A Neon Darkness

The Bright Sessions, Book 2

By: Lauren Shippen

Narrated by: Charlie Ian

A Neon Darkness, the second Bright Sessions novel from creator Lauren Shippen, asks: “What if the X-Men, instead of becoming superheroes, decided to spend some time in therapy?” (Vox)

Robert Gorham always gets what he wants. But the power of persuasion is as potent a blessing as it is a curse.

Robert is alone until a group of strangers who can do impossible things - produce flames without flint, conduct electricity with their hands, and see visions of the past - welcome him. They call themselves Unusuals, and they give Robert a new name, too: Damien.

Finally, finally he belongs. As long as he can keep his power under control.

But control is a sacrifice he might not be willing to make.

A Macmillan Audio production from Tor Teen

©2020 Lauren Shippen (P)2020 Macmillan Audio

Beat of the trilogy IMO

I LOVE the Bright Sessions world and love diving deeper with the books- and this one is my absolute favorite. I would rec even to people who haven’t listened to the pod, but if you have listened to the pod, it’s a MUST.

amazing!!

I definitely recommend this audiobook to anyone who liked The Bright Sessions. Charlie Ian did an awesome job narrating Robert and the rest of the characters, and just like his character in the podcast, I found myself fascinated by him and seeing how he ultimately became Damien. The only nit-picky thing I have with it (and this isn't on Charlie so much as production, I think) is that there are very little pauses in between switching POV so pay attention closely. Other than that, AMAZING!!

What do you want?

The book and it’s obvious tones of white straight cis male privilege is very well written. I really love Lauren’s literary voice. She takes all of the character into account. You can tell that if she was asked to write their life stories, she could, because she knows them that well. That makes them easy to fall in love with. To want more of.

As for Damien, reading through his mind left me raw, questioning my own selfish needs and reevaluating how often I allow my own “want” to be more important than anyone else’s. And that’s what a book should do, because then my wanting his redemption at the end was another question - did I want it for him or did I want it for me?

good story

I enjoyed the story. it's a slow and subtle burn and I suggest reading or listening to brights sessions first.

This is a Prequel

After the Infinite Noise, I could not wait for this one. I am not familiar with the Bright Sessions and its characters but this was pretty good. Damian or Robert's character was an emotional rollercoaster, I was split between loving him and than hating him. This Universe of the Atypicals or Unusuals interest me and enjoy Lauren Shippen's books so far. To get a better idea of who Damian is, I've been told to check out the Bright Session's podcast, which I plan on doing.