Lunatics by Bradley Denton was an enjoyable read, but it wasn't all that crazy. If anything, it was just a little too safe to be truly satisfying.
Denton is the author of one of the best science fiction books I've ever read (Buddy Holly is Alive and Well on Ganymede). Though it has been years since I read Buddy Holly, the sense of urgency (and the robotic dog) from this novel made a permanent impression on me. I can't say the same for Lunatics.
In Lunatics Denton set up a premise rife with potential for conflict and a deep exploration of what makes human beings tick. His characters are everyday people- a single mother looking for love in all the wrong places, a middle-aged professor who would love to have children, but can't manage to have sex with her husband, and an aging Venus who is frustrated and annoyed with her small business and young boyfriend. Protagonist Jack was once the lover of each of these women back in college, and, remarkably, they've all remained friends. When Jack's wife dies, Jack is distressed and depressed until he meets a new woman. She isn't any ordinary girlfriend- she's a goddess, and she can only meet with Jack when he stands naked under the light of the full moon. The presence of Jack's new girlfriend not only gets him arrested for public nudity, it begins to warp the relationships of Jack's friends and former lovers.
Denton steers away from exploring the dark side of this middle-aged group of friends, and sticks to a Midsummer's Night Dream-type adult fantasy. Jack's moon goddess girlfriend appears to be messing up everyone's lives, but, for me, there was never any doubt her lunatic influence would show all the characters the moonlit road to happiness in the end.
Lunatics tackles some serious subject matter- grief, mortality, jealousy, and loneliness- and asserts that all these grave problems can be solved with a good laugh and a good lay. It is an uplifting, feel-good, and often funny narrative, but lacks the stomach-wrenching tension that really makes me turn the page.
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