The Burning Light
Bradley P. Beaulieu and Rob Ziegler
Tor.com
Paperback $14.99
ebook $2.99

This short novel went on sale about two weeks ago.  I’d like to thank Brad Beaulieu for sending me a review copy.  I’d also like to apologize for not getting it read and reviewed closer to the release date.  Life has been happening, and I’m still adjusting to some new time constraints.

I’ve not read Ziegler but I’m a big fan of Beaulieu’s work.  And while most of that work has been fantasy, he has written some science fiction.  That’s what The Burning Light is.

Set in a future where the ocean levels have risen, New York has been flooded and taken over by squatters.  The wealthy and powerful live in enclaves further inland, and everyone has implants that allow them to communicate nonverbally through a type of cybernetic web.

Something called the Light is starting to erupt in places.  It produces an addiction that leaves its victims burned out junkies who eventually die.  Colonel Chu is trying to find the source of the Light and destroy it.  Years ago the Light manifested through her twin sister.  Although her sister survived, and Chu was touched by the Light, everyone else in the vicinity died.  Now Chu has become obsessed with vengeance. Continue reading →