It’s the end of the world as we know it. That’s the setting for TJ Klune’s latest exploration of the human condition. We Burned So Bright drops a retired couple into the oncoming apocalypse, during which they embark on a journey that’s just as internal as it is geographical.
A rogue black hole has appeared in the Milky Way and will soon devour all of known human life. This isn’t a story about cunning scientists finding a way around it. It’s just reality. The end is coming, and everyone has to deal with that as best they can. Among those waiting for their demise are Don and Rodney, husbands who made a promise long ago and intend to fulfill it before the end. They buy an RV and set out to make good on their promise. Along the way, they meet others affected by the impending apocalypse, and each person is coping or reacting differently.
We Burned So Bright is smack dab in TJ Klune’s wheelhouse. The story clocks in at around 170 pages (depending on edition) and focuses on the emotional fallout of a big idea (the end of the world, in this case). Klune has written about death before (Under the Whispering Door is some of his best work), but We Burned So Bright deals instead with the promise of death and what it means to the living. The story is a one-way road trip with a definitive destination. When the clock is nearing its final ticks and tocks, what would you do with your remaining days, hours, or minutes? Don and Rodney know exactly what their goal is, but not everyone has that singular aim that can put their final cosmic moments into crystal-clear perspective.
As the couple travels toward their ultimate goal, the world degrades around them. Abandoned cars litter the main thoroughfares. Radio stations go dark in the midst of reporting on the coming doom. Don and Rodney encounter a family who keeps the truth from their children even as they crumble beneath the burden of their lie. They meet a girl traumatized by actions she took to (allegedly) end her family’s suffering. A band of hippie-esque folks celebrate what little time they have left and welcome the husbands with open arms for a brief respite. Everyone copes differently, and Klune explores a handful of possible reactions to the apocalypse in these stops along Don and Rodney’s shared journey.
With each stop, Klune reveals little tidbits about Don and Rodney’s goal. Their full story is rife with heartbreak and happiness in equal measure, and it has the vibrating emotional nucleus Klune has made a living writing about. I felt happy, angry, and sad for the couple and their family as their backstory unraveled. When their story (and all others within the book’s world) ended, I couldn’t help smiling and sighing in quick succession. Even when setting his story in the darkest of times, Klune can find a beam of light to warm your heart.
Klune’s We Burned So Bright kicks off a journey that lives out (but doesn’t outlive)its welcome, ends with an emotional climax, and avoids unnecessary fluff. Fans of his longer work will appreciate the emotive heft here, while readers seeking something quick and meaningful will find exactly that.
Rating: We Burned So Bright – 9.5/10
