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Extrahumans #3
The Spark
Deirdre Burns White is an Extrahuman who can make fire with her mind. Once imprisoned and tortured by the ruthless Confederation Military Police, now all Dee wants is to bury the past and blend in. Her new life in First Landing is all about becoming normal: a regular job, a steady boyfriend, a nice apartment.
But just as Dee settles in the groove of her perfectly ordinary life, an old friend shows up bearing a letter from the future, and a plea for help. The first cracks in theConfederation's oppressive regime begin to show--revolution is on the horizon.
With First Landing in a state of violent revolt, Dee has to make a choice: to hide herself away in a prison of her own guilt and regret, or embrace her past and her dangerous powers to help save the people and the city she loves.
The Spark is a novel of revolution and freedom, and the stunning third entry in TheExtrahuman Union series.
“Come for the superheroes, stay for the characters and world-building.” — A Fantastical Librarian
But just as Dee settles in the groove of her perfectly ordinary life, an old friend shows up bearing a letter from the future, and a plea for help. The first cracks in theConfederation's oppressive regime begin to show--revolution is on the horizon.
With First Landing in a state of violent revolt, Dee has to make a choice: to hide herself away in a prison of her own guilt and regret, or embrace her past and her dangerous powers to help save the people and the city she loves.
The Spark is a novel of revolution and freedom, and the stunning third entry in TheExtrahuman Union series.
“Come for the superheroes, stay for the characters and world-building.” — A Fantastical Librarian
404 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
1 person is currently reading
151 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
September 6, 2012
Note: I chose NOT to include huge spoilers for the series so that anybody can read this post in which I try to tell you WHY you should read this series. You’re welcome.
Let me start by saying: wow. WOW.
I just can’t get over how good The Spark is. I’ve finished reading it a couple of days ago and haven’t recovered from the experience yet.
*****
Roughly, this is what happens in The Spark: Valen, roughly one year since events at the end of Fly Into Fire. Penny “Broken” Silverwing and Sky Ranger now have a baby son, Amos. Teenager Dee is trying to take control of her powers of fire. Along with the few surviving extrahumans they have made a life for themselves apart from everything and everyone, an oasis of presumed tranquillity and as it eventually turns out, unwise recklessness. An ally and friend betrays their location to the Confederation and shit hits the fan monumentally.
And then ten years pass.
!!!!!!!!!!!
I know. I couldn’t believe it either.
*****
I sat down to write a regular review but all of a sudden…the review became something else. Because I realise that not everybody has read the first two books in the series, because I want more people to read then, I thought: instead of writing a regular review of this third book, I ought to write about the series as a whole and why I love them and why I think ALL THE PEOPLES should be reading this.
I have been reading and raving about this series since last year but with The Spark it reached a level of awesome that is off-the-charts.
*****
Read this series if you like Scifi: like, proper, well-developed Scifi complete with space travel and superpowers and alien races. But also: dystopias. Proper, thought-out Dystopias with a government that seems to be on your side but it really are not. A government whose tentacles seem inescapable and there is real danger out there. One does not simply fight the Confederation. There are always consequences.
Read this series if you like politics: read this for the politics of the Confederation and how it controls many places at the same time but also how it attempts to control the lives and minds of people. Read this for the unrest, for the realisation that there can be no complete stability when people are exploited and subjugated and controlled. Read this for the resistance – in all forms and shapes – and for the beginning of an awesome revolution.
Read this series if you like awesome, complex characters. I just can’t even begin to describe how awesome this group of characters is and how their arcs evolve and progress beautifully. How there is angst, and sacrifices, and choices to be made and conflict. These people are put through the wringer and no one is safe. This series do not pull punches and is at times, truly heartbreaking.
Read this series if you like superheroes: whose powers are often not a blessing but a curse, whose powers don’t magically solve their problems or the problems of the world. If you like people with powers and whose struggle to accept them, control them is a lifetime struggle. These people struggle to understand who they are with or without those powers.
Read this if you like serious conflict: internal and external. The frame of the series is how an extrahuman who can predict the future contacts our characters from the past to let them know what they need to do to make a better future for everybody. Read this if you think this is fucked-up and unfair and how are these people NOT pawns on an already set course they cannot (can’t they?) alter.
Read this if you like diversity in your stories: for there are people of many races and many sexual identities. In fact, one of the main characters is a transgender person.
*****
The Spark is a patently mature work from this author. It is a rounded, polished work and and the ending, when it comes, is as bittersweet as it can be and a perfect fit to the overall feel of this series. It is an open ending, full of potential and hope – and I hope to gods that Susan Jane Bigelow goes back to this world one day and allow me to spend more time with these characters.
I simply cannot recommend this series enough. The Spark is a serious contender for a top 10 spot this year.
Let me start by saying: wow. WOW.
I just can’t get over how good The Spark is. I’ve finished reading it a couple of days ago and haven’t recovered from the experience yet.
*****
Roughly, this is what happens in The Spark: Valen, roughly one year since events at the end of Fly Into Fire. Penny “Broken” Silverwing and Sky Ranger now have a baby son, Amos. Teenager Dee is trying to take control of her powers of fire. Along with the few surviving extrahumans they have made a life for themselves apart from everything and everyone, an oasis of presumed tranquillity and as it eventually turns out, unwise recklessness. An ally and friend betrays their location to the Confederation and shit hits the fan monumentally.
And then ten years pass.
!!!!!!!!!!!
I know. I couldn’t believe it either.
*****
I sat down to write a regular review but all of a sudden…the review became something else. Because I realise that not everybody has read the first two books in the series, because I want more people to read then, I thought: instead of writing a regular review of this third book, I ought to write about the series as a whole and why I love them and why I think ALL THE PEOPLES should be reading this.
I have been reading and raving about this series since last year but with The Spark it reached a level of awesome that is off-the-charts.
*****
Read this series if you like Scifi: like, proper, well-developed Scifi complete with space travel and superpowers and alien races. But also: dystopias. Proper, thought-out Dystopias with a government that seems to be on your side but it really are not. A government whose tentacles seem inescapable and there is real danger out there. One does not simply fight the Confederation. There are always consequences.
Read this series if you like politics: read this for the politics of the Confederation and how it controls many places at the same time but also how it attempts to control the lives and minds of people. Read this for the unrest, for the realisation that there can be no complete stability when people are exploited and subjugated and controlled. Read this for the resistance – in all forms and shapes – and for the beginning of an awesome revolution.
Read this series if you like awesome, complex characters. I just can’t even begin to describe how awesome this group of characters is and how their arcs evolve and progress beautifully. How there is angst, and sacrifices, and choices to be made and conflict. These people are put through the wringer and no one is safe. This series do not pull punches and is at times, truly heartbreaking.
Read this series if you like superheroes: whose powers are often not a blessing but a curse, whose powers don’t magically solve their problems or the problems of the world. If you like people with powers and whose struggle to accept them, control them is a lifetime struggle. These people struggle to understand who they are with or without those powers.
Read this if you like serious conflict: internal and external. The frame of the series is how an extrahuman who can predict the future contacts our characters from the past to let them know what they need to do to make a better future for everybody. Read this if you think this is fucked-up and unfair and how are these people NOT pawns on an already set course they cannot (can’t they?) alter.
Read this if you like diversity in your stories: for there are people of many races and many sexual identities. In fact, one of the main characters is a transgender person.
*****
The Spark is a patently mature work from this author. It is a rounded, polished work and and the ending, when it comes, is as bittersweet as it can be and a perfect fit to the overall feel of this series. It is an open ending, full of potential and hope – and I hope to gods that Susan Jane Bigelow goes back to this world one day and allow me to spend more time with these characters.
I simply cannot recommend this series enough. The Spark is a serious contender for a top 10 spot this year.
April 23, 2013
I’m still not sure whether this was the end of a trilogy or not.
In favor: the lingering mystery of why Broken’s powers, well, broke is completely ignored and seems to be no longer relevant; we meet the grown up macguffin child from the first book; central characters end up back physically where they started; the precognitive who kicked this all off gets the last word as he writes the letter that kicks it all off.
Against: the events the precog is pushing everything toward still haven’t happened; half the characters from the last book disappeared and are only vaguely referred to; major antagonists are still around; and the characters have only kind of resolved some of their issues.
This is, unfortunately, a book in which many events occur and nothing much happens. A lot of time elapses over the course of the novel and several characters have major personality shifts either between the last book and this one or during the unshown time periods. They’re all reasonable personality shifts that have some believable causes, but because they essentially happen offstage, it feels more like the author shoehorned them in to make plot happen than something that naturally evolved in the character’s arc. Especially the first couple chapters feel like the author wrapped up emotional arcs for characters in the last book and then realized that she really needed those characters to be in a different emotional place and so just hit “reset”. Renna, for instance, did a lot of heavy emotional lifting and ended up with Brian in the last book. Here, she abruptly realizes she’s fallen out of love off-page, and then turns into a very different person by the end, without us being there for any of it.
Most disappointing, I feel, is the ending. If there is a fourth book, I’ll forgive it. But the point of St. Val’s letters is that he’s supposed to be pushing people into decisions that will fix the future. The books end without any of the actions caused by his letters having done anything, though. Dee, for example, is supposed to bring Torres to Clearfield. But this action has no noticeable impact on the political situation. Perhaps Val’s point was to, instead, manipulate her into taking on the Confederation. But when the book ends, it’s not like she’s struck any kind of decisive victory—there is absolutely no sign that any of her actions accomplished anything other than killing a lot of people. Likewise, we meet the grown up child saved in the first book. Kid’s charismatic and all, but he still hasn’t done anything by the end of the book.
The writing’s not bad, and the world-building from the first book is still interesting. I am invested in the characters. But there’s a lack of focus here—the plot wanders without conclusion and characters all seem adrift. If this is the end of a trilogy, it’s disappointing. If there’s more to come, I’ll admit I’m losing patience.
In favor: the lingering mystery of why Broken’s powers, well, broke is completely ignored and seems to be no longer relevant; we meet the grown up macguffin child from the first book; central characters end up back physically where they started; the precognitive who kicked this all off gets the last word as he writes the letter that kicks it all off.
Against: the events the precog is pushing everything toward still haven’t happened; half the characters from the last book disappeared and are only vaguely referred to; major antagonists are still around; and the characters have only kind of resolved some of their issues.
This is, unfortunately, a book in which many events occur and nothing much happens. A lot of time elapses over the course of the novel and several characters have major personality shifts either between the last book and this one or during the unshown time periods. They’re all reasonable personality shifts that have some believable causes, but because they essentially happen offstage, it feels more like the author shoehorned them in to make plot happen than something that naturally evolved in the character’s arc. Especially the first couple chapters feel like the author wrapped up emotional arcs for characters in the last book and then realized that she really needed those characters to be in a different emotional place and so just hit “reset”. Renna, for instance, did a lot of heavy emotional lifting and ended up with Brian in the last book. Here, she abruptly realizes she’s fallen out of love off-page, and then turns into a very different person by the end, without us being there for any of it.
Most disappointing, I feel, is the ending. If there is a fourth book, I’ll forgive it. But the point of St. Val’s letters is that he’s supposed to be pushing people into decisions that will fix the future. The books end without any of the actions caused by his letters having done anything, though. Dee, for example, is supposed to bring Torres to Clearfield. But this action has no noticeable impact on the political situation. Perhaps Val’s point was to, instead, manipulate her into taking on the Confederation. But when the book ends, it’s not like she’s struck any kind of decisive victory—there is absolutely no sign that any of her actions accomplished anything other than killing a lot of people. Likewise, we meet the grown up child saved in the first book. Kid’s charismatic and all, but he still hasn’t done anything by the end of the book.
The writing’s not bad, and the world-building from the first book is still interesting. I am invested in the characters. But there’s a lack of focus here—the plot wanders without conclusion and characters all seem adrift. If this is the end of a trilogy, it’s disappointing. If there’s more to come, I’ll admit I’m losing patience.
April 18, 2013
Premise: Sequel to Broken and Fly Into Fire. Dee has grown older, but still feels lost inside. She can’t control her powers or her life. The little settlement of former heroes on the planet Valen may have finally gotten the government’s attention, and soon no one will have a safe refuge.
In short, I don’t think this is a bad book, and big chunks of it were great, but overall I was left unsatisfied. Bit too much angst, bit too much dystopia in this one for me. Some great character stuff, but the very end pissed me off.
For more details, read on, but Some Mild Spoilers Ahead.-----------
It wasn’t that I wanted the characters to solve all the problems of their dystopian future. At the end of the first book I got the feeling that the author wasn’t interested in telling that story. But I wanted something. I wanted one relationship to not fall apart or one character to not betray/fight/hate the others.
I wanted some personal resolution that had nothing to do with the foretellers from the past. I really sympathized with the characters in this volume who started to be frustrated with being given clues from the past about the future with no rationale or explanation. I was so sick of the freaking Valen folks and it infuriated me that they essentially got off with ‘well, it’s very hard for them, and they try.’ Bleck. The fact that Dee, Penny, etc. ultimately couldn’t really choose to get out of the loop was really frustrating to me as a reader.
That said, a lot of the character development with Dee that took up most of the first half of the book and big chunks of the last section was pretty great. I loved the ways she tried to deal with her pyrokinesis and her ‘luck’.
The reappearance of Torres was well played, and some of the flavor of the city in turmoil was really well done.
End of Spoilers--------
There’s some indication that there will eventually be a fourth book, so some of my issues could yet be resolved. However, The Spark still sits at the middle of the road with
3 Stars - A Good Book.
In short, I don’t think this is a bad book, and big chunks of it were great, but overall I was left unsatisfied. Bit too much angst, bit too much dystopia in this one for me. Some great character stuff, but the very end pissed me off.
For more details, read on, but Some Mild Spoilers Ahead.-----------
It wasn’t that I wanted the characters to solve all the problems of their dystopian future. At the end of the first book I got the feeling that the author wasn’t interested in telling that story. But I wanted something. I wanted one relationship to not fall apart or one character to not betray/fight/hate the others.
I wanted some personal resolution that had nothing to do with the foretellers from the past. I really sympathized with the characters in this volume who started to be frustrated with being given clues from the past about the future with no rationale or explanation. I was so sick of the freaking Valen folks and it infuriated me that they essentially got off with ‘well, it’s very hard for them, and they try.’ Bleck. The fact that Dee, Penny, etc. ultimately couldn’t really choose to get out of the loop was really frustrating to me as a reader.
That said, a lot of the character development with Dee that took up most of the first half of the book and big chunks of the last section was pretty great. I loved the ways she tried to deal with her pyrokinesis and her ‘luck’.
The reappearance of Torres was well played, and some of the flavor of the city in turmoil was really well done.
End of Spoilers--------
There’s some indication that there will eventually be a fourth book, so some of my issues could yet be resolved. However, The Spark still sits at the middle of the road with
3 Stars - A Good Book.
March 15, 2013
4.5
Note: this is a spoiler free review I wrote for the series covering Broken, Fly Into Fire, and The Spark.
Every so often in a reader’s life they come across a set of books that makes their jaw drop. Not because they’re awesome, or surprising, or because they’re unlike anything you’ve read before, not even because they are so real. The Extrahumans series by Susan Jane Bigelow is all these things, but the jaw dropping results from the fact that they are absolutely criminally under-read. Yes, every time you discover a new author and series to love it is shiny to you, and you get excited and want to tell everyone ever–but in the case of Extrahumans, this series isn’t just new to me, it’s new to nearly everyone in the book community. So take notes, because I’m about to tell you why Extrahumans is worth your time and money (seriously folks, you can purchase this entire trilogy as e-books for less than one hardcover would cost you).
This was it, then. No more waiting.
His heart pounded. His possibilities all had this moment, but he didn’t have to take it. He could put it down. He could run away. He could live. The world would shift and change–he felt the possibilities morphing and twisting out ahead of him. This moment, more than any other, could change them all.
“Take him,” the woman said shakily. ”Take him.” She pressed a warm, squirming bundle into his arms.
There was no choice, really. He took it from her, and half of the possibilities winked out of existence.
Me attempting to pitch Extrahumans to the boyfriend:
“It’s the first series I’ve read and thought ‘Wow, this would make an amazing graphic novel, but it really works in prose format’. It has a lot of the same moral issues as X-Men, with the grungy aftertaste of Watchmen. You know, forcibly retired superheroes only with actual powers so they have an odd standing in society.
In fact, it’s like Watchmen and X-Men had a beautiful awesome baby that grew up to be it’s own thing instead of derivative.”
If that makes any sense.
Susan Jane Bigelow’s Extrahumans is a series that is greater than the sum of its parts. She throws us into a dystopian-type setting just as the government shifts hands and wrests strict control over the human populated planets of the universe. Through this change, we see how those who suffered prejudices under the old government would suffer more greatly under a new regime. The Extrahumans, a group of humans with powers, have been forcibly rounded up and had their lives restricted to a single tower in New York City. Compelled to work for the government, often as some sort of law enforcement, the Extrahumans were robbed of their families, names, and any choice in who they would become.
Over the years, some Extrahumans escaped the tower, while others avoided being found in the first place. Broken, a former member of the Extrahuman’s enforcement squad, escapes with her healing powers after losing her ability to fly. Lucky they let go when she became un-Lucky. Michael the never found. Michael is a prescient, able to see potential futures when he looks directly at someone. Living outside of Extrahuman society he’s marked himself as a Cassandra, able to tell the future that no one will believe; no one until he meets Broken. Together, Broken and Michael must work together to set events on a course with the best outcome possible for humanity. Unfortunately, the other side has a prescient working for them as well.
Susan Jane Bigelow has done such an amazing job crafting this series. We get to see the world fall apart, but it isn’t the world we care about in the long run, it’s the individuals. It is a story that comes full circle through the letters of a prescient Extrahuman that dies several years before the first book opens. If you’re looking for your standard dystopian rebellion and government collapse fare, I’m afraid you’ll have to look elsewhere–this isn’t it. What Extrahumans is is an amazingly written, action-packed, and very philisophical examination of what it means to be human.
The Extrahumans are a people who have to deal with the labels that have been pressed upon them, right down to the ridiculous superhero names the government gave them. “Extrahumans. Like we’re something extra. Not really human. Just something else that the rest of them don’t need.” But it isn’t just the Extrahumans. Susan Jane Bigelow uses this world to show us the parallel struggles of all marginalized groups, through gender and sexuality, religion, or political beliefs. It is the type of series where the reader will take away as much as they want–you can just sit back and enjoy the ride, but you can also grab hold of this wonderful opportunity to really think about everything Susan Jane Bigelow so subtly deals with.
For me, Broken, was the most edge-of-my-seat exciting of the three, Fly Into Fire was much more slowly paced, but the stakes started to ramp up as the book went on. However, The Spark was truly the book that shined of the three, showing how well plotted this story had been from the beginning and focusing on the character who easily became my favorite by the end. Each book is different from the others in perspective, pace, and story, but what remains consistent is Susan Jane Bigelow’s ability to take the road less traveled. She managed to surprise me consistently, and I wanted to hug her by the end for being willing to say “screw fate”, even if we’ll end up where we’re meant to be regardless.
Original review posted at Bunbury in the Stacks.
Note: this is a spoiler free review I wrote for the series covering Broken, Fly Into Fire, and The Spark.
Every so often in a reader’s life they come across a set of books that makes their jaw drop. Not because they’re awesome, or surprising, or because they’re unlike anything you’ve read before, not even because they are so real. The Extrahumans series by Susan Jane Bigelow is all these things, but the jaw dropping results from the fact that they are absolutely criminally under-read. Yes, every time you discover a new author and series to love it is shiny to you, and you get excited and want to tell everyone ever–but in the case of Extrahumans, this series isn’t just new to me, it’s new to nearly everyone in the book community. So take notes, because I’m about to tell you why Extrahumans is worth your time and money (seriously folks, you can purchase this entire trilogy as e-books for less than one hardcover would cost you).
This was it, then. No more waiting.
His heart pounded. His possibilities all had this moment, but he didn’t have to take it. He could put it down. He could run away. He could live. The world would shift and change–he felt the possibilities morphing and twisting out ahead of him. This moment, more than any other, could change them all.
“Take him,” the woman said shakily. ”Take him.” She pressed a warm, squirming bundle into his arms.
There was no choice, really. He took it from her, and half of the possibilities winked out of existence.
Me attempting to pitch Extrahumans to the boyfriend:
“It’s the first series I’ve read and thought ‘Wow, this would make an amazing graphic novel, but it really works in prose format’. It has a lot of the same moral issues as X-Men, with the grungy aftertaste of Watchmen. You know, forcibly retired superheroes only with actual powers so they have an odd standing in society.
In fact, it’s like Watchmen and X-Men had a beautiful awesome baby that grew up to be it’s own thing instead of derivative.”
If that makes any sense.
Susan Jane Bigelow’s Extrahumans is a series that is greater than the sum of its parts. She throws us into a dystopian-type setting just as the government shifts hands and wrests strict control over the human populated planets of the universe. Through this change, we see how those who suffered prejudices under the old government would suffer more greatly under a new regime. The Extrahumans, a group of humans with powers, have been forcibly rounded up and had their lives restricted to a single tower in New York City. Compelled to work for the government, often as some sort of law enforcement, the Extrahumans were robbed of their families, names, and any choice in who they would become.
Over the years, some Extrahumans escaped the tower, while others avoided being found in the first place. Broken, a former member of the Extrahuman’s enforcement squad, escapes with her healing powers after losing her ability to fly. Lucky they let go when she became un-Lucky. Michael the never found. Michael is a prescient, able to see potential futures when he looks directly at someone. Living outside of Extrahuman society he’s marked himself as a Cassandra, able to tell the future that no one will believe; no one until he meets Broken. Together, Broken and Michael must work together to set events on a course with the best outcome possible for humanity. Unfortunately, the other side has a prescient working for them as well.
Susan Jane Bigelow has done such an amazing job crafting this series. We get to see the world fall apart, but it isn’t the world we care about in the long run, it’s the individuals. It is a story that comes full circle through the letters of a prescient Extrahuman that dies several years before the first book opens. If you’re looking for your standard dystopian rebellion and government collapse fare, I’m afraid you’ll have to look elsewhere–this isn’t it. What Extrahumans is is an amazingly written, action-packed, and very philisophical examination of what it means to be human.
The Extrahumans are a people who have to deal with the labels that have been pressed upon them, right down to the ridiculous superhero names the government gave them. “Extrahumans. Like we’re something extra. Not really human. Just something else that the rest of them don’t need.” But it isn’t just the Extrahumans. Susan Jane Bigelow uses this world to show us the parallel struggles of all marginalized groups, through gender and sexuality, religion, or political beliefs. It is the type of series where the reader will take away as much as they want–you can just sit back and enjoy the ride, but you can also grab hold of this wonderful opportunity to really think about everything Susan Jane Bigelow so subtly deals with.
For me, Broken, was the most edge-of-my-seat exciting of the three, Fly Into Fire was much more slowly paced, but the stakes started to ramp up as the book went on. However, The Spark was truly the book that shined of the three, showing how well plotted this story had been from the beginning and focusing on the character who easily became my favorite by the end. Each book is different from the others in perspective, pace, and story, but what remains consistent is Susan Jane Bigelow’s ability to take the road less traveled. She managed to surprise me consistently, and I wanted to hug her by the end for being willing to say “screw fate”, even if we’ll end up where we’re meant to be regardless.
Original review posted at Bunbury in the Stacks.
September 24, 2012
This was my favorite book from the Extrahumans series. It was very character-driven, with most of the focus on Deirdre (who goes by Dee). Dee is an extrahuman, possibly the most powerful extrahuman alive. Many extrahumans have been killed by the Confederation, due to their threat to the crushing control the Confederation exerts on humanity. Dee can create fire with a thought and also has an intuition that provides her with extraordinary luck and protection in dangerous situations.
Dee has gone through a lot in her life, and is trying to suppress her extrahuman abilities and live as a 'normal' human. She's just trying to blend in, but because of her true nature, and her past, she can't open up to let anyone into her life. She has an on-again, off-again boyfriend, whom she's never shared her secrets with. Dee can never be her true self with anyone. She has to constantly control her emotions, so that she doesn't accidentally set something---or someone---on fire. One day, Dee runs into an old friend from her past, who brings her a letter with instructions for Dee, instructions to complete a very big and important task. Dee doesn't want any part of the extrahuman life anymore. She is just trying to be normal and live under the radar, under the notice of the Confederation. But, there's too much going on in the world (including the other planets in Bigelow's futuristic world) for Dee to sit idly by and watch while others are hurt. Dee's decision to help leads to the action-packed part of the book, which was great.
What I really liked about The Spark was that it was full of character growth. Dee really goes on a journey, both physical and emotional, with the path ending in self-acceptance and the ability to open herself up to love. All of my favorite characters from the first two books came back in The Spark, with the exception of Sky Ranger. The omission of Sky Ranger leads me to wonder if this book is in fact the end of the Extrahumans series. I really hope it's not, and that we'll get a fourth book, to see how things end with Sky Ranger, as well as Ian. I want to know if the prophecies come to pass!
There was a lot of action in The Spark, more than I was expecting, but I enjoyed it. The only thing that slowed me down was keeping the political parties straight. Sometimes I started to get confused. It made me wish I had read all three books closer together, instead of just books two and three back-to-back.
Overall, I really enjoyed The Spark and would highly recommend Susan Bigelow's Extrahumans series. It's a really unique, well-executed series and I will definitely be reading Bigelow's future work!
Dee has gone through a lot in her life, and is trying to suppress her extrahuman abilities and live as a 'normal' human. She's just trying to blend in, but because of her true nature, and her past, she can't open up to let anyone into her life. She has an on-again, off-again boyfriend, whom she's never shared her secrets with. Dee can never be her true self with anyone. She has to constantly control her emotions, so that she doesn't accidentally set something---or someone---on fire. One day, Dee runs into an old friend from her past, who brings her a letter with instructions for Dee, instructions to complete a very big and important task. Dee doesn't want any part of the extrahuman life anymore. She is just trying to be normal and live under the radar, under the notice of the Confederation. But, there's too much going on in the world (including the other planets in Bigelow's futuristic world) for Dee to sit idly by and watch while others are hurt. Dee's decision to help leads to the action-packed part of the book, which was great.
What I really liked about The Spark was that it was full of character growth. Dee really goes on a journey, both physical and emotional, with the path ending in self-acceptance and the ability to open herself up to love. All of my favorite characters from the first two books came back in The Spark, with the exception of Sky Ranger. The omission of Sky Ranger leads me to wonder if this book is in fact the end of the Extrahumans series. I really hope it's not, and that we'll get a fourth book, to see how things end with Sky Ranger, as well as Ian. I want to know if the prophecies come to pass!
There was a lot of action in The Spark, more than I was expecting, but I enjoyed it. The only thing that slowed me down was keeping the political parties straight. Sometimes I started to get confused. It made me wish I had read all three books closer together, instead of just books two and three back-to-back.
Overall, I really enjoyed The Spark and would highly recommend Susan Bigelow's Extrahumans series. It's a really unique, well-executed series and I will definitely be reading Bigelow's future work!
September 6, 2016
Premise: Sequel to Broken and Fly Into Fire. Dee has grown older, but still feels lost inside. She can’t control her powers or her life. The little settlement of former heroes on the planet Valen may have finally gotten the government’s attention, and soon no one will have a safe refuge.
In short, I don’t think this is a bad book, and big chunks of it were great, but overall I was left unsatisfied. Bit too much angst, bit too much dystopia in this one for me. Some great character stuff, but the very end pissed me off.
For more details, read on, but Some Mild Spoilers Ahead.
It wasn’t that I wanted the characters to solve all the problems of their dystopian future. At the end of the first book I got the feeling that the author wasn’t interested in telling that story. But I wanted something. I wanted one relationship to not fall apart or one character to not betray/fight/hate the others.
I wanted some personal resolution that had nothing to do with the foretellers from the past. I really sympathized with the characters in this volume who started to be frustrated with being given clues from the past about the future with no rationale or explanation. I was so sick of the freaking Valen folks and it infuriated me that they essentially got off with ‘well, it’s very hard for them, and they try.’ Bleck. The fact that Dee, Penny, etc. ultimately couldn’t really choose to get out of the loop was really frustrating to me as a reader.
That said, a lot of the character development with Dee that took up most of the first half of the book and big chunks of the last section was pretty great. I loved the ways she tried to deal with her pyrokinesis and her ‘luck’.
The reappearance of Torres was well played, and some of the flavor of the city in turmoil was really well done.
End of Spoilers---
There’s some indication that there will eventually be a fourth book, so some of my issues could yet be resolved. However, The Spark still sits at the middle of the road with
3 Stars - A Good Book.
In short, I don’t think this is a bad book, and big chunks of it were great, but overall I was left unsatisfied. Bit too much angst, bit too much dystopia in this one for me. Some great character stuff, but the very end pissed me off.
For more details, read on, but Some Mild Spoilers Ahead.
It wasn’t that I wanted the characters to solve all the problems of their dystopian future. At the end of the first book I got the feeling that the author wasn’t interested in telling that story. But I wanted something. I wanted one relationship to not fall apart or one character to not betray/fight/hate the others.
I wanted some personal resolution that had nothing to do with the foretellers from the past. I really sympathized with the characters in this volume who started to be frustrated with being given clues from the past about the future with no rationale or explanation. I was so sick of the freaking Valen folks and it infuriated me that they essentially got off with ‘well, it’s very hard for them, and they try.’ Bleck. The fact that Dee, Penny, etc. ultimately couldn’t really choose to get out of the loop was really frustrating to me as a reader.
That said, a lot of the character development with Dee that took up most of the first half of the book and big chunks of the last section was pretty great. I loved the ways she tried to deal with her pyrokinesis and her ‘luck’.
The reappearance of Torres was well played, and some of the flavor of the city in turmoil was really well done.
End of Spoilers---
There’s some indication that there will eventually be a fourth book, so some of my issues could yet be resolved. However, The Spark still sits at the middle of the road with
3 Stars - A Good Book.
April 10, 2013
Wow this was an amazing book!! (BTW I received this copy in a goodreads giveaway). I have always liked characters, plots, and everything that pretty much has superpowers and this one is simply amazing. The author manages to exploit the true essence of "extrahumanity" of the characters. This book focuses mainly on Dee and her power of "Spark" which is a badass ability to create fire (how awesome is that?!) Also she seems to be one of the strongest extrahumans they are left.
I also like the sense of government issues that the book had (the confederacy) especially because I always thought that a regime in a story is an extra ingredient that makes the story a bit more relatable.
The spark is character driven, which means that the story focuses on the development of the characters and how they evolved throughout time personally and morally. Dee is a girl who hasn't had a easy life and even in the present she struggles to show others how she really is (even to her boyfriend :( ) However, she goes on journey of finding herself and finally coming into terms with who she is.
I really liked this book I definitely recommend checking out the other two in the series!!!
I also like the sense of government issues that the book had (the confederacy) especially because I always thought that a regime in a story is an extra ingredient that makes the story a bit more relatable.
The spark is character driven, which means that the story focuses on the development of the characters and how they evolved throughout time personally and morally. Dee is a girl who hasn't had a easy life and even in the present she struggles to show others how she really is (even to her boyfriend :( ) However, she goes on journey of finding herself and finally coming into terms with who she is.
I really liked this book I definitely recommend checking out the other two in the series!!!
September 25, 2012
I'm not sure if this was the end of the series or more is to come. It could go either way. I was a bit confused by the time jump towards the beginning of the book. Read the full review at Girl Who Reads
September 19, 2012
Just fabulous. I love this blend of post x-men superhero sci-fi. Lots of thoughts on the responsiblity of government and great power=great responsibility. Also, explosions!
August 29, 2017
The lack of a throughline grounds the series in reality, which is a necessary thing when dealing with superheroes fighting a dystopian government 100 years in the future.
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