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Threshold #3
Dead Moon
In the year 2243, the Moon belongs to the dead.
The largest graveyard in the solar system, it was the perfect solution to the overcrowding and environmental problems that had plagued mankind for centuries. And the perfect place for Cali Washington to run away from her past.
But when a mysterious meteor crashes into one of the Moon's cemeteries, Cali and her fellow Caretakers find themselves surrounded by a terrifying enemy force that outnumbers them more than a thousand to one. An enemy not hindered by the lack of air or warmth or sustenance.
An enemy that is already dead.
Now Cali and her compatriots must fight to survive. Because if they don't, everyone on the Moon may be joining the dead.
And maybe everyone on Earth, too....
The largest graveyard in the solar system, it was the perfect solution to the overcrowding and environmental problems that had plagued mankind for centuries. And the perfect place for Cali Washington to run away from her past.
But when a mysterious meteor crashes into one of the Moon's cemeteries, Cali and her fellow Caretakers find themselves surrounded by a terrifying enemy force that outnumbers them more than a thousand to one. An enemy not hindered by the lack of air or warmth or sustenance.
An enemy that is already dead.
Now Cali and her compatriots must fight to survive. Because if they don't, everyone on the Moon may be joining the dead.
And maybe everyone on Earth, too....
348 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 14, 2019
289 people are currently reading
2616 people want to read
About the author
Peter Clines
33 books4,466 followers
Peter Clines
is the author of the genre-blending
-14-
and the
Ex-Heroes
series.
He grew up in the Stephen King fallout zone of Maine and--inspired by comic books, Star Wars, and Saturday morning cartoons--started writing at the age of eight with his first epic novel, Lizard Men From The Center of The Earth(unreleased).
He made his first writing sale at age seventeen to a local newspaper, and at the age of nineteen he completed his quadruple-PhD studies in English literature, archaeology, quantum physics, and interpretive dance. In 2008, while surfing Hawaii's Keauwaula Beach, he thought up a viable way to maintain cold fusion that would also solve world hunger, but forgot about it when he ran into actress Yvonne Strahvorski back on the beach and she offered to buy him a drink. He was the inspiration for both the epic poem Beowulf and the motion picture Raiders of the Lost Ark, and is single-handedly responsible for repelling the Martian Invasion of 1938 that occurred in Grovers Mills, New Jersey. Eleven sonnets he wrote to impress a girl in high school were all later found and attributed to Shakespeare.
He is the writer of countless film articles, several short stories, The Junkie Quatrain, the rarely-read The Eerie Adventures of the Lycanthrope Robinson Crusoe, the poorly-named website Writer on Writing , and an as-yet-undiscovered Dead Sea Scroll.
He currently lives and writes somewhere in southern California.
There is compelling evidence that he is, in fact, the Lindbergh baby.
He grew up in the Stephen King fallout zone of Maine and--inspired by comic books, Star Wars, and Saturday morning cartoons--started writing at the age of eight with his first epic novel, Lizard Men From The Center of The Earth(unreleased).
He made his first writing sale at age seventeen to a local newspaper, and at the age of nineteen he completed his quadruple-PhD studies in English literature, archaeology, quantum physics, and interpretive dance. In 2008, while surfing Hawaii's Keauwaula Beach, he thought up a viable way to maintain cold fusion that would also solve world hunger, but forgot about it when he ran into actress Yvonne Strahvorski back on the beach and she offered to buy him a drink. He was the inspiration for both the epic poem Beowulf and the motion picture Raiders of the Lost Ark, and is single-handedly responsible for repelling the Martian Invasion of 1938 that occurred in Grovers Mills, New Jersey. Eleven sonnets he wrote to impress a girl in high school were all later found and attributed to Shakespeare.
He is the writer of countless film articles, several short stories, The Junkie Quatrain, the rarely-read The Eerie Adventures of the Lycanthrope Robinson Crusoe, the poorly-named website Writer on Writing , and an as-yet-undiscovered Dead Sea Scroll.
He currently lives and writes somewhere in southern California.
There is compelling evidence that he is, in fact, the Lindbergh baby.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 556 reviews
February 15, 2019
I could hardly wait for this book to come out, but I was so disappointed with it. I’m not really into horror fiction, but 14 lead to the Cthulhu ending so slowly, with such fantastic build up and mystery, that I didn’t mind when it took that unexpected twist. I loved 14, and also enjoyed The Fold. Dead Moon is a straight up zombie story, without even the benefit of likable characters to keep you interested. 14 did such a perfect job of gradually introducing you to a huge cast of fantastic characters that you really cared about. Dead Moon throws a huge cast of characters at you in the second chapter and you’re still trying to work out who’s who when they all start dying, so you don’t really care. The author doesn’t give you any time to get to know or care about the characters before they are being attacked and killed off. If you like zombie stories with lots of action and two-dimensional characters, this one’s for you. But I expected a lot more.
May 5, 2025
Well that was a bummer. After exuberantly singing praises for the first two books in this series, I will confess that I shouldn’t have let myself believe that every book by this author would be fantastic.
Book three in the Threshold series is zombies on the moon. That’s pretty much it. It’s one action sequence after another, and very little character development. I just couldn’t get into it.
I’m really sad now 😭
Book three in the Threshold series is zombies on the moon. That’s pretty much it. It’s one action sequence after another, and very little character development. I just couldn’t get into it.
I’m really sad now 😭
April 25, 2019
3.5 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum https://bibliosanctum.com/2019/04/25/...
I’ve really enjoyed Peter Clines’ books in the Threshold series so far (14 and The Fold) which was why I was excited when I found out that he would be releasing a third book as an audio exclusive with Audible. While all these stories appear to take place in the same world, any connections between them are immaterial to their individual plots so each one can be read as a standalone. As such, I wasn’t too surprised to discover that this new book, Dead Moon, would take place in the future on the moon, though I was a little taken aback by the very different tone, style, and overall quality.
That’s not to say Dead Moon was a bad book, but it does feel less well put together compared to Clines’ previous Threshold novels, with a more slapdash plot and characters that aren’t as developed. The premise also comes across as less unique and more commercial, like something I might come across in a B movie on the Syfy channel—as in fun, but superficial. As you can probably figure out from the book’s description, this is a zombie story on the moon. The year is 2243 and overcrowding and environmental degradation on earth has forced humankind to figure out a new way to deal with their dead. The solution? Make the moon a graveyard, where Earth’s wealthiest citizens can launch the remains of their deceased loved ones to rest in peace for eternity looking down on us from the brightest object in the night sky.
But such an enormous undertaking also requires a lot of manpower to maintain. Enter the Caretakers, men who women who live onsite in Luna City, the moon’s largest operations center, where they perform tasks such as grave digging and overseeing the cemeteries. It is lonely and isolated work, but it is also perfect for Cali Washington, who has signed on to become a Caretaker in order to start a new life and escape the troubles from her old one. Not long after she begins her position, however, a mysterious meteor crashes into onto the moon’s surface, affecting the grave sites in a terrifying way. Far away from any help and amidst dangerous dust storm conditions as well as impossible reports about the dead rising, Cali and her fellow Caretakers must band together and try to survive.
Unlike 14 or The Fold, the overall premise of Dead Moon is relatively simple, and the book is what I would call a popcorn read, with a story and characters that present themselves accordingly. There’s also plenty of action, and while these scenes and the dialogue are pretty hammy, there’s no denying the entertainment value. This is a zombie book, after all, and it’s the kind where you know right away what you’re getting into. It will mostly play out the way you expect, though there are also a few twists and surprises thrown in that those who have read the previous Threshold books will probably appreciate more.
In terms of characters, we have a diverse and interesting cast. But as with many of these pulpy space disaster stories, it wouldn’t really be advisable to get attached to any of them, since a bunch of them will not survive. Some were clearly written to be fodder for the zombies, so not surprisingly, character development is on the lighter side. Likewise, the plot has a “throwaway” quality to it, which is pretty typical with these typcs of fluffy reads. I get the feeling that Clines wasn’t overly concerned with any possible plot holes or explanations that don’t sense—like, come on, it’s moon zombies! It’s supposed to be over-the-top and a little silly, so I’ll give it a pass for being so outlandish. Like I said, these aren’t necessarily bad attributes, as long as you come into this with realistic expectations.
In other words, Dead Moon isn’t a deep book by any means, but I had a good time with it, even though I don’t think its quality is in line with the previous Threshold books (especially with The Fold, which I thought was mind-blowingly clever and engaging). For the right person at the right time though, I can see it being very enjoyable. I will give that it is thrilling and great fun—a fantastic audiobook to check out to if you want an easy and fast listen. A solid 3-3.5 stars.
Audiobook Comments: If nothing else, you should be picking up this audiobook for the awesome narration of Ray Porter. I’m a huge fan of his because his performances are always topnotch no matter what kind of material he’s given to work with. The guy brings an electrifying energy to any book because of his great voices and enthusiasm.
I’ve really enjoyed Peter Clines’ books in the Threshold series so far (14 and The Fold) which was why I was excited when I found out that he would be releasing a third book as an audio exclusive with Audible. While all these stories appear to take place in the same world, any connections between them are immaterial to their individual plots so each one can be read as a standalone. As such, I wasn’t too surprised to discover that this new book, Dead Moon, would take place in the future on the moon, though I was a little taken aback by the very different tone, style, and overall quality.
That’s not to say Dead Moon was a bad book, but it does feel less well put together compared to Clines’ previous Threshold novels, with a more slapdash plot and characters that aren’t as developed. The premise also comes across as less unique and more commercial, like something I might come across in a B movie on the Syfy channel—as in fun, but superficial. As you can probably figure out from the book’s description, this is a zombie story on the moon. The year is 2243 and overcrowding and environmental degradation on earth has forced humankind to figure out a new way to deal with their dead. The solution? Make the moon a graveyard, where Earth’s wealthiest citizens can launch the remains of their deceased loved ones to rest in peace for eternity looking down on us from the brightest object in the night sky.
But such an enormous undertaking also requires a lot of manpower to maintain. Enter the Caretakers, men who women who live onsite in Luna City, the moon’s largest operations center, where they perform tasks such as grave digging and overseeing the cemeteries. It is lonely and isolated work, but it is also perfect for Cali Washington, who has signed on to become a Caretaker in order to start a new life and escape the troubles from her old one. Not long after she begins her position, however, a mysterious meteor crashes into onto the moon’s surface, affecting the grave sites in a terrifying way. Far away from any help and amidst dangerous dust storm conditions as well as impossible reports about the dead rising, Cali and her fellow Caretakers must band together and try to survive.
Unlike 14 or The Fold, the overall premise of Dead Moon is relatively simple, and the book is what I would call a popcorn read, with a story and characters that present themselves accordingly. There’s also plenty of action, and while these scenes and the dialogue are pretty hammy, there’s no denying the entertainment value. This is a zombie book, after all, and it’s the kind where you know right away what you’re getting into. It will mostly play out the way you expect, though there are also a few twists and surprises thrown in that those who have read the previous Threshold books will probably appreciate more.
In terms of characters, we have a diverse and interesting cast. But as with many of these pulpy space disaster stories, it wouldn’t really be advisable to get attached to any of them, since a bunch of them will not survive. Some were clearly written to be fodder for the zombies, so not surprisingly, character development is on the lighter side. Likewise, the plot has a “throwaway” quality to it, which is pretty typical with these typcs of fluffy reads. I get the feeling that Clines wasn’t overly concerned with any possible plot holes or explanations that don’t sense—like, come on, it’s moon zombies! It’s supposed to be over-the-top and a little silly, so I’ll give it a pass for being so outlandish. Like I said, these aren’t necessarily bad attributes, as long as you come into this with realistic expectations.
In other words, Dead Moon isn’t a deep book by any means, but I had a good time with it, even though I don’t think its quality is in line with the previous Threshold books (especially with The Fold, which I thought was mind-blowingly clever and engaging). For the right person at the right time though, I can see it being very enjoyable. I will give that it is thrilling and great fun—a fantastic audiobook to check out to if you want an easy and fast listen. A solid 3-3.5 stars.
Audiobook Comments: If nothing else, you should be picking up this audiobook for the awesome narration of Ray Porter. I’m a huge fan of his because his performances are always topnotch no matter what kind of material he’s given to work with. The guy brings an electrifying energy to any book because of his great voices and enthusiasm.
May 28, 2021
This was exactly what I expected: zombies on the moon!
What fun!
There's one main thing that connects this book to the others, but I'm not going to spoil it.
I will be on to the next in the series shortly.
What fun!
There's one main thing that connects this book to the others, but I'm not going to spoil it.
I will be on to the next in the series shortly.
December 6, 2025
I was so excited for this book. I loved both 14 and The Fold. This feels like it was written by someone else. It's blatant zombie story, and a poor one at that. I was expecting something similar to the first two books and what I got was disappointment. The character building, story, and writing falls so short of the first two books it's like someone with a zombie obsession wrote fan-fiction that somehow got accidentally published with Peter's name on it. It doesn't feel connected to the setting at all. In addition in space a body would desiccate and just fall apart if a limb is moved.
August 4, 2019
Peter Clines is good for light and accessible reads, generally fun and even sometimes funny. Even if 14 was exceptionally silly, (Tesla secretly keeping world eating monsters at bay with a byzantine machine), it made for a pretty entertaining ride. The Fold surprised me. It wasn't marketed it as a sequel to 14, so I bought it on a whim and was somewhat surprised that it was a sequel of sorts, and again followed the pattern of silly but entertaining, character driven. I was going to keep this as spoiler free, but the title tips its hand. (I'll mark clearly spoilers).
Dead Moon, however, is a mess. Unlike typical Clines books, where likable characters tend to banter off each other (often aplomb with pop culture references), there's hardly anything that builds the character or even sense of mystery. Clines sprints through the get-to-know-you-phase, seemingly bored with characters and world building. There's a moon base (no history how or why) and people living on the moon! Neat... I guess. The moon is inexplicably used as a graveyard as earth crowded, and cremation is polluting.... which is absurdist considering their rocketing people to the moon and the amount of pollution that'd generate let alone the economics. Don't worry about it, Peter doesn't care so why should you? Want explore what it's like to live on the moon? Read Artemis. Want more fleshed out characters? Probably should read Artemis as it has that as well.
We meet our main character, who's already in transit to the moon on a once-in-a-lifetime experience, to live on the moon for 2 years. It's not a bad place to start, but there's little-to-no thoughts on how she feels about this other than somewhat excited. There's not much to her other than the fact she's a little too voluptuous for her cover-alls, and seems to avoid revealing much about herself, putting herself in a self-purgatory. It's divulged rather quickly she's taking up the job of gravedigger and makes a friend or two. The absurdity ramps up as much later as it turns out that only 300ish people are full time moon-residents, making the idea of even a position as a caretaker a once-ln-a-lifetime experience, and extremely exotic but instead it's treated as mundane. We skip ahead weeks, and a meteor strikes. And with less than 1/8th of the book down, start going south for our moon characters.
-------------------
Spoiler alert
-------------------
The crisis if it wasn't already given away by the graveyard and the book's title is space zombies. It's totally idiotic. Repeatedly it's mentioned that the zombies stare with "frozen eyes, and corpses being rigid implying the zombies are frozen stiff but also... able to move. Which is it Clines? Oh right, you don't care. Characters who we barely knew start dying. The sense of impeding doom is squashed by near anonymity of the people who die.
Zombies also do not fit with the with the previous two novels. For a series that features , 7 legged green cockroaches, barren desert alternate universes ravaged by telepathic world eating Cthulhus, and science masking humanity from said creatures, it sounds goofy to complain about when put in this context, but the series was previous sci-fi...ish. Undead are magical. The limp tie in seems to be trying to get readers onboard with Clines borderline obsession with zombies.
The series devolves from an eerie sci-fi to a terrible b-movie script. Why? What happened? Want mystery? Our hero's dark secret? As soldier he accidentally killed three very young boys in Afghanistan. Our heroine? She failed at being a ballerina because... I kid you not, her body type was wrong due to her being too voluptuous, wide hips and large breasts and all. She mentions she was offered modeling or possibly acting gigs (cuz she's hot, duh!) but was so heartbroken her only choice was commit herself to self-exile as a grave digger on the Moon. That's how a woman scorned would think, instead of pivoting another career in the arts like acting, she'd prefer isolation. Thus of course starts lame sexual tension between the two characters right before our heroine has to swap helmets in the void the Moon's vacuum. Yep, right before both people could die, characters are now making sexual advances. Again, Clines suuuuure knows how to write a woman.
The tie-in with the other books is paper-thin, other than the small tentacle monster there's absolutely nothing to do with the other two entries in the series.
I like Clines as he's a favorite guilty pleasure of mine, I even read his incredi-dumb ex-Heros series, so clearly, my bar here isn't high. In the previous two books, he takes his time to craft likable characters, some goofy dialogue, rogue scientists and sense of foreboding mystery but when you remove all those and toss in zombies? You get Dead Moon.
It's not the worst book I've read (that isn't a compliment) but it's certainly one of the biggest letdowns I've experienced, making it a solid one-star. Hopefully this garbage doesn't kill the series and is never mentioned again. This book is trash.
Dead Moon, however, is a mess. Unlike typical Clines books, where likable characters tend to banter off each other (often aplomb with pop culture references), there's hardly anything that builds the character or even sense of mystery. Clines sprints through the get-to-know-you-phase, seemingly bored with characters and world building. There's a moon base (no history how or why) and people living on the moon! Neat... I guess. The moon is inexplicably used as a graveyard as earth crowded, and cremation is polluting.... which is absurdist considering their rocketing people to the moon and the amount of pollution that'd generate let alone the economics. Don't worry about it, Peter doesn't care so why should you? Want explore what it's like to live on the moon? Read Artemis. Want more fleshed out characters? Probably should read Artemis as it has that as well.
We meet our main character, who's already in transit to the moon on a once-in-a-lifetime experience, to live on the moon for 2 years. It's not a bad place to start, but there's little-to-no thoughts on how she feels about this other than somewhat excited. There's not much to her other than the fact she's a little too voluptuous for her cover-alls, and seems to avoid revealing much about herself, putting herself in a self-purgatory. It's divulged rather quickly she's taking up the job of gravedigger and makes a friend or two. The absurdity ramps up as much later as it turns out that only 300ish people are full time moon-residents, making the idea of even a position as a caretaker a once-ln-a-lifetime experience, and extremely exotic but instead it's treated as mundane. We skip ahead weeks, and a meteor strikes. And with less than 1/8th of the book down, start going south for our moon characters.
-------------------
Spoiler alert
-------------------
The crisis if it wasn't already given away by the graveyard and the book's title is space zombies. It's totally idiotic. Repeatedly it's mentioned that the zombies stare with "frozen eyes, and corpses being rigid implying the zombies are frozen stiff but also... able to move. Which is it Clines? Oh right, you don't care. Characters who we barely knew start dying. The sense of impeding doom is squashed by near anonymity of the people who die.
Zombies also do not fit with the with the previous two novels. For a series that features , 7 legged green cockroaches, barren desert alternate universes ravaged by telepathic world eating Cthulhus, and science masking humanity from said creatures, it sounds goofy to complain about when put in this context, but the series was previous sci-fi...ish. Undead are magical. The limp tie in seems to be trying to get readers onboard with Clines borderline obsession with zombies.
The series devolves from an eerie sci-fi to a terrible b-movie script. Why? What happened? Want mystery? Our hero's dark secret? As soldier he accidentally killed three very young boys in Afghanistan. Our heroine? She failed at being a ballerina because... I kid you not, her body type was wrong due to her being too voluptuous, wide hips and large breasts and all. She mentions she was offered modeling or possibly acting gigs (cuz she's hot, duh!) but was so heartbroken her only choice was commit herself to self-exile as a grave digger on the Moon. That's how a woman scorned would think, instead of pivoting another career in the arts like acting, she'd prefer isolation. Thus of course starts lame sexual tension between the two characters right before our heroine has to swap helmets in the void the Moon's vacuum. Yep, right before both people could die, characters are now making sexual advances. Again, Clines suuuuure knows how to write a woman.
The tie-in with the other books is paper-thin, other than the small tentacle monster there's absolutely nothing to do with the other two entries in the series.
I like Clines as he's a favorite guilty pleasure of mine, I even read his incredi-dumb ex-Heros series, so clearly, my bar here isn't high. In the previous two books, he takes his time to craft likable characters, some goofy dialogue, rogue scientists and sense of foreboding mystery but when you remove all those and toss in zombies? You get Dead Moon.
It's not the worst book I've read (that isn't a compliment) but it's certainly one of the biggest letdowns I've experienced, making it a solid one-star. Hopefully this garbage doesn't kill the series and is never mentioned again. This book is trash.
October 18, 2023
Reread Oct 2023: This was a fun read for Halloween. Since I'm rereading these closer together I noticed a different parallel between events here and book 2 that I didn't catch last time which was a fun Easter egg. Onward to Terminus! Original review below.
----------------
Dead Moon is the third book in the Threshold universe by Peter Clines. Yes "universe" and not "series". While taking place in the same universe as 14 and The Fold, this story is completely unrelated to those books with only one very loose connection. Dead Moon definitely works well as a stand alone and won't spoil any of the surprises from the previous two books should you want to pick this one up first. With that out of the way....
The year is 2243. The Moon has become the largest graveyard in the solar system, the perfect solution to over crowding on Earth. It's also the perfect place for someone like Cali Washington to go to escape her troubles. Signed up to be a Caretaker, a lunar grave digger, Cali travels to Luna City to begin her new career. Just as she's starting to get the hang of how to use the grave digging equipment a meteor hits the Moon, causing the largest dust storm ever recorded. It's only after the dust begins to settle that everyone realizes that there's something very wrong and the dead have become restless.
It's zombies on the moon! I never expected to enjoy this book so much, with it's B-movie premise and pulpy delivery. This book is straight up a scifi/horror and it gets to the main point almost immediately. When I realized I had 10 hours to go and the action was already happening, I let go of all my preconceived notions and just enjoyed the ride. As you might expect, the body count is high and the action is violent. While character development is on the lite side, Clines still gives us people to root for as they fight for their survival. There are also some neat ideas in this book which made me think about physics on the moon. I'd love to see this translated to the big screen just to see how those effects would play out.
I listened to the audio book narrated by Ray Porter. Porter gives a stellar performance as always. I'm looking forward to the next Threshold installment.
----------------
Dead Moon is the third book in the Threshold universe by Peter Clines. Yes "universe" and not "series". While taking place in the same universe as 14 and The Fold, this story is completely unrelated to those books with only one very loose connection. Dead Moon definitely works well as a stand alone and won't spoil any of the surprises from the previous two books should you want to pick this one up first. With that out of the way....
The year is 2243. The Moon has become the largest graveyard in the solar system, the perfect solution to over crowding on Earth. It's also the perfect place for someone like Cali Washington to go to escape her troubles. Signed up to be a Caretaker, a lunar grave digger, Cali travels to Luna City to begin her new career. Just as she's starting to get the hang of how to use the grave digging equipment a meteor hits the Moon, causing the largest dust storm ever recorded. It's only after the dust begins to settle that everyone realizes that there's something very wrong and the dead have become restless.
It's zombies on the moon! I never expected to enjoy this book so much, with it's B-movie premise and pulpy delivery. This book is straight up a scifi/horror and it gets to the main point almost immediately. When I realized I had 10 hours to go and the action was already happening, I let go of all my preconceived notions and just enjoyed the ride. As you might expect, the body count is high and the action is violent. While character development is on the lite side, Clines still gives us people to root for as they fight for their survival. There are also some neat ideas in this book which made me think about physics on the moon. I'd love to see this translated to the big screen just to see how those effects would play out.
I listened to the audio book narrated by Ray Porter. Porter gives a stellar performance as always. I'm looking forward to the next Threshold installment.
February 16, 2020
Space zombies, but not from a plague? This beats even the movie Dead Snow for horror originality.
A new twist in what has become a very tired genre was exactly what I needed. I'll admit to being wary, but it didn't take long for me to realize this fresh take was definitely going to satisfy.
Now I can finally crack open Threshold #4, Terminus. This is going to be good.
A new twist in what has become a very tired genre was exactly what I needed. I'll admit to being wary, but it didn't take long for me to realize this fresh take was definitely going to satisfy.
Now I can finally crack open Threshold #4, Terminus. This is going to be good.
October 19, 2022
This is a light-toned b-movie zombie horror set hilariously on the SF moon of the future... where there are tourists and it's a lot more economical to bury the dead on the moon than on Earth.
It's sometimes funny, of course, but its real strength is in developing the characters who will scramble to survive.
Yes, it's a gimmick but a fun one. Not high literature, but I can almost smell the silicone and spirit gum and I'm happy I read it for Spooktober.
It's sometimes funny, of course, but its real strength is in developing the characters who will scramble to survive.
Yes, it's a gimmick but a fun one. Not high literature, but I can almost smell the silicone and spirit gum and I'm happy I read it for Spooktober.
February 17, 2019
This seems more like a stand-alone-zombie work than it does as part of the Threshold series. I am a huge fan of Clines, but I find I either love his books or fall somewhere in the middle (usually due to the plot). That is how I felt about Paradox Bound, whereas I loved 14, The Fold, and Dead Men Can't Complain. Having said that, I think this story would have fared better in how it was received by reviewers/listeners had it been marketed as a stand-alone and not part of Threshold. Granted, I am over half-way through at the moment and if there are any references to any part of Threshold, they've been too vague for me to catch. Also, there is little character development in comparison to say 14 & The Fold. When the characters start getting killed off (in often pointless, why did you do that, ways), I'm not terribly upset by their passing. I'm more, "Who was that again..." When characters were killed off in 14, I was in tears. That is how invested I was. Here we don't get much in terms of background or an emotional connection to the care-takers of the moon-scape cemetery, the tourists, or the management - other than perhaps annoyed by their inaction or action that results in more deaths. It wasn’t until the last couple of hours of the book that the relationship between it and the Threshold series became more evident.
March 27, 2023
Well that was fun. What’s not to love about a book about living and working on the Moon? Or about tourism on the moon? It’s been my dream to travel in space to the moon, or to Mars, so that I can experience the effect of no or low gravity. But then... Peter Clines writes a book about Zombies... On the moon. So, ummmm, let’s rethink my dream of going to the moon.
I actually love a good zombie story and this was a good unique premise about the moon’s locals trying to fight zombies while staying alive in a hostile environment. Clines gives us a lot to think about. I especially love his scene where Cali saves Jake from that hostile environment. In fact, as usual, Clines gives us characters we can root for in Cali, Jake, and even Tessa.
I really enjoyed this book! The outstanding performance of Ray Porter as narrator gave me Porter withdrawals! I could have listened to my favorite narrator forever! In fact, nothing else is doing it for me, so I may have to go relisten to one of the first 2 Threshold books to get through this audiobook Hangover.
I actually love a good zombie story and this was a good unique premise about the moon’s locals trying to fight zombies while staying alive in a hostile environment. Clines gives us a lot to think about. I especially love his scene where Cali saves Jake from that hostile environment. In fact, as usual, Clines gives us characters we can root for in Cali, Jake, and even Tessa.
I really enjoyed this book! The outstanding performance of Ray Porter as narrator gave me Porter withdrawals! I could have listened to my favorite narrator forever! In fact, nothing else is doing it for me, so I may have to go relisten to one of the first 2 Threshold books to get through this audiobook Hangover.
February 26, 2025
Zombies on the moon! (Or, how I learned to stop worrying and sexually harass my coworkers.) It’s a testament to Clines’ ability that this inherently dumb idea is such a fast-paced thrill ride. Runs out of steam a bit and is longer than it needs to be but after an initial introduction, it’s practically all action: moon buggy chases, zombie fights, unruly crowds of moon tourists. It even ends with a bit of a change into old god territory. It’s both a dumb book and a well-crafted adventure. The characters are pretty two-dimensional and this is another one where most of the comedy seems to be telling your co-worker their ass looks great and going “oops!”. But overall I was impressed by the authors ability to give the reader exactly what they’d expect. The moon has, for some reason, become a giant cemetery with millions buried there. While, this seems unfeasible for multiple reasons, when they start going all Night Of The Living Dead, it’s a compelling image. Some of the sci-fi is interesting as well, the low gravity effects situations in interesting ways and the book depicts short space travel as a corporately commodified system. The era seems inconsistent, however, as the story takes place in the twenty-fourth century and characters are taking about being a marine in the Middle East, watching twenty-first century movies, etc. Not a lot has changed in this universe. Overall, about as good as it can be for being a cheesy space zombie adventure.
February 17, 2019
One flaw I’ve noticed in the previous two books in this series is how similar (and nearly perfect) the main dude characters are. I let it go because I still found them and the story fascinating.
Dead Moon stars Callie who has recently given up on her dream of being a ballerina. She is talented and clever, but doesn’t immediately do everything right. I loved her (and this book) from a moment early on when a dude comes on to her in an awkward and all-too-real way and I let out a loud sigh of exasperation at the same time as the character. Some male authors have a hard time writing female characters. Not Peter Clines.
Overall this book is a lot more typical horror as compared to previous books in this series. It’s not a traditional series in that all three books can standalone and could be read out of order. Recommended for fans of cosmic horror and fast-paced action.
Dead Moon stars Callie who has recently given up on her dream of being a ballerina. She is talented and clever, but doesn’t immediately do everything right. I loved her (and this book) from a moment early on when a dude comes on to her in an awkward and all-too-real way and I let out a loud sigh of exasperation at the same time as the character. Some male authors have a hard time writing female characters. Not Peter Clines.
Overall this book is a lot more typical horror as compared to previous books in this series. It’s not a traditional series in that all three books can standalone and could be read out of order. Recommended for fans of cosmic horror and fast-paced action.
March 1, 2023
Zombies on the moon. This book was written for me!
March 17, 2019
I'm going to jump straight into the selling point of Dead Moon: zombies on the moon! Well, that and the fact that it was written by Peter Clines and narrated by Ray Porter. The only other Peter Clines books I've read are 14 and Ex-Heroes, but I loved them - especially 14.
Dead Moon is part of the same series as 14, but the Threshold series is comprised of stand alone books. They can absolutely be read independent of each other. (Some day I need to go back and read book 2!)
I don't have a lot to say about Dead Moon because it was mostly just fun action. There wasn't a lot of character development or anyone to really get attached to, but I still enjoyed the ride. The moon setting and all it entailed was the heart of what made this a unique zombie story, but I was happy to see another layer to the monster madness added in as well.
Dead Moon was a fun read that didn't require much effort on my part as the reader. It was just the right book when I needed it.
Review copy provided by publisher
Dead Moon is part of the same series as 14, but the Threshold series is comprised of stand alone books. They can absolutely be read independent of each other. (Some day I need to go back and read book 2!)
I don't have a lot to say about Dead Moon because it was mostly just fun action. There wasn't a lot of character development or anyone to really get attached to, but I still enjoyed the ride. The moon setting and all it entailed was the heart of what made this a unique zombie story, but I was happy to see another layer to the monster madness added in as well.
Dead Moon was a fun read that didn't require much effort on my part as the reader. It was just the right book when I needed it.
Review copy provided by publisher
November 17, 2022
Very unique horror in space, well done, great pacing.
January 28, 2020
Mini-Review on 1/28/20:
Rating Raised from 4 to 4.5 Stars + Added to Favorites
4.5 Stars for Narration by Ray Porter
4.5 Stars for Characters
4 Stars for Plot Progression (After all the lumpy ones I've read, it's nice to read one that isn't.)
Lately, I've been thinking a lot about how authors weave details into the story and how much I appreciate & admire the ones that make relevant impact to the story in multiple points. Especially in a series. I have a lot of give in my rating when I note how well details are used to in plot, setting, characters and continue to be a part of the story vs a little backdrop.
A new book for this series is coming out soon and I started to think about how the details from the different books would connect in Threshold. It's not like other series where you follow a main cast. This is more like a main idea that is explored in different places & time.
- I liked how there is a mix of characters. You have those who are standard 2D and others with more layers. The way Clines showed that people are not just the job they do now but are a mix of all of their experiences.
- Cool descriptions of movement in space and how a dancer may perceive doing those moves.
- Varied emotions. While the majority of the setting is tense, there are moments of humor, anger, sorrow, etc.
- I appreciate the sneaky terror of unseen fingers clawing from behind. =D
04/06/2019 Notes:
This series is interesting because each book is quite different from the other. My fav is still the first one. =)
Rating Raised from 4 to 4.5 Stars + Added to Favorites
4.5 Stars for Narration by Ray Porter
4.5 Stars for Characters
4 Stars for Plot Progression (After all the lumpy ones I've read, it's nice to read one that isn't.)
Lately, I've been thinking a lot about how authors weave details into the story and how much I appreciate & admire the ones that make relevant impact to the story in multiple points. Especially in a series. I have a lot of give in my rating when I note how well details are used to in plot, setting, characters and continue to be a part of the story vs a little backdrop.
A new book for this series is coming out soon and I started to think about how the details from the different books would connect in Threshold. It's not like other series where you follow a main cast. This is more like a main idea that is explored in different places & time.
- I liked how there is a mix of characters. You have those who are standard 2D and others with more layers. The way Clines showed that people are not just the job they do now but are a mix of all of their experiences.
- Cool descriptions of movement in space and how a dancer may perceive doing those moves.
- Varied emotions. While the majority of the setting is tense, there are moments of humor, anger, sorrow, etc.
- I appreciate the sneaky terror of unseen fingers clawing from behind. =D
04/06/2019 Notes:
This series is interesting because each book is quite different from the other. My fav is still the first one. =)
April 28, 2019
Wow. Zombies on the moon? Yep, they're already dead so it essentially makes no difference! The way Clines justifies their existence is the real draw here. The characters are engaging and you're rooting for them in every situation. In one instance, I was certain a key character would die as Clines described the absolute limits of the human body in space! I was up until 3AM because I couldn't stop listening - I couldn't go to sleep because I was so caught up in the suspense.
So generally speaking, this book was amazing. What made it more amazing was the narration by Ray Porter. Seriously this guy can do no wrong! Whenever I see that he's narrating a book that I might be interested in, I grab it. He is such a talented narrator and I am never disappointed.
This is the third book in the Threshold series and I cannot wait for the fourth, which apparently is going to pull the three books together. Each one has been spectacular and Peter Clines has quickly become one of my favorite sci-fi authors.
So generally speaking, this book was amazing. What made it more amazing was the narration by Ray Porter. Seriously this guy can do no wrong! Whenever I see that he's narrating a book that I might be interested in, I grab it. He is such a talented narrator and I am never disappointed.
This is the third book in the Threshold series and I cannot wait for the fourth, which apparently is going to pull the three books together. Each one has been spectacular and Peter Clines has quickly become one of my favorite sci-fi authors.
July 1, 2022
I really enjoyed this first two books by Peter Clines (14 and The Fold), but this one steps it up a notch it terms of edge of the seat action. The other two had a very Stephen King feel in that they started off as perfectly normal, then ever increasing amounts of weirdness crept in. This one gets to the weird stuff very quickly and is faced paced until the end.
If you can imagine a mashup of Andy Weirs 'Artemis', Max Brooks 'World War Z' and a bit of Cthulhu then that's what this book is like. Very entertaining if your into that sort of thing.
If you can imagine a mashup of Andy Weirs 'Artemis', Max Brooks 'World War Z' and a bit of Cthulhu then that's what this book is like. Very entertaining if your into that sort of thing.
March 5, 2019
Peter Clines is one of my favourite authors of all time, “14” is one of my favourite books of all time so I’m sad to confirm that Dead Moon is not good. Tying it to the other 2 books in the series was not a good idea, but even as a stand-alone story, this is slow, confusing and not a lot of fun. I agree with other reviewers reasons as to why this is the case, but I have to say these really frustrated me:
*** Spoilers ***
*** Spoilers ***
April 21, 2020
Holy crap this was bad. I’ve made this complaint in several reviews of Clines books but he cannot write women. It is horribly distracting as I constantly think to myself “Literally no woman would react to this situation that way”. There are scenes that that are supposed to be tense and fraught and then a woman character’s ass is referred to as being curvy or something I don’t give a shit about. I haven’t even mentioned the well trodden zombie tropes that are used in this. It was infuriating. I usually don’t don’t get this involved in writing reviews because, if by the middle of the book, I don’t like it, I quit. Well, I absolutely love the universe. The first two books in the Threshold series horrified me in the best way. This was merely bandwagoning for a craze that is ten years out of date. It feels like he wrote a dumb zombie story and then slapped on brief eldritch references on the beginning and end. Still looking forward to future books but this hurt bad.
February 23, 2019
My review of Dead Moon can be found at High Fever Books.
Zombies on the moon!
That basic, low-level pitch either just sealed the deal for you and you’re ready to click Buy Now, or it made you groan derisively with a reflexive “Dear god, not another freaking zombie book!” Depending on if your instincts followed either the first or the second reaction, there’s probably little more I need to tell you about Dead Moon, an Audible Original written by Peter Clines exclusively for audiobook release by Audible, and narrated by Ray Porter.
While I recognize the zombie genre has been pretty well beat to death and shot in the head a few times over, I’m not personally wholly exhausted by these types of books just yet. I think that, like any other story prop that’s a bit worn and decidedly unoriginal, zombie stories can still be used successfully provided the story surrounding them is well executed and I have a reason to care about something other than gruesome deaths and violent mayhem.
Although Dead Moon is, at its very basic levels, little more than zombies on the moon for much of its runtime, Clines makes this conceit pretty damn delightful, and Porter, as usual, narrates the hell out of it. Putting a rotting horror staple in outer space is actually pretty brilliant. In real estate, the thing that makes a home the most desirable comes to three things: location, location, location. And it’s just as true here, too. The setting of Earth’s moon gives the story extra layers of tension, which is much needed given our familiarity and expectations of zombie stories and the devices such plots require to be effective. Zombie novels nowadays are a dime a dozen, so to be truly effective an author has to go the extra mile (or, in this case, about 238,900 miles) to make them worthwhile.
Dead Moon, in my opinion, is certainly worthwhile. Yes, it’s a pretty trope-ridden affair and if it were set on Earth, like virtually all other zombie books, I doubt I would have appreciated it as much. The setting completely sold Clines’s story for me. Sure, getting torn about by a zombie horde is bad, but suffocating in the cold vacuum of space or experiencing the paralyzing dread of atmospheric decompression as your space suit is assaulted is worse. Much, much worse. Staging a zombie apocalypse on the desolate, arid, airless, low-gravity surface of the moon adds a whole other level of heebie jeebies. In space, nobody can hear you scream, but there’s a hell of a lot of worse ways to die besides becoming a salty snack for the undead.
By now, you’re probably wondering how and why there are zombies on the moon. Dead Moon is set a few hundred years in the future, and although mankind has begun to colonize the solar system, religious practices still mandate the burial of corpses. Ransacked by climate change and overpopulation, Earth has run out of space for its dead. When there’s no more room in hell, the dead get sent off to the moon for burial. After a meteor crashes near one of the several lunar habitats, 16 million undead start to rise, which is terrible, no good, very bad news for the moon’s 300 fleshy inhabitants.
On the bright side, they at least have the brilliant Ray Porter narrating their gruesome deaths, which is, frankly, something the rest of us can only ever aspire to. Porter delivers his usual wide array of voices, tones, accents, and emotions that turn each character into highly distinguishable, real-life people. The hardest part about reviewing a narrator like Porter is that I ran out of superlatives for the guy a short while back. He’s one of the most engaging readers I’ve had the pleasure of listening to and I haven’t heard him make a single flub in close to a dozen of his audiobooks I’ve listened to thus far. His readings are always top-notch, and he’s a virtuoso performer. He excels at bringing an author’s characters to life, no matter how short-lived such a character may be…and let’s face it, when you’re trapped on the moon and surrounded by millions and millions of zombies, life expectancy isn’t exactly measured in anything but hours and minutes, at best.
In a lot of ways, Dead Moon feels like a George A. Romero movie the famed director didn’t live long enough to create (this could just as easily be called Colony of the Dead and if the Romero estate ever wants to adapt this book into film, I’m game to fork over the cash for a ticket.) Peter Clines has gleefully accepted the torch and created here some good, pulpy fun that’s chock full of awful deaths, a handful of characters worth rooting for (like gravediggers Callie and Jake, who are escaping sordid pasts on Earth, with the latter being a former military man), and plenty of others to dislike and root against. Dead Moon doesn’t reinvent the undead wheel, but it is a highly capable zombie story enhanced by its unique setting and some interesting cosmic horror elements that help flesh out the material in lively ways. But, again, it all just boils down to the selling point of its premise. It’s zombies on the moon! You’re either hungry for it, or you’ve already had your fill by now. You’re either going to shamble toward this one, or flee screaming in terror and begging for the madness to stop.
Note: Dead Moon is billed as the third book in Peter Clines’s Threshold series. I have not read the prior two installments, and this is, in fact, my first experience with Peter Clines at all. Looking at the synopsis for 14 and The Fold, it sounds like each of these books function well enough as stand-alone reads, and Dead Moon takes place a few hundred years after the last one. I simply don’t know enough about this series as a whole to comment on whatever it is that links them all together or how successfully it’s done, but based on how much I enjoyed Dead Moon, I’m certainly game to check out the prior two titles.
Zombies on the moon!
That basic, low-level pitch either just sealed the deal for you and you’re ready to click Buy Now, or it made you groan derisively with a reflexive “Dear god, not another freaking zombie book!” Depending on if your instincts followed either the first or the second reaction, there’s probably little more I need to tell you about Dead Moon, an Audible Original written by Peter Clines exclusively for audiobook release by Audible, and narrated by Ray Porter.
While I recognize the zombie genre has been pretty well beat to death and shot in the head a few times over, I’m not personally wholly exhausted by these types of books just yet. I think that, like any other story prop that’s a bit worn and decidedly unoriginal, zombie stories can still be used successfully provided the story surrounding them is well executed and I have a reason to care about something other than gruesome deaths and violent mayhem.
Although Dead Moon is, at its very basic levels, little more than zombies on the moon for much of its runtime, Clines makes this conceit pretty damn delightful, and Porter, as usual, narrates the hell out of it. Putting a rotting horror staple in outer space is actually pretty brilliant. In real estate, the thing that makes a home the most desirable comes to three things: location, location, location. And it’s just as true here, too. The setting of Earth’s moon gives the story extra layers of tension, which is much needed given our familiarity and expectations of zombie stories and the devices such plots require to be effective. Zombie novels nowadays are a dime a dozen, so to be truly effective an author has to go the extra mile (or, in this case, about 238,900 miles) to make them worthwhile.
Dead Moon, in my opinion, is certainly worthwhile. Yes, it’s a pretty trope-ridden affair and if it were set on Earth, like virtually all other zombie books, I doubt I would have appreciated it as much. The setting completely sold Clines’s story for me. Sure, getting torn about by a zombie horde is bad, but suffocating in the cold vacuum of space or experiencing the paralyzing dread of atmospheric decompression as your space suit is assaulted is worse. Much, much worse. Staging a zombie apocalypse on the desolate, arid, airless, low-gravity surface of the moon adds a whole other level of heebie jeebies. In space, nobody can hear you scream, but there’s a hell of a lot of worse ways to die besides becoming a salty snack for the undead.
By now, you’re probably wondering how and why there are zombies on the moon. Dead Moon is set a few hundred years in the future, and although mankind has begun to colonize the solar system, religious practices still mandate the burial of corpses. Ransacked by climate change and overpopulation, Earth has run out of space for its dead. When there’s no more room in hell, the dead get sent off to the moon for burial. After a meteor crashes near one of the several lunar habitats, 16 million undead start to rise, which is terrible, no good, very bad news for the moon’s 300 fleshy inhabitants.
On the bright side, they at least have the brilliant Ray Porter narrating their gruesome deaths, which is, frankly, something the rest of us can only ever aspire to. Porter delivers his usual wide array of voices, tones, accents, and emotions that turn each character into highly distinguishable, real-life people. The hardest part about reviewing a narrator like Porter is that I ran out of superlatives for the guy a short while back. He’s one of the most engaging readers I’ve had the pleasure of listening to and I haven’t heard him make a single flub in close to a dozen of his audiobooks I’ve listened to thus far. His readings are always top-notch, and he’s a virtuoso performer. He excels at bringing an author’s characters to life, no matter how short-lived such a character may be…and let’s face it, when you’re trapped on the moon and surrounded by millions and millions of zombies, life expectancy isn’t exactly measured in anything but hours and minutes, at best.
In a lot of ways, Dead Moon feels like a George A. Romero movie the famed director didn’t live long enough to create (this could just as easily be called Colony of the Dead and if the Romero estate ever wants to adapt this book into film, I’m game to fork over the cash for a ticket.) Peter Clines has gleefully accepted the torch and created here some good, pulpy fun that’s chock full of awful deaths, a handful of characters worth rooting for (like gravediggers Callie and Jake, who are escaping sordid pasts on Earth, with the latter being a former military man), and plenty of others to dislike and root against. Dead Moon doesn’t reinvent the undead wheel, but it is a highly capable zombie story enhanced by its unique setting and some interesting cosmic horror elements that help flesh out the material in lively ways. But, again, it all just boils down to the selling point of its premise. It’s zombies on the moon! You’re either hungry for it, or you’ve already had your fill by now. You’re either going to shamble toward this one, or flee screaming in terror and begging for the madness to stop.
Note: Dead Moon is billed as the third book in Peter Clines’s Threshold series. I have not read the prior two installments, and this is, in fact, my first experience with Peter Clines at all. Looking at the synopsis for 14 and The Fold, it sounds like each of these books function well enough as stand-alone reads, and Dead Moon takes place a few hundred years after the last one. I simply don’t know enough about this series as a whole to comment on whatever it is that links them all together or how successfully it’s done, but based on how much I enjoyed Dead Moon, I’m certainly game to check out the prior two titles.
February 26, 2019
Dead Moon is a pretty good story that takes place in Peter Clines Threshold universe, but it is not in my opinion Book three of the series that started with 14 and then The Fold. If that is what you are expecting then you will be disappointed.
What you will get with Dead Moon is an entertaining eleven and a half hour listen. I liked it, but yes, I was disappointed. It is tied in with the other two books in the way Stephen King will tie his novels to his Dark Tower, or the way Derry and Castle Rock keep popping up in his novels. He should remove the "Threshold #3" and just let the reader discover on their own the tie in. Isn't it fun to find that the novel you are reading is connected in some way to a novel that you previously read? I've always thought so.
Lastly I want to point out that Ray Porter did an amazing job with narration, he always does.
What you will get with Dead Moon is an entertaining eleven and a half hour listen. I liked it, but yes, I was disappointed. It is tied in with the other two books in the way Stephen King will tie his novels to his Dark Tower, or the way Derry and Castle Rock keep popping up in his novels. He should remove the "Threshold #3" and just let the reader discover on their own the tie in. Isn't it fun to find that the novel you are reading is connected in some way to a novel that you previously read? I've always thought so.
Lastly I want to point out that Ray Porter did an amazing job with narration, he always does.
March 25, 2025
I devoured this book and I loved it. Peter Clines has yet to write anything that I haven't enjoyed. I love seeing the main character be a strong female. Such a fantastic book.
March 27, 2019
The description should have said this was a zombie book. Had I known that, I certainly wouldn’t have bought it, and probably wouldn’t even have borrowed it from the library.
April 5, 2019
Ouch! Looks like there aren't a lot of fans of this book. It's not a bad book, but not particularly good either. And frankly I never would have read a zombie book had Peter Clines name not been on it.
My problems with the book are a little different than some of the other reviewers. Aside from reminding me of not so compelling recent space movies (that Cloverfield movie in space comes to mind), I also found several beats in the book unconvincing. Like the whole moon as a graveyard thing. Really? I could have accepted it had Clines made it a status symbol thing that people sought to have their bodies buried in space and on the moon. But this off handed environmental disaster idea struck me as needing a little more exploration. Like WAIT, what? How did that happen? Are we really that pessimistic now that we're just accepting it as inevitable? I guess I'm not that cynical.
The other major B.S. moment I called is more basic. MINOR SPOILER. The mayor of the moon station doesn't contact earth for help. At no point even after accepting zombies are real does she think this situation might be bigger than her. In fact Clines includes a scene where the mayor argues that the company that owns the colony will thank her for handling the matter (as if even a PTSD addled brain couldn't figure out such a move would only make herself and the company vulnerable to litigation).
Another step even beyond that is NONE OF THE OTHER CHARACTERS MAKE THE MAYOR CONTACT EARTH. No, they just grumble like put upon teenagers and let it go. Which is total nonsense. Why not just have them say, "Sure, you right ahead and drive us all into that big fat tree yonder at 100mph."
Either Clines felt it a calculated risk not dealing with that logic hole or he wrote this sucker so fast and blew past it without taking the time to consider what nonsense that is.
Aside from that, you've seen this before in some form. Space Zombies or not, there's really not much to get excited about here.
I'm still giving it a decent rating because if your expectations are set right, if you like zombie stories, then it's probably one you'd dig. Logic faults aside, Clines is a good writer.
My problems with the book are a little different than some of the other reviewers. Aside from reminding me of not so compelling recent space movies (that Cloverfield movie in space comes to mind), I also found several beats in the book unconvincing. Like the whole moon as a graveyard thing. Really? I could have accepted it had Clines made it a status symbol thing that people sought to have their bodies buried in space and on the moon. But this off handed environmental disaster idea struck me as needing a little more exploration. Like WAIT, what? How did that happen? Are we really that pessimistic now that we're just accepting it as inevitable? I guess I'm not that cynical.
The other major B.S. moment I called is more basic. MINOR SPOILER. The mayor of the moon station doesn't contact earth for help. At no point even after accepting zombies are real does she think this situation might be bigger than her. In fact Clines includes a scene where the mayor argues that the company that owns the colony will thank her for handling the matter (as if even a PTSD addled brain couldn't figure out such a move would only make herself and the company vulnerable to litigation).
Another step even beyond that is NONE OF THE OTHER CHARACTERS MAKE THE MAYOR CONTACT EARTH. No, they just grumble like put upon teenagers and let it go. Which is total nonsense. Why not just have them say, "Sure, you right ahead and drive us all into that big fat tree yonder at 100mph."
Either Clines felt it a calculated risk not dealing with that logic hole or he wrote this sucker so fast and blew past it without taking the time to consider what nonsense that is.
Aside from that, you've seen this before in some form. Space Zombies or not, there's really not much to get excited about here.
I'm still giving it a decent rating because if your expectations are set right, if you like zombie stories, then it's probably one you'd dig. Logic faults aside, Clines is a good writer.
February 23, 2019
When I started to write this review, I was going to score it at 2 stars. Promoted as the 3rd in a trilogy started by "14" and "The Fold" it did not feel as though it was connected at all to the previous two books. The realization that they actually were related came only after I finished the book and began reflecting on it in preparation for this review.
Just like the first two books, I really had to pay attention to recognize that the books were related. In The Fold, Pine made the link a bit more obvious and there was some excitement when I realized it was related to 14. In this third book, that realization came to me after I finished the book.
The first two books both referenced the existence of alternate dimensions that in "14" was accessible through an old building and in "The Fold" scientists experimenting with teleportation discover their existence. In both books, our characters visit these alternate worlds to discover bad stuff (leave it that). In this book, the existence of the alternate dimension is not known to the characters - ever. But actually, upon reflection, I can see the link. If you miss the link you will be inclined to think this is just another zombie book - and get upset like many of the reviewers on this forum.
Once I realized that there was still a link I am tempted now to go back and listen to it again to spot further clues. So at first, I was pissed - now I appreciate the subtlety of what Cline did. He made us work for our dinner. He did not spoon-feed us, and instead made us think - that's brilliant!
Just like the first two books, I really had to pay attention to recognize that the books were related. In The Fold, Pine made the link a bit more obvious and there was some excitement when I realized it was related to 14. In this third book, that realization came to me after I finished the book.
The first two books both referenced the existence of alternate dimensions that in "14" was accessible through an old building and in "The Fold" scientists experimenting with teleportation discover their existence. In both books, our characters visit these alternate worlds to discover bad stuff (leave it that). In this book, the existence of the alternate dimension is not known to the characters - ever. But actually, upon reflection, I can see the link. If you miss the link you will be inclined to think this is just another zombie book - and get upset like many of the reviewers on this forum.
Once I realized that there was still a link I am tempted now to go back and listen to it again to spot further clues. So at first, I was pissed - now I appreciate the subtlety of what Cline did. He made us work for our dinner. He did not spoon-feed us, and instead made us think - that's brilliant!
April 26, 2019
This is pretty much every zombie movie you've ever seen - cliche after cliche, from incompetent people standing in shock as the monsters come to get them, to the disbelieving mayor who refuses to signal for help until its too late. The only thing that separates this from a zillion other zombie stories is that it takes place on the moon, so you have to add the effects of low gravity and vacuum. Those traits are woefully inadequate to turn this into a great story, and the lackluster attempt at the end to try and tie this into the other books in the Cthulu-esque multiverse that Clines is trying to create is too little, too late.
September 23, 2019
I was really excited for this to come out, only to have my excitement crushed. It had so much potential to be amazing!
I can sum it up in one word. Disappointment.
You would think a horror sci-fi would be overflowing with entertainment...I was bored. The characters will dull and I had zero interest in them and that doesn't happen often. Ray Porter narrating was honestly the only good thing about the book.
I can sum it up in one word. Disappointment.
You would think a horror sci-fi would be overflowing with entertainment...I was bored. The characters will dull and I had zero interest in them and that doesn't happen often. Ray Porter narrating was honestly the only good thing about the book.
March 16, 2021
I jumped into this series without reading any of the other entries. I did like the story. I have no other books in the series to judge it by so I do not know if it is better or worse then the other installments. I did like the voice-work in the Audible Original very much as it did help to colour the story and add things to it. I don't know if my rating would be the same if I would just read it? Would it be better or worse? Still, a nice read that brightened up my morning commutes.
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