CATCHING ON FIRE

This quirky, paranormal adventure involves a bit of romance, a wealthy Saudi benefactor and the Earth’s survival.

In her inventive first novel, Knott posits a provocative thesis: What if the universe as we know it exists inside a larger host entity? The heroine, Rachel Shannon, has had visions since childhood. She’s never told anyone about the “glyphs,” or symbols, that mysteriously appear to her. When a chance meeting exposes her doodles of these coded symbols to another “seer,” the two embark on a search for others who can help them unravel what they believe to be a message critical to the survival of Earth. Through her anonymous website, Rachel organizes thousands of international seers to work on decoding a message that most participants believe has to do with preventing the dangers of climate change. Gradually, the group organizes the collected glyphs into a sequence, although the reader isn’t privy to how this happens. Along the way, Rachel becomes the foster parent to two sisters, one of whom is blind and has a notebook of glyphs that apparently fill in many of the blanks in the mysterious sequence. Knott’s earlier literary forays have been in the realm of “parodies of popular fiction,” and this volume sometimes reads as a humorous take on the genre, with an otherwise ordinary young woman who finds herself on a mission to save the world. Knott’s sharp comedic sense permeates her writing. Many of the questions that propel the story forward, however, are left unanswered: What entity is sending the visions? What do the glyphs say? Will the message be decoded in time to stave off impending disaster? Presumably, the anticipated sequel will finally have answers.

An imaginative tale peppered with adventurous escapades, but too many threads are left dangling.