Move over, Matrix, here comes the Underground. An explosive futuristic thriller infused
with humor and spirituality, FLASHPOINT delivers the goods. Set in a dark future where
technology has nearly usurped faith, FLASHPOINT grabs hold and launches the reader
into a mind-bending race for survival, never letting go until the final breath-taking
moments.
Already an award winning novel (Winner of the 2006 ELFIE for best sci-fi novel), Frank
Creed’s FLASHPOINT should garner more attention in the months to come. Representing
everything that’s good about fiction, FLASHPOINT draws the reader into an unfamiliar
world and makes the unexpected familiar. The technology and social structures of this
future world are explained without burdensome detail or distraction from the don’t-
stop-or-they’ll-get-you action and suspense. The characters live and breathe, fail and
succeed, stumble and triumph just the same as all of us—well, except for the part about
being bulletproof, able to run with superhuman speed, fight with superhuman reflexes,
etc.
FLASHPOINT’S author, Frank Creed, founded the Lost Genre Guild (www.lostgenreguild.
com) because of the general lack of quality speculative fiction (an umbrella term used to
identify genres dealing with supernatural, futuristic, fantastical, impossible, etc) on
Christian bookstore shelves. Classified as cyberpunk, FLASHPOINT should certainly do its
share to help fill that void. The thing I liked the least about the story: how long I’m
going to have to wait for the sequel.
Of course, it would certainly be a calamity if I didn’t tell you a little more about the
story, so here goes. FLASHPOINT follows two ostracized youths on their journey of faith.
Living in a world that has banned their very belief system, Calamity Kid and e-girl (Dave
and Jen Williams Reformed names) start their tale on the run. Peacekeepers (the bad
guys…isn’t that the way it works? The bad guys always SOUND like the good guys) have
raided and arrested their home-church. With everyone they know and love incarcerated,
Dave and Jen join the Body of Christ Underground, hoping to find the means to save
their friends and family.
Every good story has a Judas character, and FLASHPOINT is no different. I won’t give the
surprise away, but let’s just say that Calamity Kid doesn’t have all the answers all the
time…at least until he starts letting the Holy Spirit guide him. The betrayals and trickery
in FLASHPOINT make for great plot twists and build the action to insane proportions.
The science engine used (thus the CYBER aspect of cyberpunk) for FLASHPOINT rivals the
likes of the Matrix movies for both its WOW factor and originality. We end up with a
band of almost super-human heroes coupling their faith with technology (in a world
where faith seems at war with technology) and becoming weapons for God’s glory. Super
human strength, speed, intuition, cognition, perception, etc. The stupefying arsenal of
divine powers makes for an amazing ride. FLASHPOINT would make one heck of a movie!
Published by the Writer’s Café Press, FLASHPOINT will not only be available for sale this
fall, but is also currently being transformed into an RPG and graphic novel. For more
details, visit www.frankcreed.com or www.thewriterscafe.com
Review of FlashPoint, author Frank Creed
By —Daniel I Weaver
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