An absorbing, rousing space thriller…
A group of five interstellar travelers find themselves trapped on a mysterious planet in Moore’s latest SF tale. While on a mission that involves the reconnaissance and settlement of a distant planet, Proxima B, in the Alpha Centauri system, Ben Garcia Lopez and his crew of four people end up on a strange alien planet. Slowly the survivors realize the planet is incapable of change. But there is something more sinister going on there. The novel’s voice is a curious but compelling mix of third-person omniscient narration and the first-person perspectives of Ben, the deceased commander of the mission, and the new planet that uses its relative omniscience to narrate, explain, and direct action toward the crew, who are obviously unaware of the planet’s conscious presence. After the group’s ship crash lands, readers might have expected the story to have a broader, more action-focused sweep. However, Moore is not concerned with action—what he wants to create is something deeper: an exploration into each individual’s search for purpose. Through the characters’ experiences, he examines the questions of what gives life meaning and how it can be achieved. He tackles this intricate equation masterfully, layering detail upon detail as the story progresses forward. As the group gradually discovers how the strange planet works (it’s actually a character!), they learn to be comfortable in their solitary existence. It may sound complicated—and it does—but it’s also entertaining and absorbing as a space opera that ultimately dives deep into the implications of life and death and humanity’s will to continue existing. Philosophical, layered, and intelligent.
Terra Utopia: A Novel
Phil Moore
Virtual Worlds
Pub date September 18, 2023
ISBN 979-8223433149
Price $16.99 Paperback, $3.99 Kindle edition
