Welcome to my eight-part blog series about the main themes in An Undercover Dream. You may have read my previous blog series on the themes of Atlantic Split and At Liberty To Live, so now it’s the turn of book 3 in the series. You can find the links to the previous blogs at the bottom of this blog post. There will be some crossover between the three books. This week, it’s the theme of loss, but not in the traditional sense. At least, not yet.

Warning: This blog contains spoilers.

The theme of loss is one that runs throughout the series – Luke’s loss of his home, family and old life when he goes on the run. Whilst it was a choice that he made, it’s still a massive loss for him and it’s one that he never really grieved for. Instead, he covered it up and tried to avoid confronting it for as long as possible, but it’s only in An Undercover Dream where this really comes to a head.

Because, even though the loss of his previous life is painful, what’s more painful for Luke in the short term is losing the one thing that’s covering it all up, and that is being at Riverdene. Luke loses his normality, his sense of purpose and his new home – and whilst the same thing happened back in At Liberty To Live when he had to leave New York, this time, things were different. He felt he had much more to lose because the bonds he made were stronger, he was living the kind of life he wanted to lead, he had everything he ever wanted. He was living the dream – only to have it crushed and taken away from him.

Losing all that meant that Luke had to confront his reality, who he really was. The person he’d been trying to hide from. So not only was he dealing with the immediate loss of his new life, he was finally confronting the loss of his old one too. And dealing with all that took him to rock bottom, even though he was sure he would’ve hit it earlier, sometimes the culmination of everything at once is what really puts you there.

For me, I’ve been in that position, and that’s why I’ve always found this particular set of scenes very therapeutic to write and read. You really get to feel the emotion and see all at once the devastating effect it can have. But, once you’ve reached rock bottom, the only way is up, and as a very famous writer (J.K. Rowling!) once said, it’s a great foundation to rebuild your life upon!

As for the rest of the series, loss is a theme that will get revisited in different ways. Luke’s been through a huge life change, and the effect it’s had on him will come to light, especially through his personality. Because, the Luke we now know and leave this novel with is a very different Luke to the one we started with in Atlantic Split. The Luke he used to be would never have been able to deal with what he has to deal with now. Luke’s changed and his losses have shaped him. But each one makes him stronger and more resilient and that’s something he can use to become the person he really wants to be.

I end this blog with a quote from An Undercover Dream about loss. It’s about Luke really putting his feelings on the table which is a hard thing for him to do, and it sums up exactly why his loss in An Undercover Dream has been greater than any loss he’s felt so far. 

“Out of all the things I’ve been through, this has hit me the hardest. Not because it was the most difficult thing to deal with, but because I felt I had the most to lose.” Luke Bright – An Undercover Dream

Thank you for reading this blog, and next Thursday I’ll be back with the sixth theme of An Undercover Dream, self acceptance. See you then!

Atlantic Split Theme Blog Series Links:

1. Prejudice
2. Growing Up
3. Optimism
4. Courage
5. Friendship
6. Family
7. Bullying
8. Morality

At Liberty To Live Theme Blog Series Links:

1. New Beginnings
2.  Inner Strength
3. Following Your Passion
4. Rushing in too quickly
5. Feminism
6. Self Discovery
7. Making a Difference
8. Previous Themes

An Undercover Dream Theme Blog Series Links:

1. Independence
2. Dreams
3. Love
4. Mental Health

Atlantic Split, At Liberty To Live and An Undercover Dream, the first three books in The Luke Bright Series are available to purchase NOW! The final book of the series is to be revealed.

Please follow me on my blog and 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.