"Paranormals" by Christopher Andrews

His best yet! -- 5 Stars (Originally written March 20, 2006)

If you've been following my reviews, you already know that I am a big fan of Dean R. Koontz and Christopher Andrews. Until now, Koontz has held the edge as my overall favorite with his books "Velocity" and "Intensity," with Andrews in a very solid second place with "Dream Parlor" and "Pandora's Game."

After reading "Paranormals," I might have to rethink which is my favorite.

"Paranormals" is EXCELLENT. Like Keith R.A. DeCandido did with "Spider-Man: Down These Mean Streets,"Andrews has taken the subject of super humans and elevated it to a more "meaningful" level. Sure, it's got vigilantes wearing costumes and women communicating with dogs and guys strong enough to bend steel in their bare hands and laser beams and force fields ... you get the idea.

But while all of THAT will definitely appeal to younger readers, or those young at heart (like me), Andrews deals with them on a mature level. There are explorations of what people would do if they suddenly became super human. There are villains who will kill your whole family or threaten to sell your children into slavery. There are even villains who sincerely don't WANT to be villains, but are forced to by circumstances beyond their control. A book that seems "light" on the surface has a lot more depth than you might expect.

We are introduced into this world in 5 chapters that are basically short stories, and then the four "real" main characters are introduced. As with "Pandora's Game," Andrews writes with an interesting back and forth style, weaving different story lines all together with impressive skill. Sometimes we see the same events twice, but from different points of view. Again, it gives the "simple" action sequences a surprising amount of depth.

I was very pleased to find that "Paranormals" is the first in an on going series. As with "Pandora's Game," I look forward to following these characters through further adventures. I loved this book, and I very much look forward to reading the next Christopher Andrews novel.