The Burning Light

by Bradley P. Beaulieu, Rob Ziegler

Disgraced government operative Colonel Chu is exiled to the flooded relic of New York City. Something called the Light has hit the streets like an epidemic, leavings its users strung out and disconnected from the mind-network humanity relies on. Chu has lost everything she cares about to the Light. She’ll end the threat or die trying.

A former corporate pilot who controlled a thousand ships with her mind, Zola looks like just another Light-junkie living hand to mouth on the edge of society. She’s special though. As much as she needs the Light, the Light needs her too. But, Chu is getting close and Zola can’t hide forever.

The Burning Light is a thrilling and all-too believable science fiction novella from Bradley P. Beaulieu and Rob Ziegler, the authors of Twelve Kings in Sharakhai and Seed.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Novella, Fiction, Cyberpunk, Dystopia, Science Fiction Fantasy

182 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 1, 2016

About the author

Bradley P. Beaulieu began writing his first fantasy novel in college, but life eventually intervened. As time went on, though, Brad realized that his love of writing and telling tales wasn't going to just slink quietly into the night. The drive to write came back full force in the early 2000s, at which point Brad dedicated himself to the craft, writing and learning under the guidance of writers like Nancy Kress, Joe Haldeman, Tim Powers, Holly Black, and many more.

Brad and his novels have garnered many accolades including two Hotties—the Debut of the Year and Best New Voice—on Pat's Fantasy Hotlist, a Gemmell Morningstar Award nomination for The Winds of Khalakovo and more:

* Top Ten Book and Debut of the Year for 2011 on Pat's Fantasy Hotlist for The Winds of Khalakovo
* Best New Voice of 2011 on Pat's Fantasy Hotlist
* 2011 Gemmell Morningstar Award Nomination for The Winds of Khalakovo
* Top Ten Debut for The Winds of Khalakovo on Ranting Dragon's Best of 2011
* Top Ten Debut for The Winds of Khalakovo on Mad Hatter's Best of 2011
* Top Five Book for 2012 on Pat's Fantasy Hotlist for The Straits of Galahesh
* 2012 Most Anticipated for The Straits of Galahesh on Staffer's Book Review
* 2012 Most Anticipated for The Straits of Galahesh on The Ranting Dragon
* 2013 Most Anticipated for The Flames of Shadam Khoreh on The Ranting Dragon

Brad continues to work on his next projects, including an Arabian Nights epic fantasy and a Norse-inspired middle grade series. He also runs the highly successful science fiction & fantasy podcast, Speculate, which can be found at speculatesf.com.

Novels

THE LAYS OF ANUSKAYA
* The Winds of Khalakovo
* The Straits of Galahesh
* The Flames of Shadam Khoreh

Short Story Collections
* Lest Our Passage Be Forgotten & Other Stories

Novellas
* Strata (with Stephen Gaskell)

Contact Information
Website: www.quillings.com
Twitter: @bbeaulieu
Facebook: facebook.com/bradley.p.beaulieu

Reviews

[Michael Hicks · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Burning Light has a fair amount of stuff working in its favor, but also one element - the nature of the Light itself - that never quite gelled for me.

Authors Bradley P. Beaulieu and Rob Ziegler give us a wonderfully dystopic (one might even say apocalyptic) setting in the flooded, sweltering ruins of future New York. I really liked the diversity and culture baked into the altered landscape, and the way the authors presented humanity's adaptation to the new normal brought about by the disastrous effects of climate change, even if much of it is downright criminal. The waterways are patrolled by pirates and slavers, and a rag-tag team of military soldiers hunting down mediums for the Light and the junkies obsessed with it.

So, what is the Light? Frankly, I have no idea. It's analogous to a drug, given that those who interface with it are referred to as junkies. It's dangerous and can kill entire swaths of a population. Beyond that, the authors refuse to elaborate on the nature of their MacGuffin, despite it being very, very important to the characters themselves. Personally, being stuck in the dark as to the Light's nature made it difficult for me to care about it as a plot device. It was a little to fantastical and metaphysical for me to appreciate.

The characters, though, at least have reason to care, even if I ultimately didn't. Chu, our military squad leader tearing through New York to kill Light junkies at every turn, has a slick motivation and a wonderful, edgy darkness about her given her own personal history with the Light. She's on the warpath, hunting for Zola, a medium for the Light. Zola's connection to the Light, though, ain't what it used to be. Their history and cat-and-mouse conflict gives the story plenty of meat, but the resolution to their story wasn't as satisfying as it should have been, and much of that is due to the ambiguous nature of the Light.

The Burning Light has some terrific Big Ideas, but they could have used more time and room for development. It's a smart piece of work in need of deeper elaboration, at least for me. If you don't mind unexplained, inexplicable irregularities like the Light, and can just go with the flow, you may have an easier time of things.

[Jason · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 Stars

The Burning Light by Bradley P. Beaulieu is such a tough novella to score. This book has two contradictory forces at play. Beaulieu has created one of the coolest and boldest post apocalyptic situation that this story deserves full marks on the plot alone. Unfortunately, it has two major points working against the brilliant story. First, I really didn't give a damn about anyone at all. I mean not one character is likable or even able to hold my interest. Second, The Burning Light is simand has too deep and complex of a story line to be pulled off in a novella. This world deserves multiple books of epic length to flesh out the details that it could be. Finally, things do not progress in a fashion that builds upon itselit coming to a conclusion that the reader will find satisfying.

I wanted to love this novella, heck it deserves to be loved, but it did not work for me. Maybe a full length start to a series could give this the attention it deserves.

Oh well!

[Kdawg91 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Beaulieu, I am a fan of your work and I LOVED this book, you know what makes me mad? its just a novella. Return to this world as soon as possible,

thank you

a fan

(weird review huh, go read this, great story awesome characters, realistic wild world, hits all my happy points.)

[rachel, x]

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[Marco Landi · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stelle
In un futuro post apocalittico, dove l innalzamento dei mari ha allagato le città, in una New York che ricorda una Venezia marcescente e scarnificata, l'umanità ha imparato a connettersi tramite reti neurali, tanto che sembra impossibile l'epoca in cui ognuno era un isola a se, senza interconnessioni.. laddove basta un pensiero per raggiungere amici, navi droni o enclavi tecnologici, una nuova coscienza collettiva, una intelligenza di gruppo, La Luce, si sta infiltrando tra gli esseri umani, portando estasi da emozioni e sensazioni, in un fervore a metà tra religione e droga, finendo per lasciare dietro di sé una scia di emisferi cerebrali bruciati..
Una poliziotta intenta a fermare questa ondata e una drogata di Luce che invece vuole solo risplendere..
Una battaglia senza etica, una spirale di ricordi, emozioni e debolezze..
Un post-cyberpunk adrenalinico come una serie TV, che in meno di 180pg crea personaggi unici, un mondo davvero vibrante e reale, e un finale imprevedibile ma che fa riflettere, il tutto frutto della grande immaginifica creatività di questi due autori!!

[Mark Gardner · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Burning Light, by Bradley P. Beaulieu has a lot of plusses on the balance sheet. The tale of Manhattan post-apocalypse is fleshed out in such a short story. The division of society we experience today continues in this futaure. Even the villain makes sense with a back story that makes her drive to eradicate Zola, and the Light believable. But, what the heck is the Light? Is it a drug? Is it some sort of AI gone rogue? Is it an ancient evil bent on enslaving humanity? Is it angelic grace from the TV show Supernatural? After reading, and ruminating on the story, I still have no idea what it was.

While the characters were written well, and they all passed the sniff test, they weren't relatable. I wasn't able to connect with any of them. I didn't care if the light did whatever the light was trying to do. I didn't care if Chu killed the junkies or Zola. The ending was a letdown. I'm not sure if the author intended the ending to be happy or sad, or what... I didn't get it.

I'm glad that TOR is producing more novellas, and they seem to have a decent digital price point. I think The Burning Light shows just how difficult it is to create a deep story within the constraints of short fiction. Despite my complaints, I'd still recommend reading The Burning Light. I'd rate it at four stars, and I look forward to reading more novellas from TOR.

[Milliebot · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was fantastic! I purchased it recently and decided to squeeze it in before June ended and I'm so glad I did. Beaulieu has created a surprisingly detailed world in a novella of about 175 pages. It's a sort of post-apoc, futuristic view on what the world would be like if everyone's minds were connected. It seemed like a mixture of telepathy and techology, with this strange thing called "The Light" that cuts people off from this connectivity but somehow enlightens them to the truths of the world and also turns them into junkies, eventually killing them. There are two (or maybe three) main characters, ladies from different backgrounds who have been affected by the Light in some way, be it as a junkie or someone whose lost those to the Light and they were very compellling. I wasn't sure who I was rooting for because even though they were at odds, they were all so relatable. Excellent world building and character crafting in such a short page count! I highly reccommend this, especially if you can get your hands on it for a discount (I have mixed feelings about novella prices) and I look forward to reading my other book by BEaulieu!

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another tor.com novella. Colonel Chu is fixated on destroying “the Light”, a kind of addiction that preys on networks of mind-linked people– and she’ll kill anyone who stands in her way. The Burning Light was a little like The Light Brigade if The Light Brigade was bad. Without its strong thematic core, leaving behind loosely motivated characters committing government-sponsored murders through a post-apocalyptic wasteland. It does have some interesting ideas about AI, but they aren’t really explored aside from posing the question of their existence. Not recommended.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this novella to be brilliant. It was a marvelous feat to be able to pack such depth into such few pages, and still keep the reading fluid and fast paced.

Sentience, consciousness, community, belonging, isolation, religion, contagion, love, and hatred. All this and more, weaved in sharp world building and smooth characterization.

I am glad I picked this up.

[Muriel Algayres · Rating 5 out of 5]

A pretty short novel (almost novella format) that delivers a very compelling world and questionning on society, language and communication.

[Ivan Izo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Governments, corporations and society in general are connected through networks that let them speak through their minds and they can control who has access. The enemy are junkies controlled by The Light, an unknown network that makes a person feel at one with everything. The Light users also use their network in groups but the light is in control and destroys everyone who participates. The military is in hardcore pursuit of light junkies and ready to kill on sight.

Spoiler starts here.

The reviews I read before I started either didn’t understand the light or ignored the question. What follows is my theory.

It was clear to me that the light is the same central computer system that makes the government, corporate, and social networks but running without a leash. In other words, the light is a sentient AI that has accessed all human knowledge and used it to achieve a connection with everything.

The light can be interpreted in other ways if you wish. The way it is described is a reciprocal feeling of love that is achieved when you feel that the object of your love returns the feeling. This happens is a relationship where you want the best for your lover. It happens in a relationship with the divine in a spirit of total immersive worship. It could even happen in a field of study with a deep enough commitment.

The scientific explanation for the state is that when you give unconditional love, you activate the release of serotonin and dopamine, creating a feeling of ecstasy and oneness with everything. In the individual, using this state can become addictive and leads to a depletion in these neurotransmitters. Continually entering the state keeps them depleted and the user experiences dark nights of the soul or depression. There must be a break for them to refill. But the addict won’t stop.

At the end of the novel, The Light not only shares this state of unconditional love but gives people something to work toward – building the world back up. The wars of governments and corporations can end. People can unify and make the world a better place.

It was the unification of the three different personality types at the end that allowed The Light, the sentient computer system, to finally see how to make itself useful to people without burning them out.

Spoiler ends here.

5 stars because I plan to read this again.

[Cam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brief novella set in a near future with flooded coasts, an abandoned NYC being scavenged by left-behind addicts and gangs, and an emergent consciousness being fought tooth-and-nail by what passes for that era's government. Everyone participates in an esp-like manner in this future with people nearby or far away and can control to greater or lesser degrees how linked-in they are with everyone else. Something is happening, though, that seems to be stressing that flexible network and it involves a rapture-like encounter with The Light that leaves participants addled and eventually severed from the then-normal mental communication abilities. Sometimes channelers of The Light are a danger to those around them, killing their circles somehow and other times it's the government agents suppressing the phenomenon. Most of the story is the conflict between people talented in contacting The Light and maybe helping it's consciousness emerge and those opposing it. It's a spare tale, like most novellas, but you do wonder where it's going as you read along and why the opposition is so violent to this new way of being. Not bad, but not a revelation either!

[Karel Baloun · Rating 3 out of 5]

The vivid and detailed scenes, the compelling and full characters, the tight and exciting plot... all of that points to a 4 or 5 star review. Lots of creativity, and so much pure content for a short few hour read, and I feel I learned a lot of mature writing technique.

Yet... too much of this is just fantasy, and doesn't gel into a workable world. Human slave labor and manual boat power, despite telepathy? Fresh vegetables and nothing else to eat?

What does a reader gain from reading dystopia, where the ending doesn't feel satisfactory for anyone. Except for the light, and without spoiling more, the ending was just a letdown, and I'm one who loves peace.

The authors are just simple wrong about what is necessary for both emergent system properties and sentient consciousness.

[Lila · Rating 2 out of 5]

Conceptually, this novella could benefit from further exposition and development. I picked it up for a short read, but I did not find much impact.

[Alyssa (HeartwyldsLibrary) · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book left me confused. If your interested in following a story that is basically about a bunch of junkies addicted to something called The Light and an exiled government worker he’ll bent on revenge, then this is for you. If not, I would pass it up.

The thing that bothered me most about this book was that I have honest to god no idea what the hell The Light is, aside from it leaving people strung out and addicted to it. The Light is never really fully explained, it’s all so vague and it just leaves an empty feeling when the story is over.

None of the characters were that interesting and frankly I’m confused as to what happened to two of them at the end. Like are they are dead? Or they just like Zola now? Did they vanish? What the hell happened to them? They just disappeared after the final events of the story and I don’t like that. Their role was considered pivotal to the plot and yet there is no closure as to what happened, why??

It felt slow and dragged on a times and other times it felt like descriptions were being dragged out, to the point of feeling like I wasn’t sure what was trying to be told to me. You don’t always need a huge paragraph to describe something. Also felt like some paragraphs were just written as an excuse to throw in a long string of complicated sounding words.

I’m not even sure I would say this is an interesting plot, the execution leaves much to be desired with the lack of real explanation, I just felt like I knew nothing when it was over.

I’ll be honest the gorgeous cover art by my favorite artist is what I liked most about this book.

[Annie Yotova · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novella requires patience - it takes awhile to figure out what is going on and to realize how the world ended up how it did - and in places the writing can be a bit rough.

Some time in the future, huge parts of USA (and probably the world) are under water and humanity had developed a wait of people to stay connected mentally (it is never made clear if it was genetics or implants) and had split into small groups, fully connected inside of these groups, even growing babies to do the jobs needed. And then the Light showed up - burning a person's connection to the world but being addictive enough to actually make people crave it.

Two women get caught into the Light - one of them lost everything but escaped and is now chasing the Light and its influence as part of a military operation and the other decided to give up and live with it. Except that nothing is that easy.

The big mystery is what the Light is - a drug or a religion or something else completely. And we get the answer at the end - not entirely surprising but not disappointing either. The characters and the world details serve as a background to that big question - which makes the novella less character-driven than it could have been (even if at least a few of the characters are developed enough to make someone care about them).

I was not sure what to expect from this novella - it is obviously a science fiction one while Beaulieu is a fantasy author. So I kept wondering of it will go into something else - but it stays strictly science fiction (and post apocalyptic). It won't be for everyone but I quite enjoyed it.

[Heather Warner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to say that I really don’t know how to describe the plot of this book but it was extremely interesting. Something called “the Light” is spreading across the country and causes a severe addiction and in many cases massive group deaths as it must interfaced in groups of people through mediums. “The Light” seems to be sentient but what it really is or wants the authors don’t really address other than explain that using “the Light” disconnects people from the mind-network that all of humanity depends on. This novella is set in the flooded ruins of a future New York run by pirates and slavers amongst a very diverse population. A small group of military soldiers are hunting the mediums and in particular one woman named Zola. Colonel Chu is the leader and has a personal stake in the hunt for Zola. This is a very enjoyable and engrossing story. I found the world and the characters to be quite fascinating. My only complaint is that I wanted more-a full novel! One of my favorites for the year!

[WonderWife · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok first of all, I did not finish this book. Not because it wasn't good, but because it was so far from my usual choice of genre. And, well, I have too many books on my "to read" list. I'm sure if I wasn't so overloaded, I would certainly have finished the book.

From what I did read, it seems like the book would be great for those who like this sort of book. I really liked the way the reader was in another world yet the author did not have to lay out how this world came about or how things worked. As a reader, you KNEW how things were and learned about the world without being told outright about it. This was done very nicely. So, although this book wasn't for me, if this is your kind of story, then definitely give it a try.

[Kris Sellgren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This science fiction novella by Beaulieu and Ziegler is set in the near-future, where children are raised to have mental connections to each other and to others in their work collective (i.e. corporation). But a threat has arisen to these collectives: a burning Light that is experienced as blissful mental connection to a much larger whole. This Nirvana comes at a price: it is addictive, withdrawal is painful, and the craving for the Light eventually either burns your mind out or causes you to waste away. Chu is a military commander dedicated to destroying outbreaks of the Light. Zola is a Light junkie living in the wreckage of drowned New York City. This well-written and suspenseful tale of the conflict between cop and junkie is full of raw emotion and interesting SF concepts.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is a lot here! Without going into spoilers, the ending made me stop and think for awhile. I can't decide whether it's hopeful or sinister, which is something I'm surprised to find I'm appreciating. It was satisfying regardless. It's a fast paced little book. There is a lot of action. The characters are well established and well written. Ideas about humanity and where we're going are woven into it in a compelling and interesting way. I liked it a lot! I recommend it for a thoughtful fast paced action sci-fi. It makes me want to check out the authors' other works.

[Maxine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the spareness: of the story, of the writing. There were just enough details to set place and atmosphere, and that was it. I found absolutely elegant the lack of extraneous explanation.

I was intrigued by the apparent, and partially self-engineered, biological evolutions. I enjoyed the inevitability.

Reading this novella was like eating tobiko. Each chapter was a sharp flavor and texture bursting against my mind's tastebuds.

[Tom · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book

I'm going to be honest and say something about this book didn't click for me. I don't read a lot of Sci-fi but I am a fan of Brad's shattered sands books. Some of the dialogue felt a bit stilted for me but I would say if you like Sci-fi then try this book, it didn't work for me but it might for you.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall I enjoyed this book. I found it be pretty well paced and it maintained good tension throughout. I thought the authors did a good job of presenting Chu and Zola. Ultimately, I think the ending is bobbled. It builds so well but doesn't quite deliver on the promise.

[Dee Sanfilippo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the general premise. The characters were just ok. As others have said, the light was so underdeveloped. I wanted more from it. As often, the build up was interesting, but it failed to deliver. I left this book longing for more.

[Tyrannosaurus regina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always love me a bit of drowned New York, and the whole idea of the light and what seems like addiction around it - and the truth of it being a lot murkier than that - was very interesting to me. Just an all around compelling story.

[Doris · Rating 5 out of 5]

When finished, thought what a great tale... and my next thought was I want more... and then I thought I've looked into the light, and it is books like this. Loved it.

[Matti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Razend sterk post-apocalyptisch verhaal met een alles consumerende, bovennatuurlijke en onverklaarbare drug. Het korte boek hecht weinig belang aan expositie, een verademing.

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5* Well written. Very violent. Really felt that the Bao character was the key and would have liked to have seen much more about him and the details surrounding the whole concept of "the light"

[Kes · Rating 2 out of 5]

Science Fiction. 1.5 stars. It was only ok - too short to make sense.

[Di · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great dystopian future book, bad ass female lead, love story, grimy details. Also a critique of religion perhaps? The psychic connection and burning light were never fully explained, but that's ok.