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A review by willdr
Luna: New Moon by Ian McDonald
5.0
Wow. I haven't hit anything as compelling as this book in a while. I devoured this even while recuperating from my second COVID vaccination. Luna: New Moon takes place largely on that closest satellite of ours, which has been transformed into a libertarian paradise. There is no government on the Moon, only contract law. Anything can be negotiated, and not only that - everything is under negotiation, from your first arrival on the moon's surface you're given a chib that tracks your usage of data, food, water and oxygen.
The brutal corpo-colony is ruled by the Five Dragons, five families that control the majority of sources of capital on the moon. Our protag-family, the Cortas, are relatively new to the "throne", but their rise has been disruptive. The comparisons to Game of Thrones are due to the layered political landscape and penchant for brutal violence, and they are apt. There are some gratuitous sex scenes but they help to build the mise-en-scene of a society that has grown up in the shadow of Earth, but grown apart from it as well.
The brutal corpo-colony is ruled by the Five Dragons, five families that control the majority of sources of capital on the moon. Our protag-family, the Cortas, are relatively new to the "throne", but their rise has been disruptive. The comparisons to Game of Thrones are due to the layered political landscape and penchant for brutal violence, and they are apt. There are some gratuitous sex scenes but they help to build the mise-en-scene of a society that has grown up in the shadow of Earth, but grown apart from it as well.
Agency is a comforting fairy story. Life is a series of doors that only open one way. We can never return. This is the world and we must live in it the best we can.McDonald masterfully blends social commentary with a truly breakneck plot that never ceases momentum (unlike Game of Thrones...) but still maintaining narrative cohesion. It's like the best political parts of The Expanse, with a dash of Altered Carbon's sexuality (without the misogynism. The Moon is as open-minded as it is libertarian, with gender-neutral pronouns, fluid sexualities and more). and, yes, Game of Thrones sense of filial duty, manipulation and a colourful cast of characters, this is it.