This is, by far, the cheesiest cheese-fest of a sci-fi novel you'll ever read. Scalzi has outdone himself and should wear the heavy but much-coveted crown of cheese with pride!

However, having said all that, this is a novel that goes beyond surface whimsy. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll swear and try to shake sense into the book, and you'll hug the book close like a re-found best friend.

This novel is a supposition of what would happen if the Moon suddenly turned to cheese.

Told from multiple points of view and revealing how this strange news unravels and changes life on Earth as we know it, each chapter represents a day in the lunar month.

From the U.S. President, NASA, astronauts, worldwide scientists, not-so-regular people in cafés, and the everyday variety of people... each voice shares a glimpse into the impact that such cheese-wielding news brings.

This is a wonderful read, and I can't recommend it enough to any sci-fi lover with feelings or a sense of humour.


*I received an advance reader copy for free, and I'm voluntarily leaving a review*

3.5 Starter Villain was one of my top reads of 2023 so I was super excited to dive into this. While I think the storytelling mechanics got in the way of the overall enjoyment, particularly in the first half, I enjoyed the second half of this a lot.

What worked for me:
👍 Some of the vignettes really stood out: writer who is an overnight expert, former sex worker, procurement specialist, slack channel, ‘gifted’ writer, washed up rock star, three old friends
👍 The premise was so unique and I particularly liked how plausible the various reactions to the event were (looking at you, bank section); even if some of it hit a bit close to the bone off the back of pandemic
👍 I enjoyed the second half hugely enjoyable; I liked that we spent more time with every day people than politicians, celebrities, and billionaires
👍 As the book progressed, I deeply enjoyed how interwoven the stories became: I liked character crossover, previous characters making cameos in other features, and returning to early characters later on
👍 Overall, the writing was solid!

What I wasn’t so keen on:
👎 I didn’t think the structure worked with Scalzi’s characterization and voice: we had a lot of feature characters, many of which sounded exactly the same. Apart from a few notable exceptions, many of the vignettes blended together for me. The snark was a bit OTT at times too.
👎 The first half of this book was rocky: it took a while for the format to find its rhythm and I just didn’t care about the billionaire thread at all
👎 YMMV but I found the ending disappointing
👎 Yes, I read the Author’s Note. Handwavian science fiction is fine but, even with a silly premise, I still find sloppy science distracting

Overall, this is a fun story with a lot of heart (and commentary on the direction we’re heading). Even accounting for the elements that dampened my personal enjoyment, I’d still recommend it!

When The Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi:

Overnight, The Moon turns into cheese. NASA declares it to be an ‘organic compound’, the Chinese government says it’s actually bean curd. The Vatican declares a miracle. And so, an outrageous chain of events is set in motion… with a cast including a dimwitted US President (not that one) an egocentric billionaire (see also), a pensioners lunch club, a set of disenchanted church goers, bored astronauts and greedy bankers.

Ok, minor criticism first: often this feels like a loosely connected series of vignettes, with the connecting cheese being the President, the Astronauts who can’t actually go to The Moon and the Musky billionaire. Who is not him, but just as awful in different ways. Plus, the final part of the novel literally retcons the original and outrageous concept.

But for the vast majority of it, it’s laugh out loud funny and the kind of silently, screaming satire that Armando Iaunnucci would love. Among my favourites: the warring cheese shop owners (with the two rival staff members who fall in love) and the sex scandal involving an ambitious congressman. Put it this way, you’ll never look at Brie the same way again. Late on in the novel, as things become apocalyptic (described as ‘Fromageddon’ or ‘The Lactopalypse’) we have the aforementioned bankers offering people high limits credit cards and the young fantasy writer who will never see her novel published.

Scalzi considers this as the final in a trilogy that started with ‘The Kaiju Preservation Society’ and he’s now writing space opera again. I’d urge him to reconsider - this succeeds as a sweet, nutty treat in two difficult genres - funny SF and an epistolary novel. It’s published by Tor on March 27th, 2025 and I thank them for a preview cheese, sorry copy. #whenthemoonhitsyoureye.