by Elisabeth (link)
Genre drama, angst, mystery
Pairings Isaac/OFC, Taylor/OFC, Zac/OFC
Length 15 chapters
Status Completed
From the very beginning, A Man On The Moon is a mystery. The author refuses, on this site, to even give a pseudonym, for example. When you don’t even know the author’s name (without doing a little digging), you know you’re in for something pretty mysterious.
It’s a story of secrets. There’s even a restrained, almost simplistic quality to the writing itself that underscores just how much is being hidden and how much lurks below the surface. Almost every sentence seems to hold a clue about things that have happened and things that are happening.
I had read another review of this story that mentioned all the mysteries in it and how there were clues planted throughout. I didn’t expect to find them all, but it didn’t stop me from looking. I thought I was beginning to figure things out, but around the halfway point, one of the interludes from Taylor’s journals — a break from Zac’s POV and the handful of Isaac’s poems — began to change my perception of the entire story.
If there’s one thing I can never get enough of, it’s an unreliable narrator. Through Zac’s first person narration, Taylor’s journaling and Isaac’s poetry, tiny pieces of the whole picture are revealed, but never enough at once to totally make sense of — not until the end. Mostly, the secrets took me totally by surprise. I saw the pieces, but I didn’t fit them all together correctly. That’s what makes a good mystery, though, isn’t it?
It’s clear that Elisabeth had a very specific vision for this story. I like it when I can tell an author built their puzzle purposely, and didn’t just throw random pieces in for the hell of it. I also like how the title, taken from a Hanson song, actually truly fits, rather than feeling cheesy. Tying the title, mentioned in the first chapter, into the end is the perfect way to end what’s a short, but very emotional story.
Review by Bethany (website)