I really love this series. I hadn’t realized Elma York wouldn’t be the main character in this book but switching to Nicole Wargjn and the story back on Earth/the Moon sitting the First Mars Expedition worked out very well. A little slower than I expected in the first half, but then floored it for the remainder. Love these characters, love the stories, love the writing. This book is about as good as it gets.

(I am grateful to NetGalley and Tor for the advanced copy for review!)

The Relentless Moon, by Mary Robinette Kowal, is the third book of the Lady Astronaut series, describing an alternate reality in which a meteor struck the Earth in the early 1950s, accelerating and changing the constraints of the space race. While the first two books focused on the story of Elma York, The Relentless Moon follows Nicole Wargin, also an astronaut, and wife of the governor of Kansas. Nicole gets sent to the Moon base, but things do not go as expected: there’s multiple suspicions of sabotage, and a lot of ways thing can go awry in a small base in a very dangerous external environment.

I was very happy to be selected for the NetGalley of this book, because I had loved the previous ones, and I was absolutely looking forward to the third installment. I really like the setting and how the alternate history is fleshed out, and I love how believable is the whole space program.

I was a bit disappointed to not get the story from the point of view of Elma (the main character of the first two books), but the social group is still very similar, and I came to love Nicole as well. Nicole, like Elma, has her own set of personal struggles, and she’s very likable, competent and has a unique set of skills that is delightful to read about.

The plot felt maybe too eventful (are these people, that I start liking, going to catch a break at any point, PRETTY PLEASE?), but my perception of this may have more to do with my own state of mind than with the plot itself.

All in all, this was a thrilling and engrossing read – and Lady Astronaut #4 is currently planned for 2022, it’s going to be a long wait!

I have been looking forward to the latest of Mary Robinette Kowal’s Lady Astronaut series, and now #3 is here. Several short stories, and the first two books follow the path of Elma York, the first woman astronaut of the International Aerospace Coalition (IAC), in an alternative historical setting. Those earlier books were The Calculating Stars and The Fated Skies, both released in 2018 – and yes, you should read those first.

As you can see from my earlier reviews of those two, I did not care much for the overly idealized character of Elma York, but was pulled along by the alternate history and plot. However, I found the perspective character of The Relentless Moon, Nicole Wargin, to be more believable and interesting. Wargin is a fellow astronaut of York’s, who appeared as a social outsider in the earlier books. While she was one of many who were eligible for the women’s astronaut program, she was only accepted because she was married to an influential politician. She is also older than the others, and an extremely astute observer of people due to her life in the public eye (and some earlier life experience that I will not reveal). This allows Kowal’s commenting on sexism and racism to be less overt than in the earlier books. The characters also give a lot of attention to female perspectives in long-term cis-married relationships. Because the writing uses Wargin’s first-person voice, and she narrates her story conversationally, it is not necessary for readers to identify directly as her. At least that worked for me.

The plot is driven by the imperilment of the lunar colony Artemis to which Wargin has been assigned, beginning immediately on the trip out, and tension continues to the final resolution. It was gripping, if occasionally contrived. The story is set in the year 1963, about 15 years after the election of Thomas Dewey as president and his start of a US manned space program, 11 years after the climate-changing meteor strike of 1952, and simultaneously with York’s journey to Mars as told in The Fated Sky. The historical development of the alternate timeline progresses further in this story, especially with the 1965 epilogue.

While the emphasis here is characters and relationships, I tend to read for concepts. Unfortunately for me, there is a section of my Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) labeled “About the History” which was left completely empty. Perhaps it will deal with my concerns, but here are a couple:

After a period of cooling and acid rain, the Earth is now facing a run-away greenhouse effect as a result of the meteor. Scientists are predicting a boil-the-oceans-into-water-vapor climate change. But the last time this sort of thing happened – the meteorite strike in the Yucatan Peninsula that caused the K-T extinction of 66 million years ago – the consequences are thought to have been an immediate intense pulse of heat, followed by a decade-long global winter and acid rain. But afterward, the planet was still inhabitable.

There is a dependence on human computers even in this advanced space program. In the real world, the space program was a principal driver behind the development of electronic computing. In this alternative world, electronic computers should have been developed a decade earlier. But the IAC is launching ranks of human beings to the Moon, whose primary job is just to perform manual calculations.

I received this ARC from Tor Books through netgalley, for purposes of reading and publishing a review on my blog and other social media. There were a few grammatical errors, which I assume have been corrected for the final release. It is due to be published July 14, 2020.

Like the first two books in this series, Relentless Moon is a terrific science fiction novel. Its a pleasure to read a book featuring strong women without a romance subplot. The emphasis is on espionage, politics mystery and friendship.

When I saw this show up on Netgalley, I thought the author look familiar and I realized its the same author as The Calculating Stars! I got so excited to receive this ARC. I knew it would be good since I enjoyed the first one and it didn’t disappoint!

In this excellent new book in her Lady Astronaut series, Mary Robinette Kowal gives readers a new perspective: the voice of Nicole Wargin. Wargin, a familiar character from previous books in the series, gets her full due as a fully-developed character with a fascinating backstory. Kowal weaves a tight and intricate story around Wargin her many talents, sending the character to the moon to suss out saboteurs to the space program. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know all of the characters better and the clever plot.

The Relentless Moon is the third in the Lady Astronaut series, a series set after a meteoric event that sets mankind on the quest to reach the moon when the Earth is deemed inhospitable. The Relentless Moon is the first book to be set primarily on the moon, rather than the Earth and the efforts to reach space. Colonies are starting to be established, and we get to follow Elma’s friend Nicole as one of the pioneers for making the moon habitable.

The first two books in the series killed me - they’re just such impactful, beautiful books, breaking boundaries, addressing anxiety and mental health, racism, sexism, and just being beyond amazing as the Lady Astronauts navigate their way into space. The Relentless Moon is no different, even though we’re now focusing on Nicole as the main character instead of Elma. With this, we also get some new problems. Elma dealt with anxiety, and for me, made the first two book incredibly relatable. With Nicole, she has problems of her own, being married a politician and being in the public, she doesn’t deal with anxiety, but the stress of of being a politicians wife. She also deals with her own health problems around her weight, and eating disorders. While less relatable for myself, Kowal still handles mental health and disorders in a caring, meaningful way that would make it easy for any reader to either relate to or be able to understand and empathize with. This is what makes these books for me, and I’ll scream if from the rooftops how much I want everyone to read the series.

Another thing I really enjoyed about The Relentless Moon is the difference in the plot. While the first two books deal more with climate change, and the realities of an inhospitable world, The Relentless Moon deals more with politics behind leaving Earth. This shows in the ways that different groups feel about establishing colonies on the moon, and how they either support it or attempt to sabotage it. The primary story is Nicole dealing with the potential for sabotage, and uncovering who the culprits could be. Which basically means we have espionage in space in this book, and I am here for it. I didn’t know I needed espionage and spy tactics in space, but I did, and everyone else does too.

The Lady Astronaut series has been one of the best series I’ve read in recent years, and The Relentless Moon continues that trend. If you have any interest in Science Fiction, alternate history, spies, or just women kicking ass, you need these books. If you can relate to anxiety, eating disorders, or mental health issues of any kind, these books will hit you right in the heart and make you feel recognized. Read this. Read it as soon as possible, and fall in love with Elma and Nicole as I have.

Thanks, NetGalley and Tor, for this advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
OK. I have read all of the Lady Astronaut books and short stories so far. I have loved them all. And I LOVED this one. At first I wasn't sure what I thought of an entire novel from Nicole's POV, but this book just might be my favorite. I could NOT put it down. The character development here of Nicole, Eugene and Myrtle is just phenomenal. Plus I was so involved with all the continual action that I KNOW my blood pressure was up as I waited for the next disaster to happen. Even if you are not normally a science fiction person, I recommend these novels with all my heart. Please do start with the first in the series though; you seriously need to know Nicole as we knew her before and then come to KNOW her in this book.

The Lady Astronauts series is one of my all time favorite series and it means so much to me. The Calculating Stars is probably my most recommended book on my blog and in real life. It was a little weird to read at first because we are getting a new perspective. The Relentless Moon follows Nicole Wargin, one of the original female astronauts chose for the space program who is married to Kansas Senator Kenneth Wargin. Nicole's voice is extremely different from Elma's so it took me a while to get into it because I'm very attached to Elma's character. About a third of the way in I became completely immersed in the story and found myself rooting for her throughout the book. There were some intense parts of this book due to Nicole's history so it's not necessarily an easy read but it was neat to see how Nicole, Eugene, and Myrtle flourished in a situation that no one saw coming. I also want to mention that there are many discussions and disordered thoughts relating to eating disorders so if that is a massive trigger for you I don't recommend picking this up. It's extremely present and apparent throughout the novel so be aware of that going in, it handles things positively but there are some thoughts that could be triggering. I absolutely loved it and I can't believe that I got an ARC of it! (Now I have to wait even longer for the next book though!)

"Mary Robinette Kowal continues her Hugo and Nebula award-winning Lady Astronaut series, following The Calculating Stars and The Fated Sky, with The Relentless Moon.

The Earth is coming to the boiling point as the climate disaster of the Meteor strike becomes more and more clear, but the political situation is already overheated. Riots and sabotage plague the space program. The IAC’s goal of getting as many people as possible off Earth before it becomes uninhabitable is being threatened.

Elma York is on her way to Mars, but the Moon colony is still being established. Her friend and fellow Lady Astronaut Nicole Wargin is thrilled to be one of those pioneer settlers, using her considerable flight and political skills to keep the program on track. But she is less happy that her husband, the Governor of Kansas, is considering a run for President."

I guess winning the Hugo and Nebula means she's back to hardcover!

I wasn't sure what to expect with this book. I loved The Calculating Stars and enjoyed The Fated Sky.

At first, I was a bit taken aback by the change of narrator. I'd come to love Elma. It did take me some time to get into the story, but as soon as Nicole landed on the moon I was hooked. It was the space story that I was drawn to in the first two books. This is a good finale for the series, and I liked having another POV within the space program that Kowal has created.

This book was riveting. Kowal has written such a rich world full of nuanced characters, exciting plot twists, and growth. I have loved reading this series.

The Relentless Moon by Mary Robinette Kowal, the third book in an alternate history sci-fi series that began with The Calculating Stars and The Fated Sky, continues the story of humanity’s race to develop sustainable habitats off Earth following a meteor strike in 1953 that drastically altered Earth’s climate and will eventually render it uninhabitable. Where The Fated Sky followed the members of the first expedition to Mars, The Relentless Moon covers the events on Earth and the moon during that period. Nicole Wargin, astronaut, pilot, socialite, and former spy, continues the work of expanding the lunar colony, but a series of unexplained accidents and mishaps at the IAC and on the moon point towards infiltration by agents of Earth First, who feel that the money dedicated to space expansion should more properly be spent on improving conditions on Earth. As a polio outbreak quarantines Artemis Base and terrestrial politics turn deadly, Nicole must identify and stop the saboteurs before they can destroy the lunar colony and end the IAC’s hopes of saving anyone from the impending climate disaster.

The shorter version of that summary is “espionage in space” and it is GREAT. It had been long enough since I read the first two books in the series that the beginning of the book felt slow because I needed to reconnect with the characters, but by halfway through I was tearing up over events and by the time I was 2/3 done I only just prevented myself from finishing it instead of sleeping and being alert for work. Nicole is amazing. She is brilliant, ambitious, stubborn, flawed, manipulative, and absolutely the person I would put in charge of anything I needed to get done. Like previous books in this series, Kowal does an amazing job of balancing the alternate history she has constructed against the social realities of the time period in ways that prompt examination of continuing racial and gender inequalities, xenophobia, and more. I was invested enough in the characters to be anxious over peril and gut-punched by tragedies. While I would not suggest reading this book without having read the previous two books in the series because you will miss a lot of context, it is an excellent reason to read those books if you haven’t already. I will at least try almost anything Kowal puts out, but The Relentless Moon wildly exceeded my expectations and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

As all of the others in the books in Mary Robinette Kowal’s Lady Astronaut series, this latest installment doesn’t disappoint. Part espionage mystery, part political thriller, there’s a bit more action then the other books but the attention to scientific detail and the honesty of the characters remains true to form. I couldn’t put this one down and I know you won’t be able to, either.

Shortly after I hit the 30% mark, this became un-put-downable. I just wanted to read and read and read and find out what was going on. So I did, last night.

All in all, a SUPER enjoyable read. The slow start, for me, was because of the shift in viewpoint, from Elma York, to Nicole Wargin. It wasn't bad! Just very jarring. For the Yorks to completely disappear from the series (for a good reason! Elma's on her way to Mars) was very...weird. Never mind though, because the book turned out to be awesome.

Also, just a mention that Kowal is doing some very good work on writing mental health issues into these books, and I appreciate it greatly.

Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for the ARC.

I love Kowal's work, especially the Lady Astronaut series. This third episode did not disappoint and I cannot wait for more. If, like me, you spent your childhood looking for stories where women were the heroes, then this is for you. Intelligent, exciting and completely absorbing.

SO jazzed about this. I adore this series and can’t wait to keep reading more from this author. A great addition to the series

I did not realise this was a sequel when I requested the title. I have not read the previous books in the series so will not be able to review this book. Sorry for the inconvenience.

Thanks @netgalley & @torbooks & @forgereads for the ARC of this brilliant book.

A few years back a film about man heading for the stars to save us all came out, and I was so, so, so excited... then it was not at all for me and I was very disappointed. Since them I’ve been waiting for something to knock me off my feet with a story of bravery, heroism, human relationships & space. THIS IS THAT SOMETHING! I laughed, I cried, I was on the edge of my seat waiting at points. I loved that this altered history spoke to the brilliance the world missed out on during the early days of the space program- via creating a world in which a diverse international effort got us to the moon, mars & beyond. The science is beautifully written in an accessible manner. How could I not give such a star bound book
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ /5?

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

Look, I'm one of those people who doesn't bother reading the premise of a book if it's a new release from a favorite author. I just trust that the author will deliver -- especially when it's the next installment of a favorite series, like Lady Astronaut.

Often, that works out in my favor, since I like knowing as little as possible going into a story. In this case, though, it worked very slightly against me, because I had no idea that this book wasn't from Elma's POV!

So, admittedly, it took me a while to accept that I wasn't getting a new installment in my beloved Elma York's story. But once I got over that, I found myself loving the story and getting more and more invested in Nicole (whom I remember liking from the first two books, but not having particularly strong feelings about). As a note, this story is parallel to book two -- it gives the reader insight into what was happening on Earth & the Moon during The Fated Sky. And it was fascinating!

I loved learning more about Nicole's background. I loved her and her husband -- both their marriage and their issues. And I loved loved LOVED that the story turned very space thriller-y. (Hi, thrillers + adult SFF are two of my favesssssssssssss so of course I ate this UP.)

Andddddd without saying too much more about it, once again, Mary Robinette Kowal SLAYS US with hard-hitting emotional stuffs. Prepare yourselves.

So, if you're reading this review, you know more than I did going in (LOL) and you've prepared yourself for a different POV + parallel novel. Trust me -- Nicole's POV is just as interesting and complex as Elma's and there's a whole heck of a lot of fascinating things that happened on Earth/the Moon while Elma was off in space! Or, don't take my word for it and read it for yourself!

Thank you Tor Books via Netgalley for providing a free e-galley in exchange for an honest review. (And for approving my request the same day. Did I mention I love you, Tor Books?)