LUNA

by Garon Whited

"Oh, relax. It's not the end of the world.
No, wait--yes, it is. Crap."
--From the diary of Maxwell Hardy, Space Janitor

Armageddon has arrived. It's not as bad as we thought.

The end of the world has never been quite so entertaining. Crushing despair, soaring hope, and the stubborn determination of humanity all come together in a story told by a man in the middle of it all.

From the very first line, "Luna" grabs the reader. Where most books start with a world in trouble and ride the story on in to the Last Days, "Luna" starts with the ultimate end of the world and rockets forward into the future.

Welcome to the Moon, the new home of humanity.

Genres: Science Fiction

308 pages, Hardcover

First published May 11, 2007

About the author

Garon Whited was supposedly born in 1970, but the original birth certificate is suspiciously unavailable and other records do not agree. After spending some years in college playing role-playing games, he finally settled down into a steady job working with computers—and still plays role-playing games. He finally joined a radicalized group of jellyfish-herding nomads. Having fought zombie dolphins, quasi-corporeal wine and spirits, as well as brain-sucking mole rats, he is uniquely qualified to write fantastic fiction. His subsequent attempts at professional salsa repairman and ley line salesman met with similar success. An affinity for science fiction and fantasy has condemned him to write whenever he has a chance, despite therapy involving shocks and rubber hoses. He claims he lives on this planet, but impartial observers have expressed some doubt. He currently lives in Texarkana.

Reviews

[Garon Whited · Rating 5 out of 5]

Step One:
Destroy the world.

Step Two:
Play with the survivors.

Step Three:
Cackle madly as they struggle to Save Humanity!

Well... it's a little more complicated than that. There are some relationships, a few genetic issues, political infighting, kidnapping, murder, hostage-taking, military actions...
Okay, maybe a lot more complicated.

[Vito · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked up this science-fiction curiosity out of interest since others who reviewed it stated it was like "The Martian," another book I thoroughly enjoyed.

This doesn't quite have the cleverness of "The Martian," but it stands up in its own right.

The story starts right away with the Earth getting nuked several times over. Who caused it?

No one knows for certain, but once a nuke is in the air, retaliation occurs and it's game over for humanity. The people who have a front-row seat to the firework show is a crew of military personnel heading to the moon where a space base has been built.

The perspective follows one of the crew members, Max Hardy, who seems to be able to do it all without breaking a sweat. Then again, larger than life characters don't bother me if I'm just looking for good entertainment.

While the book kept my interest at the beginning, it took a while for me to really get hooked. After that point, I was all-in and reveled at how situations were taken care of and how problems were dealt with. Whited did a great job of never prolonging anything longer than needed and for that, I'm thankful.

[Susan Shipman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not at all literary

Loved the story. The survival and fight for a future was exciting and unusual. I found the technical descriptions too long and boring. But I could see how the science would fascinate a buff who was into that sort of thing. All in all a good romp with some well drawn characters. Reminded me a little of a Heinlein story in style and flavour. Not at all literary.

[Liz Warwick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. The Martian actually came out second best.

Great writing. I truly enjoyed every moment of this book. Fluid writing, good characterisations and well thought out storyline. This is my first five star review for any book other than a classic.

[James Russell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This man knows how to write.

I think I've read all his books so far. Luna is an amazing piece of work. His stories feel so complete and fleshed out. This is one of his shorter books but you will love it.

[Sherron Wahrheit · Rating 4 out of 5]

"It's the end of the world, and I have the best seat in the house." What an intro! I had to reread that line and the entire first page to get my mind around it. Even though this novel seems to begin at the end, it is packed with relentlessly absorbing action, and yet it also conveys an underlying tension of suspense. I had to fight my curiosity and jump to the end. To say the action is nonstop is no hyperbole.

From page one, we are made aware that the narrator’s comments are not idle musing. He is writing for an intended audience, but we have to wait some time, possibly until the end, to find out who that is.

The narrator is an affable, team-oriented mechanical engineer on his way to the moon to help debug a prototype lunar dwelling. His language is straightforward and direct, exactly as I would expect an engineer to write for an intelligent nonengineer. For example, in technology this phase of the lunar dwelling rollout is called “sanity testing,” but he keeps in mind that his audience may not have an engineering background and uses very little specialized jargon.

The engineer’s good nature as is a key element to the story and reveals itself in smoothing interactions with others. Likewise, the intentionally cavernous moon dwelling conveys an atmosphere that’s the complete opposite of all the successful, claustrophobic, lonely astronaut stories we’ve read. All of these elements lead up to a fitting and satisfying conclusion.

Thanks NetGalley for a peek at this ARC

[Laurie · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an exciting read! I loved the premise about forming a survival colony when the Earth is near extinction. I read the book in just a few sessions because it was so entertaining I just could not stay away for long. The characters just came alive in the book though I did think Max came off a little stuffy on occasion. Still, he was charming and funny most often; I enjoyed his self-deprecating humor.
The author did a fabulous job sketching in the technology so I was able for form clear mental images of the settings without overwhelming me with tedious detail. Mostly the story centered around the characters and how they managed to pull together during the toughest times and triumph over extreme adversity. I hope there will be a sequel.

Reviewed by Laurie-J

[Mutated Reviewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book beginning with astronauts on the way to a mission, they have a front row seat to the incoming end of the world, as it goes down in a fiery blaze from nuclear weapons. Traumatizing the team, they are forced to not only continue the human race, but keep mentally sane seeing their home implode without them. A small team made even smaller by a suicide in the airlock, I can't really blame the man. They're then forced to land on the moon, wondering if the group of 5 or 6 people are the last ones.

Check out my full review here!

https://mutatedlibrary.wordpress.com/...

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is good overall. It has some humor, some works and some doesn't. It's a bit uneven, but the main character is kind of entertaining. It's a pretty light read for those seeking that kind of story after a bit of a slow start.

Thanks very much for the review copy!!

[Deirdre · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite it's tumultuous start at 'the end of the world' Luna is a tale of redemption and hope in the face of adversity, filled with several gripping climactic elements that make Luna a must read for fans of Sci-fi, humor, and action and adventure.

[Dennis Goldberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read, full of humour and tech, mostly believable too. Loved it, recommend it as a must read for fun

[Pepper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mok's review

An excellent story. It is a good missing chunk of the original nightlord series that has finally been filled in.

[Jorge Anchondo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story, great author.

I like the style of writing and the author. Can’t get enough. Max is funny and smart, story is easy to follow yet keeps you entertained.

[Michel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Je le recommamde

Apres avoir lu et adoré la serie nightlord de cet auteur je me suis lancé dans Luna et n'a pas été decu je recommande !

[Avery · Rating 3 out of 5]

“It’s the end of the world, and I have the best seat in the house.”
A Red Raven Reads Review of “Luna” by Garon Whited
redravenreads.wordpress.com // booksarefood.wordpress.com

THE STORY:

The book begins with an introduction to protagonist Maxwell Hardy, an astronaut in the post-apocalyptic aftermath of World War III, and his fellow crew members aboard the titular space shuttle “Luna.” They are voyaging toward the moon when they learn that the world as we know it has, in effect, ended. We follow Max and the crew on their journey to the moon, but mostly their life on the moon when they land shortly thereafter— decisions about repopulating the planet, searching for other survivors, and characters discovering themselves amidst an existential crisis unlike any other. “Luna” is a strange combination of lunar-borne science fiction, subpar romance, humor, action, and… murder. BUM BUM BUMMMMM.

THE GOOD:

“Luna” has a LOT of good things going for it. The realistic descriptions of lunar life are phenomenally presented and well-researched. The writing itself is vivid, spunky, and alive. Further, it is literally laugh-out-loud funny. However, the reason why I read this book throughout the problems I will discuss below is Maxwell himself. Is he realistic? No, not really. But he’s so gosh darn likable that no negativity I could give about his character even matters. He can be impulsive and immature, but he’s also down-to-earth, witty, carefree, and childish in a way that made me smile right along with the 6’5” goofball. I love Max. I really do.

It is exceedingly clear that a lot of love and heart went into this book, and that Mr. Whited is a gifted writer and character-creator. However, despite the immense amount of positivity I can discuss, as a reviewer it is also my job to be the bearer of bad news.

THE BAD:

It seems fairly obvious to me that this book was plotted out sparingly, if at all. The scenes mesh together like bricks and Elmer’s glue— that is to say, they don’t. The book is all over the place. There is a lot of sharp wit to this book that I appreciate but it’s hard to appreciate when EARTH IS BASICALLY DEAD. The light-heartedness about the affair is so contradictory to a necessary but absent sense of realism concerning the very serious subject matter.

There is an abundance of typographical errors, which didn’t bother me much when I was reading the book, though I know that is a deal-breaker for some. The romance was poorly done and it made little to no sense at all. Maxwell is a very likable character, so why in the world does he choose to propose to Kathy, a veritable jealous psychopath, less than halfway through the book?

I think my biggest complaint is the lack of realistic human emotion. Stop making jokes about how badly every woman wants you, bro. And the sex jokes were absolutely the worst. I actually couldn’t tell if they were supposed to be jokes or a form of seduction half the time. Don’t quote me on this, but I’m pretty sure there was a joke about Max’s penis “lifting off” that Kathy tried to say seductively. You had one job, and it was to not go… there.

THE CONSENSUS:

Despite all this, I liked what I read. The writing style is very fun to read— it bounces along and sparks and sizzles and bites. Maxwell is likeable— his “delightfully skewed way he looks at the world” is beyond refreshing. Further, I’ve said it once and I will say it again- PHENOMENAL. RESEARCH. I didn’t understand half of the technical jargon but I was super into it. Say more big words I don’t understand, please. -insert heart-eyes emoticon here-

While this would be a great book for the right person and it definitely deserves a chance, the bad almost drowned out the good for me. And it kills me to type that, because with a solid plot, with more character development, with a concise theme and direction, this book has the potential to be GREAT, and I truly mean that. I think Mr. Whited is a unique voice, a breath of fresh air, and a writer with boundless potential. However, amidst the poor plotting, unrealistic characters, lack of direction, and a rushed and unfulfilling romance that I would love to see removed from the book entirely, I can only say I liked it, but I disliked it a little more.

THE RATING:

However, from a solely objective point of view, I would rate this book 3/5 stars, and would certainly recommend giving it a shot (especially for only $3 on Amazon) if the problems I’ve mentioned aren’t deal-breakers and you’d like to read something witty and lighthearted. This book WILL make you laugh, guaranteed. It wasn’t my cup of tea, but hey, I’m a coffee person.

[Devin Duhon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review is on the standalone book, “Luna”, by Garon Whited.

This story starts off with the main character Maxwell and his crew aboard the spacecraft “Luna” on its way to a base on the moon. However, in transit to the lunar station the earth is engulfed in nuclear explosions and the world as they knew it is gone. This book follows the crew through their new life in space through Max’s perspective as the team makes tough decisions, plans their next move, and looks for a brighter future for the human race. “Luna” is a great sci-fi/post-apocalyptic story with everything it needs to keep you interested.

There are many good things about this book. The story seemed very original to me and kept me interested through the entire read. The writing is very well done from the descriptions of what is going on to the serious and sometimes hilarious conversations between characters. This book does well at portraying the feelings of the intense situation that these characters are in and the events they go through. The characters are very well constructed and relatable, especially the main character Max. I also found myself not being able to put this book down when the action starts getting intense.

Though my experience with this book is mostly positive there are a few things that fall a little short with this book. As I read through the story I stumbled across a couple of typos and errors that throws you off while reading. The other thing that bothered me was some of the scenes didn’t really seem to belong there—Like they had been added after that section was already written which made the story not mesh together very well.

Despite these few issues I enjoyed reading this book and would recommend it to anyone, especially sci-fi readers and the spacey post-apocalyptic crowd. This book really does a good job at showing what life would be like on the moon and how people would act in the situation and is worth the read. I would give this book a good 4 out of 5 stars.

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't understand why more people aren't familiar with this book. A few years ago I came across an excerpt of Whited's writing and was immediately enchanted; this week I finally tracked down a copy of Luna, and I was extremely glad that I did! This story is, in one word, spectacular.

The narrator, Max, is both likeable and believable; snarky and observant, he's that football player in your high school who gave candy to little children and who ended up as mayor of your hometown...by accident. Max accompanies the reader through the immediate aftermath of the end of the world, guiding us through journeys psychological and logistical as the few survivors of the apocalypse try to make sense of their new reality. The narrative is pure sci-fi, complete with swashbuckling space adventures and far-too-detailed descriptions of the space stations' weaponry; Whited spends little time hitting the reader over the head with morality, successfully avoiding tropes far too common in post-apocalyptic stories.

The writing is crisp and funny, the characters fascinating, the plotline fast-paced and surprising without deviating from the plausible. I've already recommended this book to just about every speculative fiction nerd I know, and I've turned my copy over to my father with strict instructions to mail the book to a writer friend of mine when he's done. If you're intrigued enough by the book's description to be reading this review, stop reading reviews and go find yourself a copy of this book!

[Sally Mander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good. A nice stand-alone. #FavoriteBooks #Luna #GaronWhited #SciFi

[Helen Doyle]

I thought this was a rather easy to read and good story.

It was probably a bit farfetched in the scope of an individual's ability but certainly wasn't in people's attitudes.

I would recommend it to anyone who likes a fun and humorous story.