Luminous (edition 2011)

The one word that comes to mind when I describe this book is bizarre. While the plot of the book seemed very unique to start with, perhaps it was a bit too unique. The cover of the book feels like an accurate description of how it reads, a strange mix of concepts melded together that just leave you confused one moment and bored the next. I was not able to enjoy this book as much as I expected I would. ( )

Metcalf, D. (2011). Luminous. New York: Penguin Group/Dutton. 371 pp. ISBN: 978-0-525-42247-1. (Hardcover); $16.99.*

Consuela steps out of her skin and into a new one featuring butterflies and feathers and other elements, as the situation warrants. She can do this when she is in the Flow, a place with shifting rules and other people with very different supernatural abilities. In the Flow, Consuela realizes that it is her job to help save people—think George Bailey and Clarence but with a lot more sparkle. This Flow, which is an amorphous transitional phase somewhere between life and death, seems splendid, if a bit ambiguous to Consuela. Saving people is noble and Consuela could get used to being able to shift into her new skins. However, the folk of the Flow are being killed, which threatens the entire fabric of existence. Consuela must figure out who is killing the Flow folk. The writing in this book is often very lyrical and the concept is extremely creative. If the world building is sometimes unclear, the tremendously diverse cast of characters compensates readers. Snaps to Metcalf for undertaking a book with a high degree of difficulty and mostly succeeding. It is a pleasure to be able to recommend a book featuring a Latina protagonist taking matters into her own hand. Purchase this one for high school and middle school students.

Although this book turned out good it got off to a rocky start. The author rather dumps you from the "real" world into the Flow, and I felt very disjointed and confused over what was happening and where we were. I think it was done to emphasize the disorientation and confusion of Consuela, but it isn't done in a way that made me identify with the character. Instead I wanted to put the book down. It was just too fast, plopping us into the fantasy world without explanation or reason, and the contrivance is only emphasized by Consuela’s placid acceptance rather than questioning of the issue.

I endured, though, and as the author got around to explaining what happened and why I started to enjoy the world and the characters, although I never really felt as if I understood it or them. In order to maintain the mystery of the plot the characters all have hidden agendas and ulterior motives, and you're always questioning why they're doing what they're doing, but you're also questioning why you care. There are a lot of characters that seem to be put in place so that they can die to amplify the plot, but because you didn't ever identify with them it doesn't work as well as it could.

However, even with these major flaws there is something about the book that is absorbing and makes you want to keep reading despite all the incertainty and confusion. Perhaps it is the artful dealing with the subject matter: what happens when we die, and what about people who seem to be *dead* but are still functionally alive? What do they experience? What do they feel? Add in an overlay of murder mystery and a dash of romantic subplot and the question is very deep as well as entertaining. This gift extends even beyond the ending, turning an ending that is simply ambiguous into a cliffhanger mystery that keeps you thinking about the book even after you're done with it. Although this book wasn't altogether my cup of tea I can see many people who would be able to look past its flaws and fall completely in love with the great existential mystery that is presented in this book. ( )

short and sweet: great concept & characters, but it kind of fell flat for me. ( )

Okay, so the first thing that drew me to Luminous was the cover. I mean, what is there not to like about the cover? It's completely gorgeous, original and incredibly eye-catching. Yeah, in short -love it. Also love the title: Luminous. It just seemed so deep and ominous, like something that I could really dig into and my mind involved in. Nevertheless, I was incredibly excited about Luminous and I couldn't wait to read it. But, as more and more negative reviews started popping up, I started to wonder. Could it really be that bad? I held out hope and picked up the book anyway.

Luminous is a unique new novel from debut author Dawn Metcalf. Here, readers meet Consuela, aka Bones, who gets pulled into a surreal existence known as the Flow. Not only that, but she finds that she has the ability to shed her literal skin and slid into other skins that she can create. And she's not the only one with this extraordinary ability. When someone in the Flow turns up dead, it's up to Consuela and the alluring V to find out what did it.

Man, I really wanted to like this book. I mean, really really really wanted to like this book. I wanted to this book to be my new favorite book of 2011, but it just wasn't. As much as I tried to defy all of the negative reviews out there -they're true. Luminous has an incredibly creative and original concept, that had plenty of promise and interest but, sadly, it just didn't deliver beyond that.

The biggest issue for me is that Metcalf just didn't have well developed, strong characters that I could relate it. There really just wasn't a point where I felt connected to the characters, and, because of that, I couldn't get fully connected to the story. The story itself also felt a little confused, almost like the author didn't fully know what was going on or where she wanted to take things. I will say that Metcalf has a beautiful, almost lyrical writing style, but it was frequently confusing and, for the most part, seemed like it was just trying too hard.

While I think that Luminous was still worth reading, I think that it had some excellent, original and thoroughly entertaining ideas, but it had poor execution and felt like it needed to go back through the editors a few more times. ( )