Moonseed by Stephen Baxter

Just over twenty years ago, Stephen published a trilogy of books (The NASA Trilogy) set in an alternate near-future where human space exploration had not stalled in the 1970’s but continued. In Voyage (1996), he imagined that we managed to travel to Mars in the 1980’s. In Titan (1997) he extended Man’s travels to Saturn. And in the last, Moonseed, in 1998, he wrote a disaster novel.

When these books came out, I really liked them. They encapsulated the energy and enthusiasm of an adventure story but gave them a viewpoint that was somewhat different from the rally-rousing propaganda it could have been – a British view of the American space race, somewhat similar to my hero Arthur C Clarke.

So, I thought I’d give this one a reread, reminded by my recent stream of consciousness about the Moon. After all, it involves The Moon (duh!), disaster and even the destruction of Edinburgh – as I type this the traditional Edinburgh Festival has started, and so it seems somewhat appropriate.

OK: to the details.

As is traditional on the disaster novel, we begin from a number of viewpoints and in a number of places. Most importantly are Henry Meacher, a NASA geologist and his ex-wife Geena, a Space Shuttle pilot, going through that difficult time post-divorce whilst having to tolerate each other.

The story also begins with a bang as, without warning, the planet Venus explodes and becomes visible in Earth’s daytime sky. The cause is initially unknown yet over the course of the book we discover that the key seems to be linked to a moon rock with unusual properties brought back on Apollo 18 (never really happened, of course!) Kept sealed away by NASA since its return, Henry is involved in the transport of the sample to the Geological Centre at Edinburgh Scotland for study. His assistant Mike Dundas gives his sister some of the rock dust, who spills it on Ard Tor, the remains of an extinct volcano in the centre of Edinburgh.

The problem is that the rock is a planet killer. Once exposed to the Earth, the dust eats the volcanic rock below the ground, which leads to catastrophic results for Edinburgh. Things escalate when the ‘Moonseed’ spreads to the Earth’s mantle. The rest of the book deals with the consequences of this and the solution.

So, this is a holiday blockbuster, one of those that puts the world in peril whilst you’re safe on the beach. There’s destruction, heroism and catastrophe from the start. If you like the traditional disaster novel, you’ll like the beginning.

But the author then takes a left-turn. This is not that type of story where Bruce Willis comes and saves the world. What Stephen does is put forward the idea that technology and science will save the human race – though not all of it.

The impending disaster leads to an escalation in space technology, with scientists working together to create solutions. These are mainly between the Russians and the Americans – the Indians and the Chinese are briefly mentioned – which leads to Henry, Geena and her boyfriend Arkady going to the Moon to work out what the Moonseed is and how it operates.

Reading this twenty years on from when I first read it, it made me realise how much things have changed. To put this into context, SFFWorld had only just started (and I wasn’t a member then, never mind a staff member.) I hadn’t at that stage got home internet – most people didn’t – and mobile phones were still more of a novelty than a necessity. I couldn’t help thinking how this story would be different today, with quantum computers to help and social media spreading global events within seconds.

But it is undoubtedly entertaining. Whilst the characters themselves are fairly nondescript, the breadth of the narrative is interesting. Baxter takes the unusual step at the end of the book to go beyond the ‘end of the world’ scenario and extrapolate events into the future. Despite everything, Mankind survives and ultimately flourishes, though not in a way we would predict at the beginning of the novel. Perhaps the biggest point at the end is to show how the human race, facing extreme challenges, will adapt, collaborate and survive. From the viewpoint of 2019, it’s a very positive and comforting thought to end on (although how true – who can say?)

Twenty years after it was first published, Moonseed is an enjoyable read for those who like their adventure stories of space technology combined with global peril. If considered as an alternative future (which this is – it imagines Michael Portillo as Prime Minister at one point) and allowance is given it’s a good way to while away an entertaining day or so.

Moonseed by Stephen Baxter

First published by Gollancz, 1998

ISBN: 978-0061050442

534 pages

Review by Mark Yon