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MoonDust: Falling From Grace
“Excellent SF”
–Amazon reviewer.
Imogene never planned to become a lunar commando. Not before her ex broke her heart and left her jobless. Now she’d better learn fast.
Descended from animal-human hybrids built for war, combat should be in the young caribou’s genes. While Imogene is determined to master the moon’s harsh battlefield, war clouds are brewing on the planet below, and once the storm breaks no training can ever be enough.
A soldier’s first duty is to her country, but when black and white fade to dusty gray, the lines between friend and foe blur. As everything Imogene ever believed in crumbles, she must decide if some orders should never be obeyed.
Mixing character-driven SF with a gritty struggle for survival, MoonDust will thrill lovers of science fiction and anthropomorphism alike.
Imogene never planned to become a lunar commando. Not before her ex broke her heart and left her jobless. Now she’d better learn fast.
Descended from animal-human hybrids built for war, combat should be in the young caribou’s genes. While Imogene is determined to master the moon’s harsh battlefield, war clouds are brewing on the planet below, and once the storm breaks no training can ever be enough.
A soldier’s first duty is to her country, but when black and white fade to dusty gray, the lines between friend and foe blur. As everything Imogene ever believed in crumbles, she must decide if some orders should never be obeyed.
Mixing character-driven SF with a gritty struggle for survival, MoonDust will thrill lovers of science fiction and anthropomorphism alike.
389 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 1, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 2, 2026
This one had been sitting on the pile for a while. A recommendation from someone (I don’t remember who), I finally cracked into it at the start of 2026. It’s a scifi war story with some interesting ideas, but I found that I had mixed feelings when I was done.
The story begins when Imogene, fresh off a tour of duty, finds that the life that she expected was not waiting for her when she returned. With no other ideas, she enlists for the lunar infantry. A caribou, I thought that she was likeable for the most part. The author conveyed well the feeling of directionlessness, seeking something to provide you a path when the one you thought you were on disappears. I enjoyed spending time with the character, especially for the early part of the story, and she kept my interest well. She begins her training with her squad, until all the sudden, things get complicated.
Although there was always something happening to keep my interest, I found upon finishing the story that I was unclear on a lot of details that I consider important. For example, I was uncertain about why the war was happening or what the central conflict was. Now true, this seemed to be a boots on the ground view of things since Imogene was fairly low on the totem pole but even still, a little background as to why they were fighting or why the moon was a strategic battleground would have been helpful.
The survival elements were done pretty well, and most of the characters managed to forge definable identities so I remembered who they were, although a few had such small roles that they didn’t really form an impression. For the most part the story made sense but there were a few decisions here and there that just seemed either foolish or misguided on Imogene’s part, but this could just be my personal perspective. I will say however that it definitely made me uncomfortable with a lot of the realities of war, which is probably how it should be, and there were a few things that definitely bummed me out and likely qualified as war crimes or something when all is said and done.
I thought the book flowed well although the ending was missing something. To me it seemed anticlimactic and the points I kind of thought the book was going to make with the setup seemed to never get made. We don’t find out the status of the rest of their forces, the Earth, or even if Imogene will make it long term. All in all it left me feeling somewhat unsatisfied, and really not sure if I’d recommend it or not.
The story begins when Imogene, fresh off a tour of duty, finds that the life that she expected was not waiting for her when she returned. With no other ideas, she enlists for the lunar infantry. A caribou, I thought that she was likeable for the most part. The author conveyed well the feeling of directionlessness, seeking something to provide you a path when the one you thought you were on disappears. I enjoyed spending time with the character, especially for the early part of the story, and she kept my interest well. She begins her training with her squad, until all the sudden, things get complicated.
Although there was always something happening to keep my interest, I found upon finishing the story that I was unclear on a lot of details that I consider important. For example, I was uncertain about why the war was happening or what the central conflict was. Now true, this seemed to be a boots on the ground view of things since Imogene was fairly low on the totem pole but even still, a little background as to why they were fighting or why the moon was a strategic battleground would have been helpful.
The survival elements were done pretty well, and most of the characters managed to forge definable identities so I remembered who they were, although a few had such small roles that they didn’t really form an impression. For the most part the story made sense but there were a few decisions here and there that just seemed either foolish or misguided on Imogene’s part, but this could just be my personal perspective. I will say however that it definitely made me uncomfortable with a lot of the realities of war, which is probably how it should be, and there were a few things that definitely bummed me out and likely qualified as war crimes or something when all is said and done.
I thought the book flowed well although the ending was missing something. To me it seemed anticlimactic and the points I kind of thought the book was going to make with the setup seemed to never get made. We don’t find out the status of the rest of their forces, the Earth, or even if Imogene will make it long term. All in all it left me feeling somewhat unsatisfied, and really not sure if I’d recommend it or not.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 4, 2023
Do not be fooled by the description and characters of this amazing page-turner! I honestly didn't think this great book would up as a top favorite for me.
What begins as a standard military tale training to be the elite while competing against rivals in combat and love turns into a hellish survival thriller that keeps you guessing and turning the pages. Never knowing what will come or who will make it in the nightmare Innogene is trying to survive when anything and everything goes horribly wrong.
highly recommend this book to any who love an epic sci-fi survival thiller. SERIOUSLY, YOU'LL MISS OUT IF YOU PASS THIS UP.
What begins as a standard military tale training to be the elite while competing against rivals in combat and love turns into a hellish survival thriller that keeps you guessing and turning the pages. Never knowing what will come or who will make it in the nightmare Innogene is trying to survive when anything and everything goes horribly wrong.
highly recommend this book to any who love an epic sci-fi survival thiller. SERIOUSLY, YOU'LL MISS OUT IF YOU PASS THIS UP.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews