David Pedreira’s bio and it seems he’s a journalist, or was. I could tell from his writing. The sections read sort of like mini-news stories. Lede, information, kicker, repeat. Not that there’s anything wrong with that format, but I wish the story had been shaken up somewhat.

Oh well. On to the next book! Thanks for reading.

• The Ballad of a Small Player: a Metaphysical Movie Review
• Otherwhere: A Field Guide to Nonphysical Reality for the Out-Of-Body Traveler by Kurt Leland
• Psychic Dreamwalking: Explorations at the Edge of Self by Michelle Belanger
• Archetypes on the Tree of Life: The Tarot as Pathwork by Madonna Compton
• The Goddess and the Shaman: The Art & Science of Magical Healing by J.A. Kent