Moonrise (The Grand Tour, #5; Moonbase Saga, #1) by Ben Bova

Moonrise (The Grand Tour, #5; Moonbase Saga, #1) Reviews

• 
  Nick Borrelli

  So slow that I had to fight not to fall asleep while reading it. Bova is very hit or miss with me.
  The hits are Mars, Jupiter, and Venus. This one however, was a big swing and a miss.
• 
  Nick

  Moonrise, by Ben Bova, is a favorite of mine because it was the novel that finally convinced me that Hard Science-Fiction could be just as entertaining as the action-packed space opera and military science fiction that I have always loved.
  
  In Ben Bova's Grand Tour series, of which this is an early example, the action is confined only to technology that is theoretically within our reach now, the colonisation of the solar system and the actions of the human race as a whole. There are no aliens to fight or magic FTL drives (or FTL communication for that matter) and the drama comes primarily from the conflict between powerful individuals and groups of individuals.
  
  Moonrise in particular depicts a very plausible Earth coming slowly under the grip of politically powerful anti-science morality groups made up of a frightening alliance of religious interests and the actions of a few individuals devoted to be science and the ideal of the "frontier". I am led to understand that as the series progresses, this morality movement gradually gets more and more power even as humanity spreads out across the solar system, but here we get to see its birth amidst violent repression and fear.
  
  What makes Moonrise such a fantastic novel however isn't just this grand scale political story, but the way this canvas is shown to us through the eyes of very believeable, understandable characters, and how the events of the novel drive these people to stand at the turning points of human history.
  
  Believeable, well written and at times brutal, Bova does not hold back as he piles problems on to his characters to see which will stand the strain and which ones, eventually, will break. It's a fascinating journey that I cannot recommend enough.
• 
  Artur Coelho

  Um bom livro de Hard SF, bem construído nas suas premissas, que não mostra os sinais de envelhecimento da FC clássica. Não é por acaso, Bova foi um dos mais ardentes defensores da Hard SF pura, como romancista e editor da Analog.
  
  Alvorada Lunar é o primeiro livro da sua saga Moonbase, sobre o estabelecimento de uma colónia lunar privada, que eventualmente se tornará o primeiro passo do homem na expansão pelas estrelas. Mas para isso, é preciso que a colónia vingue, tarefa só tornada possível pela vontade indomitável de alguns que são capazes de ver o futuro a longo prazo. Parte do livro são intrigas familiares e empresariais, no processo de convencer uma empresa a manter um investimento que dá prejuízo na manutenção e expansão de uma base lunar. O mais interessante, em linha com a hard SF de Bova, é a plausibilidade da sua visão de colonização lunar, em abrigos subterrâneos cheios de condicionantes, à vida na lua inóspita, e à nanotecnologia como forma de, usando nanomáquinas, revolucionar processos de fabricou ou medicina. Parte do livro passa-se num cenário anti-científico, com a sociedade global dominada por religiosos e moralistas que procuram ativamente impedir investigações promissoras.
• 
  Kieran McAndrew

  At the dawn of the twenty first century, a scientific endeavour might make Masterson Aerospace the most profitable company in history. Nanotechnology will help the company extract resources from the regolith on the Moon.
  
  But wars have always been fought over global resources, so why should it be surprising that war would loom once more?
  
  Bova's future history is believable because his characters are believable. Society may evolve, but humans are still driven by primal instinct and it is this that drives the narrative. Jealousy, murder, greed and revenge fight against altruistic optimism.
• 
  Dave Packard

  Finally continuing on in The Grand Tour... I didn’t realize that this was part of a “saga” until I searched for it to mark it read, but that is feel of this book - following a family and it’s foibles and achievements on Moon Base. Definitely enjoyed it!
• 
  Nolan

  This is a posthumous recommendation from a beloved close friend who begged me to read this years ago. Sadly, it’s a request I didn’t get around to until some five months after his death. I wish now I had gotten to it sooner; I can only imagine the great discussions we would have had.
  
  Greg Masterson is dead. He either died by his own hand or someone murdered him. His unstable son, Greg II, believes somebody killed his father. He’s sure he knows who it was. The killer surely was Paul Stavenger, an employee of the Masterson Corporation, famous for its airliner engines and for maintaining a base on the moon that is losing the company money but has promise of one day being profitable. Paul wants to keep the base open; he’s convinced of its profitability. Greg senior wants it closed.
  
  But you see, Paul couldn’t have murdered the old man. He was boinking Masterson’s wife, the beautiful Joanna. After Greg senior’s death, Paul and Joanna agree to marry, and he becomes head of Masterson Corporation. Greg II, as you can imagine, is beyond outraged. Paul will die. And indeed, he does in a classic case of corporate sabotage. Greg II is the saboteur. Paul’s death on the lunar surface isn’t something you’ll ever forget if you read this. In fact, the book opens with a slamming attention grabber. Paul walks to a temporary shelter to avoid inadvertently contaminating other employees by the same means that contaminated him. He dies a grim death in the process.
  
  Leap forward 18 years, and Greg II’s half-brother, Douglas, is on the surface of the moon. He went there for his 18th birthday. Greg II, meanwhile, has convinced Mommy that he is stable, after years of therapy, and she can trust him with the Moonbase directorship. She doesn’t want to have both half-brothers on Moonbase at the same time, but she has no choice, and thus begins a brutal family saga that will include massive solar flares and a host of tension-building experiences. Best of all, the ending is a suspenseful one by every measure, and it is a healthy mix of satisfaction and sadness. There’s lots of room here for additional books in a series.
  
  The downside is this gook doesn’t hold up well. It’s ridiculously dated. It feels like the ‘80s even though it has a ‘90s copyright date. The Japanese, for example, are the threat, as they were to many in the ‘80s with their multiple investments in U.S. real estate and other things. The sex scenes in the book are gratuitous at best, and the females, with rare exceptions, are more submissive than you might expect, especially those who appear to have some power in the book.
  
• 
  Hollowman

  EDIT: Finished 2012-04-19. Went between Kindle and iPod (mp3 audiobook) to fit this book into my schedule. I have older-version audiobook -- Dick Hill is an EXCELLENT performer, as noted below -- so this version of Moonrise works best. I just began the sequel, Moonwar, and the narrator (performer) is not as good (the extra engineering -- voice effects, see below -- is also absent).
  
  Bova, because of his background, is noted to incorporate substantial real science into his stories and plots. I wish he had incorporated some info-graphics. E.g., KSR's sci-fi novels add geographical maps (Mars, Antarctica). Also, Crichton throws adds statistical charts and graphs (Jurassic Park, Andromeda Strain, etc.). Hopefully, authors -- especially hard-science writers -- will take advantage of new e-pub and multimedia formats to enhance their storytelling.
  
  (reading in-progress...)
  
  Really enjoying Bova's novel. Not entirely orig. (standing on shoulders of Clarke, Heinlein, et. al.) ... and ... too much booze and sex (seems to be added after the fact .... low-effort attempt to appeal to 'mature' audience??). The inclusion of sub-plot of evil-son-willing-to-do-anything-to-control family-fortune is so surprising, methinks Bova must be going for some sort of retro/atavistic plot-device trick (everything super old/cliche is new again!).**
  
  All that said ... decent story + well-paced, well-structured/edited plot. Good/credulous sci./technology and corporate politics. The audiobook narrator, Dick Hill (also did Clarke's 2001), PERFORMS various roles v. effectively (& uses electronic processing for simulating intercom/radio chat).
  
  FYI/Notes:
  Format; reading method/"strategy": ebook (Kindle) + audiobook (iPod mp3); on at-home recumbent cycle, I use both ebook and follow along on ipod (earphone) ... switch to ipod only when doing chores.
  
  ** Some other reviewers have noted unbelievable or unrealistic elements in this novel. Generally speaking, fiction authors may consciously and deliberately choose to go this route because REALISTIC scenarios (real-life events) are usually not so interesting. E.g., examine your own life -- how many really "memorable" days/weeks do you have? If you want drama and entertainment (and SELL books, of course), you may have to sprinkle on sensationalistic distortions. Sugar-coat the pill, like children's vitamins, and hope you swallow SOME good stuff (like the hard science Bova incorporates).
• 
  Julie Capell

  For those of us who were just the right age when the first astronauts stepped onto the moon, who have never stopped being spellbound by the thought of setting foot on other worlds, who still believe humanity will make it to the stars . . . this book is for us.
  
  Bova is at his best when describing the scientific and technological aspects of a lunar colony, such as nanotechnology and the very real dangers of living on an atmosphereless rock. But he can also wax poetic when describing the lunar landscape, the hard-edged horizon, the Earth hanging overhead, the scoured rock below.
  
  The characters and plot lines were a bit thin, and if you want a really compelling take on lunar survival, I would recommend “The Martian” by Andy Weir, but hard-core sci-fi readers will want to add Moonrise to their reading list.
  
  [I listened to this as an audio book read by Stefan Rudnicki. I love Rudnicki’s voice, but I am glad I followed the advice of other listeners—I listened at 1.5 speed and that felt perfect.]
  
• 
  Rob Roy

  This is the story of the early development of the new frontier on the moon, bound up by the lives of a far knit family. Tedious in places, but worth the read. Along with the story of development on the lunar surface, is the story of the triumph of fanaticism in the world. On the moon there is hope, on the earth despair. The truth of religion trumps liberty worldwide.
• 
  Craig Broadbent

  Whilst I quie enjoyed the story I found the writing a little too simplistic a lot of the time. Too many inconsistencies that bugged me as I read through this novel. I'd recommend it though, as long as you are someone that can get over some annoying aspects of the story telling.
• 
  Tony

  I have mixed feelings about this story. This is the fifth in the series from the Grand Saga Tour, but the first of a dual set from the Moonbase saga. It is also the first one I have read by this author. I find it interesting that there are several sub-series within the overall saga, and what appears to be a considerable timeline. Even Moonrise takes place over a couple of decades.
  
  The basis for Moonrise is the rise of nanotechnology. From what I know of the series, this is a reoccurring theme. Also, the idea of wealthy entrepreneurs, sabotage, religious fundamentalism, politics, and technology seem to intertwine. I found the ideas behind the technology and wealthy entrepreneurs interesting, the politics and religious fundamentalism slightly prophetic, and the idea of sabotage (and murder) a central theme.
  
  One of the aspects of the story that I didn’t like was in the character sphere. For such a long story, I found there were a few characters who could have been developed better. The ones that come to minds are Bianca, who is sort of a love of friendship interest, but seems like a third wheel for the parts of the story where she appears. Melissa appears at the beginning of the story but is forgotten until the end. Even the abrupt end of the Paul, who I thought might be the protagonist for the story, comes to an abrupt end and is somewhat forgotten for the remainder of the story. The author seems to like having characters com to an abrupt end, which threw me off because I had some emotional investment in them. The character names also could have been slightly more unique. They tended to be common four-letter first names for the male characters and slightly better, but still common female character names.
  
  On the positive side, I loved the story world. I thought it is an excellent mix of hard science and near-future prognostication. I would have like a little more depth and description of the physical elements in the story, to give me a better mind’s eye image, but the story world was nicely thought out.
  
  The story is slow-paced, but I enjoyed it. Not that this is a bad thing for a complex story, however I felt there was some room for better world descriptions and character development. Not enough investment in the characters would be my primary disappointment. Despite its shortcomings, I still give Moonrise four of five stars, and I am looking forward to reading the second part, Moonwars.
  
• 
  JP

  A bit of a jump in focus and topic from
  Mars,
  Moonrise is more similar to
  Privateers et al (the Dan Randolph books), with more of a focus on corporate structure over science.
  
  Amusingly, despite the title/series, Moonrise is only tangentially about the Moonbase, despite a large chunk of the book taking place there. Really, it's about the bizarre broken family and corporate dynamic of Masterson Aerospace and the rise of nanotechnology in Ben Bova's universe. From what I remember of other books in the series (from more than a decade ago), the rise of technology and the idea of it being banned on Earth for religious reasons is a fairly major plot point from here on out, so it's interesting to see how that all began.
  
  That being said, wow I had some issues with the characters in Moonrise. I didn't expect someone I disagreed with and disliked more than Dan Randolph... but both Paul (RIP) and Greg give him a run for their money. Greg is a fundamentally broken person, with some mix of mental health issues and his mother is probably doing him no favors. I liked Paul's son/Greg's half brother Doug Stavenger though. He's overly idealistic, but that's actually refreshing, and he does seem to really care about making the world a better place. So I'll give him that.
  
  Despite my misgivings about Paul's character, I will say that one of the best scenes I've read yet in the Grand Tour is relatively early in the book, showing flashbacks of Paul trekking across the lunar surface, trying to get back to Moonbase before he runs out of oxygen. It's an intense scene that really underscores just how alien and desolate an environment that the Moon is and shows up how terrifying nanomachines can be in the wrong hands.
  
  Overall, it's not my favorite of the series, but it's still probably worth reading, just for the bits of insight into the roots of the whole Grand Tour universe.
• 
  Barbara

  Too many sexist narcissists in this novel for my taste. A son who wants power and money thinks everyone is against him, so he decides to kill his father. His mother covers it up and gets a psychiatrist to regularly visit their home to address the son's issues. The son just learns to mask his true intent better. When one of the son's jilted lovers threatens to let the world know of the murder, the son loses his sanity again and tries to kill everyone, including himself, on the moon base he is in charge of. He tries to cut off the moon base's air supply, but his stepbrother stops him.
  
  Beyond most of the novel's action taking place on the moon, this is a sci-fi novel because it explores inserting nanobots into the human body to heal it. There is huge public protest against this because only the richest of the rich could ever afford this advantage. The stepbrother had the procedure done after another responsibility shirking whiner tried to kill him. The stepbrother survived, but then was permanently exciled to the moon base because no country on Earth would allow him entry, and anti-nanoboters would be continually trying to kill him.
• 
  Thomas

  Bova, Ben. Moonrise. Grand Tour No. 5. Harper Voyager, 1996.
  When Ben Bova sat down to write Moonrise, the TV serial Dallas had been off the air for only 4 or five years. “Who shot JR?” was still a meme. So, it is reasonable to speculate that Bova might have thought, let’s take the family drama of Dallas and combine it with the corporate and political drama of The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress and The Man Who Sold the Moon. Update the science. And Bob’s your uncle. Certainly, Heinlein was on his mind. Jinny Anson is a character whose name is a mashup of Heinlein’s middle name and his wife’s first name. The plot involves a multigeneration family saga about control of an industry uniquely suited to develop Lunar resources and kickstart expansion into the solar system. The key technologies are nanotech and controlled fusion that does not need to make steam to produce electricity. Both technologies are taboo on Bova’s Earth, so the Moon is a sensible locale to develop them. The cultural attitudes seem more dated than the tech this quarter of a century later. Still worth a read. 4 stars.
  
• 
  Kevin

  If I could put 4.5 stars I would have! I loved this book! Bova at times reminded me of Michael Crichton, at time Tom Clancy, and at times... I got a Hitchcock Psycho vibe. This is the third Bova book I've read and I am beginning to think he is the most under-rated Sci-fi author ever! I was smack in the middle of this book when news broke of his passing. I am saddened I didn't find him sooner!
  The only reason I didn't or wouldn't give this a 5 star is... every character is a terrible person... I'm not just talking "flawed"... I'm talking... do you even care about others? Usually I hate books like that... but for me... the story of moonbase as a whole was so engaging that it overcame the fact that I didn't find myself rooting for any character... I guess I was rooting for moonbase itself...
• 
  Geoff Battle

  Another hefty sci-fi tome from Bova which details and epic struggle to maintain a base upon the Moon. The usual Bova mechanics are in place; a brave hero, carefully thought out companions, company power struggles and family feuds. Of course the future technology is well detailed and explained, Bova is brilliant at creating believable science fiction scenarios. The action and suspense is well crafted with interesting characters and plot components. Moonrise is no short tale, at six hundred pages it uses long term relationships, in both personal and business terms, to propel a non-stop page turner. The finale doesn't ring true to the rest of the story before it, however Moonrise, as any entry in the Grand Tour series before it, is a standalone novel definitely worth reading.
• 
  Patrick

  I picked this up in a used bin hoping for a bit of summer fluff, so I did not bring very high expectations, but this was pretty bad. The action moved along well enough, but the characters were all 1-dimensional, and Bova reveals an embarrassing sexism as he tries (unsuccessfully) to paint strong women characters. As if that were not enough, the science is a little patchwork; I found myself checking and rechecking the publication date, trying to figure out why, writing in the late 90s, he seems stuck in mid-century physics (perhaps to be consistent with his gender politics?).
• 
  Andy

  This is an early entry in Bova's Grand Tour, and one of the better ones at that. Paul and Joanna Stavenger are desperately trying to keep their vision of colonizing the moon alive while many on Earth (as well as members of their own family) are doing their best to sabotage this mission. Bova again mixes drama with hardcore science fiction to create a suspenseful story about the future of mankind's exploration of the moon as well as the solar system. I really enjoyed this one.
  
• 
  Kevin English

  While I enjoyed the survivalist aspect of the first 2 parts, this book failed for me in so many ways. The characters are like cardboard cutouts of villains, heroes and conflicted in-betweens. Most of the science in the book is fun and interesting but the corporate backstabbing with a murder-plot sewn in made me feel like I was reading a James Patterson book rather than a Sci-fi novel.
  
  To top it all off, the final act is pathetically silly.
  
  (Disclaimer: never actually read a James Patterson book)
• 
  Rod

  With Ben Bova's passing, I just had to dip into one of his "Grand Tour" series. I loved the thrill of science fiction adventure that first called to me in my teens, but...OMG, do not read Bova for deep characterization/relationships or enlightened views on gender or...well, I could go on, but I won't. Give Bova his due, for that which he does well. But I am not particularly drawn to read anymore.
• 
  Joe Seliske

  A wonderful trip into, hopefully, what will someday be. Bova takes us into the near future where the moon is the next step into man's exploration of the solar system. The science is surrounded by excellent characterization where the people seem real. Yet another thriller that was hard to put down.
• 
  Fabrizio Poli

  As always Ben Bova crafted another great story with interesting characters and twist plots. I really enjoyed this book and certainly gets you thinking of the future political landscape in space and nanotechnology. If you like SciFi BenBova's books are a must read.
• 
  John

  Excellent science fiction. Bova never disappoints.