Krista (CubicleBlindness Reviews)'s Reviews > Burn Bright
Burn Bright (Night Creatures, #1)
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This book was everything I was hoping for, and more.
"Ixion exists as an antidote to the rules and conventions of other places. We believe that indulging in pleasure will make better people. Self-denial and discipline and virtue area all myths and invented to control you."
The story grabs you from page one and never lets go. No long descriptions, no chapters of back story. Just jump right in. We follow Retra as she is escaping from the island of Grave. Running through the pain of the discipline strip that has been implanted into her thigh. Barely making the boat as it pulls away from the dock. She knows nothing about Ixion, it has been hidden from her, but that is where the runaways are taken. The pirates come....searching for older runaways? The kids that are too old to go to the island of Ixion? Or, are they looking for something else?
Retra is looking for her brother who ran away before her. He went to Ixion needing to escape the contained, disciplined restrictions of Seal South on the island of Grave.
Ixion is unreachable by sunlight. It is guarded by the Ripers, it is fed and clothed by the Uthers. It is also contained by the night for the sunlight does not reach the island, ever
. "Listen well, baby bats. Burn bright, but do not stray from the paths. Remember, when you live in a place of darkness you also live with creatures of the dark."
Retra finds many new things on Ixion. She makes friends from other islands who have come to Ixion, who know more about Ixion. We learn as we go, following her every step to discover the island, and its inhabitants and it's rules.
"Everyone comes here for pleasure, even if they think they don't. Embracing it is harder for some and they go mad before they truly accept it. Most of the places they come from are founded with guilt and rules. The Ripers want us to break away from that-some wish to tear it from us while others are more subtle. "
They have to register and pick new names as they enter the island. They are stripped of their old clothes and given beds and rules. They must schedule resting times between the partying, the dancing and the music. If you don't rest you will burn out more quickly. You eat, you take your pills and you dance and then you rest. You mind the Ripers, the rules and don't stray from the paths. Your focus is to be happy, seek pleasure and try to ignore the fact that you will be removed when you become to old.
But
There is unrest on Ixion. Gangs are forming and the uneasiness between the Ripers is noticeable.
The rules are changing.
"Rules? Ixion is supposed to be free of rules, yet it seems as strict as Grave in it's own way and more....more dangerous."
Burn Bright is dark, it's creepy and it's fantastic. What a roller-coaster!
"Ixion exists as an antidote to the rules and conventions of other places. We believe that indulging in pleasure will make better people. Self-denial and discipline and virtue area all myths and invented to control you."
The story grabs you from page one and never lets go. No long descriptions, no chapters of back story. Just jump right in. We follow Retra as she is escaping from the island of Grave. Running through the pain of the discipline strip that has been implanted into her thigh. Barely making the boat as it pulls away from the dock. She knows nothing about Ixion, it has been hidden from her, but that is where the runaways are taken. The pirates come....searching for older runaways? The kids that are too old to go to the island of Ixion? Or, are they looking for something else?
Retra is looking for her brother who ran away before her. He went to Ixion needing to escape the contained, disciplined restrictions of Seal South on the island of Grave.
Ixion is unreachable by sunlight. It is guarded by the Ripers, it is fed and clothed by the Uthers. It is also contained by the night for the sunlight does not reach the island, ever
. "Listen well, baby bats. Burn bright, but do not stray from the paths. Remember, when you live in a place of darkness you also live with creatures of the dark."
Retra finds many new things on Ixion. She makes friends from other islands who have come to Ixion, who know more about Ixion. We learn as we go, following her every step to discover the island, and its inhabitants and it's rules.
"Everyone comes here for pleasure, even if they think they don't. Embracing it is harder for some and they go mad before they truly accept it. Most of the places they come from are founded with guilt and rules. The Ripers want us to break away from that-some wish to tear it from us while others are more subtle. "
They have to register and pick new names as they enter the island. They are stripped of their old clothes and given beds and rules. They must schedule resting times between the partying, the dancing and the music. If you don't rest you will burn out more quickly. You eat, you take your pills and you dance and then you rest. You mind the Ripers, the rules and don't stray from the paths. Your focus is to be happy, seek pleasure and try to ignore the fact that you will be removed when you become to old.
But
There is unrest on Ixion. Gangs are forming and the uneasiness between the Ripers is noticeable.
The rules are changing.
"Rules? Ixion is supposed to be free of rules, yet it seems as strict as Grave in it's own way and more....more dangerous."
Burn Bright is dark, it's creepy and it's fantastic. What a roller-coaster!
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Quotes Krista Liked

“In Ixion music and party are our only beliefs. Darkness is our comfort. We have few rules but they are absolute. Your endocrine systems have been altered by changes to your hypothalamus. You no longer need to sleep or see sunlight.”
― Burn Bright
― Burn Bright

“Rules? Ixion is supposed to be free of rules, yet it seems as strict as Grave in its own way and more...more dangerous.”
― Burn Bright
― Burn Bright

“Everyone comes here for pleasure. Even if they think they don't. Embracing it is harder for some and they go mad before they truly accept it. Most of the places they cme from are founded on guilt and rules. The Ripers want us to break away from that - some wish to tear it from us while others are more subtle.”
― Burn Bright
― Burn Bright

“Ixion exists as an antidote to the rules and conventions of other places. We believe that indulging in pleasure will make better people. Self-denial and discipline and virtue are all myths invented to control you.”
― Burn Bright
― Burn Bright

“Retra pressed her fingers to her thigh. The intense pain from her obedience strip had receded to a steady throb and nausea. Perhaps that was the worst it would get, now that she’d left the compound. She glanced back. No shout came. No lights followed her. The rust-mesh fence that segregated the Seal enclave from the rest of Grave rose like a grey fortress in the dark. And she’d climbed it. Pain can be dismissed. Her brother Joel had said that to her after Father had beat him one time. Retra remembered that more clearly than anything after he ran away to Ixion. It was the thing that gave her hope. She could control pain. And she could follow him. So she’d practised. Hours with her arm twisted, or something sharp pressed into her skin; practised thinking and acting, despite hurt. And now was the time. The barge would be waiting at”
― Burn Bright
― Burn Bright

“What’s Ixion? she’d asked him. He’d laid his face close to hers, whispering so their parents couldn’t hear. Imagine a place where there are no Elders. No rules. No punishment. Only music and laughter and freedom. That’s Ixion, Ret. That’s me. Soon after,”
― Burn Bright
― Burn Bright

“Welcome aboard the way to Ixion: island of ever-night, ever-youth and never-sleep. Burn bright!â€� He gave her a mock salute and disappeared along the long, shadowy deck towards the bridge, leaving her shivering over what she had done. At least the pain from her strip had ebbed, as if his icy hands had robbed it of heat. She could breathe again.”
― Burn Bright
― Burn Bright

“The obedience strip began to glow at 1492 steps, and with it came the pain. A hundred steps before the fence. Stabbing then easing, then stabbing harder. Like a branding iron sizzling skin at first touch, then easing in a rush of endorphins, only to turn into an inescapable agony as it bit deeper into the skin. Retra knew how branding felt. Seal girls and boys received theirs at puberty. The strong ones didn’t make a sound when the hot iron bit their flesh. Retra hadn’t been strong. Then.”
― Burn Bright
― Burn Bright

“Ixion music and party are our only beliefs. Darkness is our comfort. We have few rules but they are absolute. Your endocrine systems have been altered by changes to your hypothalamus. You no longer need to sleep or see sunlight.â€� More titters and cheers.”
― Burn Bright
― Burn Bright

“Why did you get involved? That’s not a Seal thing to do.â€� ‘I â€� what Brand was doing to Krista-belle â€� she was scared â€� like when the warden gave me the obedience strip.â€� ‘You had a pain strip? Fross! How did you leave the compound then?â€� Retra gave him a small, anxious smile. ‘I practised. The pain.â€� Rollo’s expression changed. His eyes widened in a kind of admiration and he enveloped her in a comforting hug. But Retra didn’t want comfort right now. She wanted to leave. As she tried to edge out his grip he held on. ‘There’s something I’m going to tell you. The real reason that I came here,â€� he said.”
― Burn Bright
― Burn Bright

“Your kind shouldn’t come here. The change is too great for Seals. Yet you have chosen it and rejected your society, so you must learn quickly or perish.”
― Burn Bright
― Burn Bright
Reading Progress
January 28, 2011
– Shelved
June 11, 2011
–
Started Reading
May 8, 2016
–
Finished Reading
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Krista
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rated it 5 stars
May 07, 2011 07:00PM

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Awesome support Kelly! keep it up :)