Denver Moon: The Minds of Mars is the first installment in the universe of science fiction noir, cyberpunk series Denver Moon, the brainchild of Josh Viola and Warren Hammond and published by Hex Publishers. If Viola’s name sounds familiar, it may be because we did a review of his short story anthology Cyber World last year. Denver Moon has been compared to Total Recall, and it is an easy comparison to make as both stories are firmly rooted in the cyberpunk tradition and include Mars as an important setting. Personally, I’d like to draw on another cyberpunk story that is set on Mars to draw a comparison: Armitage III. Armitage is a noir-style mystery story that quickly unravels to expose a deep-seated conspiracy, with heavy philosophical ideas at its core, that are rooted in a strong familial relationship, and that is more akin to Denver Moon’s story than that of Total Recall.
Denver Moon is the name of our protagonist, a traditionally styled private detective that could have been ripped out of a hard-boiled detective novel, but of the female persuasion. This is much rarer than it should be, so that in and of itself was a treat. The story follows Denver as she investigates murders linked to Red Fever, a disease that cause psychosis in the populace of Mars and one that seems to be linked to seeing Mars ever present red, which literally sticks to everything in the form of red dust. Denver, herself, is immune to Red Fever due to only being able to see in monochrome, throwing a little dash of that noir color scheme in there. As she digs deeper into the mystery, she discovers a message from her grandfather, Tatsuo Moon, one of the founders of Mars City. This message draws her into a conspiracy that spans to the highest echelons of Mars City and the Church of Mars. Along for the ride, is Denver’s trusty partner, Smith, as in Smith and Wesson. Smith is an AI built into an antique Smith and Wesson revolver which has had a number of other upgrades making it formidable in this futuristic landscape.
The overall plot is a compelling one that has strong characters, a mystery that will keep you guessing, and enough cyberpunk to keep the Neon Dystopia reader quite happy. When the book gets philosophical, it does so in a way that isn’t ham-fisted and feels a lot like how Blade Runner approached philosophy. There is a lot of showing in these pages rather than telling (I’m looking at you Ready Player One), which allows the world to feel more authentic. The art that is tucked into the cover and pages of Denver Moon establishes a modern tone and feel to the story, which might otherwise feel rooted in the past that has so clearly influenced this series. In fact, there is a short run of comics that was released as a promotional lead up to the release of the novella itself. You’re in for a visual treat in those pages as you follow Denver on an adventure set prior to the events of The Minds of Mars.
Metamorphosis, the title of the comics (which comes out in a collected edition this December) and of a short story that details the same events, introduces us to a character we’ll meet later in The Minds of Mars. The thing that really stuck with me in the wake of the comics/story though, was on the philosophical side of transhumanism and LGBT themes. And if the compelling writing and art aren’t enough for you, the FiXT label did a soundtrack for the story as well including Scandroid, Celldweller, Blue Stahli, FreqGen, and Voicians. The most notable song on the soundtrack is Red Planet by Scandroid, which just fits thematically.
The book isn’t perfect though, but I find most of my qualms are small ones. I really liked the idea of Smith as a character conceptually, but when the gun starts shifting into other forms that defy the limitations of mass and filled with the perfect solution to most of the problems that Denver faces, he really starts to feel like The Doctor’s sonic screwdriver, a MacGuffin without bounds. Another element of this is that we don’t see this technology being used anywhere else in Mars City which also harmed my ability to suspend my disbelief.
In a very different fashion, I really liked Denver’s monochromatic vision. I would have liked to have seen it used to greater effect. Besides it making her more sensitive to seeing details others might miss and an immunity to Red Fever, it doesn’t really come up often and by the end of the story, it seems to have fallen off a bit. J.W. Jeter’s Noir used this same idea to magnificent effect, although it was a bit more extreme, completely changing the protagonist’s perception.
The final note I have is the ending. You reach the final page and there isn’t much for closure. I totally get this, as this is the first installment in a series to come, and it does act as a great setup. Nonetheless, it felt unsatisfying as I closed the book. That being said, I’ll definitely be reading the next one.
Denver Moon: The Minds of Mars is the beginning of a franchise that has tremendous potential, as evidenced by Metamorphosis already. It is a multi-media project from a passionate writer and creative, who excels at bringing people together to create something amazing. In addition to things I’ve already mentioned, you’ll soon be able to get some of the book’s art as backgrounds for your PS4, and there is a beer called Red Fever Beer, a Hazy IPA brewed with Blood Oranges, from Black Shirt Brewing Company. This is a franchise that you can see, hear, and taste – not something I can say for most small franchises. If you love noir, cyberpunk, and a touch of the philosophical, then you’ll enjoy Denver Moon and if you’re like me, you’ll be looking forward to what comes next.
You can find everything that is Denver Moon on their official website here.