Sunday, November 4, 2012

Apollo’s Outcast-Allen Steele

Apollo’s Outcast


Allen Steele

PYR, Nov 6 2012, $16.95

ISBN: 9781616146863



In Burtonsville, Maryland, because of relative gravity, born on the moon Jamey Barlowe is wheelchair bound. In 2097 an assassination of President Wilford as part of a coup in the United States led by Vice President Shapar leaves his widower father concerned for the safety of his three children as the VEEP named him an enemy of the state. As such he sends his teenage son Jamey, his two older daughters and other youngsters to live at the Apollo mining town on the moon.



Jamey begins to learn to walk to achieve his objective to become a Lunar Search and Rescue Ranger. As Jamey achieves his goal, the new American leader plans to invade the moon when Apollo stops sending shipments of valuable Helium-3. Jamey and Rangers prepare for a Luna landing assault.



Apollo’s Outcast is an engaging political science fiction thriller in which the coup and the moon colony seem plausible. Ironically the big picture political-military machinations come across less fascinating than Jamey’s coming of age subplot. Not an easy read, as the geo-political military industrial complex is extremely complex, fans will enjoy Jamey Barlowe’s life on the moon.



Harriet Klausner

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