Review: Blazing Flux by Jonathan Weiss
Blurb:
George Miller's Mad Max meets Howl's Moving Castle in a Chernobyl disaster-like nightmare for the second installment of this grimdark sci-fantasy series.
You can't destroy it.
Not until it wants something.
When it needs something.
Three months have passed since Revance was destroyed in a devastating mutiny. Ryza and the surviving conscripts work tirelessly to clear vast pools of molten flux from the walking fortress’ wreckage, draining it into the sands and trying not to think about where it’s ending up.
But the situation is getting desperate. Supplies are dwindling. Conscripts are deserting in droves to join the looters. Worst of all, the flux is behaving in ways that Ryza’s sure it shouldn’t.
The resurrected autominds of the battle’s dead won’t stop staring at him, familiar faces have been appearing in the surface of the molten flux itself, and it still hasn’t shown a hint of turning to blazing flux, the volatile gas that should occur when concentrated in more than a bucketful.
When Ryza discovers what’s truly controlling molten flux, he realises nothing’s as it’s meant to be.
Including himself.
Blazing Flux is the second book of an action-packed fusion of desert-punk scifi and grimdark fantasy. Step into a world of sandstorms and scrap metal with The Flux Catastrophe series to experience blood-rushing gunfights, battles with enchanted machines and magic that pushes to the brink of reality.
Review:
“To help us is to hurl themselves close to yet another death. I can’t imagine a more terrifying fate than certainty.”
Where once sat a reluctant hero now stands a man on the brink of an existential crisis of epic proportions. Everything in sight is in ruins and on the brink of flux setting itself ablaze while Ryza is doing everything he can to keep himself together. But the pieces of his former self were left in the explosion of Revance, and now, while he spends fruitless days clearing molten flux from the surface, he discovers something he never expected within himself. He’s questioning his own existence (Is he real? Is he not real? ‘If it looks like a duck and it quacks like a duck, is it really a duck’ sort of questions) while all around him his reality sits on very shaky ground.
“I needed it...I needed someone to just tell me something so I would know what to be.”
Flux is central to this whole story: what is it, how does it act, and why does it act the ways it does? And it’s in this sequel that the flux comes to life on the pages as more than just a silver, volatile liquid pulsing across the world and corrupting people. I do however wish the runics were explored a *touch* more, because the lore around them is interesting.
“What happens when a Reythurist dies away from the sky?”
A slower start explodes into action and intrigue as these characters discover what it truly means to be alive.
Breakdown
Characters (9/10)
As a sequel this really builds on the relationships from the previous book. I actually like Holm this time around. She’s still a bit of a wildcard, and proves to be a handful (pun intended) later on but she really helped shape Ryza’s character a bit more. I also liked the villains yet again. They are conniving and propel the story.
Atmosphere (13/14)
Setting (9/10)
While the characters don’t go too far away from Iroka, they do go deep. A very dusty, dystopian science fiction was brought more to life under the surface.
Mood (4/4)
Scenes between Ryza and Holm tugged at me the most. As someone who only started liking Holm in the sequel, I could really understand her this time. On the other hand, the action scenes were short, but impactful and made for a great read!
Writing Style (16/18)
Storytelling (8/10)
Jonathan has an ease at which he weaves his stories that make them enjoyable, and overall it flowed at a nice pace.
Grammar (4/4)
Format (4/4)
Plot (9/10)
I will admit that when I first began this sequel I was worried it was going to be a bit slower, but I am happily proven wrong. The pace is in the middle range leaning closer to fast with how the plot progressed. What at first seems like “not a lot going on” since the characters stay pretty centrally located albeit on and under the surface, ends up being an exploration of the self, the impressions we make on others, and how that image can shape our perception.
Intrigue (11/14)
Overall (8/10)
This book took me out of a five month reading slump and I absolutely want to read more in this series! It simply has that “middle of a series” feel, where the reader is given more information but the story is still reaching for that overall climax.
Readability (3/4)
Logic (13/14)
Plot Logic (9/10)
Ryza navigating his existence in a dying world made for a great subplot, but the overarching story of what molten flux is and learning how it works (while reminiscent of a fever dream) fits the tone.
Character Logic (4/4)
While I still don’t see what Ryza sees in Holm, their relationship wasn’t actually the one that gave me pause. I was pleasantly surprised by Ditric, and the way she grounded Ryza when he needed it most.
Excitement (10/10)
Is there a fan club? Because I could head it! Overall I’m hyped about this book and this series as a whole and I cannot wait to see what comes next. Weiss has a way of ending his books on a huge bang and now I’m practically flinging myself off a cliff to find out what happens.
DEFINITELY RECOMMEND.
Final Scores
CAWPILE Rating: 81/90
