Supernaturals: The Rising
by
Ryan Troske
Synopsis
Ethan is just an ordinary teenage boy—infatuated with sports music and,
of course, girls. Or so he thinks. Heading home on a rainy night from an
amateur guitar gig, he finds his life turned completely upside
down—literally. His car spins and flips out of control after what he
believes to be a small animal jumps out in front of him. The horrific
accident is only the beginning of a series of mysterious and seemingly
unrelated events that will change his life forever.
After awaking in the hospital, and following an encounter with an enigmatic doctor, Ethan discovers that something that occurred during the wreck allows him to hear others' thoughts, and even more perplexing, move objects with his mind. While trying to wrap his head around this mystery, he realizes he’s not alone. There are others out there with special powers. Not long after learning of this new world, Ethan’s ever increasing lack of control places those around him at serious risk. In order to protect those he loves, he makes the difficult decision to leave and accepts an offer to attend specialized training along with other so called Supernaturals to gain command over his newfound gifts. Shortly after beginning his schooling, Ethan is sent on a mission to kidnap who he believes to be the enemy leader in a well concealed Supernaturals war. But the further he becomes embedded in this new world, the more he discovers things are not quite what they seem and doesn't know who can be trusted.
In this first installment of the Supernaturals series, Ethan discovers that super powers aren’t always so super, and is faced with difficult decisions that will not only affect his own life, but which may determine the life or death of his newfound companions and mentor.
After awaking in the hospital, and following an encounter with an enigmatic doctor, Ethan discovers that something that occurred during the wreck allows him to hear others' thoughts, and even more perplexing, move objects with his mind. While trying to wrap his head around this mystery, he realizes he’s not alone. There are others out there with special powers. Not long after learning of this new world, Ethan’s ever increasing lack of control places those around him at serious risk. In order to protect those he loves, he makes the difficult decision to leave and accepts an offer to attend specialized training along with other so called Supernaturals to gain command over his newfound gifts. Shortly after beginning his schooling, Ethan is sent on a mission to kidnap who he believes to be the enemy leader in a well concealed Supernaturals war. But the further he becomes embedded in this new world, the more he discovers things are not quite what they seem and doesn't know who can be trusted.
In this first installment of the Supernaturals series, Ethan discovers that super powers aren’t always so super, and is faced with difficult decisions that will not only affect his own life, but which may determine the life or death of his newfound companions and mentor.
Review
I had the pleasure of reading Supernaturals: The Rising early in the publication process and providing my constructive opinions. The book is now available on Amazon.com
Author Ryan Troske starts off his first novel with a good voice; that of an ordinary sixteen year old named Ethan. Throughout the story we follow Ethan through his discovery of superpowers and a secret society of "supernaturals". Though I found the meat of the story to be a bit derivative, (there's no way Troske isn't an X-men fan) each and every chapter ends on a page turner, making the book difficult to put down.
I appreciate that the "rules" Troske uses for creating super powers are well thought out and make sense. And there are a lot of them; superpowers and characters. While I really liked several characters on Ethan's different teams, there were honestly too many to keep straight and most of them got lost to me in the shuffle. The fight scenes are epicly exciting and are well paced through the book. When everything comes to a head at the end, I was entertained though I felt it went on a bit too long. The focus was so much on the fight and I would have liked to see some reactions from law enforcement, news crews, or bystanders. I felt like that would have made it all more believable.
This book felt like an epic superhero box office hit, and if that's your cup of cocoa, I suggest you get on the Supernaturals series quick.
4 stars
* * * *
