Luna Moon Rising - Ian Mcdonald (3.8🌟)

Luna Moon Rising is the third and final book in the Luna series. I waited almost 2 years after I read Luna Wolf moon and I was excited to read it.

Opinion: short and to the point to not spoil the book to anyone. I liked this book, but I didn’t love it as I did with the other two. I think it is well written, the setting and descriptions are amazing and there are awesome action scenes to impress anyone. There is also a violent scene between Robson Corta and one of the Mackenzies which was nerve wrecking! I was hooked to the book all that chapter. I liked the corporate espionage, assassinations, family wars, wars. I liked the science fiction with the head implants, and  the discussions about the moon’s resources. I think those were interesting and why not educational.

So why did I not love the book? Three reasons:

• Too many new characters added to the story who I didn’t  contribute much to the development of the story. 
• Some main characters from the previous novels were barely present. I think Lucasinho was more an object than a character. Mariana Calzaghe’s plotline felt incomplete. What we got of her was uninteresting. I was hoping to get more until the last page but got nothing. 
• The ending… I couldn’t predict it but it wasn’t a surprise either. I think it was anticlimactic as I was expecting more excitement or action. 

My edition is a trade paperback published in 2019 by Gollancz. It has 528 pages.

Atlas Alone - Emma Newman (4.4🌟)

Atlas Alone is a science fiction and mystery novel set in the Planetfall universe. This is the fourth book in the series and a direct sequel to After Atlas the second book.

The novel starts with Dee, Carl and Travis, characters who appear in After Atlas, talking about their future a few months into their voyage following the Pathfinder traces. This time we follow Dee trying to come to terms with the events at the end of After Atlas and getting used to life in a star ship. She is determined to find whoever was responsible for the atrocities they witnessed and if possible, kill them. Her new freedom, far from her life as an indentured (a corporate slave), does not give her peace of mind. She still carries the weight of all those years not being able to decide on her actions and body. Far from trying to heal herself or look for help, she masks her emotions and her past. As Dee gets a job within the ship mining consumer data for Mersives (kind of virtual reality games) she is able to access data on the crew and population. She sets her target to discover everything she can about what happened in Earth with all the resources she has available. All of a sudden, she is contacted by someone who infiltrates into her “office” (set in a private mersive) and who wants to help her find the ones she is looking for. Despite the obvious dangers Dee accepts the help… and read the book if you want to know more!!

Opinion: I am impressed with Emma Newman’s capacity to keep the quality of writing and storytelling at a high level. This book is as amazing as the other three. Initially I thought the story was about space travel, life in secluded spaces, recycling food and water and similar BUT I was wrong. I am glad I was wrong. What Newman gave me with this book was total immersion into a character’s mind, flaws, traumas, memories, thoughts and bad decisions. I wouldn’t call Dee a likable character, but I didn’t hate her either. I think she was a perfect, controversial character, with so many layers we could talk about her for hours. To start, the topic of indenture comes to mind. Dee was (or still is??) a corporate slave, forced to do things she didn’t want to do. To pretend to be something she wasn’t. And she wasn’t allowed to tell anyone about her situation. That was her life on earth, but it still affects her now. The only person who new her was Carl (Carlos Moreno, main protagonist in After Atlas) but she would not open up with him either. Through all the book she tries to escape her memories by avoiding them or by crumpling them as one does with paper and throwing them somewhere, she cannot see them. She hides her emotions as she hides her past. “My face is a mask in front of a mask” is one phrase of hers I particularly liked. It is self-defence. A strategy she uses even when she is not threatened. Her mission is revenge and escapism as well. From her memories and her past. She needs purpose in her life now that no one is telling her what to do. She needs to prove that she is capable and valuable. Revenge is the perfect motivation. She wants justice for earth, but I feel she wants it for herself too. Dee is not alone in her quest for justice. She is helped and guided by someone she doesn’t know. Sometimes this help looks more like an imposition. She feels she is forced to do things like when she was indentured but she doesn’t care as long as she can get justice. There are parallels between her new situation and her past. She is an object again. Used by someone else. Perhaps this is why her psychological and emotional balance crumble as she gets closer to her targets. That contradiction between believing in justice but not being able to make her own decisions in obtaining that justice destroys her.

Anyway, I totally recommend this book and the whole series, and I hope Emma Newman writes the fifth novel soon because that ending was …!!!

My edition is a paperback published by Ace in 2019. It has 306 pages.

The Third Testament - Alex Alice and Xavier Dorison (3.7🌟)

The Third Testament is a French graphic novel of mystery and conspiracy. It takes place in 1306 during the dark ages a time when sciences and knowledge were neglected and the Catholic Church ruled over states, morals and people believes.

The story follows a mysterious man, Conrad of Marbug, who 20 years earlier had escaped death by the Catholic Inquisition, and who has been living hiding from everyone. He is summoned by an old friend, the bishop of Paris, to investigate a slaughter of monks who had previously discovered a strange artifact hidden in a crypt in their monastery. Marbug does not want to get involved with any of the church's business and does not accept. All of a sudden the bishop is killed and Marbug has to escape taking with him his friends protégé, Elizabeth of Elsenor. Marbug suspects his friends death has to do with the slaughter of monks and the mysterious artifact.  Both Marbug and Elizabeth decide to search the truth and avenge the bishop. What follows is an adventure with the two protagonists travelling to Spain and Scotland searching for clues as to the location of the artifact which they then realise has something to do with the Third Testament.

Opinion: an entertaining, interesting and gripping story. The setting and atmosphere perfect for a mystery, action novel. I liked the main protagonist and how the authors constructed him. His past, made him what he is now and we can see that in his conviction to resolve the mystery. One thing though is Marbug's face resembles that of Sean Connery in the Name of the Rose movie. When I read the first volume of the novel I felt Umberto Eco vibes in the air but then I discarded them as this story focuses more on action and there is less brain power in the discovery of the Third Testament than strength and political negotiations. I have to say though that the graphic novel contains a good dosis of religious mysticism, and elements of supernatural existence, hmm maybe, not sure... find out reading the books.

The female protagonist, Elizabeth, while being fun to see was a character out of place and time. To start her physical appearance and her attitude and behaviour were that of a 21st century young girl. While all the male characters wore clothes of their time and weather she wore tight clothes not warm enough for winter let alone heavy snow storms. Also, she was never treated as second class human but with respect and as equal to men. Of course this aspect of the novel reduced its credibility because we all know how women have been treated in history.

All in all a good fun read for fans of mystery stories and medieval settings.

By the way, the art is outstanding. A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. I loved the landscapes and the almost impossible perspectives of the high castles and mountains. A pleasure to see.

My edition was published by Titan Comics, in 4 shrank (why!!!) albums.