Dark Moon

by Alton Gansky

Confusion reigns when an astronomy professor discovers a mysterious red stain on the moon that continues to grow until it is seen by the naked eye, and fringe groups begin to spout theories about alien invasions, while religious figures interpret the event to support their own agendas. Original.

Genres: Christian Fiction, Fiction, Mystery, Christian, Science Fiction

352 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2002

About the author

Alton Gansky is the author of 30 books--24 of them novels, including the Angel Award winner Terminal Justice and Christy Award finalist A Ship Possessed. A frequent speaker at writing conferences, he holds a BA and MA degrees in biblical studies. Alton and his wife reside in Southern California.

Reviews

[Sean Durity · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was my first book by Gansky. I was hoping to discover another good author to add to my list. This was an uneven book, though. I liked the separate threads and characters through the book. And Gansky crafted some great phrases, too. However, the climax of this book, and it’s interesting premise, fell flat for me. The coming together of the threads was forced/too convenient. And most of the mystery of the book just went away. I was a a few dozen pages from the end thinking, he can’t wrap this up that quickly. But he did - sort of.

There was some reasonable discussion of the relationship between faith and science, but nothing groundbreaking. The depiction of Julie and her mental breakdowns/visions and then her creative determination were compelling.

[Brent · Rating 2 out of 5]

The mistress blackmails the senator to drug his wife and put her in a mental hospital. The red spot on the moon had nothing to do with anything.

[Joshua I. James · Rating 1 out of 5]

Set up a pretty good mystery, then went in so many directions and never got back to the interesting stuff.

[CindyHunt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Great Alton Gansky book!

I didn't want to put this down as the storyline kept me wondering if Julie would get her life back, if Marcus would see God's Handiwork in the Blood Moon or just believe that science and faith can't be intertwined. I had been down to 2 chapters and I was still intrigued as to how it was going to end!
You don't want to miss it, it's worth every word.

[Krista Rick’s · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took a while to get to the climax and I was confused about Julie Waal’s story. But it was interesting enough for me to finish the book.

[Brittney · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot going on in this book with absolutely nothing going on at the same time. IYKYK. Other than that is wasn’t a horrible book just wanted more out of it.

[Catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was thrilling and a real page turner!

[Syhalla Ampula · Rating 2 out of 5]

It started off on a good foot. Kind of Contact-esque, with the whole, "There's something going on, but we don't know what and we don't know why!" A red spot appears on the moon, and is growing noticeably. The theme of the book seems to be the disconnect (or lack thereof, depending) between faith and science. There are some sub-plots and back stories that illustrate the theme in touching ways. There's a sub-plot involving a seemingly crazy woman which taunts you with hinted tie-ins to the spot on the moon. You care about the characters, and get caught up in the goings-on, but if you stop and think about it, nothing really happens. And in the end: Nothing really happens. This may be a spoiler, so stop reading if you mean to pick it up but: There was nothing there. In the last two or three pages of the book, the big red spot that started the whole story just disappears, and everyone seems to shrug and say "Oh well."
If I were to hazard a guess, I'd say the author found himself with a great idea, but as he fleshed out the story it became a chance to explore (I suspect) his own difficulty reconciling faith and fact. I hope he found his peace, because it makes for a sadly disappointing ending, a la "...and then he woke up."

[Barry Haworth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not long ago I read Gansky's "Zero G" which I'd picked up at Koorong and found that I liked more than I expected to. When I found that the council library had more of his books, so I decided to see if that was a fluke.

What I found is that it wasn't, or at least wasn't quite. "Dark Moon" tells about what happens when an amateur astronomer discovers a mysterious blood-red spot on the Moon. The story covers the events around the spot's discoverer, and various other people (friends, family, colleagues) who are or become involved in his life. The book was an interesting read, and covered a range of life and faith issues fairly competently & believably (with one rather glaring technical error, though I could be charitable and put that down to a typo). I was a little disappointed at the end, though, in that the spot on the Moon which gives the book its title is never really explained - it appears, people react to it, then it disappears.

Still, not a bad read over all.

[Falbs · Rating 1 out of 5]

I feel so violated! The book starts with a red spot appearing on the moon and getting larger. Then we follow around some lame Christian characters for 350 pages, at which point the red spot mysteriously disappears for no apparent reason! End of book. Worst piece of crap I've read in a long, long time. I hope someday to run into Mr. Gansky- at which point I promise to deck the idiot for wasting my time and writing such a God-awful piece of shit. Thank God I didn't buy it, or I'd have to actually track his sorry ass down- I am saved by the library yet again.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel focuses on an astronomy professor at a small college who makes a brand new scientific discovery about the moon, a United States Senator and his wife, and several other interesting, sometimes bizarre characters. I was involved in the story and read it very quickly, but was slightly disappointed with the way in which it ended. The way in which characters in this book grapple with the importance and interaction between science and faith is thought provoking.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

I still think of this story, years after I finished it. The suspense, the "psychotic" woman, the mysterious red moon. Intriguing

[Rob Selwitz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Different - not simply formulaic, that's for sure!

[Nick Woodall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun, quick read. Like I've said before, Gansky's books would make great movies!

[Katy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't really get exciting until the last 50 pages or so.

[Cws]

JF-YAGan

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read such odd books as a teen.

[Jenny Wiley]

Excellent book. Makes you think.