Harstad harnesses the natural creepy feeling of space, the moon especially, and multiplies it by about 100 with the addition of some unknown malicious entity. There's just something about the soundless, motionless void of space that chills me to the core. I find space terrifying in general anyway, but 172 Hours really brings it to another level. I didn't find the ending particularly satisfying, but I suppose it's a risk you run with horror/thrillers.
I ended up finishing at 2 in the morning and had to keep my bedside lamp on in order to sleep. I spent most of the time reading with my heart racing and a great sense of unease. Creepy and bleak, Harstad’s story is both psychologically and atmospherically disturbing. Harstad effectively builds tension by moving among the perspectives of adults and teens on the Moon and on Earth readers don’t get to know the characters terribly well, which only adds to the book’s icy remove. Unfortunately, their hopes and dreams mean little when inexplicable, terrifying things start happening shortly after their arrival at the long-disused DARLAH 2 base, and the trip turns into a desperate struggle for survival.
French Antoine, Japanese Midori, and Norwegian Mia are the three winners of a globe-spanning lottery, each with his or her own reasons for wanting to travel to the Moon. A mysterious signal on the Moon prompts humanity to return there in 2019 to address unfinished business, though the true goal of the mission is obscured by a massive publicity stunt: taking three teenagers along with the regular crew. Norwegian author Harstad makes his YA debut with this chilling combination of science fiction and horror, which won that country’s Brage Award when it was first released there in 2008.
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