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The Mars Chronicles #1
Tinman
Looking for a haven, Astin Langlee went to the moon to escape the unforgiving rigors of poverty on Earth. Signing on for seven years of contract labor, he planned to work hard and make a place for himself. Called “Tinman’ for his lack of observable emotion, he does just that, finding solace only in his conversations with Eddie, a sentient AI.
Finding love never crossed his mind.
Meeting his co-worker, Davis, Astin discovers that he cares more than his nickname suggests. Opening to the joy Davis brings in his wake, Tinman allows love to overcome his fear.
When the moon station is shut down by the uncaring LunaCorp, they head for Mars, only to find that home threatened by the same corporation.
Can Astin save his new home and those he loves, or will he lose all while taking a gamble none could envision?
Finding love never crossed his mind.
Meeting his co-worker, Davis, Astin discovers that he cares more than his nickname suggests. Opening to the joy Davis brings in his wake, Tinman allows love to overcome his fear.
When the moon station is shut down by the uncaring LunaCorp, they head for Mars, only to find that home threatened by the same corporation.
Can Astin save his new home and those he loves, or will he lose all while taking a gamble none could envision?
269 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 20, 2023
7 people are currently reading
25 people want to read
About the author
C.J. Dragon
23 books22 followersCJ has always been an avid reader of everything, having started her reading career on cereal boxes at a tender age. Deciding to finally share some of the stories in her head, CJ took the plunge into publishing in 2022.
She lives in North Carolina, is happily married to her soulmate who is also a writer, and is the Bringer of Food for two cats; Frankie, who is a delight; and Angel, who has earned her new name, Lucifer's Handmaiden.
For all things Dragon, make sure you visit her website!
www.cjdragon.com
She lives in North Carolina, is happily married to her soulmate who is also a writer, and is the Bringer of Food for two cats; Frankie, who is a delight; and Angel, who has earned her new name, Lucifer's Handmaiden.
For all things Dragon, make sure you visit her website!
www.cjdragon.com
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 23, 2023
Such a wonderful story
The Tinman finds his heart. A reluctant leader. A kind lover. Astin Langlee falls for his coworker, Davis Rothberg. Davis shows Astin what it means to love and be loved. He is there through hard times battling against the mega corporation, Lunacorp. Having a abandon their life on the moon, Astin finds his confidence and self-worth. Slow burn, low steam. A great story.
The Tinman finds his heart. A reluctant leader. A kind lover. Astin Langlee falls for his coworker, Davis Rothberg. Davis shows Astin what it means to love and be loved. He is there through hard times battling against the mega corporation, Lunacorp. Having a abandon their life on the moon, Astin finds his confidence and self-worth. Slow burn, low steam. A great story.
November 23, 2025
I absolutely enjoyed this book! It's different from what I usual read, I mean m/m scifi romance yes please, but it was very dystopian. Way darker than I thought it would be. That being said, it still had it's light parts.
It was sad, it made me cry, it was hopeful, it was touching, it was dark, it scared me, it made me smile and swoon. It made me feel a lot.
The pov's confused me and I think they could have been made clearer with some space between them. But I was just happy to get Davis pov too, so I don't want to complain too much.
The love they shared was beautiful. They were a team, that is the best way to describe their love. They got together fairly quickly into the book and stayed together. They just grew closer and closer together and it was so heartwarming to see. They started off as friends and you feel, that they have a good friendship as a base. Their love story showed perfectly, that you don't need much, except love and friendship.
I thought the book had a good balance of inner monologues and dialogues. The dialogues sometimes felt, hmm I don't know how to say it, stilted maybe? Honestly I don't know how to say it, I don't have the words in English or German for it. I didn't mind it at all though.
The whole premise that life on earth is so bad and hostile was horrific and frankly scarry. It just freaks me out to think about what happens to earth right know and how little we normal people can do about it.
I didn't fully understand why life on earth was bad though. I guess the rich being the rich and surpress the poor. While the poor struggle with pandemics, wages and food. I don't understand why they didn't just fuck off into the forest and get back to the roots so to speak.
The life on Mars was very interesting. I loved to learn about it and that we got so many details on what the life looks like.
The only thing that REALLY annoyed me was, older man. Ugh I kid you not the phrase "older man" was probably used at least 75-100 times. Young man was mentioned too but not as constant as older man. Sometimes I was wondering what older man the author meant, till I realized, she meant Astin. Honestly it almost made me give only 4 stars. I was wondering how old they are and when I learned their age, i was flabbergasted. Davis was 25 and Astin, the "older man" was 35. EXCUSE ME? 35 is not old!
I totally recommend this book though! Of course Astin and Davis were amazing. Their friends and family were very endearing too. I loved to see how they all held so much love for each other.
It was sad, it made me cry, it was hopeful, it was touching, it was dark, it scared me, it made me smile and swoon. It made me feel a lot.
The pov's confused me and I think they could have been made clearer with some space between them. But I was just happy to get Davis pov too, so I don't want to complain too much.
The love they shared was beautiful. They were a team, that is the best way to describe their love. They got together fairly quickly into the book and stayed together. They just grew closer and closer together and it was so heartwarming to see. They started off as friends and you feel, that they have a good friendship as a base. Their love story showed perfectly, that you don't need much, except love and friendship.
I thought the book had a good balance of inner monologues and dialogues. The dialogues sometimes felt, hmm I don't know how to say it, stilted maybe? Honestly I don't know how to say it, I don't have the words in English or German for it. I didn't mind it at all though.
The whole premise that life on earth is so bad and hostile was horrific and frankly scarry. It just freaks me out to think about what happens to earth right know and how little we normal people can do about it.
I didn't fully understand why life on earth was bad though. I guess the rich being the rich and surpress the poor. While the poor struggle with pandemics, wages and food. I don't understand why they didn't just fuck off into the forest and get back to the roots so to speak.
The life on Mars was very interesting. I loved to learn about it and that we got so many details on what the life looks like.
The only thing that REALLY annoyed me was, older man. Ugh I kid you not the phrase "older man" was probably used at least 75-100 times. Young man was mentioned too but not as constant as older man. Sometimes I was wondering what older man the author meant, till I realized, she meant Astin. Honestly it almost made me give only 4 stars. I was wondering how old they are and when I learned their age, i was flabbergasted. Davis was 25 and Astin, the "older man" was 35. EXCUSE ME? 35 is not old!
I totally recommend this book though! Of course Astin and Davis were amazing. Their friends and family were very endearing too. I loved to see how they all held so much love for each other.
June 28, 2023
Incredible story
Astin has been through a lot in his life so it's no wonder that he embraced the nickname Tinman. He doesn't let his emotions show, even when things seem bleak on the Moon. When a young coworker Davis, aka Boots, befriends him one day, Astin decides it's finally time to make a friend besides the sentient computer Eddie. I liked how they bonded and became friends. Their progression to lovers was really sweet. As the story progresses we learn that Earth has gone through some troubles and their company LunaCorp is selfish and doesn't care about their employees' welfare. Despite that, the couple tries to hold on until they can save enough credits for transport to Mars. Luckily Eddie keeps Astin up to date with the happenings on Earth and with the corporation. I loved Eddie. You could really feel the bond that they shared. When they finally went to Mars I was so hoping for a way that Eddie and Astin could be reunited, and CJ Dragon did not disappoint. You will just have to read to find out what happens. I loved the world building and the characters, especially Ezra, Carl, and Davis's family. The creativity, the imagination, and the uniqueness of this book was incredible. CJ Dragon is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.
Astin has been through a lot in his life so it's no wonder that he embraced the nickname Tinman. He doesn't let his emotions show, even when things seem bleak on the Moon. When a young coworker Davis, aka Boots, befriends him one day, Astin decides it's finally time to make a friend besides the sentient computer Eddie. I liked how they bonded and became friends. Their progression to lovers was really sweet. As the story progresses we learn that Earth has gone through some troubles and their company LunaCorp is selfish and doesn't care about their employees' welfare. Despite that, the couple tries to hold on until they can save enough credits for transport to Mars. Luckily Eddie keeps Astin up to date with the happenings on Earth and with the corporation. I loved Eddie. You could really feel the bond that they shared. When they finally went to Mars I was so hoping for a way that Eddie and Astin could be reunited, and CJ Dragon did not disappoint. You will just have to read to find out what happens. I loved the world building and the characters, especially Ezra, Carl, and Davis's family. The creativity, the imagination, and the uniqueness of this book was incredible. CJ Dragon is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.
May 9, 2024
When it comes to sci-fi, it has to be super well-written and entertaining for me to get into it. It's not categorized in the top tiers of my favorite genres but one thing I can say about this book, it was awesome (IMHO). It kept me interested, the MCs are quite likable, and it has a good plot. The story started picking up interest/speed at about a third in and kept moving strongly from there. If you like good sci-fi, this one might be to your liking.
December 12, 2025
This summary promises a compelling sci-fi tale with strong character development. Astin’s struggle with his emotions and the contrast between his “Tinman” persona and his growing bond with Davis felt very authentic. The corporate conflict adds tension that I’m curious to see unfold.
November 12, 2023
Mead over to my web site for a complete review of “TInman.”
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews