The Catalyst
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
Eighteen years ago, a dimensional break ripped open the sky, drawing humans into an ancient conflict. Otherworldly souls rained down and fused with those of people, dividing the population into the green-eyed, magical Gifted and the dark-eyed, nonmagical Ashkind. A devastating war followed, and the Gifted have managed a fragile peace ever since, largely through a brutal law enforcement organization known as the Department. Fifteen-year-old Rose’s father, David, has a leading role in the Department. Rose and David are Gifted, but they are also something else — something terrible. Their lives depend on keeping it secret. But when a mysterious murder threatens to tear Rose’s world apart, forcing long-buried secrets into the open, her loyalties are put to the test. How much does Rose really know about her father’s past? How far is the Department willing to go to maintain order? And, when the time comes, who will Rose choose to protect?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
It's been 18 years since the Veilbreak project went wrong, shorting out electronic devices across the globe, letting in something from another world that changed people in frightening ways, and leading to the brutal First War of Angels, during which the magical "Gifted" defeated the magic-less "Ashkind." Fifteen-year-old Rose Elmsworth is a Gifted who works with her adoptive father, David, at the Department, this London's version of a law enforcement agency. Rose and David are also "Hybrids" that face a monstrous transformation every six weeks, a secret they hold close. The murder of a Department operative leads Rose to a man named Loren Arkwood and into a conspiracy with far-reaching implications. Coggan's convoluted debut has an intriguing premise and calls to mind contemporary paranormal series like Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy, but the story is so front-loaded with information about the different factions and their sub-classifications that readers may be hard pressed to keep up. Double-crosses abound, but are fairly easy to see coming, and although Rose is competent and quick-witted, she isn't the most engaging of heroines. Ages 14 up.
