Months ago my friend told me about the final episode of Supernova had released. Firstly, I didn't have any impression because I hadn't read any of them. One day, my curiosity told me to read. Once I started, it became an addiction. So, here are the summaries.
Supernova 1 : The Knight, The Princess, and The Falling Star (2001)
Celebrating their 10th anniversary, a gay couple, Reuben and Dimas, intended to create something together. Reuben, a professor of Psychology Faculty, was obsessed with quantum physics and its link to spirituality. While Dimas, a professor in literature, was adamant to present Reuben’s wacky theories in a popular fiction format for readibility factor. Reuben gave in and they started writing a novel together.
Based on a classic fairytale Knight, Princess, and The Falling Star, they designed their story and characters.
The Knight was portrayed by a successful executive named Ferre. He had everything going on for him and was on top of his career. But, an interview he had with a reporter named Rana changed his life. Ferre fell in love with Rana who reminded him of a princess in fairy tale he once read. The problem was, Rana was already married to Arwin. Yearning for freedom and haunted by her past regrets, Rana embraced Ferre in her life. They started to have a relationship.
In another side of the story, a top model named Diva led a double life. Outside her glamorous life on catwalk, Diva was a high-class escort woman. In her eyes, everyone was also being a prostitute in some ways or another. She just consciously chose to sell her body while keeping her heart and mind uncompromised. Her clients were drawn to her honesty and sheer bluntness. Diva was dispassionate to all of them, except for a young man named Gio, whom she treated differently. For Gio, Diva was his first and only love.
Meanwhile in the cyberspace, an avatar called Supernova became the link that connected everybody. Supernova’s newsletter, The Kindergarten Of Life, was always worth to wait. Supernova’s perspective was refreshing and it became a source of answers of many, including Rana.
Her relationship with Ferre grew more challenging each day. Rana was afraid to leave her marriage. Without her knowing, Arwin found out about his wife extra marital relationship. Due to his consultation with Supernova, Arwin took an unexpected stance. Rana was taken by surprise.
Ferre was at his lowest point. His childhood trauma emerged to the surface. He needed to face a secret he’d been hiding under the rug. Ferre, the Knight, had to deal with Rana’s betrayal, the Princess. Now, would the Falling Star come to his rescue? Or destroying him to pieces just like how it ended in the fairytale?
Dimas and Reuben had to deal with another mind-boggling possibility. What if they were a part of their own plot? Who was writing who? The Supernova web would reveal the hidden reality before their eyes.
Supernova 2 : The Root (2002)
In an oldBuddhist monastery in Lawang, East Java, Master Liong had a strange premonition. A dream involving a Buddha-like baby and a Bodhi tree. The next day, he found a baby boy who was left in a box beneath a tamarind tree. The baby had a peculiar skull. Master Liong named him Bodhi and raised him as his own child.
Besides his skull was looking different from others, Bodhi was also overwhelmed by his sixth-sense ability. His life was miserable. Struggling with this condition, Bodhi decided to leave the monastery. He left Java and sailed to the island of Sumatra. But his real adventure only started when a friend handed him a ticket to Malaysia as a gift, where Bodhi met some backpackers there and was intrigued to follow them.
After arriving in Thailand, Bodhi met two people who would change his life forever. He met Kell, a tattoo artist with 617 tattoos covering his body. Kell told Bodhi how he had traveled far to Thailand just to meet him. Kell had a mission to transfer his tattoo skills to Bodhi, whom he believed would be the last person who would complete him by making the 618th tattoo. In exchange, Kell would give Bodhi an equally special tattoo, only when Bodhi was considered ready.
And there was Ishtar Summer, a seductively beautiful woman who had an interest in Bodhi for a mysterious reason. After Bodhi put a tattoo on Ishtar on behalf of her request, Bodhi and Kell knew they had to complete their exchange. Kell drew a Star Tetrahedron tattoo on Bodhi. But when his turn came to receive, Kell hesitated and left Bodhi.
Afterward, Bodhi continued his journey and ended up as a marijuana picker in the Golden Triangle. There, he decided to go back, find Kell, and finish the exchange that they had made before. Bodhi received a rather vague clue on Kell’s whereabouts and relying mostly on his intuition, Bodhi went to Cambodia, where he found himself later trapped in a mine field. Bodhi was rescued by Epona, a deminer. Bodhi’s encounter with Epona led him to reunite with Kell.
A tragedy occurred and Bodhi ended his backpacking journey. He came back to Indonesia, roaming from one city to another. Skilled as a tattoo artist, Bodhi found home in the punk community, led by the charismatic Bong who embraced Bodhi like a brother.
By accident, one night Bodhi found a document on a rented computer. A seemingly random letter addressed to someone called The Root. Somehow, Bodhi knew, the letter was meant for him. His next journey was about to begin.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the globe, Gio Alvarado arrived in Vallegrande to visit Chaska Pumachua, his friend’s mother whom Gio loved like his own family. A cheerful and festive day in Vallegrande turned gloomy when an unknown man appeared. The man gave four stones with engraved symbols to Gio. He also whispered a warning. Not long after, Gio received a bad news from his friend, Paulo, who was based in Cusco. Diva Anastasia, the love of his life had disappeared in a remote area of Rio Tambopata, Amazon. Filled with fear and questions, Gio began his search for the missing Diva.
Supernova 3: The Lightning (2004)
In a city of Bandung, Elektra Wijaya, had lost everything. Her mother had deceased since she was small, and her father’s recent death left her an orphan. Her only sister, Watti, got married and had moved to Tembagapura, Papua. Elektra was left alone with a messy, old colonial house, remnants of what used to be a service shop called Wijaya Electronic. An unsuccessful business of her father.
Elektra survived only from her piggy bank. Her choice was to sell the house. But Elektra fought to keep it. She began to look for business partners, from bakery to multilevel marketing and had no luck.
A strange and unexpected chain letter suddenly arrived at her doorstep. A school of sorcery had offered her a position as a lecturer. Elektra freaked out, but since she was so desperate to find a job, she decided to pursue the offer. Attempting to fulfill all the prerequisites for her job application, Elektra went to a shop which specialized in ritual items belonged to a woman named Sati. They immediately became friends. Meanwhile, Elektra had an incident with a psychic/healer, Ni Asih. Their encounter had opened up a talent that Elektra never knew she had. She possessed a special ability.
Instead of finding a real job, Elektra was drawn into internet addiction. Always considered an anti-social nerd, Elektra found excitement in virtual friendship. At one point, she fell ill. Sati took Elektra under her care. She even taught her breathing and meditation. When Elektra was finally back on her feet, Sati gave her a business idea. With the help of her friend, Elektra met a most sought hacker and entrepreneur, Toni a.k.a Mpret. Mpret was well respected for his golden touch in starting small internet related business.
Mpret saw great prospects within Elektra’s property. They became business partners. Mpret transformed the messy, unattended colonial house into a successful hang-out place that became the talk of the town. Elektra’s life took a drastic change. But, there was a still an unattended issue in her own body.
Elektra fell ill again, and this time she accidentally electrocuted her friends. She was forced to see Sati one more time. Gradually, Sati revealed Elektra’s potential, something Sati had known for a long time. She advised Elektra to embrace her natural talents and become a healer.
Her hidden potential didn’t stop there. Elektra later found out she could access someone’s memory. One day, Mpret’s cousin, Bong, came to her house. He asked her to help his friend, Bodhi. Bong felt something was wrong with Bodhi. Elektra agreed to help.
In Jakarta, Dimas and Reuben received an e-mail from someone named Gio Alvarado. Gio reported a missing person named Diva Anastasia. Their e-mail somehow was listed in the Diva’s emergency contact. Dimas never knew Diva nor Gio, but he was sure some interesting mystery was about to unfold.
Supernova 4 : The Particle (2012)
Zarah Amala and her little sister, Hara, were raised in Batu Luhur, a small village near the city of Bogor, West Java. Their father, Firas, was a bright professor and a renowned mycologist. He never sent Zarah to school, and instead taught her himself using unconventional methods on various subjects way beyond her age. Firas often made unpopular choices that put his relationships on tension with his family, colleagues, and the village people. Perhaps this tendency was all rooted to his obsession with a mystical place called Tuft Hill. When his wife gave birth to their third child, the baby came out severely deformed and died not long after birth. Everybody blamed Firas and his relationship with Tuft Hill. They believe the mystical hill carried a horrific curse.
One day, Firas disappeared. The only trail he left was four handwritten journals.
The last person he talked to was Zarah. Firas asked her to protect Tuft Hill from the villagers.
The absence of Firas changed the whole dynamic between Zarah and her family. Zarah was now considered a rebel and a freak, just like her father. When Zarah finally went to formal school, she kept getting herself into troubles. She finally found friendship in Kosoluchukwu, a girl from Nigeria who became her desk mate.
On her 17th birthday, Zarah received a limited edition camera. The sender was anonymous. Zarah was so certain that tracing back through the camera would help to reveal her missing father’s whereabout. Zarah eventually learned photography and spent time working in orangutan conservation in Tanjung Puting, Borneo, before she finally landed on a career opportunity in London as a nature photographer. The camera gave her the chance to travel the world.
Her new best friends, Paul and Zach, took her under their wings. In London, Zarah found her first love. She was also reunited with her old friend, Koso.
Still trying to connect the dots, Zarah met Simon Hardiman in Glastonbury. Paul found the link between Simon and Zarah’s camera. Turned out, Simon and Firas knew each other. Simon had planned to help Firas on a secret project, but they never had a chance.
With the aid of an entheogen plant, Simon did an experiment on Zarah. A shaman, Hawkeye, guided the process. Firas had always believed entheogens were the key to other dimensions.
A sad news from Indonesia interrupted their process. Zarah needed to go back home. On her way back, Zarah found a mysterious letter, addressed to someone called The Particle. Somehow she knew, the letter was meant for her.
Meanwhile, in Bandung Elektra finally met Bodhi. One brief contact and what happened was beyond their imagination. Their first encounter was the beginning of a new adventure.
Supernova 5: The Wave (2014)
Alfa Sagala never understood why he could never attend a traditional Batak ritual called gondang ceremony. A day after his 12th birthday, he finally found out. His first gondang experience brought a fearful looking entity which then haunted him from time to time. Alfa started to have nightmares every night. His nightmares were the same and always ended the same way. Alfa woke up in between life and death, nearly lost his breath due to unexplainable asphyxiation.
His life afterward also changed. Two powerful shamans, Ompu Togu Urat and Ronggur Panghutur, competing against one another. Both tried to take Alfa under their wings and made him as their apprentice. Alfa wasn’t keen to take any of their offers, yet he had to choose. Alfa took side with Ompu Togu Urat after the old man gave him two black stones which were able to stop his nightmares.
An incident involving both Ompu Togu Urat and Ronggur Panghutur finally forced Alfa’s family out of the village. They moved to Jakarta. Alfa’s father, a hardworking man who were obsessed to have his sons study Engineering, had such high hopes on Alfa.
An offer to work in the United States was turned down by Alfa’s oldest brother. Alfa took the opportunity and went to America all by himself. In a slum area in Hoboken, Alfa lived in an apartment belonged to his distant relative. In Hoboken, Alfa became best friends with Troy and Carlos, his highschool friends. They went to college together, and after graduation, Alfa started his internship in Wall Street. His brightness was unstoppable. Alfa finally had everything. Money, career, and a legal status he had fighten for. Yet, his insomnia became severely chronic. Alfa never dared to sleep more than two hours for it would lead him back to his nightmares and asphyxiation.
The three buddies moved together to New York. Alfa met a femme fatale named Ishtar who turned his life around in one night. Their encounter resulted him in the ER where he met a young doctor named Nicky Evans.
On Nicky’s recommendation, Alfa checked himself into a sleep clinic called Somniverse, led by a sleep expert, dr. Colin. With Nicky and dr. Colin’s help, Alfa learned to face his deepest fear. He found so many insights and clues in his dreamscape, including a place called Asko and a dream figure called The Falling Star. Alfa began to realize, he was a part of a bigger plan.
Alfa then went to Tibet to find a renowned dream expert, dr. Kalden Sakya. Alfa was certain that only dr. Kalden could help him to break his limit. Constant surprises awaited Alfa in Tibet. He began to discover who he really was, also the truth about the haunting entity called Si Jaga Portibi from his childhood, and the messages behind his nightmares.
Meanwhile, Troy and Carlos did some investigation on Ishtar. A clue led to a tattoo artist in Indonesia named Bodhi.
In Cusco, Gio finally ended his search and resue mission. Just when Gio thought it was over, a mysterious man who gave him four engraved stones in Vallegrande reappeared. He gave Gio a new piece of information. Turns out, Gio’s search was just about to begin. Now, he must also find people that he had never even met before.
Supernova 6: The Intelligence of Morning Dew (2016)
Pursuing a clue from a mysterious man named Amaru, Gio went to The Sacred Valley of Urubamba, Peru. To his surprise, a woman who was like a family to him, Chaska Pumachua, was sent to pick him up. Chaska introduced Gio to a shaman named Luca, also known as Smoking Sun. Luca had already prepared an Ayahuasca ceremony for Gio. During the ceremony, Gio met Madre Ayahuasca from the spirit realm who told him about his real identity and mission. In addition, Madre Ayahuasca gave a hint on a location where Gio would meet the people he was looking for: Indonesia.
Meanwhile, in Bandung Elektra changed his mind and decided to help Bodhi once again. To ensure their safety, Elektra was planning to access the realm of Asko under the supervision of her mentor, Sati. Unfortunately, Elektra fell ill after their second attempt. Bodhi felt guilty and promised not to ask for anymore help.
During Alfa’s flight from New York, his seat mate, Kell, revealed himself as one of the Infiltrants. Immediately after they landed in Jakarta, Alfa chose to go after Bodhi. But, when Alfa and Kell arrived at Elektra’s house, Bodhi and Elektra were already gone.
Knowing who Bodhi and Elektra really were, Sati tried to hold them as long as she could. With the help from Alfa and the Infiltrants, Bodhi managed to get away. Bodhi and Alfa escaped back to Elektra’s house. There, Bodhi had to face Kell and Liong altogether, two persons from his life whom he thought were already dead.
Lying helpless and weak at Sati’s house, Elektra got a visit from Simon Hardiman who flew all the way from England. Using some sort of hypnosis, Simon guided Elektra to destroy Antarabhava, the gate to the Asko realm. The destruction of Antarabhava took a toll on Alfa. His body grew weak. Liong instructed Kell to take Alfa and Bodhi to a safe house, guarded by another Infiltrant named Kas.
In Jakarta, Gio went to see Dimas and Reuben. Instead of getting more answers, they stumbled upon more questions regarding Diva and her connection to Supernova. Following Reuben’s suggestion, Dimas contacted his nephew, a brilliant hacker named Toni. Dimas asked Toni to track the real person behind Supernova. On the other hand, Gio’s sudden visit to his uncle’s house made Toni suspicious.
Toni, who had been silently working for the Infiltrant’s network, consulted his contact, Liong. But Liong’s unclear answer made Toni more agitated. Toni decided to come clean to Dimas and Reuben about his knowledge on Supernova. Toni even arranged a meeting for them to meet the person behind Supernova. In return, Toni asked to be introduced to Gio.
All the way from London, Zarah came back to her village in Batu Luhur for her grandfather’s funeral. Her presence instantly dissolved the tension in her family, including mending Zarah’s bitter relationship with her mother, Aisyah. In front of Abah’s grave, Aisyah gave Zarah the key to their old family house. Meanwhile, Gio received a phone call from his old friend, Paul Daly, who asked him to check on Zarah. Although reluctant, Gio agreed to Paul’s request.
Gio’s visit to Batu Luhur was unexpected. Nevertheless, there was an instant chemistry between Gio and Zarah. Gio offered her a hand to clean up her house. Zarah accepted his offer. Despite the obvious connection, both were hesitant to open up to one another.
In the safe house, Alfa was getting better. But the uncertainty of their situation made him impatient. Bodhi’s ability was also amplified, but it made him disoriented. After a few days, their bodies started to show some signs of mutation. They decided to leave the safe house.
From a dream, Alfa received a clue on how to optimize Bodhi’s visual ability. They went back to look for Kell and Kas. Bodhi was finally able to track down other Harbingers from Asko. Following the trace of Zarah and Gio, Bodhi and Alfa went to Tuft Hill, a forbidden place in Zarah’s village. The Harbingers were clueless about the bigger war between the Infiltrants and Sarvaras. The Harbingers have torn apart.
Without them knowing, Liong had made a strategy for Asko to have a second chance. By utilizing scattered Harbingers from a broken group, Liong managed to patch up Asko’s power. The Harbingers would have another portal to finish their mission. Nobody knew the location of this new portal except for one Harbinger. Up to that point, the Harbingers became fully aware of their real mission, how big their stakes were, and how dangerous the consequences they had to bear.
Conclusion
These books look like a puzzle, they complete each other. You can read from 6 till 1, 1 till 6, 1-3-2-5-4-6, that’s up to you. I read these from 2-3-4-1-5-6 because my friend was still reading the 1st one. Before reading these I saw many people made bad reviews. They said the story was overrated, too many unnecessary words, the plot was bored, ununderstandable scientific phrases, etc. But in my opinion, overall supernova series are one of the best series from Indonesian bookshelves. The way Dewi Dee Lestari wrote, it reminds me of how Jostein Gaarder made Sophie’s world. 15 years that the author spent writing these have been paid off, the series worth to read.
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