We Burned So Bright by T.J. Klune Review | An End of the World Road Trip of Discovery and Acceptance…
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Synopsis
We Burned So Bright follows Don and Rodney, husbands who have spent forty years together and are suddenly facing the end of the world.
A wandering black hole is heading for Earth and everyone has thirty days left. With time running out, Don and Rodney set off from Maine to Washington State in their RV to deal with unfinished business before everything is gone.
As they travel across a world dealing with its final days in different ways, they meet people trying to deny what is happening, people rushing towards the end and others simply trying to live whatever time they have left. Along the way, Don and Rodney look back on their life together and ask whether the love, choices, mistakes and years they shared were enough.
Key Characters Info and Summary
Don
Don is one of the two main characters.
He is older, reflective, and deeply aware of time, memory, love, and regret.
He has spent forty years with Rodney, and their relationship is the centre of the book.
Rodney
Rodney is Don’s husband.
He is quieter, more gruff, and less openly emotional, but his love for Don is clear.
He is practical and protective, especially once they decide to travel across the country.
Review
What a sad yet beautiful story.
We follow Rodney and Don, an older couple who set off on a road trip to fulfil a promise they made to themselves years ago. All of this happens while the solar system and eventually Earth, is being destroyed by a massive black hole.
With the end getting closer, the world is falling apart around them. On their journey, Rodney and Don meet different people, families, groups and individuals, all trying to cope with the final days in their own way. Some are searching for comfort, some are scared and some are just trying to make sense of what is left.
Alongside that, we get to know Rodney and Don properly. Their relationship is long, complicated and full of love, despite everything they have faced over the years. Their dedication to reaching their goal is clear and the love pushing them forward runs through the whole story.
This story does touch in heavier themes, one of which really hit close to home due to how Klune writes about it. This really added to the emotional weight that is ever present.
The only reason this was not a full 5 stars for me is that some of the monologues were quite long. A few felt too long and at times they pulled me out of the story because I found myself wondering when they were going to end.
That minor issue aside, this is a wonderful story about a beautiful couple living through the most devastating time humanity could face. At under 170 pages, it is a fast but absorbing read.
Who I’d Recommend This Book To
I’d recommend this to readers who like:
Queer speculative fiction
End-of-the-world stories
Older main characters
Road trip
TJ Klune’s softer, more reflective side
Stories about mortality, family, memory, loss and saying goodbye
I would be more cautious if you are not in the mood for grief, end-of-life themes, or a book that sits heavily with the idea of everyone running out of time. This story also contains heavy themes such as suicide.
Verdict
We Burned So Bright is a short but heavy read about love, regret, grief and what people do when there is no more time left.
The end-of-the-world setup gives the story urgency, but the focus stays on Don and Rodney, their marriage, their memories, and the unfinished business they are trying to face before everything ends.
Sad, beautiful, and definitely worth picking up!
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ .5
You can buy this book on Amazon (Affiliate Links):
Hardback: https://amzn.to/4ojtLvk
Paperback: https://amzn.to/4e4SIHy
Kindle: https://amzn.to/3Q93FPh
Audiobook: https://amzn.to/4vBaKXM
