Powers

Awesome. John B. Olson has topped his previous books. Having read five other novels by John, POWERS is my favorite. POWERS is the sequel of SHADE. Having read SHADE twice, I strained at my chain to get my hands on POWERS. The wait merited my vested patience. John B. Olson had broken visionary ground. Here's a snippet of the POWERS adventure: Swamp girl Mariutza (Mari) blames herself for the violent death of Gypsy grandfather Purodad. Only the prophet Jaazaniah can stand against the badness that has murdered Purodad. Mari must find Jaazaniah whom she has never met. She only knows him as portrayed in Purodad's painting. Meanwhile, full-awake dreams haunt musician Jaazaniah Rechabson (Jazz) who speculates he's been drugged. Then he finds himself at the front end of a bizarre hunt. What or who is after him and why? As he flees, the dreams continue on and off. He wonders how long it takes drugs to wear off. He finds his apartment sacked the same day he gets a letter informing him of an inheritance from his grandfather. That's quite a shock since he has thought his grandfather to have died decades earlier. Mari finds Jazz and informs him he's her prophet but he denies he's a prophet. He doesn't even believe in God. Through danger after danger, Mari and Jazz fall in love but neither knows about the other's love. Jazz's inheritance becomes an issue when finding it requires Mari's help. Jazz does not easily trust other people. He finally learns to trust Mari because of his love for her and their love becomes mutually known. Jazz comes to believe in God and fulfills his prophetic mission to win over the bad guys. Then irony spoils their romance even as they realize they'd like to get married. This killjoy irony represents a brilliant twist that I will keep secret. Read POWERS and find out whether or not Mari and Jazz will get together. I worried about them big time. Now it's your turn. I experienced uncanny identification with Jazz and understand why he fell in love with Mari. I thought it was really cool that Gypsies were presented as believing in the same God that Jews and Christians do. Why not? The Bible presents Abraham as a nomad and Gypsies are nomads. I was glad to see the main characters from SHADE function as support characters in POWERS: Hailey and Melchi. POWER's new main characters, Jazz and Mari, are fun. For thrilling five-star adventure and romance, read POWERS. Reread it, if you dare.

I loved the first book in this series, Shade, and have eagerly awaited the sequel, Powers. Olson's style is action-packed, vivid, and intense. But unlike some writers of suspense, his knack for characterization brings incredible depth to his stories. Powers did not disappoint. After a couple of literary paragraphs that plunked me right in the middle of a Louisiana swamp and convinced me it was the most beautiful place on earth, the action slammed into high gear. The story opens with Mariutza, a gypsy girl with Dorothy Gale's innocence and Catwoman's mad fighting skills. The man she's known as her grandfather is murdered by mysterious evil forces, and Mari must leave everything she knows to follow his final instructions to find the prophet Jaazaniah. If Mari is in touch with her inner Superwoman but a bit out of touch with reality, Jazz is the opposite. His harsh reality, scraping by as a musician in New Orleans, has squelched all but the instinct to survive. Until strange visions, and terrifying, hooded pursuers turn his life into a waking nightmare. Jazz and Mari's paths cross, twist together, and lead them further into danger, intrigue, and powerful attraction. I loved the way the plot expanded to become bigger than all the characters yet still dependent on their choices. I was not ready for it to end, and now I have the bittersweet pleasure of waiting for the next installment.

Powers by John B. Olson is the sequel to Shade, but you don't need to read that volume to be completely hooked by this compelling thriller. Mariutza has been raised in seclusion by her grandfather, taught to fight, to use her mental abilities to outwit the enemy, and to fear the outside world. But when he is killed by mysterious hooded figures, she flees from the swamp that has been her only home to the city of New Orleans to seek the mysterious prophet Jaazaniah. Jazz Rechabson is just trying to make enough money to make the rent playing piano at a music club when he has a vision of a man surrounded and killed by strange beings. When he comes to, he finds himself being pursued by those same beings and the emergence of strange abilities he has no idea how to control or use. The two must pair up to find out the secret that binds them both and just may hold the key to their survival. The first 50-75 pages were a bit of a rough read for me. While the action was intense, I couldn't figure out if this was our world or a world similar to ours and just what was going on. Then I relaxed and just let the story flow, and pretty soon the hours flew by, and I couldn't put it down. The reader is much like Mariutza : in a strange world, disoriented, with no grasp of the circumstances. Olson dribbles out the information in enticing tidbits that keep the pages turning. A sure-fire hit with fans of urban fantasy or the supernatural, as well as regular thrillers, this weird, astonishing read is a true treat.

Mariutza's grandfather, Purodad, and beloved teacher, Miss Caralee were murdered while Mariutza stayed helplessly hidden. Before her grandfather died in her arms, he told Mariutza what she must do. She had been kept hidden in the swamp and cared for by her grandfather, but now she was alone, and being chased by the Badness. She had to get out of the swamp and find Jaazaniah the Prophet. He was the only one that could help her now. As soon as the book arrived, I was eager to start reading. Between the cover art and the blurb on the back, it looked like a fantastic read. I was not disappointed. From the first few paragraphs, I was drawn in, and had a hard time putting it down. I loved the characters of Mari (Mariutza) and Jazz (Jaazaniah) and found myself cheering them on. This is truly a page turner full of suspense and surprises, twists and turns, and even some conspiracy thrown in. Powers was one great read!

John B Olson has done it again! Powers is a great novel. Although I knew the book was part of a series I was surprised when the two primary characters from Shade appeared, but they make it clear that the strange experiences of Mari and Jazz are part of something bigger - much bigger. And, although the plot has a satisfying conclusion, it's obvious that there will be more to discover in the next book. Besides people who are already fans of this gifted author, Powers will appeal to anyone who likes scary, mysterious books. (The Christian message is subtle, and not at all preachy-teachy.)