Kim Harrison returns to her beloved Hollows series with The Turn, the official prequel to the series that will introduce fans and readers to a whole new side of Rachel Morgan's world as they've never seen it before!
Can science save us when all else fails?
Trisk and her hated rival, Kalamack, have the same goal: save their species from extinction.
Death comes in the guise of hope when a genetically modified tomato created to feed the world combines with the government's new tactical virus, giving it an unexpected host and a mode of transport. Plague takes the world, giving the paranormal species an uncomfortable choice to stay hidden and allow humanity to die, or to show themselves in a bid to save them.
Under accusations of scientific misconduct, Trisk and Kal flee across a plague torn United States to convince leaders of the major paranormal species to save their supposedly weaker kin, but not everyone thinks humanity should be saved.
Kal surreptitiously works against her as Trisk fights the prejudices of two societies to prove that not only does humanity have something to offer, but that long-accepted beliefs against women, dark magic, and humanity itself can turn to understanding; that when people are at their worst that the best show their true strength, and that love can hold the world together as a new balance is found.
448 pages
Published February 7th 2017 by Gallery Books
Source: Publisher
Four and a half stars: An excellent trip back to the Hollows that takes you back to where it all began.
Trisk is tired of coming in behind her arch nemesis, Trenton Kalamack. Kal has cheated off her and made her life miserable all through school. Now as they prepare to graduate, Kal will likely land a terrific job with NASA and achieve everything his heart desires, while Trisk, a woman in the 1960's, will be lucky to land a job in security. Fate steps in, and Trisk, who is an elf, finds herself working undercover in a human genetics lab. It is Trisk's job to make sure the humans don't create a tactical plague that could wipe out the paranormal species, especially since elves are on the brink of extinction. Things are going well until Trisk discovers that Kal has been sent by the powers that be to check her work. Then, Kal does something despicable in hopes of ruining Trisk and saving his career. His tampering lets loose a plague transmitted by tomatoes that quickly decimates the human population. Will Trisk be able to stop the plague and prove who set it loose?
What I Liked:
- I have long been a fan of Kim Harrison's The Hollows Series, so I was thrilled to see her take us back in time to where it all began. It was so fun to see the forerunners to all of my favorite characters in The Hollows, and I enjoyed getting a better understanding of the Plague that created the world for the Hollows. This was an excellent book, and I hope there is more.
- Trisk was wonderful female protagonist. I know I am not alone in having plenty of irritations with Rachel Morgan, the heroine in The Hollows Series. Thankfully, Trisk is nothing like Rachel. She is smart, mature, sophisticated and capable. I loved watching her fight against all the prejudices and still come out on top. She is fantastic. Quen is back in this one, and I enjoyed getting to know him in his younger years. Even though I missed Jenks, I did love Orchid, a formidable pixie woman. I can't wait to see how she is related to Jenks. Al is back, and he is a bit nastier, but still Al. Daniel, a human geneticist, ended up being a favorite as well. There is also a snippet of Rachel's dad, Takata. Needless to say, I loved the characters, and I especially liked figuring out how they were related to the characters in The Hollows.
- Trenton Kalamack is quite the conundrum. He is a character I loved to hate especially because he behaves so despicably time and time again. Yet, there were moments when I thought he could possibly be likable, after all, I had a strong love hate relationship with his son. Needless to say, he is the most fascinating character in the book, and I am hoping that I will be able to further peel back his layers and see if there is some goodness in there.
- I liked that this book is set in the United States during the sixties, but instead of the space race, the Americans are focused on genetics and biowarfare. NASA isn't geared toward space exploration, instead they are all about bacterias, viruses and genetics.
- Once the plague hits, the book takes off. Civilization falls quickly. I liked that I finally had an understanding of the Plague that I had read about in the Hollows. It was great to finally see it all unfold.
- The ending was satisfactory in that it concluded most of the story lines, but it ended in way that I indicated there will be more. I can only hope that further prequel Hollows books are in the works because I want more Trisk, Daniel, Quen and Orchid.
And The Not So Much:
- I was disappointed that the relationship between Trisk and Quen wasn't explored further. I wanted to dig deeper and see beneath the facades. I thought there would be romance. I am guessing there is more.
- The book started off a bit slow. Once Trisk is established in the lab, the pace plods along as Trisk and Kal play head games with each other. I was a bit bored at this point, but thankfully, once the plague hits, things take off.
- The book left so many things unanswered. I can only hope this is because there is going to be further books in this series, I hope so because I want to see how things play out between Trisk, Kal, Daniel and Quen.
The Turn is an excellent read. I loved going back in time and seeing how the ball got rolling for the Hollows Series. It was interesting to get to know familiar characters in their younger years as well as becoming aquatinted with some new faces. It was wonderful to revisit the Hollows, and I can only hope that additional books are coming. You don't have to read the Hollows series to enjoy this one, but it is recommended as it will enhance your reading experience.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for this review.
