Welcome to my eight-part blog series about the main themes in At Liberty To Live. You may have read my previous blog series on the themes of Atlantic Split, so now it’s the turn of book 2. Find the links to the previous blogs at the bottom of this blog post. There will be some crossover between the two books, which is why my final theme blog of this series is about the old themes from Atlantic Split that still relate to At Liberty To Live! Warning: This blog contains spoilers.
The theme of prejudice still runs through At Liberty To Live, but in a different kind of way. Whilst Luke’s still to an extent fighting to change peoples’ views about the Atlantic Split, different kinds of prejudice emerge. Especially around the people he meets, such as Linda’s prejudicial views on him and on men as a gender. However, Luke doesn’t discriminate, and all prejudice is just as important to him as the own kind he’s fighting against, so he’s desperate to change her views, although it certainly becomes an issue between them.
In At Liberty To Live, this is a massive theme. From where we start off in chapter 1, to where Luke ends up at the end of the book, the growth of his character and his self is massive. As I mentioned in previous blogs, this is the book where Luke Bright becomes a man. He becomes an individual, and though he’s not quite grown up fully, he’s the wisest he’s been so far, and also the most confident. The comparison is striking.
This is a theme that doesn’t necessarily reflect as much within At Liberty To Live as it did with Atlantic Split, but it does present itself in a different way. In At Liberty To Live, Luke’s optimism does start to waver, especially around the times where he’s really missing his family. However, pushing himself into new situations and helping others is the way he aims to regain it. By focussing on what he can do rather than what he can’t. There’s no changing the fact that Luke Bright is still deep down an optimist and he still has hope for a better world. After all, looking on the Bright side is in his name.
I feel this theme is quite similar to blog 2, inner strength (see below). However, it’s less about the internal strength and battles faced, and more about bravery as a whole. Luke is incredibly brave to venture to a new place and take on an adventure that leaves him completely isolated from his family and his home. He’s brave every day that he lives a new life and doesn’t let his past hold him back. He’s brave because at nineteen year’s old, his world has been turned upside down, but yet he just keeps developing and growing stronger. He’s selfless – even though he’s got a huge amount going on in his own life, he’s putting it to one side to help and improve the lives of others. That’s real courage.
I love the theme of friendship and especially in the first part of At Liberty To Live, there are some fantastic scenes between our trio. It’s such a strong adventure sequence and it’s made by the fact that the three main characters have such good chemistry. For someone like Luke who’s never known friendship like this, it’s the best substitute for the family he had to leave behind. His friendships between the people he meets at Donatello’s too become very significant over time, especially with Tom Shore who becomes one of his closest friends. At last, Luke has the opportunity to make real friends, and that’s probably because he’s finally got the self-esteem he never had before in his old life. He is worth something, and he deserves to have friends too.
Luke’s family are sadly just memories in At Liberty To Live which is extremely painful for Luke, especially as his life goes on without them. However, the theme of family still runs through the book and it’s one of the biggest themes of the lot. Firstly, with James who is driven to get back to his family whilst the trio are on the run. When he is reunited with them, it’s clear how much they all need each other and how important being a father is to him. For Steve, who’s parents are no longer around, only has faded photographs to look at to remind him of them. However, Luke makes Steve take the biggest step forward to putting his memories at rest in At Liberty To Live, because Luke knows how important family is, which is why he wants to do his best to give his friends the best possible chance of sorting things out with their own. Finally, the Shore family. It’s a complicated one, and as Donatello’s is a family business, the drama that ensues is much worse than if they had been unrelated. Luke’s stuck right in the middle of this family’s drama, and soon he makes them realise that actually, sometimes water is thicker than blood after all.
The book starts off with an intense chapter with a huge focus on this theme. Once again, Marco Brown is right in the centre of Luke’s perils, but he knows that standing up to him is the only way he’s going to move forward with his life. From then, he decides to stand up to any bullies he meets along the way, and soon he comes across another in the form of Jack Shore. However, it’s not just him that needs to stand up to bullies. With others close to him feeling the influence of Jack, it’s time for Luke to spread his views and experiences with them. He knows he can stand up for himself now, and he wants other people to be able to do the same. It’s a really significant parallel between Atlantic Split and At Liberty To Live and it’s one that really brings Luke’s growth to light.
Finally, the theme of morality. It was the most important theme of Atlantic Split, and it’s still very significant in At Liberty To Live too. Luke’s morality is something that is ingrained into who he is, and that’s what makes him grow as a person and it’s what underpins a lot of themes within the books. He knows that prejudice is wrong, so he challenges the people he meets who are prejudiced. He knows that bullying is wrong, so he stands up to them. He knows that people deserve to be happy and follow their passions, so he encourages them to do just that. Luke’s morals are so strong and it’s a big part of his character that he can stick to them. It makes him who he is, and helps him grow into who he wants to be.
So, that’s the end of the At Liberty To Live theme blog series! I hope you enjoyed reading them and have a better idea of what underpins these stories. These 15 themes from both Atlantic Split and At Liberty To Live will carry on into book 3 and 4, so stay tuned for when the next series comes out! Keep your fingers crossed that it’ll be in 2019!
You can find the previous blogs in the At Liberty To Live blog series below:
Blog 1 – New Beginnings
Blog 2 – Inner Strength
Blog 3 – Following Your Passion
Blog 4 – Rushing in too quickly
Blog 5 – Feminism
Blog 6 – Self Discovery
Blog 7 – Making a Difference
Thank you for reading this blog series! Now we’re here in the festive season, and the year is coming to a close, I want to wish everyone a very happy Christmas and New Year. I’ll be back with a special New Year’s Eve blog post on Monday, my usual 1st of the month blog on New Year’s Day and then it’s back to business next Thursday! See you then!
Atlantic Split and At Liberty To Live, the first and second books in The Luke Bright Series are available to purchase NOW! Please follow me on my blog and my social media links below, and use the links on my website to purchase a copy of each if you have not done so. Don’t forget to leave a review! Thank you once again for taking the time to read this blog post.
N.A.K.
Neil A. King 
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