The Burning World

The Burning World by Isaac Marion
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

SPOILERS AHEAD

Warm Bodies was the perfect little novel full of hope and new life, and can entirely stand on its own, despite that fact that it is now the first in a series. What this book, the second in the series, does is dig deeper into the messy world of "what next?" If Julie and R's relationship is real, it's not going to be perfect, and they can't ignore the way the world is changing around them and affecting them.

What is it that R actually did at the end of Warm Bodies, when he came back to life? And what does that say about the plague itself, if it can be undone? On the one hand, it's a beautiful salvation; but on the other, you're either left to die again, for good (but at least as yourself), or to live and slowly recover the memories of who you once were. Marcus seems to have gone through the darkness of rememberance and come out on the other side stronger. But I think R was resistant for so much longer because deep down, he is subconscious knew how terrible he was in the past. R is afraid not only that those he loves now might judge and hate him, but that he might revert to that terrible person. That seems to be the struggle he is constantly fighting in his own head.

As for the plague, who even invented it? Was it invented, or did it form naturally somehow? This book opens up questions we didn't even know where there - who is actually at the head of Atvist now, and who is this "we" that is so connected to so many of the characters. Is it the same "we" that was talking to R and Julie as Executive in the Tower? R's demise seems almost to have been planned, perhaps by his grandfather, perhaps by someone else - why else would that older zombie pilot have been planted on his plane? Is R's grandfather alive still, some how?

The kids are a real puzzle as well. They all see to have a special connection with one another and also with the unknown "we." What is up with Sprout's magic eye? And what happened with Jane and X that was so overwhelming that R abandoned them after they had shown so much progress? And the most mysterious kid, whom I can only call Rover: who exactly is he? He seems to be the key to figuring out who "We" is, because they declare he is their best connection to the world. Part of me thinks he's somehow related to R, but maybe not.

As for R's real name, which is apparently super hippie: PLEASE don't let it be Rainbow.

I really hope there is a third book. I follow Isaac Marion on social media, and he's been very vocal about how the sales of this book will influence the potential publication of the 3rd one, which is mostly written, I believe. It sounds like even if a major publishing house doesn't pick it up, he plans on self publishing it, but this series deserves more than that, so I hope it can happen. My hope is that maybe the third one coming out can become a box set reprint of the other books as well. Either way, I'm all in. Regardless of how much is still up in the air at the end of this book (which I normally hate in book series), I love Marion's writing, and I am here until the end.

Here are a few of my favorite lines from this book, which is amazingly quotable.

"Embarrassment is just one of the many perils I accepted when I made the choice to live. Living is awkward. Living hurts. Did I ever expect otherwise?"

"We are an asthmatic orphan and a recovering corpse, driving a rusty car into a rabid world."

"So it's a tease? They come back to life just long enough to finish dying?" - Julie

"The plague's not immortality. It doesn't sustain life, just protracts death." - R

"Have I missed something? What I just saw was gruesome and tragic, yes, but also beautiful. I saw a woman pull herself out of her grave and climb up to whatever's next. I saw a woman save her own soul. What did they see?"

"If death is what I want, then nothing can ever hurt me."

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