Electrocution and a two-story fall from a church rooftop leave former musician Tobe Mohr deaf, burned, and broken. A guilt-wracked priest invites him to live in the vacant rectory during his recovery, where many townsfolk believe Tobe — despite his own skepticism — has developed clairvoyance in his return from death. Adapting to rural life after having toured the world’s stages, Tobe forms an intense relationship with the enchanting Sera and her daughter. But their disappearance forces him to embrace his rewired senses that have helped so many others, as he navigates Sera’s mysterious past to find them, and to become once again the man he thought died long ago.
Gordon Highland is the author of the novels Flashover and Major Inversions, as well as Submission Windows: a collection of stories and verse. He's published short stories in Word Riot, Noir at the Bar 2, Warmed and Bound, Black Heart Magazine, and many others. Gordon lives in the Kansas City area, where he makes videos by day and music by night.
Grounded in reality with elements of the supernatural, Flashover is a funny, touching and satisfying read. This is not your typical mystery or thriller. Nor can it sit squarely in science fiction, either. It’s a literary mash-up, one that holds your attention, while at the same time, forcing you to pay attention. You will be challenged, but that’s a good thing. The language is a mix of poetic lyricism and straightforward, hard-boiled, no-nonsense grit. And just when you think the story is going to get too intense with his attention to detail, description and interior monologues, he makes you laugh, which releases the tension. And then he starts all over again. If I had to compare it to contemporary authors it’s a combination of Thomas Pynchon (Inherent Vice), Kurk Vonnegut, and Dennis Lehane. Pick this up and then go back and pick up his first book, Major Inversions.
So if you've read any summaries of this book, you know that a guy named Tobe Mohr has a near-death experience which leaves him with a interesting ability. Having read that, you may think you know where the story is going - the guy develops this ability into a power, and then uses this power to save someone in trouble, and at the end he comes to terms with his ability and finds a niche where he can live his life comfortably. But that's not this story.
Flashover does not dwell on Tobe or his ability, but it his ability that holds the story together. The story concentrates on the lives of three main characters and a strong cast of minor characters, alternating between past and present, how their lives intersect, and the consequences of those intersections.
That summary does no justice to the book, but really no summary really can. The fascinating thing about Gordon Highland's work is that you find yourself lost in the story without really thinking about what the plot is or where the story is heading until you're almost at the end. You care about the characters, and things happen, and all the pieces form a vague picture. About three quarters in something big happens, and you can see how all the threads that came before form a complete tapestry, and it's all you can do to follow it to the end to see the whole picture. There are no morals to be learned, no twist endings. The magic of Highland's work is that it's a unique experience in storytelling. Too often writers want to make a point with their story, but Highland chooses instead to dazzle the reader with the art of losing oneself outside the confines of reality.
Highland's prose is almost impeccable, the only hiccups coming in some of the "flashover" sequences which felt unnecessarily stilted. What amazes me is the way he can maintain a certain tone over the course of a book, and then comes a chapter that is so tense and horrifying that it made me squirm in my seat. These words have power.
I only had a few nitpicks about the story by the end. I wished Tobe's ability had been explored a little bit more, and that I had understood more what it meant to him. Also, I felt there was a key scene missing toward the end that, given Tobe's mission for the entire book, we really should have experienced with him. But overall these were small bumps on an interesting journey.
I'd recommend Flashover to someone who is patient and loves to lose themselves inside characters' lives, and who appreciates that storytelling isn't just well structured sentences, that it's a ride with the power to engage all of our senses in the power of imagination.
Gordon Highland’s Flashover came to my attention through Caleb J. Ross’ video review. Given Ross and myself are alumni of the same post-secondary institute and Highland’s close proximity to my house I decided to read the novel on my new Kindle. My library needed something a little sexier than City of God and Treasure Island. Flashover focuses on Tobe Mohr, a Kansas City based musician who develops the ability to see a person’s memories through touch after a lightning strike (not too dissimilar from Quinlan Vos’ main Force power), and Sera/Sarah, the central desire for Tobe in his life after near electrocution. The secondary cast includes a Catholic priest who cares for the shocked Tobe, the protagonist’s cheapshit father, Sarah’s child Dacey, and the various possible fathers of said pre-pubescent. Sarah’s mysterious disappearance precipitates a ceaseless chase by Tobe while the author reveals Sarah’s backstory through prequel segments to Tobe’s present. The plot does not find sure footing until Tobe is struck by Zeus. Tobe’s initial realization to the transfiguration of his body is the strongest section of the novel. Highland hits the high notes when Tobe’s self-actualization sinks in over the permanent course correction of his life. Sarah’s concurrent origin story is the little seed growing into Flashover’s spine, and it is shown to the audience by Highland’s temporal tom foolery. I found Sarah’s sections a bit flat as a character. She worked better as the McGuffin than a narrator commenting on the hows and whys her and her child ended up in the story. Tobe’s bafflement at the Rashomon of reality gave enough mystery to the reader. While the following statement might seem contrary to the paragraph I typed, the final Sarah’s scenes towards the novel’s dénouement were excellent. Highland injected new life into the morbid trunk scene sub-genre. The novel’s final third, when the plot threads start producing a multicolored quilt, increases the pace as the Mohracle races forward to ultimate conclusion and apotheosis. Highland hits the lever with many memorable scenes, including the trunk of terror. Flashover’s concluding chapter is a bit of a weak water balloon. The fates of the surviving characters are spelled out for the audience. This epilogue ties the final strings together into a bow, but the bow is not necessary. Upon concluding the novel I thought about the narrative arrangement of the intermixing timelines alongside the titular otherworldly power bestowed upon Tobe. Given the focus on Tobe’s growth back into humanity after his accident I found the imposition of the supernatural alongside the blended chronological arrangement mildly superficial, almost irrelevant to the emotional focus at Flashover’s core. I felt similar feelings when I read Ross’ Stranger Will. The philosophical crossing Will created between him and Mrs. Rose is a strong enough dichotomy not requiring the crackpot Jim Jones plot. Perhaps I am simply a much more conservative reader than I give myself credit for. Returning to thesis, the balkanization and mutation of the plot will interest most readers while I found them intriguing yet ultimately not as vital as some readers will contend. I rate Flashover a three out of the five because Highland shows promise as a young writer who illustrates a strong foundation for growth as a novelist. Despite some criticisms, I enjoyed the novel, and I am looking forward to Highland’s next project.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Click the image below to watch the quick Wordless Video Book Review
This, Gordon Highland’s second novel, contains all the quick-pacing of an airport bestseller with the methodical attention to sentence structure and language of a high-literary life’s work. Though the premise isn’t earth-shattering in its concept (the author would tell you this himself) the execution of the premise is absolutely unique. Not much can be said here without spoiling, so I’ll leave the official synopsis to speak for the premise.
I was most impressed by the way that Highland is able to explore multiple timelines simultaneously without compromising the individual effectiveness of any of them. He teaches the reader how to read his book, which is something only the very best authors know how to do well.
If you’ve read his previous novel (Major Inversions) you’ll know well Highland’s clever twists of phrase and perfect comedic timing. If you haven’t read Major Inversions, I recommend you start with Flashover. Get a taste for what this amazing author can do, then go back and take in the first novel. Finally, write your congress person and ask that he support a proposition to get Gordon Highland to write another novel.
Call it time travel. Call it disjointed narrative. Call it a mystery. A love story. A comedy. Tragi-comedy. Tragedy. Flashover wears many masks and wears them well. Tobe Mohr survived a freak accident that’s left him with the ability to read people. Not quite seeing their past or future, but understanding what they’ve done. It’s a gift he uses reluctantly to get by in his recovery, one that eventually leads him on a road to discovering more about the whereabouts of the woman he loved. Like his previous work Major Inversions, Highland’s love of music shines through here, the thread that binds most of the characters together. The perspective and timeframe shifts throughout the book, but it’s never confusing or difficult to follow, building to an incredible and bittersweet ending you won’t quite see coming.
I want to explain why I liked this story so much, but I really don’t want to give any spoilers! So I’m going to start out with: Just Read it. Not only is the plot interesting, and filled with unpredictability, but the references to music and “pop culture” make this a fun story that keeps the reader paying attention so as not to miss a detail. For me, there were two read-worthy aspects to this story. Obviously, the plot being one of those – and that’s what I can’t talk about because you must experience that for yourself. The other, and this is what will drive me to read more from Gordon Highland, is the fun wit that weaves itself through his story. I hope you enjoy this story as much as I did.
Gordon Highland's second novel is a surprise in many ways. While you may be expecting something a little more supernatural or fast-paced without a great deal of character, the book quickly reveals that it has other plans. It's actually a rather slow burn, delving into characters and backgrounds right from the start, and the story doesn't kick into high gear until around the halfway mark. But the characters are endearing, and drive you to explore the tangle of events that brings them to the fated denouement.
All in all, this is an excellent novel written with intelligence, energy, and humor.
This book has a lot of twists and turns. It is hard to write a review of it without giving anything away. A non-linear timeline is used very well, which is saying something, because that sort of literary technique can backfire in a hurry. Speaking of literary, Highland is a very literary writer, and at times you find passages are are more art than storytelling, but these are generally used very well as part of the "flash" sequences.
Head on over to Amazon and check it out. It's a good price for a good book.
I was highly impressed with this novel. An excellent read from a very talented writer. Flashover has a non-linear plot told from different perspectives of the characters from diffferent points in their lives. Highland pulls it all together gracefully without ever confusing you. The book is very literary at times, but also has a dash of scifi thrown in, due to the lead characters ability to see into peoples past by touching them. Also a love story, a mystery and a major crime are all mixed in. I highly recommend picking this up as soon as possible and sitting it on top of your TBR pile.
My man. A funny and sophisticated paranormal potboiler in the best way—beautifully observed, tightly plotted, and precisely written. It’s also peppered with the best kinds of black surprises—images that burn in, then attempt to vanish; you wear this one for a while. Continually impressed with how elegant his prose is at the same time it is moving information. Gordon has the soul of a watchmaker.
In Flashover we have a story about a man called Tobe Mohr who, through an almost fatal accident, has been given a gift to see into people’s minds. From his point of view though, it’s nothing special. He only sees what is already there. He only sees what people already know. It’s just that, sometimes the people may not want to admit what they know - to themselves or to others.
Like most stories, it’s a love story. His love, she disappears one day. His new mission is to find out where she went and why she left him.
When describing this book, it’s hard to do it justice. The story doesn’t sound like much - a man goes on a journey to find the girl he loves and we discover what happened to her. But Gordon is really good at plotting. This story isn’t linear. It jumps all over the place time-wise. And there are multiple characters we follow through these timelines. The time ranges from well before Tobe’s accident, to I think about 5-6 years after it. It’s done so well though, that it never needs explaining where we are in time. It’s done with subtle clues each time, so as to never make you feel lost when a new section starts out. It’s handled masterfully. Never once did I have to question what was going on. But also, I never felt like I was being spoon-fed the story.
Another area that Gordon shines is how clever the writing is - it’s tight and metaphorical. There are little things for people who are really paying attention. There are clever things that will make you chuckle. There are things sprinkled throughout to give you clues. If you catch them, you can start to guess at some of the connections.
More than a love story though, this becomes a mystery or thriller and a tale of personal discovery. It becomes many things. There are elements of the supernatural. There are elements of philosophy, metaphysics, touches of theology - yes, there’s a lot going on here. And it’s all tied together seamlessly.
There are all these hints sprinkled throughout the whole book about how all these people are connected and what’s really happening. They start getting pieced together about halfway through. And each one, you get this moment where you realize what’s happening. And then Gordon digs the hole a little deeper, giving you more to discover.
I can see myself recommending this book to just about anyone who reads. This book is written so well, with so many great elements, it’s got a lot of crossover potential. This book is written as if Gordon is a career author. But this is only his 2nd book - his first being Major Inversions. I’m sure we can expect many more great things from him in the future.
Tobe Mohr, a guy dismissive of an unusual gift he receives after a near-fatal accident fixing a church roof, is missing the love of his life: Sera. Throughout the narrative, his supernatural gift is downplayed considerably, which gives the story a healthy dose of realism. His new ability seems almost natural - an understandable bodily compensation for his loss of hearing, and whilst reading, I found myself constantly wondering just how much of it was Tobe’s natural empathy/intuition and how much of it was actually supernatural - it’s a beautiful trick Gordon uses to blend this with his memories of his relationship with Sera so that you’re left with the feeling that something somewhere is just not quite right, and this drives you ever deeper into the story. Clever stuff. Add to this the carefully-crafted way he weaves the separate, non-linear story strands together, and you’ve got quite the mystery on your hands. It never gets confusing though (in the wrong hands this could easily have been muddled) and together with a healthy infusion of humour (mostly provided by two police officers) preceding an escalating sense of dread as the conclusion approaches, it couldn’t really fail to entertain me.
So giving Flashover 5 stars was a no-brainer for me. I appreciate great writing, I appreciate great stories and I especially appreciate great characterisation (because I always find this a huge challenge). Gordon provides all three of these with meticulous precision; I don’t believe he skipped over a single sentence thinking ‘yeah, that’ll do’ – I think he probably agonized over them like the perfectionist he is. Not that it shows. With some writers their overworked efforts translate on to the page, but in Flashover the prose is nicely fluent, with plenty of inventive verbiage to keep things interesting. Inspiring work, Gordon. Bravo.
DISCLAIMER: I was provided a copy of the e-book version in exchange for a review of this book.
Tobe Mohr was a normal guy, with a normal job, and a normal future when he had the accident. Now he's scarred, deaf, and clairvoyant. The community sees his clairvoyance as a gift, Tobe isn't quite as sure. A new living situation, compliments of the priest of the church where he had his accident, leads Tobe to a relationship with Sera and her daughter. When they disappear from his life, Tobe's search for them takes him to places he didn't know existed and to an understanding about himself that he thought was lost forever.
Gordon Highland uses multiple timelines to explore the lives of the major characters. Although this technique is handled deftly, it does make it difficult to feel vested in any of the characters until approximately 2/3 of the way through the novel. Once I hit that point, though, I really wanted to find out what was going to happen. The writing is crisp and the descriptions realistic but there just isn't a flow to the story. Despite this, Flashover is a decent story with an ending that delivers.
This is high level stuff. The prose, the characters, the dialogue, the plotting and tension building; this book just fires on all cylinders.
'Major Inversions' was really well written, but this was much more in my wheelhouse. 'Major Inversions' was more of a black comedy, which isn't really my preferred genre, and I don't even know what genre you would put 'Flashover' in, but it's a fantastic literary mashup that I absolutely loved.
It's very difficult to pull off technical, often lyrical prose that also flows effortlessly and keeps you turning the pages like a mainstream thriller, but I was hooked from page one. The prose of 'Major Inversions' made me think of Nabokov at times, while 'Flashover' reminded me a bit of Craig Clevenger. High praise, I know.
The book starts in medias res and proceeds to jump around in a non linear timeline that works masterfully and adds to the overall mystery. I can't add much as far as summarizing the plot is concerned (at least nothing you can't read in the official summary) without giving away spoilers. I'll just say it has grit and emotion, love and pain, and some major curveballs that will keep you guessing till the end. I'd recommend this to a wide array of readers, because it has a little something for everyone.
Wow! I have only just finished the book, and that's all my mind can form right now, but I'll give it a try. Flashover is captivating, it's surprising and very very well-written. You don't get bored for half a sentence, you never know what to expect, but yet you're somehow always connected to the time frame of every sequence. How? I can't tell exactly, but you just know. The story goes back and forth, but it's never chaotic. It's never dull. And the style... that's some serious good writing right there. I have to admit I haven't read Gordon's first novel, but next thing I'm doing is definitely ordering a copy. If Flashover, only his second novel, is THIS good, then I'm definitely holding my breath for his next one.