BOOK REVEIW!

ONLINE BOOK CLUB: The Lucid Spider: A Psychic Detective Novel by Charles R. Hinckley is the third volume in the series. The first two books are Dream State and Dreaming Wide Awake. Can you imagine thinking you have a spider in your head that will eat your brain if you don’t obey its instructions? Porter Grossman implants a psychic bug called the Lucid Spider into people’s minds so that he can control them. Gus Chase is a psychic private investigator who suffered at the hands of Grossman but managed to escape. Gus works with Mill, his millionaire business partner, and Jenny Lynch, a police detective, to investigate murders linked to Grossman. As a psychic, Gus sees visions of people in danger, murder scenes, and troubled victims. He has to manage his powers so they don’t overwhelm him. He is committed to using his abilities to save innocent people and uncover serious crimes. Gus’s psychic powers and Jenny’s policing skills combine to make a formidable team. I was immediately engrossed in the book. The story is well told and draws the reader in. The details about Gus’s psychic experiences are convincing and intriguing. He is a relatable character, and his relationships with Jenny and Mill are a strong part of the story. Jenny’s down-to-earth approach contrasts well with Gus’s psychic powers. There is humor in Gus and Jenny’s conversations, which lightens the mood against the backdrop of danger and menace.

There is a lot of dialogue in the text, which is a strength of the book. The dialogue is natural, has energy, and brings the narrative to life. There is an air of mystery and intrigue in the story, and the tension is created effectively. Readers interested in compelling crime fiction with strong characters and a psychic twist would enjoy this book. I have deducted one star for the point made in the paragraph above. The rating for this book is 4 out of 5 stars.