Blurb:

Pillars of steel stand scattered across the dunes of the Droughtlands, left behind by those-of-glass. They’re the markers of a people long extinct, wiped out by a fusion of unbound magic and unfathomable technology.

The remnants of humanity who now dwell upon the desert wastes regard these places with suspicion, yet the temptation of forbidden knowledge is too strong a draw for the crews sent out by the Academy of Breggesa. At the age of twenty, freshly initiated Rettic jumps at the chance to join one such expedition, even if it means ignoring the whispered doubts of the rest of the crew.

At the helm is Archarus, a venerated scholar and sole survivor of the last crew the Academy sent to their destination, hellbent on keeping the details of his current mission secret. As mutinous mutters continue to grow, Rettic starts to wonder if they’ll meet the same fate as the failed expedition.

With the chance to make a name for himself in the Academy, Rettic conducts his own investigation into the fate of Archarus’ last venture. It takes him into the depths of the massive towers, deep under the sands where a rumbling voice older than the ruins themselves returns a sinister warning.

You control machines.
This machine will control life.
Do not control it.

RISING FLUX is a prequel novella set seventy years before THE FLUX CATASTROPHE series, which launched in 2023 with the novel MOLTEN FLUX.

Review:

This book was my introduction into the intricate world Weiss has created, and it set up for the future perfectly. Our main character, Rettic, is a young academic, journeying with a rather… curious party. Among them are people capable of strange magicks; manipulation of machines, flames, and many more just as unique. With them is another academic, but he is no recruit, no, Archarus is a veteran scholar. A veteran of a certain expedition, and the only survivor of it. The only problem? They’re on that same expedition again, and almost as soon as it begins there are some mutinous whispers amongst the party. Why are they here again? Just what aren’t they telling him? What is he missing?

Their destination is an old ruin from decades passed, something seemingly common in this world of desert wastes, where humanity lives in machines that traverse the harsh climes. However, this ruin is different, it's old, very old. From a time before them, when those-of-glass roamed the lands and constructed their curious structures of glass at odd angles and towering heights. But their structures also went down, deep underground, and therein lies the party’s mission.

Before they delve beneath the surface, Rettic is tasked with using one of these magical missions to gauge what lies below, and he finds something he isn’t supposed to. Something lies far beneath the surface, something old, something horrifyingly strong. 

I won’t spoil what happens at the end, for I want you, the reader of this review, to go read Rising Flux as well. But let me say this; this story forces us to ask questions about trust. Do we trust ourselves? Do we trust others? How much? When? It is a story of needing to do things we know we should not, because of curiosity, science, progress, and more importantly, fear of the unknown. And that, I believe, is how Rettic ended up in this mess, no thanks to Archarus. 

In so short a novel, Weiss has managed to set up the story hereafter, and more importantly, set the tone of what will come. It’s gritty, it’s deep, and it’s beautiful. This was a quick read, and not just because of the length. You get sucked in and dragged along, courtesy of Weiss’ expert storytelling. I’m not even sure how to comp this book, but if you like Mad Max, Star Wars (stay with me) and wasteland settings, this is for you.

The one small fault I find is the sheer amount of foreign concepts being introduced, as in concepts that Weiss has created for this world. Now, I will say that I love this sort of thing, and don’t mind flipping back and forth to glossaries. That said, it came from the get go, leaving us no time to breathe. It’s not enough to make me drown, but it took some adjusting and some flipping back and forth to get used to. In a longer book, this definitely wouldn’t be a problem, but I felt it worth mentioning. If that’s something that irks you then be warned, but it’s something I was also able to look past for the most part. 

All in all, Rising Flux by Jonathan Weiss was a very unique story in a time of saturation, and his writing, worldbuilding, and ability to craft things out of the blue makes him one to keep an eye on for sure.