Review: Fun, interesting, sexy, and enjoyable
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 17, 2010
Vic Bayne is a PsyCop. A Level 5 medium, he can easily hear the dead, and often see them. Psychics are now licensed, and some have gone through training to join police departments where they're teamed up with a non-psychic to solve crimes. Vic's partner (Maurice) for the last 12 years has just retired, his new partner and friend, Lisa, was discovered to have psychic talents she never reported and was subsequently put on suspension, fellow cop Jacob Marks initiated a romantic relationship with Vic, and a string of perplexing murders is beginning to unfold. It's no wonder Vic downs anti-psychic drugs like they were tic-tacs. With all of this going on, he really doesn't need to hear the dead incessantly babbling to him about how they died.The story is told from first-person perspective and maintains a comfortable conversational tone. Vic is a fairly complex character filled with flaws. He abuses the drugs that deaden his ability (the fact they give a good buzz is icing on his cake), he's rather jaded (seeing dead people all the time will do that to you) and pessimistic, but surprisingly flexible and accepting. Small changes are evident in Vic through the course of the story as he grows romantically involved with Jacob (there are a few detailed and erotic scenes in the book, but they're not excessive in quantity). Most good novels have the characters go through a change within the pages. In serial novels (there's a series of PsyCop stories), these changes are slower since there will be many more stories following. It's subtle, but noticeable, that Vic is moved by his relationship with Jacob, and there's an impression that this is one of the first times Vic is opening himself up to committing to someone else. Vic is examined deeply in the book, but secondary characters are also given care and come off as unique individuals. While the motivation of some individuals isn't apparent in this book (like why Jacob aggressively flirts with Vic), it's only the first book in the series. Questions raised in this book are answered later in the series, which adds a great deal of depth to the characters and stories. After all, in real life, we don't always know people's motivations until later.This story is VERY enjoyable. It goes a bit beyond mere psychic abilities and enters into much deeper supernatural realms, covering the possibilities of evil entities and other creatures of the night. A serial killer has killed twice, but left no marks on the victims other than a placing a broken piece of mirror underneath the victims' eyelids. To make matters worse, eyewitness descriptions of the person accompanying the victim all vary, as if it were a different person each time.The ending is incredibly touching even when you see it coming. All in all, it's a very interesting and entertaining sexy thriller that is easily enjoyed.