American Magic

May 13, 2019
In Fehst’s exciting debut, the Possessors, members of a society that originated in ancient Mesopotamia, have kept alive the secrets of magic for more than 5,000 years. A renegade Possessor has been putting up videos on the dark web that teach viewers how to perform extraordinary feats of magic. Former CIA agent Ben Zolstra attends a briefing in Washington, D.C., where he sees a video of 29-year-old Eila Mack levitating a car. Government officials want Ben to find Eila so they can learn her secrets. Meanwhile, others are starting to use spells for terrorism, personal gain, and assorted criminal enterprises. After Ben locates Eila, the two end up fleeing from people who want them both dead. A clever plot point—anyone can access the magic, good guys and bad guys alike—adds to the fun. Most readers will find this thriller a refreshing change from the stock agent-on-the-run formula. Fehst, who hosted the kids’ nature show The Ultimate Guide to the Awesome, is a writer to watch.

June 15, 2019
Ex-CIA ace Ben Zolstra goes after the forces behind a dark website that poses an international threat by giving ordinary people access to superpowers. The threat is revealed online via a video clip in which Eila Mack, an Ohio woman, telekinetically levitates a car by uttering a strange set of words. Desperate to keep the spell from falling into the wrong hands, the CIA calls in Zolstra in spite of his checkered past with the agency. True to form, he defies orders and goes off on his own, all the way to Thailand, to track down the source of the so-called Merlin protocol. His backup team includes the diminutive Mack, who is increasingly entertained by her new abilities; Desdemona Heaton, a disgraced former Oxford scholar of mystical religion; and ex-military asset and computer wizard Gabriel Garcia. Zolstra has to contend not only with a bunch of bad guys, but also CIA director Bill Harris, who has it in for Zolstra and his rogue behavior. You would think that a story that flirted with Armageddon would gather some intensity, but Fehst's debut is so lightweight and frequently lighthearted, the killing of the Israeli prime minister--by an invisible assassin--is tossed off like a bad ankle sprain. Magic Goes Viral. The World Reels reads a news headline. But there is little reeling to this tale and no rocking either. For all its depictions of strange happenings, Fehst's book is lacking in storytelling magic.

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July 1, 2019

DEBUT Jack Reacher and Jack Ryan meet Harry Potter in this wild thrill-a-minute ride. A terrorist releases instructions for a deadly weapon on the Internet, with a promise of more chaos to come. The weapon is words: instructions on how to perform real magic. Telekinesis and invisibility enable some to crash mass transit, stage prison breaks, and sneak into secure government buildings. Tumult builds as it becomes unsafe to gather in society, and unsafe to stay home. The CIA discovers Eila Mack, who can use magic, and brings its best (and most reviled) agent, Ben Zolstra, out of retirement to contain the problem before it's too late. But when Ben and Eila go rogue, chasing the possibility of a solution, the CIA hunts them down as they search for answers while the world starts to burn. Throughout, the characters humanize the dilemma: the agent atoning for past missions, the alcoholic using her newfound powers for a fresh start, and the disgraced academic who turns out to have been right all along. VERDICT This urban fantasy/spy thriller employs magic as just another superweapon, and brings all of the usual suspects to bear in order to stop it, complete with secret societies, evil government officials, and rogue agents accomplishing the mission from the outside. It all makes for a heady, page-turning mix.--Marlene Harris, Reading Reality, LLC, Duluth, GA

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2019
With a title that feels deliberately chosen to evoke memories of Neil Gaiman's American Gods (although the books have little of substance in common), Fehst's first novel tells the story of a former CIA agent who's sent back into the field to investigate a potentially catastrophic threat not just to the U.S. but to the world: someone is posting videos online that tell the viewer how to do magic. Actual, real magic, like moving objects with the power of the mind or turning oneself invisible. The writing could use a little finesse: the author frequently overexplains things, as though he doesn't trust the reader to make the necessary intellectual leaps, and the prose is sometimes awkward ( During his decade with the Agency, Ben had never set foot in the building where his orders ultimately issued from ). But the story is intriguing and well developed and really quite believable, and the characters are interestingly constructed. Keep an eye on Fehst; with more experience under his belt, he could go a long way.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)