09/11/2023
This paranormal adventure page-turner from Trester (A Dangerous Year) introduces the secret society of The Nine through the eyes of Blake Wilder, an 18-year-old college student who’s about to find out how important she is to every player in their political game. Blake has spent her entire life hiding and fighting against her clairvoyant ability. Now, unable to develop relationships other than her best friend and roommate, Scarlett, for fear of what she’d see in their futures, she faces a jolting revelation when she’s approached at college by Nicholas Thorne, who not only knows her secret but tells her about others with similar psychic abilities—and that they need her to join them. While several help her to try and stop—or solve—the murders she sees in both the past and future, she realizes that this assistance may come with a price.
Trester writes a believable lead in Blake, who at first follows everyone else’s lead as she discovers her new reality, but quickly and boldly elects to change things up, making it clear to all the men who want to plan for her or simply be overprotective that “I don’t need a babysitter. With those words, she begins to flip the script into a strong female lead and best friend that won’t take a backseat to anyone. That gives new power to the somewhat familiar set up of Blake meeting more people like her, learning more about their rules and the political challenges facing their leader, Nicholas’s father, and discovering that she could be the tipping point between factions.
This fresh secret world and a promising set of characters are all introduced smoothly in this first volume of a series. Readers won’t be overwhelmed by information about the different types of psychic abilities, the many engaging characters, and a budding war. Every subject is balanced perfectly, giving the reader just enough to begin to pick their favorites while anxiously awaiting book two to find out what comes next.
Takeaway: Gripping paranormal series starter whose heroine boldly flips the script.
Comparable Titles: Django Wexler’s The Forbidden Library, Tracy Deonn’s Legendborn
Production grades Cover: A Design and typography: A Illustrations: N/A Editing: A Marketing copy: A
2023-08-22
In this fantasy, a young woman with clairvoyant abilities learns about a secret society that embraces people like her.
Blake Wilder is a college student who has spent most of her school years ostracized for exhibiting weird behavior due to her ability to see people’s futures. Feeling like an outsider, Blake hopes that college means a fresh start. But a sudden shift in her powers—they are clearer and more potent than ever—leads her to save a classmate’s life. Meanwhile, an observer from out of town contacts her. He is Nicholas Thorne, who tells her she is not the only one in the world with extraordinary skills. He reveals there are nine kinds of powers and that her talent as a “voyant”—able to see the past and the future—is the rarest one of all. Her ability is so remarkable, all of the gifted individuals will vie for her attention and favor, including Nicholas’ own father, Henry, the chancellor of the powerful Nine, a secret society. This organization’s principles keep the gifted united—and hidden from the general population. Suddenly, Blake goes from thinking of herself as a nobody to being at the center of a coming war—and that’s when she starts to get visions of a murder yet to happen and understands that her talent may be used for the ultimate good. Trester’s imaginative series opener introduces the protagonist—and readers—to the captivating world of the Nine, which is filled with political alliances, intrigue, homicides, and empowered people. Eventually, Blake comes to realize her own purpose in life. The relationship between Blake and her best friend, Scarlett, shines, and the tidbits about gifted historical figures are great fun (“Your George Washington was telekinetic, you know….How else do you think a small band of farmers defeated the best-trained army on earth?”). Unfortunately, some clichéd characters and an instantaneous, underdeveloped love connection between Blake and Nicholas—a subplot that upstages the compelling main storyline—make this a bumpy read.
Murder, intrigue, and romance mix in this inventive but uneven fantasy series opener.
