FreeFalling by J.L. Burrows

SYNOPSIS: Under the Dome, peace reigns ... forcefully.

One hundred and eighty years in the future, the U.S. government eradicates warfare and violence.

Serenity should feel safe, but she doesn’t.

Serenity Knowles knows two things for certain. Finishing her government assigned community service as a teacher is mandatory in order to start her adult life. And stopping those in power from reconditioning two of her favorite students will ruin her chances at a future and a life.

Everything she thought she once knew to be true, suddenly is now in question after her typically peaceful girls fight in plain view of everyone at school. The Federal Bureau of Acceptance storms in and collects them both for reconditioning—chemical brain washing. With no one to help, Serenity is driven into a wild rescue and escape plan. The girls can’t be made into shadow children, brainwashed and limited to a menial future.

All that stands between the overreaching government and her girls is Serenity’s budding faith, a furry beast companion, her modified illegal AI, and a ragtag group of men and women set against the use of cutting edge technology and genetically modified bio-weapons on citizens under the Dome. If any of them get caught, they will be reconditioned. If they don’t move fast enough, the girls will be lost. If she doesn’t become a hero, any hope of a real future will be forfeit.

In her transformation from a teacher with a broken family to a radical defector leading a team of rebels, Sere discovers America’s deadliest threat—its own government.

GENRE: Dystopian

AVAILABILITY: Amazon (ebook, paperback)

OPENING THOUGHTS: J. L. Burrows depicts a frightening world in which a deceptive peace keeps people in line at the expense of freedom of speech. Serenity Knowles may seem like an ordinary teacher trying to settle down and start a family of her own someday, but when her pseudo-peaceful world is threatened, she finds a fire deep inside. This page-turning story follows her journey to find real truth, family, and faith in a world built on false promises and the sacrifice of innocent lives.

ACTION/ADVENTURE: A majority of the book is spent on the run with Serenity as she tries to escape from the government’s false accusations against her. All Serenity wants is to save her students and find out why her neighbors were taken for reconditioning without question. The Federal Bureau of Acceptance’s (FBA) Enforcers are relentless as they track Sere down with drones, weapons, and various high-tech devices to bring her in for punishment for her non-existent crimes. If she’s caught, the reconditioning means she’ll have chemicals forced into her body to destroy brain functionality. Throughout the book’s opening, Burrows sets the scene with several students who have been returned to the classroom after the destructive punishment has been inflicted on them. It’s this dismal picture that sparks Serenity’s need to find a way to take down the government and stop the injustice. As she teams up with unlikely allies, she learns what it means to find family, and she suffers major losses as explosions, lasers, and genetically modified weapons take out the people she’s come to care about. Death is unavoidable in this all-out fight for freedom and truth.

ROMANCE: Serenity encounters an FBA agent who is sympathetic to her cause. Reluctant to trust him, but deeply attracted to him, Serenity begins to let down her guard as he proves his loyalty. She tends to notice and appreciate his muscles, embraces close-proximity situations, and comes temptingly close to kissing him on multiple occasions. Their on-the-run status doesn’t allow much time for intimacy, but the heated looks and chemistry they share grow as the book progresses.

FAITH: In this version of the world, all history books have been destroyed, including the Bible. Serenity’s grandfather was aware of the Truth of the Word and passed on snippets of scripture, an image of an eternal afterlife, and a benevolent Creator. Serenity develops the ability to trust and believe through prayer and seeking truth and hope throughout her journey. The faith threads throughout the book are based on a Christian worldview.

FINAL THOUGHTS: With hints of 1984’s “Big Brother is watching” and high-tech surveillance, Freefalling is an intriguing and suspenseful ride from start to finish. This book would be a great read if you enjoy surprises around every corner, swoony slow-burn romance, and spunky AI companions. While the violence doesn’t get too graphic, there are some intense methods of death, human experimentation/torture, a brief scene of unwanted attention, and short bursts of violence, settling this book in the GASP category. It’s a heart-pounding adventure you don’t want to miss, and it sets readers up with anticipation for an exciting new challenge to come in a future sequel.

RATED G: The Clean Fiction G rating is nothing like a movie G rating. The G in this rating stands for “GASP”, not general audiences. This rating is where the rubber meets the road. Action. Adventure. Intrigue. Suspense. Many of the books in this magazine fall under this category due to fight sequences, more descriptive romantic plots, mild language, or mature themes. By mature themes I mean subjects like: abuse, marital relationships, and unwanted physical attention. If your eyebrows are headed to your hairline, let me pause your moment of panic. The above-mentioned “mature themes” appear in these books with a light touch. This is your ACTION, then glance away type books. MOMENT, then fade to black. That is why it is labeled “GASP”.

G rating: does not mean for general audiences, includes action, adventure, intrigue, and suspense, more violence is allowed as well as mild language and mature themes

This review is featured in the Winter 2025 Edition of Clean Fiction Magazine

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