Luna: New Moon

Ian McDonald's diptych, Luna: New Moon and its forthcoming sequel, Luna: Wolf Moon, is the first full-blooded description of a lunar colony that science fiction has seen for decades. It's a vivid, dramatic story that is breathing new life into the Moon as a setting for science fiction.Here the lunar colony is a brutal world where resources are so scarce that every breath of air, every sip of water, has to be paid for. Inevitably, in such an unforgiving setting, the tough rise to the top, and the Moon is divided between a handful of ruthless family-controlled corporations. In a story that is a cross between Dallas and The Godfather, McDonald describes the outbreak of a war between these families, a war in which megadeath is all too easy to arrange.Why it's on the list:In novels like River of Gods and The Dervish House, McDonald has brilliantly evoked the details of everyday life in a near-future India or Turkey. Now he turns that talent to the Moon, and the usually rather sterile image of the lunar colony becomes a place of colour and fashion, and bloodshed. This is likely to be the most influential Moon novel of the 21st century.