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Moonfellows
ONE SMALL STEP FOR MAN, ONE GIANT LEAP INTO THE EXISTENTIAL ABYSS
Washington DC. 1906. The inaugural mission of the Moonfellow Program. A chance to shape the future of civilization as we know it. Our first tentative steps out into the stars...
It was a complete and unequivocal disaster.
Now a hapless gravedigger finds himself among the handful of survivors stranded on the lunar surface—forced to contend with madness, conspiracies, and whatever-the-fuck that thing is on the dark side, picking them off one by one.
This is the 100% true-ish story of the brave men and women we abandoned on the moon.
Washington DC. 1906. The inaugural mission of the Moonfellow Program. A chance to shape the future of civilization as we know it. Our first tentative steps out into the stars...
It was a complete and unequivocal disaster.
Now a hapless gravedigger finds himself among the handful of survivors stranded on the lunar surface—forced to contend with madness, conspiracies, and whatever-the-fuck that thing is on the dark side, picking them off one by one.
This is the 100% true-ish story of the brave men and women we abandoned on the moon.
139 pages, Paperback
Published July 20, 2022
5 people are currently reading
346 people want to read
About the author
Danger Slater
37 books732 followersWonderland Award winning author Danger Slater is the world’s most flammable writer! He likes to use a lot of exclamation points!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
August 10, 2022
Danger Slater's MOONFELLOWS is a fantasy, a fable, a fairytale and a farce. It's fantastic. It's simple. Nostalgic for a time that never was but should have been.
MOONFELLOWS is succinct. MOONFELLOWS is slugs. MOONFELLOWS is sci-fi. It's spaghetti with garlic and oil. It's uncomplicated and complex.
MOONFELLOWS is about being far from home. It's about isolation and its about comradery. MOONFELLOWS is spiritual kin of Me, Me, Me, Me, Me, Me and Me.
Please read Moonfellows. The world depends on it.
MOONFELLOWS is succinct. MOONFELLOWS is slugs. MOONFELLOWS is sci-fi. It's spaghetti with garlic and oil. It's uncomplicated and complex.
MOONFELLOWS is about being far from home. It's about isolation and its about comradery. MOONFELLOWS is spiritual kin of Me, Me, Me, Me, Me, Me and Me.
Please read Moonfellows. The world depends on it.
August 7, 2022
Horror Bookworm Reviews
Moonfellows by Danger Slater
https://horrorbookwormreviews.com/
It is the summer of 1906, The United States Government has recruited a select group of five people for a highly secretive mission. These brave men and women will soon become pioneers of The Space Age as a dangerous trip to the moon to find a particular unusual mineral gets underway. Within the Moonfellow Five - a captain, a communication specialist, a geologist, a engineer and Franklin Crumb, a grave digger for the Lone Fir Cemetery and narrator of this story.
Danger Slater brings his unique style of writing to the uncharted surface of the moon. Mysterious secrets and unusual alien species lurk around each and every slime oozing chapter. The peculiar surroundings of this ship wrecked environment captures a claustrophobic and desolate kind of storytelling perfectly.
Focusing on the crew mates of the Moonfellows, specifically Crumb, Slater places his characters within ill-fated circumstances exposing their odd human traits of intense mayhem and witty humor. It’s these distinctive combinations of horror, bizarro and comedy that enables Danger Slater to capture and maintain his audience. Monsters, madness and chaos are perfection incarnate.
Rumor has it that a poison is provided by the moon that has no cure for the lunatic type behavior it causes. However, it’s a truthful fact that author Danger Slater pilots one heck of a fictional mission to the moon. Moonfellows plants its five star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ flag in the virgin soil of the dark side of the moon. A Horror Bookworm Recommendation.
Moonfellows by Danger Slater
https://horrorbookwormreviews.com/
It is the summer of 1906, The United States Government has recruited a select group of five people for a highly secretive mission. These brave men and women will soon become pioneers of The Space Age as a dangerous trip to the moon to find a particular unusual mineral gets underway. Within the Moonfellow Five - a captain, a communication specialist, a geologist, a engineer and Franklin Crumb, a grave digger for the Lone Fir Cemetery and narrator of this story.
Danger Slater brings his unique style of writing to the uncharted surface of the moon. Mysterious secrets and unusual alien species lurk around each and every slime oozing chapter. The peculiar surroundings of this ship wrecked environment captures a claustrophobic and desolate kind of storytelling perfectly.
Focusing on the crew mates of the Moonfellows, specifically Crumb, Slater places his characters within ill-fated circumstances exposing their odd human traits of intense mayhem and witty humor. It’s these distinctive combinations of horror, bizarro and comedy that enables Danger Slater to capture and maintain his audience. Monsters, madness and chaos are perfection incarnate.
Rumor has it that a poison is provided by the moon that has no cure for the lunatic type behavior it causes. However, it’s a truthful fact that author Danger Slater pilots one heck of a fictional mission to the moon. Moonfellows plants its five star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ flag in the virgin soil of the dark side of the moon. A Horror Bookworm Recommendation.
February 26, 2023
I loved this story.
This grabbed me right from the off. It's an imaginative story with laugh out loud moments but also poignant in parts. Moonfellows is a wonderfully quirky read and packs so much into such a short book.
Highly recommend. I like the cover so much I bought a physical copy too.
This grabbed me right from the off. It's an imaginative story with laugh out loud moments but also poignant in parts. Moonfellows is a wonderfully quirky read and packs so much into such a short book.
Highly recommend. I like the cover so much I bought a physical copy too.
November 19, 2022
Well, that was fun.
Not the most complicated or emotionally enrapturing story, but it don't believe it was designed to be that way. Moonfellows is basically a hybrid of Georges Méliès' moon movie, The Thing and Interstellar, were it directed by Wes Anderson. It tells the adorable story of a grave digger named Crumb who is trapped on the moon after being sent there with four scientists designated by the government to find a mineral ominously named MacGuffinite. It has vintage space machines, arrogant government representatives and even space monsters. What's not to like?
Now, does it have something pertinent to say about the world we live in? Not really, except perhaps that it shows how easy it is to invent a story about the government providing us with false information about the very nature of our lives. But then again sometimes it's not to take a break of the world we live in and Moonfellows offers that.
Not the most complicated or emotionally enrapturing story, but it don't believe it was designed to be that way. Moonfellows is basically a hybrid of Georges Méliès' moon movie, The Thing and Interstellar, were it directed by Wes Anderson. It tells the adorable story of a grave digger named Crumb who is trapped on the moon after being sent there with four scientists designated by the government to find a mineral ominously named MacGuffinite. It has vintage space machines, arrogant government representatives and even space monsters. What's not to like?
Now, does it have something pertinent to say about the world we live in? Not really, except perhaps that it shows how easy it is to invent a story about the government providing us with false information about the very nature of our lives. But then again sometimes it's not to take a break of the world we live in and Moonfellows offers that.
July 29, 2022
Moonfellows is funny, bizarre, and oddly moving (four words which could describe most of Danger Slater's books). I really enjoyed how the story, despite having a defiantly nonsensical surface, still felt so true at heart: my favorite kind of bizarro fiction.
September 11, 2022
Like Impossible James before it, this combines fantastic B-movie-esque fun with a quietly devastating allegory of modern society. And at a zippy 129 pages, you'd be wasting your time *not* reading it!
December 19, 2022
Gran sincronía, pues Facebook me recuerda que justo hace tres años terminé I Will Rot Without You / Me pudriré sin ti, novela bizarra de (des)amor que me quebró. Moonfellows está en otro registro --algo que podría definirse como una fábula de proto-ciencia ficción--, pero igualmente emotiva. "La luna estaba embrujada, y nosotros éramos los fantasmas". "Cuando miro mi vida anterior y pienso en todas las cosas que no dije, se siente como un río tratando de erosionarme, dejando un desfiladero tan profundo que no creo poder cruzarlo". Me encantó cómo su historia transgrede todos los protocolos científicos para darle rienda suelta a la imaginación. Como el propio Danger Slater confiesa en el epílogo, si buscas ciencia ficción "dura", mejor lee El marciano o similares, pues él se inspiró en la magia del cortometraje de Méliès Viaje a la luna y en la novela El principito.
August 10, 2022
This is the third Danger Slater I've read and at this point I'm going to have to read them all.
First and foremost, I love Danger's bizarre imagination. It's wild. I never know where his books are going to lead, but I love that unpredictability. This book follows a group of Moonfellows in the early 1900s. It's funny, weird, and has moon slugs.
Go read it.
First and foremost, I love Danger's bizarre imagination. It's wild. I never know where his books are going to lead, but I love that unpredictability. This book follows a group of Moonfellows in the early 1900s. It's funny, weird, and has moon slugs.
Go read it.
August 10, 2022
Danger does it again!
July 18, 2022
Huge thanks to Danger for sending me a digital review copy of his newest novella, ‘Moonfellows.’
Have you read Danger Slater before?
For those who have, you’ll be in for a treat. With his last release, ‘Impossible James,’ Slater had shown a continued progression with his story-crafting – a maturity of story with an immaturity of events, if that makes sense.
For those who haven’t, you’re also in for a treat.
‘Moonfellows’ is the next progression to that and showcases Slater’s brilliant and insightful prose alongside his comedic and bitingly-quick sarcasm. I say that as a reader who doesn’t actually enjoy humor in his horror. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind some good natured banter between characters, but Slater is equal parts laughs and equal parts introspection. But that’s what sets Danger apart. He has that rare ability to push past your own reservations and grab you by the throat and scream ‘JUST READ IT!’ Another way of putting it – Slater is the rap group at the heavy metal show. The one that looks out of place on the lineup card but puts on one of the best performances of the day.
What I liked: Condensed version of what goes on – a group of people in 1906 are kidnapped by the US Government and forced to fly to the moon to look for a rare stone. They crash and are forgotten about.
That’s all I’ll give you. Because this book is so much more. To paraphrase Donkey from Shrek – “this book has layers. Like an onion.” We have a Brainiac scientist cobbling together ways to contact earth. We have an arrogant and utterly ridiculous Captain attempting to lead the crew but fail over and over. But at its heart, and the main character, is our Gravedigger. The one whom longs to return to his wife and daughter. Who looks at the earth below and wonders if they’re looking at the moon above.
Slater (admittedly in the afterword) throws any real science out the door and just has fun and the readers are all the better for that. This is a case where you absolutely need to have complete suspension of reality, but honestly, if you’re buying this book off the synopsis or have read Danger before, you understand that already.
The ending to this book is sweet, sublime and so, so beautiful. It’s an odd thing to think and even to type, especially when you think back to the slugs and the craziness and the explosions and betrayals. But it shows just how attuned Slater is to the storyline that weaves its way through the weirdness and keeps the book grounded in emotions.
What I didn’t like: Look, I said it before – I just don’t dig humor when reading dark fiction. I don’t know why, always have. I try and push myself out of my comfort zone and just let it happen. But, if you’re someone who struggles with it mightily, then be warned – there is a lot of ridiculousness in here. If you’re not sure, maybe head to Slater’s Twitter profile and read through his tweets. If not a single one makes your solid-as-stone face twitch into a smile, probably pass.
Why you should buy this: I wasn’t sure how this book would work for me. This was either going to be a solid, out-of-the-park homerun or a swing and a miss. That’s often how I find most Bizarro reads, but with this one, Slater crushed it off a T-Ball stand. The heartbeat of the story is rock solid, the characters are fun, infuriating and entertaining, but the themes and layers that get peeled back are picture-perfect divine and that’s truly why you should read this. Slater is a treasure and with each new release he shows us more and more that he is one of the greats.
Have you read Danger Slater before?
For those who have, you’ll be in for a treat. With his last release, ‘Impossible James,’ Slater had shown a continued progression with his story-crafting – a maturity of story with an immaturity of events, if that makes sense.
For those who haven’t, you’re also in for a treat.
‘Moonfellows’ is the next progression to that and showcases Slater’s brilliant and insightful prose alongside his comedic and bitingly-quick sarcasm. I say that as a reader who doesn’t actually enjoy humor in his horror. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind some good natured banter between characters, but Slater is equal parts laughs and equal parts introspection. But that’s what sets Danger apart. He has that rare ability to push past your own reservations and grab you by the throat and scream ‘JUST READ IT!’ Another way of putting it – Slater is the rap group at the heavy metal show. The one that looks out of place on the lineup card but puts on one of the best performances of the day.
What I liked: Condensed version of what goes on – a group of people in 1906 are kidnapped by the US Government and forced to fly to the moon to look for a rare stone. They crash and are forgotten about.
That’s all I’ll give you. Because this book is so much more. To paraphrase Donkey from Shrek – “this book has layers. Like an onion.” We have a Brainiac scientist cobbling together ways to contact earth. We have an arrogant and utterly ridiculous Captain attempting to lead the crew but fail over and over. But at its heart, and the main character, is our Gravedigger. The one whom longs to return to his wife and daughter. Who looks at the earth below and wonders if they’re looking at the moon above.
Slater (admittedly in the afterword) throws any real science out the door and just has fun and the readers are all the better for that. This is a case where you absolutely need to have complete suspension of reality, but honestly, if you’re buying this book off the synopsis or have read Danger before, you understand that already.
The ending to this book is sweet, sublime and so, so beautiful. It’s an odd thing to think and even to type, especially when you think back to the slugs and the craziness and the explosions and betrayals. But it shows just how attuned Slater is to the storyline that weaves its way through the weirdness and keeps the book grounded in emotions.
What I didn’t like: Look, I said it before – I just don’t dig humor when reading dark fiction. I don’t know why, always have. I try and push myself out of my comfort zone and just let it happen. But, if you’re someone who struggles with it mightily, then be warned – there is a lot of ridiculousness in here. If you’re not sure, maybe head to Slater’s Twitter profile and read through his tweets. If not a single one makes your solid-as-stone face twitch into a smile, probably pass.
Why you should buy this: I wasn’t sure how this book would work for me. This was either going to be a solid, out-of-the-park homerun or a swing and a miss. That’s often how I find most Bizarro reads, but with this one, Slater crushed it off a T-Ball stand. The heartbeat of the story is rock solid, the characters are fun, infuriating and entertaining, but the themes and layers that get peeled back are picture-perfect divine and that’s truly why you should read this. Slater is a treasure and with each new release he shows us more and more that he is one of the greats.
September 5, 2022
Loved this, it was weird and sad and funny and silly and horrifying - lots of things I've come to expect from Danger Slater's books after reading a few of his most recent releases.
The tone in this is a little difficult to describe - it's like a super unique blend that's part "melancholic philosopher" but also a little "burnt out circus clown" -- it's deep and meaningful at times, but crass and silly at others. I love this combination, although I think it might not be for everyone - still, even if the style isn't your 'cup of tea', the writing ability is solid & impossible to ignore.
If you're going into this expecting any real science, adjust your expectations - you won't find it here. A lot of the stuff in this is completely made up, which was fun 'cause it keeps the story feeling surreal and wacky; it's difficult to get your footing in a story where you don't know what the fuck is actually going on because it's all made up, and I think the lack of grounding worked especially well considering the themes of isolation and belonging.
Overall, loved this & would highly rec it or anything else by Danger Slater. His writing is unlike anything else being published right now, and I want more of it.
The tone in this is a little difficult to describe - it's like a super unique blend that's part "melancholic philosopher" but also a little "burnt out circus clown" -- it's deep and meaningful at times, but crass and silly at others. I love this combination, although I think it might not be for everyone - still, even if the style isn't your 'cup of tea', the writing ability is solid & impossible to ignore.
If you're going into this expecting any real science, adjust your expectations - you won't find it here. A lot of the stuff in this is completely made up, which was fun 'cause it keeps the story feeling surreal and wacky; it's difficult to get your footing in a story where you don't know what the fuck is actually going on because it's all made up, and I think the lack of grounding worked especially well considering the themes of isolation and belonging.
Overall, loved this & would highly rec it or anything else by Danger Slater. His writing is unlike anything else being published right now, and I want more of it.
July 9, 2022
Moonfellows is an alt-historical sci-fi (without the science) story about a group of folks who are sent to the moon in the early 1900's to mine it for MacGuffinite, a precious mineral that has the potential to change the world as they currently know it. But the mission goes to shit pretty quick and the crew soon find themselves not only stranded on its dry, dusty surface, but also fighting for their lives as one of their very own begins to transform into something horrible...
I read this in nearly one sitting. You know how sometimes you pick up a book expecting to read just a few pages and before you know it, you've finished it? Well, this is one of those books, you guys. It was just. that. friggen. good! Absolutely unputdownable! Cosmic space horror goodness for the win!
And not to sound cheesy, but I believe this is his best book yet! It's been so amazing reading his work over the years and seeing how much he's grown as a writer. I cannot wait to see what he writes next. I'll be first in line to get my grubby, space-sluggy hands on it!!
I read this in nearly one sitting. You know how sometimes you pick up a book expecting to read just a few pages and before you know it, you've finished it? Well, this is one of those books, you guys. It was just. that. friggen. good! Absolutely unputdownable! Cosmic space horror goodness for the win!
And not to sound cheesy, but I believe this is his best book yet! It's been so amazing reading his work over the years and seeing how much he's grown as a writer. I cannot wait to see what he writes next. I'll be first in line to get my grubby, space-sluggy hands on it!!
December 19, 2022
This is Danger Slater at his best, a Grand Art work!
You've got a "simple" story you can take as such, and read about the misfortunes if the Moonfellows Five. You've got metaphors and a lot of matter to think and turn and turn again your mind to get some deep meaning. You've even got some recalls from previous books if you've read them prior to Moonfellows.
Of course, the bias that I enjoyed the most is the existentialist bewilderement, the unanswered bequestioning about what it means to be and how you can live with the cards you're dealt, how to face your fate and how to overturn your destiny. And many other philosophical aspects that come in light through the book.
Moonfellows is a real treat and I cannot but incite you to read it! And mind that he gets better and better through the years 🙃
You've got a "simple" story you can take as such, and read about the misfortunes if the Moonfellows Five. You've got metaphors and a lot of matter to think and turn and turn again your mind to get some deep meaning. You've even got some recalls from previous books if you've read them prior to Moonfellows.
Of course, the bias that I enjoyed the most is the existentialist bewilderement, the unanswered bequestioning about what it means to be and how you can live with the cards you're dealt, how to face your fate and how to overturn your destiny. And many other philosophical aspects that come in light through the book.
Moonfellows is a real treat and I cannot but incite you to read it! And mind that he gets better and better through the years 🙃
November 27, 2023
Danger Slater, just as absurd as always and I love him for it. Moonfellows is full of adventure and whimsy, imagination and reverie. What a beautiful little book. And, yes, there are horrors inside, but every great adventure into the unknown will have trials.
July 25, 2022
My favorite Slater thus far - an exquisite blend of laugh-out-loud comedy, off-the-wall absurdism, and thrilling space horror. There’s something for everyone here, but it was the surprising and sometimes sorrowful tenderness at the center of it all that captured this reader’s heart. I loved it.
Read
January 8, 2023This novella of lunar... well, LUNACY, launched from Danger Slater's (slightly deranged) mind is fun, imaginative, and exactly what I want in a science fiction tale: its science is fiction, bizarreness abounds, & space is creepy. It's a hell of a trip... to the moon. Plus, slugs!
November 26, 2022
Never enough Danger!
Another great read from this fantastic author. Not quite as out there, perhaps, but I especially appreciated the nod to his other work.
Another great read from this fantastic author. Not quite as out there, perhaps, but I especially appreciated the nod to his other work.
March 10, 2023
I knew, going into Moonfellows, that this book contained humor, so I expected a mix of horror and satire and looked forward to seeing how Danger managed that combination. The obvious answer, I thought, was to make the character stupidly likable. Someone who would probably be an underdog, someone to root for, with a relatable and satirical sense of humor and outlook on life. Through that medium, Danger would probably make light of the horror he presented, and the situations the main character faced, and tie it all up nicely somehow at the end to leave the reader with a warm fuzzy glow.
What I wasn’t expecting Slater to do, was make a fairytale. The cunning, sly devil.
It’s sickening how funny this damn book is. Not only did it have me chuckling (Humbug!) at the characters' insights, but the improbable becomes real here. The rules are discarded early on, and the narrative rolls along with you eagerly awaiting the next lough-out-loud moment.
Spoiler alert: Fortunately for our heroes, the air on the moon is similar to our own, and the local tribe of slugs provides much-needed sustenance in the form of slug cocktails. Horror is introduced with one of the crew members transforming into a man/moon slug type of monster, and by that point, you are feeding out of Slater’s hand anyway. There are so many funny moments in the book that it seems criminal to highlight any, yet the pilot practicing in his bathtub is golden, as is the pirate ship’s method of orbital trajectory (how obvious!). I could go on. You get one of these moments consistently throughout the book.
It’s magnificent.
Slater performs like Pratchett, effortlessly blending two dramatically opposed genres into one consistently brilliant one. The reader is swept up in his logic and accepts every new reality as true, blindly accepting his word and eagerly anticipating where the next reveal is coming from. I will now have to go and buy his back catalogue to see if it is more of the same.
Danger, you have a fan. Loved it. This was pure entertainment.
5 out of 5 ⭐‘s and a very memorable introduction to Danger Slater.
This might be Danger-ous, but I suggest you try this at home too.
What I wasn’t expecting Slater to do, was make a fairytale. The cunning, sly devil.
It’s sickening how funny this damn book is. Not only did it have me chuckling (Humbug!) at the characters' insights, but the improbable becomes real here. The rules are discarded early on, and the narrative rolls along with you eagerly awaiting the next lough-out-loud moment.
Spoiler alert: Fortunately for our heroes, the air on the moon is similar to our own, and the local tribe of slugs provides much-needed sustenance in the form of slug cocktails. Horror is introduced with one of the crew members transforming into a man/moon slug type of monster, and by that point, you are feeding out of Slater’s hand anyway. There are so many funny moments in the book that it seems criminal to highlight any, yet the pilot practicing in his bathtub is golden, as is the pirate ship’s method of orbital trajectory (how obvious!). I could go on. You get one of these moments consistently throughout the book.
It’s magnificent.
Slater performs like Pratchett, effortlessly blending two dramatically opposed genres into one consistently brilliant one. The reader is swept up in his logic and accepts every new reality as true, blindly accepting his word and eagerly anticipating where the next reveal is coming from. I will now have to go and buy his back catalogue to see if it is more of the same.
Danger, you have a fan. Loved it. This was pure entertainment.
5 out of 5 ⭐‘s and a very memorable introduction to Danger Slater.
This might be Danger-ous, but I suggest you try this at home too.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 29, 2024
“Regret is an anchor I cut a long time ago.”
📚
In 1906, the US Government launched the disastrous Moonfellow Program, a top secret first foray into space and an opportunity to boost American civilization into a technologically superior future. Among the selected Moon-bound specialists was Franklin Crumb, a New Jersey-based gravedigger separated from his wife and daughter and forced into the project against his will. What follows is a moving, bizarre, funny, ridiculous, and poignant story of MacGuffinite and Moon Flu, slugs and conspiracies, isolation and abandonment, camaraderie and chaos, madness and introspection, fear and love, fate and monsters, longing and loneliness, time and presence, leadership and progress, failure and acceptance, and death and the dark side — all set in a sparse and inhospitable environment deliberately unconstrained by science-based fact (in other words, another brilliant Danger Slater bizarro fiction masterpiece).
Moonfellows delivers a witty, riveting, and masterful blend of humor, satire, horror, and absurdism that’s at once irreverent and nostalgic, pithy and glib, unflinching and existential, complex and straightforward, layered and nuanced, beautiful and sad, gruesome and creative, sentimental and memorable, desolate and claustrophobic, concise and farcical. It’s a mysterious, scary, humorous, and insightful tale rife with social commentary, original plot points, and interesting characters that gradually creeps and ultimately encompasses, captivating the reader as it skewers the callous, inept, and inane nature of power — a deep, rich, endearing, and astute account of home, humanity, and heart.
And the writing, particularly near the end, possesses an immersive, magnetic quality that makes clear the depth of talent, creativity, feeling, and skill that went into this novella. And yes, 129 pages somehow contains the entirety of storylines, characters, feelings, and adjectives this reader attempted to summarize above. Truly unique, extraordinary, and an absolute pleasure to read!
📚
In 1906, the US Government launched the disastrous Moonfellow Program, a top secret first foray into space and an opportunity to boost American civilization into a technologically superior future. Among the selected Moon-bound specialists was Franklin Crumb, a New Jersey-based gravedigger separated from his wife and daughter and forced into the project against his will. What follows is a moving, bizarre, funny, ridiculous, and poignant story of MacGuffinite and Moon Flu, slugs and conspiracies, isolation and abandonment, camaraderie and chaos, madness and introspection, fear and love, fate and monsters, longing and loneliness, time and presence, leadership and progress, failure and acceptance, and death and the dark side — all set in a sparse and inhospitable environment deliberately unconstrained by science-based fact (in other words, another brilliant Danger Slater bizarro fiction masterpiece).
Moonfellows delivers a witty, riveting, and masterful blend of humor, satire, horror, and absurdism that’s at once irreverent and nostalgic, pithy and glib, unflinching and existential, complex and straightforward, layered and nuanced, beautiful and sad, gruesome and creative, sentimental and memorable, desolate and claustrophobic, concise and farcical. It’s a mysterious, scary, humorous, and insightful tale rife with social commentary, original plot points, and interesting characters that gradually creeps and ultimately encompasses, captivating the reader as it skewers the callous, inept, and inane nature of power — a deep, rich, endearing, and astute account of home, humanity, and heart.
And the writing, particularly near the end, possesses an immersive, magnetic quality that makes clear the depth of talent, creativity, feeling, and skill that went into this novella. And yes, 129 pages somehow contains the entirety of storylines, characters, feelings, and adjectives this reader attempted to summarize above. Truly unique, extraordinary, and an absolute pleasure to read!
October 14, 2022
Review:
Moonfellows by Danger Slater
I went into this almost completely blind, with only the knowledge that there would be some humor and horror included. I was pleasantly surprised at how many times I actually chuckled out loud. Moonfellows is about a group of people selected (well, kidnapped if we are being honest here) to find a new kind of rock/mineral called McGuffinite that will change the world. The only catch? It’s on the moon and it’s 1906. The completely unhinged President of the United States sends these folks to the moon, they crash, and chaos ensues. There are horror elements to this story, but I wouldn’t call it “scary” necessarily. It was just a lot of fun to read. If you have been thinking about dipping your toes into the bizarro category, I think this is a great place to start. I thoroughly enjoys this and will definitely be picking up more books from this author.
Moonfellows by Danger Slater
I went into this almost completely blind, with only the knowledge that there would be some humor and horror included. I was pleasantly surprised at how many times I actually chuckled out loud. Moonfellows is about a group of people selected (well, kidnapped if we are being honest here) to find a new kind of rock/mineral called McGuffinite that will change the world. The only catch? It’s on the moon and it’s 1906. The completely unhinged President of the United States sends these folks to the moon, they crash, and chaos ensues. There are horror elements to this story, but I wouldn’t call it “scary” necessarily. It was just a lot of fun to read. If you have been thinking about dipping your toes into the bizarro category, I think this is a great place to start. I thoroughly enjoys this and will definitely be picking up more books from this author.
February 3, 2023
A book so funny it had me reading aloud to my girlfriend like an annoying piece of shit. I was immediately reminded of Catch-22 in the absurdity, which is quick to unfold at the start of Moon Fellows. Believe me, I'm a massive fan of that book, too. Slater quickly despatches of scientific reason and fact to great affect. It's liberating, and it lets a story unfold, which is mesmerising in its appeal. If you dig under the genuinely hilarious surface, like our grave digging main character, then you find a truly magical story. What Slater manages here is to develop a satirical plot into a truly moving tale. It really caught me by surprise how the Everyman appeal of the MC grew to be such an important narrator. Pacing and structure are immaculate, but most of all, there's a timeless story here that is crafted to perfection.
September 22, 2022
100% funny, 100% poignant, 100% scientifically accurate.
January 10, 2023
This book was enjoyable. It had many hilarious moments. I was initially upset about the historical accuracy. The story is set in 1906 and so many things at first got to me. The vocabulary was far from accurate. But I decided that the year and everything else really didn’t matter. Maybe that was the point. I would recommend this for people who enjoys funny offbeat stories.
July 29, 2022
Danger Slater has an impressive ability to wring genuine emotion from nonsensical situations. This bizarro tale of three scientists, a military man, and a gravedigger abandoned on the moon in the early 1900s is as elegiac as it is absurd.
October 10, 2022
Funniest thing I've read in forever. In a world not made of green cheese this would be hugely popular, because it's very short, for one thing, and people love that. It also has tiny chapters, which got me thinking about how it seems like this would be easier to do, with such short spurts of narrative, but this structure also comes with that inherent burden of coming up with a respectable zinger every two pages or three pages, which this book somehow does. Lots of zingers here. Other aspects I really enjoyed include the reversal where people on the moon are peering back at the Earth and finding conspiracies (!) instead of vise versa (which, of course, we've grown used to/sick of), and the defiant, anti-science thesis of the whole thing is wonderful. A wise man named me once said, "A character can be stupid. It doesn't mean the author, or the book, is stupid." Well, what if an entire meticulously crafted satirical but eerily familiar world is certifiably and gloriously idiotic? Even better!
Warning. This book is not a 100% bonkers free-for-all. The ending contains some sobering and incredibly sublime imagery, as well as a particularly striking setpiece where the grave-digging protagonist imagines turning everyone on Earth into wood and using his hair as the puppet strings (hints of a Danger Slater extended universe?), all of which wraps things up with a surprising amount of weight in such a giddy and seemingly weightless environment.
Warning. This book is not a 100% bonkers free-for-all. The ending contains some sobering and incredibly sublime imagery, as well as a particularly striking setpiece where the grave-digging protagonist imagines turning everyone on Earth into wood and using his hair as the puppet strings (hints of a Danger Slater extended universe?), all of which wraps things up with a surprising amount of weight in such a giddy and seemingly weightless environment.
September 30, 2022
Sometimes you hear a great premise for a story that's humourous and intriguing. But in a world where SNL can barely manage to squeeze one solid chuckle out of a 6 minute sketch, one could find themselves fearful of the investment, no matter how great the premise and short the story.
But overcome those stupid, stupid fears. Not only does Danger (if that is indeed his real name. *scoff*) present us with a wonderfully preposterous scenario about a team heading to the moon at the dawn of the 20th century in search of a radically powerful mineral, he follows up on it with a very funny yet sentimental tale of human isolation and the consequences of time and separation. It's basically a Modest Mouse song as a novella but with slightly more bodily fluids.
Danger builds up the initial chapters as some of the funniest sketches that never were performed, slowly building into a heartfelt soliloquy about life and the sadness that inevitably embeds itself beside the joy life can offer.
Ultimately, in the middle of the most ridiculous situations grounded in science about as well as a thumbtack in drywall, Danger poses the question, "Does the world need to be understood in order to be grateful for it's offerings, both good and bad."
And in the world he's set up, you can trust to hang something heavy and priceless on that tack because in Moonfellows, believing is enough.
But overcome those stupid, stupid fears. Not only does Danger (if that is indeed his real name. *scoff*) present us with a wonderfully preposterous scenario about a team heading to the moon at the dawn of the 20th century in search of a radically powerful mineral, he follows up on it with a very funny yet sentimental tale of human isolation and the consequences of time and separation. It's basically a Modest Mouse song as a novella but with slightly more bodily fluids.
Danger builds up the initial chapters as some of the funniest sketches that never were performed, slowly building into a heartfelt soliloquy about life and the sadness that inevitably embeds itself beside the joy life can offer.
Ultimately, in the middle of the most ridiculous situations grounded in science about as well as a thumbtack in drywall, Danger poses the question, "Does the world need to be understood in order to be grateful for it's offerings, both good and bad."
And in the world he's set up, you can trust to hang something heavy and priceless on that tack because in Moonfellows, believing is enough.
July 30, 2022
I once read a really long, boring book I really wanted to like. Sorry Thomas Pynchon, but "Against the Day" was just a thousand pages of bland. However, my favorite elements of that novel were the parts about The Airship Boys. This book is a short, sweet little novella that reminded me of The Airship Boys, with a weird bizarro twist.
MOONFELLOWS is the newest novel by Danger Slater, where he promises not to bore you with the silly scientific details of how 5 men and women arrived on the moon in 1906, because the science here is not important. What is important is the Moonfellow Five's quest to find the source of a rare material that they assume can only be found on the moon, and how everything goes wrong in the process. Our narrator is Franklin Crumb, a gravedigger who was assigned the task of excavating the moon in search of this precious MacGuffinite even after the airship they arrived on crashes.
You can tell that the man who wrote this has seen a movie once or twice, because many of the plot points seemed like slight parodies of science fiction films with all the science stripped from it. Interstellar without the wordy explanation of Time Dilation, The Martian without the poop potatoes, Moon's desperate escape pod ending without an evil robot impeding on the protagonist, or even Armageddon without the... well, no this metaphor doesn't work; MOONFELLOWS has more science than Armageddon.
I laughed hardy at the jokes I was meant to laugh at, and then I laughed louder at the absurdity of some of the character's dialogue or inventions. There is a chapter where two of the stranded astronauts are discussing inventing the internet, sixty years before the original moon landing, by using broken steampunk equipment and slug slime. Another chapter where they accidently develop spy technology, Macgyvered together with bits of broken airship. I also cackled wildly when the dialogue was clearly written by a man living in the 2020's, during the early 20th century. It isn't distracting, it's hilarious.
Of course, this is written by the Wonderland Award-Winning writer Danger Slater, so there are scenes of extreme violence with a cartoonish haze above it, and strange scenes involving interstellar intercourse unlike you've seen before. I loved this book, and I think if you have any interest in a book that doesn't stop to question whether or not it should take itself seriously, then I think so will you. The ending left me smiling and wanting more, the middle made me worry that the ending was closing upon me, and the beginning had me excited to read this entire novella in two sittings. I highly recommend it, and so can you.
PS: Gosh, Danger Slater sure likes writing about digging holes.
MOONFELLOWS is the newest novel by Danger Slater, where he promises not to bore you with the silly scientific details of how 5 men and women arrived on the moon in 1906, because the science here is not important. What is important is the Moonfellow Five's quest to find the source of a rare material that they assume can only be found on the moon, and how everything goes wrong in the process. Our narrator is Franklin Crumb, a gravedigger who was assigned the task of excavating the moon in search of this precious MacGuffinite even after the airship they arrived on crashes.
You can tell that the man who wrote this has seen a movie once or twice, because many of the plot points seemed like slight parodies of science fiction films with all the science stripped from it. Interstellar without the wordy explanation of Time Dilation, The Martian without the poop potatoes, Moon's desperate escape pod ending without an evil robot impeding on the protagonist, or even Armageddon without the... well, no this metaphor doesn't work; MOONFELLOWS has more science than Armageddon.
I laughed hardy at the jokes I was meant to laugh at, and then I laughed louder at the absurdity of some of the character's dialogue or inventions. There is a chapter where two of the stranded astronauts are discussing inventing the internet, sixty years before the original moon landing, by using broken steampunk equipment and slug slime. Another chapter where they accidently develop spy technology, Macgyvered together with bits of broken airship. I also cackled wildly when the dialogue was clearly written by a man living in the 2020's, during the early 20th century. It isn't distracting, it's hilarious.
Of course, this is written by the Wonderland Award-Winning writer Danger Slater, so there are scenes of extreme violence with a cartoonish haze above it, and strange scenes involving interstellar intercourse unlike you've seen before. I loved this book, and I think if you have any interest in a book that doesn't stop to question whether or not it should take itself seriously, then I think so will you. The ending left me smiling and wanting more, the middle made me worry that the ending was closing upon me, and the beginning had me excited to read this entire novella in two sittings. I highly recommend it, and so can you.
PS: Gosh, Danger Slater sure likes writing about digging holes.
November 28, 2022
Danger Slater was able to send me a signed copy of his newest release, "Moonfellows." He is truly a gentleman!
I admit I don't read a lot in the bizarro genre, but I absolutely loved "Puppet Skin" by Danger Slater and figured I need to keep tabs on this guy. "Moonfellows" is about a group of people sent to the moon in 1906 on a mission to mine an ore (MacGuffinite) that could help with renewable energy on Earth. The team is a comedic mish-mash of scientists, a gravedigger (the main character), and a man trained to lead without understanding anything else.
Although I definitely found myself laughing at the humour incorporated into the story, this book did not really hit home for me. I understood from the Acknowledgments that no 'real science' was ever intended, but Slater mentioned that he adored the creativity of the 1902 film "A Trip to the Moon" and the creator's vision without having science to back anything. In the book it seemed like Danger was just making reference to all the things we know exist now instead of inventing his own ideas in this non-real, bizarro world. The delivery was funny, but it felt a bit like cheating. I also noted a couple of references to his other works like "Puppet Skin" and "He Digs a Hole," but they came off as slightly forced into an unrelated story.
This is just my personal take on this book. I really adore Danger Slater and I would read anything he puts out, but this one did not connect with me.
I admit I don't read a lot in the bizarro genre, but I absolutely loved "Puppet Skin" by Danger Slater and figured I need to keep tabs on this guy. "Moonfellows" is about a group of people sent to the moon in 1906 on a mission to mine an ore (MacGuffinite) that could help with renewable energy on Earth. The team is a comedic mish-mash of scientists, a gravedigger (the main character), and a man trained to lead without understanding anything else.
Although I definitely found myself laughing at the humour incorporated into the story, this book did not really hit home for me. I understood from the Acknowledgments that no 'real science' was ever intended, but Slater mentioned that he adored the creativity of the 1902 film "A Trip to the Moon" and the creator's vision without having science to back anything. In the book it seemed like Danger was just making reference to all the things we know exist now instead of inventing his own ideas in this non-real, bizarro world. The delivery was funny, but it felt a bit like cheating. I also noted a couple of references to his other works like "Puppet Skin" and "He Digs a Hole," but they came off as slightly forced into an unrelated story.
This is just my personal take on this book. I really adore Danger Slater and I would read anything he puts out, but this one did not connect with me.
July 26, 2022
If you're searching for a meander through the scientifically absurd- The Martian if it were written by Cronenberg- then you won't be sorry to pick up Moonfellows.
Before a single word of a review makes it to this page, I must say that this cover is GORGEOUS. It's absolutely stunning, majorly successful, and so dreadfully bleak yet fantastical, and absolutely captures the essence of its material.
Altogether, I think this book was successful. Slater accomplished precisely what he was going for. There is NO science in this book, and if you're able to look past that and enjoy this strange little story for what it is, you'll be much happier for it.
I'm giving a 3 star rating. A 3 is a perfectly good book, one that I enjoyed reading, but had some connection issues with. My rating simply reflects my preferences in fiction. A few passages took me out of the book altogether, and unfortunately I happened to find the anachronisms distracting. They were funny, yes, and absolutely intended by the author, but I just had a hard time marrying them with the content.
The ending was probably my favorite part- sadly sweet and existential. The writing was beautiful, strong, and contemplative.
Thank you to the publisher for supplying me a copy for review purposes!
Before a single word of a review makes it to this page, I must say that this cover is GORGEOUS. It's absolutely stunning, majorly successful, and so dreadfully bleak yet fantastical, and absolutely captures the essence of its material.
Altogether, I think this book was successful. Slater accomplished precisely what he was going for. There is NO science in this book, and if you're able to look past that and enjoy this strange little story for what it is, you'll be much happier for it.
I'm giving a 3 star rating. A 3 is a perfectly good book, one that I enjoyed reading, but had some connection issues with. My rating simply reflects my preferences in fiction. A few passages took me out of the book altogether, and unfortunately I happened to find the anachronisms distracting. They were funny, yes, and absolutely intended by the author, but I just had a hard time marrying them with the content.
The ending was probably my favorite part- sadly sweet and existential. The writing was beautiful, strong, and contemplative.
Thank you to the publisher for supplying me a copy for review purposes!
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