Pandora's Daughter
Iris Johansen
St. Martin's, Oct 2007, $25.95
ISBN: 9780312368043

Megan Blair always heard the voices whisper inside her head that she assumed were her friends although some of the things they told her frightened her. However, they failed to save her mom Sarah from a killer so when she became orphaned following the death of her beloved mother she shut down the voices.

A dozen years later, someone tries to kill Megan. Although she is not sure why, she believes the culprit killed her mother, who shared the rare skill of the voices with her, but hid the truth that they are both descendants of Pandora from her daughter. This unknown adversary wants Megan and all her blood relatives dead. If murdering her extended family is needed so be it as collateral damage occurs in war. Megan must reactivate the voices if she is to protect her family and herself from a brilliant maniac; even if she succeeds in tapping into the voices she muted, Megan knows the probability of failure against her anonymous enemy remains slim.

Iris Johansen will be on top of the bestsellers lists again with this exciting paranormal thriller that grips the audience from the moment Sarah tells her beloved Megan to run just before dying and never slows down until the final confrontation. The story line is fast-paced and loaded with action although a romantic subplot seems unnecessary. Fans will appreciate Megan as her "normal" life as a doctor is destroyed by a maniac whose one reason for living is killing all the potential Pandoras.

Harriet Klausner