Tracy Krauss's Blog – September 2012 Archive (5)

Excellent story – Strong language warning

Pharmakeia by Dan Calabrese is the second book in a series about demonic forces that rock the small city of Royal Oak. In book number one, Powers and Principalities, Clay Bender is ‘gifted’ with the ability to see demons and despite the fact that he is less than enthusiastic about his new ability, he must prevent a catastrophic disaster. In Pharmakeia, we are reunited with Clay and his friends Murphy and Kyla. It is nine months since we last…

This YA novel reminded me a bit of the Marvel ‘X-Men’ series in that it’s about a group of ‘gifted’ teens who are sent to a special school to help them learn to hone their powers. The main character, Laura, suffers from terrible migraine headaches and during one of these episodes she sees a horrific vision which then comes to pass. Apparently she can predict the future and so she is sent to the school so that she can learn to control her visions and potentially avert disasters from…

Chris McCowan, a computer science professor, witnesses the brutal murder of his finance by what appears to be a terrorist group. As he tries to come to grips with his loss, he turns his back on his faith, becoming obsessed with a need to exact revenge on the perpetrators, and thus the ‘Vengeance Squad’ is born. With the help of one of his students - a wheelchair bound ex-con, and a matronly librarian who also happens to have cash and clout with various government agencies, Chris and Co. set…

Triumph Through Trial – a Story of Renewal by Theresa Franklin follows the day to day life of a seemingly happy couple on the cusp of their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. On the surface, they appear to have the ideal marriage and family, but this is far from reality. Even though they are Christians they are not necessarily happy or even satisfied with life. So what should they do? Much of the book reads like a diary of day to day living and a lot of the conflict centers around their…

Nike Chillemi has done it again in PERILOUS SHADOWS, the third book in her Sanctuary Point Series. This page turning ‘who-dunnit’ is another home-run for the self proclaimed ‘crime-fictionista’, with plenty of action, suspense, surprises, and quirky characters. The book follows the ‘leads’ of investigative reporter and broadcaster Argus Nye, whom we’ve met as an interesting, though minor, character in the first two installments of the series. This time, his talent for sniffing out a story is…