Patrick Holm kicks off BRASH FLOW: A Novella in 17 Tracks with a look at earth circa 2062. In this version of our future, the sun’s rays have become toxic to lighter-skinned humans, causing a flip in power: now, Black citizens have presumable social control, while the white people who remain must wear radiation suits, stick to their own side of town, and endure harsh treatment from police and community members alike. The world isn’t completely different, though. There are also white terrorists with a superiority complex, men who model themselves after a violently racist president whose poor leadership caused “The Flip” in the first place.

This all sounds heavy, and BRASH FLOW takes its complicated central ideas seriously, but it also finds time to have fun. The lead character, John Henry, is a dark-skinned man who ended up wearing a radiation suit, and he spends his days hunting for vintage electronics to scavenge in pursuit of becoming the next great rap star. Meanwhile, Stilletta James (perhaps the best-named fictional character ever) is already a star songstress, but she has to fight for her money with the savage, often hilarious attitude of a strong woman who knows she deserves better. While a plot that will have implications for the future of their city unfolds behind them, the two (especially Henry) listen to mood-matching songs by OutKast, Public Enemy, Wu-Tang, Biggie, and other rap mainstays, all now relics of a different world.

BRASH FLOW is chock full of big ideas, and it handles them with finesse and an appropriate level of considerate introspection. Characters discuss appropriation versus appreciation, colorism, police harassment, capitalist corruption, and the struggles of an older generation who remembers when the world had a very different racial dynamic. None of these conversations get too lofty, however: they’re all anchored in realistic emotional truth. The book flows along quickly, employing unique slang and enough organically occurring plot twists to keep readers engaged from page one to page 107. If anything, the book’s biggest shortcoming (aside from some line editing issues) is its length: BRASH FLOW is cinematic and engrossing, with enough going on to constitute at least 30 more pages, but it ends abruptly and without much reflection, almost mid-climax. The cast of characters, each one endearing or intriguing in their own way, feel as if they have more than enough personality to populate a longer, fuller version of this story.

Author Patrick Holm has a big imagination and the talent to match; despite its hasty end, BRASH FLOW is an uber-unique, heartfelt, and thoughtful entry into the dystopian genre.

~Valerie Ettenhofer for IndieReader