In week three of our magical and bureaucratic adventures into the world of Flex, the collective juggernaut of our Read Along With Katy bibliophiles stormed chapters eleven to fourteen.
That’s not a lot of chapters, and the chapters are short, but the joy of Flex is that there is always something happening. In these diminutive chapters we observed the making of scarily pure magic; watched Paul start to unpick the puzzle of who is innocent and who deserves his paper-based retribution; got upset about possibly manslaughtered squirrels; squirmed around in empathetic discomfort as somebody’s face peeled off; met an ominously bejewelled villain; and learned of the kidnapping of a questionable romantic partner.
One of the many wonderful things about Flex is Steinmetz’s ability to keep up this fast pace without events seeming forced or disbelief being unsuspended. Character progression and dynamics are never forfeited to ensure the upkeep of this speed. In fact, the pacing feels unrushed, even as the plot continues to shuttle the reader onwards at an enlivening terminal velocity. It is more that it feels everything is happening exactly when it is supposed to be happening, and that everything is happening for a reason, even if that reason is currently invisible to both the reader and to Paul.
For me, it feels as though it’s been a really long time since I’ve read a novel with such a drag race of a plot, crafted seemingly without snags or indecision. There’s something at once sleek and dirty about it, brutal without the brute force. If Flex as a story ever had to be hammered out, I’m struggling to see any dents to prove it.
Can this breakneck rapidity of narrative hold? Where can we get some awesomely villainous bedazzled teeth? And won’t somebody please think of the squirrels? Find out by reading along with us at #DirgeRAWK!
