Colony received a 4+ star review, making it an IndieReader Approved title.
Following find an interview with author Ron Wolff.
What is the name of the book and when was it published?
Colony – April 27, 2025
What’s the book’s first line?
“Hellas Station to Horizon. Come in, over.”
What’s the book about? Give us the “pitch”.
When a swarm of ancient alien insects awakens beneath the Martian surface and decimates his colony, seventeen-year-old Adam Flynn—the first and only human born on Mars—must lead a small group of teenage survivors in a desperate fight for survival. As the insects demonstrate not just the ability to kill, but to think, plan, and control human minds, Adam discovers that being born on Mars might give him a unique advantage against an enemy that threatens not just their colony, but Earth itself.
What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?
I had this personal “love list” of seemingly unrelated story elements I was obsessed with—things like a self-doubting teen hero, a burgeoning Mars colony, claustrophobic survival horror (I’m an Alien superfan), and…bugs. Lots of bugs. (Gross, I know.) But I’d just survived a streak of insect-themed disasters in real life—hornets’ nest in the yard, an ant invasion, bedbugs in a hotel, lice at school, ticks on a camping trip… It was like the insect apocalypse had it out for me. I originally thought these ideas belonged in separate stories, but once I started writing, I realized I wanted to see what would happen if I mashed them all together. I threw them all in one creative pot, and the result was Colony.
What’s the main reason someone should really read this book?
If you’re the kind of person who loves sci-fi thrillers on the big screen, this is the book for you. I set out to write the book version of the movie I wished existed—something that blends the adrenaline of space survival with the emotional intensity of high school drama, all inside an isolated Martian colony. If you love stories where smart teens have to think fast, trust each other, and save the day—while still getting awkward around their crushes—Colony is for you.
What’s the most distinctive thing about the main character? Who-real or fictional-would you say the character reminds you of?
Adam has never set foot on Earth. Raised by a handful of scientists, he was expected to pull his weight from a young age, carrying the same responsibilities as the adults around him. But he’s never held a basketball, tasted a soda, or felt the wind on his face. He’s brilliant with tech and calm under pressure, but when it comes to being a normal teenager, he’s completely out of his depth.
As for inspiration, I pulled a bit from my own life. I grew up as a military brat, moving every couple of years—sometimes more. Starting over at a new school, again and again, I often felt like an alien creature who’d missed the instruction manual for how to “fit in.” That same sense of disorientation and self-reinvention is baked deep into Adam’s DNA.
When did you first decide to become an author?
I’ve always been an obsessive reader (and daydreamer), but it never really occurred to me that I could be an author, until I met one as an adult. She was just a regular person who sat her butt in the chair every day. No magic, no special permission—just discipline and a love of books. That’s when I set my sights.
Is this the first book you’ve written?
Colony is my first book as Ron Wolff, but it’s actually my sixteenth published novel. I’m a bestselling author under another pen name, so this book is both a debut and a homecoming—my first time writing the kind of high-octane, sci-fi adventure I’ve always loved most.
What’s the best and the hardest part of being an indie?
I’ve had a foot in both worlds—indie and traditional—and the hardest part of being an indie is the solitude. You’re not really on a team anymore. There’s no editor or publicist to pull you back if you start going too far off the rails. But honestly? That’s also the best part. Being indie gave me the freedom to write a gonzo bug apocalypse on Mars, and there’s nobody around to tell me I can’t.
Which writer, living or dead, do you most admire?
Anyone who had to do this on a typewriter or—shudder—longhand. Seriously though, Ray Bradbury is my man. It’s so easy for me to lose my flow, but Bradbury believed writing should be joyful and fearless, which is endlessly inspiring. Plus, he wrote killer stories.
Which book do you wish you could have written?
Dune? Pride and Prejudice? Song of Achilles? True Grit? The Princess Bride? This question is torturous, and I hereby plead the Fifth. Really, it depends on the day, my mood, the phase of the moon, and when I last ate—there are just too many amazing books to choose from.