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Lunar sci-fi laced with comedy, what to do when your father is a serial killer, and what to feed on to motivate you, if you are the most hated mother in your son’s class - the brilliant premises of today’s three novels.
"When The Moon Hits Your Eye" by John Scalzi
Scalzi has long been a favorite of mine, with his previous two novels, the Kaiju Preservation Society and Starter Villain, brilliant examples of his curious blend of SciFi and wry comedy. What Scalzi does brilliantly is take a daft, near-ridiculous premise that’s rooted in SciFi and Technology, then humanize the narrative with resonant protagonists, and inject tongue-in-cheek humor. It’s always about making the ridiculous and silly look like logical reactions to what transpires. In this latest of his, the premise has to do with the moon suddenly turning into cheese; NASA will call it organic matter, as opposed to the rock and basalt we know our moon to be made of. Then, with an expansive cast of characters, Scalzi looks to see how various people react to the turn of events and how it engages the world in an existential crisis. To be fair, Scalzi doesn’t even attempt to explain the Science, but just presumes this transformation to have happened.
Literally, it’s a moonage daydream, and so many get into the act - plus a chunk of the moon breaks off, and is now dangerously hurtling towards Earth. There are chapters devoted to astronauts, to billionaires, to comedians, to bank executives and professors, to the President of the USA, to teenagers who fall in love amidst doomsday scenarios, and even terminal patients who ironically, want to control destiny and be released from life on their own terms. The absurdity of humanity when facing such a catastrophe is on full display here, and there’s even one chapter devoted to an episode of Saturday Night Live that completely misreads the prevailing mood and situation of the audience and its public. There is something of a letdown when the novel has to come to an end, and it’s not as tight a storyline as his two previous books. But there’s still so much to enjoy here, and the journey is well worth the lack of a bombshell conclusion.
"The Midnight King" by Tariq Ashkanani
With narrators Nathan and Isaac, Ashkanani takes us on a gripping journey into the heart of darkness. Nathan is the son of Lucas Cole, a writer, widower, and something of a celebrity in the small town near Nashville. But Lucas is also a serial killer who abducts children, something Nathan and his sister Kate have known but lived with, Nathan running away from home at the first chance he had. Nathan is now back, with his father having passed away, but Lucas has also left a manuscript, The Midnight King, and it’s supposedly a fictionalized account of his life of crime. A box of trinkets includes a hair ribbon that belongs to Chloe Xi, an eight-year-old who disappeared only days before Lucas took his life, so she may still be alive somewhere. Isaac is a childhood friend of Nathan, and is an ex-cop and now a private detective, and he’s helping the parents of Chloe.
To complicate matters, there’s an Edward Morrison on Death Row, charged with the abduction and murder of a child, which may be one of Lucas’ victims. Morrison has been dubbed the Music City Strangler, but what exactly is he truly guilty of? This is what Isaac is out to uncover, while trying to atone for his police past and find/save Chloe. This is very dark, gripping crime fiction. It’s akin to going down a black rabbit hole of foreboding danger, and finding there are degrees of darkness and blackness you didn’t even imagine existed. Even when you think you’ve seen something that was coming, prepare to be turned around and brought somewhere even more sinister and terrifying. Ashkanani hails from Edinburgh, and an earlier novel, Welcome to Cooper, won the Bloody Scotland Debut Award. The future of Scottish Crime Fiction is kept bright with the likes of Tariq.
"All the Other Mothers Hate Me" by Sarah Harman
This debut novel from Harman, an American who’s been living in London, won her the Lucy Cavendish Fiction Prize last year - and now gets a well-deserved mainstream publishing release. The premise is a gem; single mother Florence Grimes is 31 years old, with a 10-year-old son, and looks back on a forgettable past as a member of an all-girl rock band that actually flirted with success. Flirted is the operative word, and thanks to the money coming from Dylan’s bio-father, Dylan is enrolled at St. Stephen, an exclusive London day school. One classmate, Alfie Risby, is heir to a frozen food empire and takes great joy in tormenting the sensitive Dylan, and making it look like it’s Dylan's instability and fault. Florence sees through Alfie and dislikes him intensely, calling him a bully whenever she gets the chance to speak to the school authorities.
The mystery and laugh-out-loud humor emanate from the situation that arises when Alfie disappears during the school outing to the local Wetland Preserve. Dylan was paired with Alfie, and it’s not long before fingers start pointing at Dylan as being responsible for the disappearance. Maternal instincts kick in, and Florence begins her investigation, knowing that only by finding Alfie can she clear Dylan’s name. The hard part to negotiate is that there are moments when Florence herself doubts the innocence of Dylan - especially when she discovers Alfie’s backpack hidden under Dylan’s bed. Twisted and skillfully plotted, there’s much being said about peer pressure in environments such as exclusive schools, and how the mothers compete even more fiercely than the children. Florence is presented with warts and all, and she isn’t always likable, making the storytelling that much more relatable.
