SPACED OUT

Another mystery presents itself on Moon Base Alpha.

Twelve-year-old Dashiell Gibson has already solved one mystery on Moon Base Alpha, the colony on the moon he and his family call home (Space Case, 2014). Following the resolution of Dr. Holtz's murder, life has gone back to normal, with one exception: Zan Perfonic, a mysterious nonhuman life form that can project her consciousness into Dash's mind, is hanging out and trying her best to learn about humanity with Dash as her guide. The tutoring is put on hold when the base's commander, Nina Stack, goes missing without a trace. And of course, Dash was the last person to see Nina alive….Despite some solid humor and a functional mystery, there are two large problems with this sequel, and both stem from its position as a bridge from an opening volume to the series as a whole. The first is simple: this mystery is structured very similarly to its predecessor but isn't nearly as exciting. The first book had a dead body, where this one just has an absent one. The second issue is Zan’s cliffhanging hint of a large catastrophe heading Earth's way. Since that concludes the narrative, the novel feels more like a place holder than a satisfying adventure in itself.

Fans of the first book will find this a decent mystery but also a bit of a letdown; here’s hoping things pick up again in the next volume.