IN SEARCH OF ROHAN CHANG

When a teenage New Yorker gains amazing powers, he must decide whether to use his newfound abilities for good or for personal gain.

In 1997, Queens native Rohan Chang has a lot on his plate, between family pressure to succeed academically and work at his brother’s pharmacy, racism at school and on the street, and trying to fit in among his fellow students. If that wasn’t enough, one day he finds that he has magical superpowers that include superspeed and teleportation. However, they also come with voices in his head that have different personalities. The loudest of these calls himself Nick the Brute and wants to tempt Rohan into violence and to use his powers for self-enrichment: “When you achieve control, total control, you’ll be invincible.” This is a lot for anyone to handle, of course; all Rohan aspired to do was to impress Amayah, a devout Christian girl on whom he has a crush. To make matters worse, there’s a serial killer on the loose in New York City, and Rohan may be the only one who can stop them; this becomes even more challenging when the murderer learns his identity and seek to destroy him. As Rohan discovers new powers, he struggles to learn how to use them properly. Also, the teen must learn to trust his friends and loved ones in the face of unimaginable dangers. Over the course of this book, Lee delivers an incredibly creative superhero fantasy tale that brings together elements of various cultures, as well as aspects of history and Christianity, into an exciting adventure. The vast, ever increasing number of superpowers feels somewhat excessive at times, but Lee does well to balance this out by showing how the protagonist gradually learns how to use them effectively. Similarly, the large cast of characters makes it challenging to fully appreciate the complexities of each one individually, but the central figures—particularly Rohan and Amayah—carry the story and give it heart. Overall, it’s an entertaining narrative that’s sure to delight genre fans.

A crowded but exciting and fun story of heroes and villains.