Operation Luna [Mass Market Paperback]

Poul Anderson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2000

Poul Anderson, recently the winner of the Nebula's Grandmaster Award for lifetime achievement, returns to the world of his acclaimed novel Operation Chaos with the tale of one family's mission to the moon. Ginny Greylock and Steven Matuchek are partners an Earth quite unlike our own. For starters, Ginny is a licensed witch and Steve is an engineer and werewolf. Steve moonlights by working on a spacecraft in the Arizona desert, a project which soon discovers that there is life on the moon. Neither Steve nor the US government has any inkling as to the nature of the moonsprites, and everyone is anxious to make contact. But when the time comes to test the spacecraft, a host of bugs, snafus, and angry spirits conspire to prevent the launch. It's a recipe for perfect lunacy as Ginny and her clan struggle to figure out who, or what, is sabotaging the greatest magical and scientific achievement of the century.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

She's a witch who runs a small but prestigious consulting agency. He's a werewolf who makes his living as an engineer. Similarities to Nick and Nora Charles are, perhaps, not entirely accidental. Anderson's humorous stories about Ginny and Steve Matuchek, set in an alternate contemporary America where most technology is based on magic, first began appearing in the 1950s and were novelized as Operation Chaos in 1971. In his latest novel (after Starfarers), Anderson continues the saga in a tale that features light-hearted cloak-and-dagger suspense, ingenious adaptations of magic to the routine of daily life, and an attempt to send magically endowed spacecraft, including a souped-up broomstick, to the moon under the auspices of NASA (the National Astral Spellcraft Administration). Anderson deals playfully with a number of different magical and religious traditions, centering on Zuni, Chinese and Norse lore. He also introduces a variety of eccentric human and supernatural charactersAincluding Bob Shining Knife, a skilled FBI agent who conducts his investigations in full Apache regalia; Fjalar, a dwarf who is supernaturally skilled at forging both iron and passports; a magical sword named Fotherwick-Botts that won't stop running off at the mouth; and Alger Sneep, an agent of the IRS (Inquisition for Revenue Securement), who attempts to derail the Matucheks' moon flight by quite literally putting them through the audit from hell. The humor can be arch at times, and Anderson's tendency toward thinly veiled libertarian political satire won't work for all readers, but in general this is an enjoyable tale by a veteran writer who knows exactly what he's doing. (Aug.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

Belated and iffy sequel novel to a collection of linked stories, Operation Chaos (1971). The previous volume was set in an alternate world where the Industrial Revolution inhibited magic, so the surviving supernatural Beings spelled themselves to sleep. Later, a method was found to release the ``goetic forces'' (strong magic) and permit a grand Awakening. Now, Project Selene is ready to send a spaceshipa giant horse boosted by four broomsticks!to the moon. But the launch proves a spectacular failure, thanks to certain inimical supernatural influences. So the National Astral Spellcraft Administration calls in consultant witch Ginny Graylock and her werewolf/engineer husband Steve Matuchek. The two diagnose interference from the Trickster, Coyote, and other powers, possibly Chinese. Despite hassles from the IRS, Ginny and Steve receive authorization to proceed with Project Luna, their own smaller, quieter method of reaching the moon, since only there can they find out who's trying to destroy the space program, and why. Ginny will be assisted by her precocious 13-year-old daughter, Valeria, her familiar, Edgar the raven, and various friendly American Indian shamans. Steve flies off to England to find a powerful antique talking swordit now calls itself Fotherwick-Bottsalong with the sword's smith, the massive, uninhibited, hammer-wielding dwarf, Fjalar. Anderson's not particularly comfortable with his material: a glum, effortful outing, too seldom vitalized by humor or imagination. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Tor Science Fiction; 1st edition (September 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812580273
• ISBN-13: 978-0812580273
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #464,892 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Lacks the sparkle of "Operation Chaos", December 10, 2000

By 

M. Broderick "mikebinok" (Oklahoma City, OK USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Operation Luna (Mass Market Paperback)

I loved Operation Chaos, and really looked forward to this book, but it didn't enthrall me the way the original book did. It just seems like things never take off, and I was never thrilled the way I was by the first book. The climactic "quest" (admittedly a poor choice of words, but I have none better) doesn't capture the imagination like the descent into Hell of the original, and climax seems short and unsatisfying. Not a bad book, and adequately readable, but it just isn't what it's predecessor was!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant sequel, August 10, 1999

By 

Frederick D. Schulkind (Gaithersburg, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Operation Luna (Hardcover)

This book is a sequel to Operation Chaos, which was written 30, and some parts over 40, years ago! It is set in a contemporary universe where magic (or goetics as they call it) works. It is a scientific culture, and the laws of physics apply. Familiar and strange principles combine to create some hilarious sections. One does tend to question the presence of streets in a world where everyone flies around on brooms and carpets. The main characters are Steve Matuchek and his wife Virginia. Steve, an engineer and werewolf, gives a first-person account. Virginia, a beautiful and powerful witch who is the real brain of the pair, has no qualms about using her looks and sex appeal as well as her skills. She even travels to another universe to find a tax attorney. She and Steve must deal with good, evil and mischievous spirits, rival practitioners, NASA, the FBI and the IRS. Also in the mix is their daughter, Valeria, who was 3 years old when she was taken to hell (alive!) She is now 15, gorgeous, nubile, a budding witch and ready to play an active role. There is an overly talkative sword, an ancient dwarf and other interesting characters and scenes in a humorous treatment of the serious subject of space travel development and the evil attempts to stop it; brilliant!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars neat ideas hindered by an unsuspenseful narration, November 12, 2000

By 

Yoon Ha Lee - See all my reviews

This review is from: Operation Luna (Hardcover)

I was delighted when I heard that a sequel to _Operation Chaos_, a collection of loosely-related stories set in a techno-magical alternate Earth, had come out. Unfortunately, I can't recommend _Operation Luna_ as I would its prequel.

A lot of great elements are there: mankind's effort to reach the moon, our familiar protagonists from _Operation Chaos_ (Steve Matuchek, werewolf engineer, and Virginia Graylock, witch extraordinaire), a garrulous enchanted sword (named Fotherwick-Botts) from the Norse era and his forger, a dwarven smith who adjusts poorly to modern life, Coyote's schemes and uneasy dreams....

Alas, despite the attempts at levity, the story never really comes together. Steve Matuchek wasn't the best choice of a narrator. While he's definitely involved in the action in _Operation Chaos_, here he's relegated to reporting on everyone else's actions since, due to his lack of magical expertise, he can't actually get involved. As a result, a lot of potential suspense (will Virginia succeed in her quest for Mimir's knowledge? will their daughter Valeria survive her desperate attempt to foil the IRS?) trickles away. Another problem is that the evils and dangers confronted are rarely convincingly dangerous. Occasionally Anderson throws in social criticism of our world as it is (in contrast to this magical alter-Earth), but there isn't enough of it to fully convince, and it sits uneasily with the lighter tone of most of the story.

All in all, while it's a light and often entertaining tale, _Operation Luna_ fails to live up to the wit, fine worldbuilding and daredevil adventures of its prequel.