Final Shadows - a Bishop Files Novel

I have been reading Kay Hooper's Bishop novels since 2000, when the first novels appeared in the bookstores (the "Shadow" trilogy). From the first book, I was hooked. I mean, seriously, what is there not to love about this series? A group of federal agents who happen to have psychic powers traveling the country to fight psychic killers and helping and recruiting other psychics, whether born that way or who develop powers after a traumatic incident. Most of the trilogies have been the Bishop Special Crime Unit series, but recently she has written and published a three-book series under the "Bishop Files" umbrella - basically, a series about some psychics who are not a part of Bishop's SCU team, nor are they a part of the Haven initiative; rather, they are their own group fighting a shadowy team of psychics with an unknown objective. Until now...

Final Shadows is the final book in this first Bishop Files trilogy. The main characters from the two previous books in this series (Sarah Gallagher and Tucker Mackenzie from The First Prophet, and John Brodie and Tasha Solomon from A Deadly Web) are brought together, along with Bishop and Miranda, as well as Murphy and the very interesting and very unique Pendragon (not going to spoil that one - you'll have to read it for yourself to believe it!). The time has come to bring the war to the shadow organization that has been manipulating things for years - an organization that has been kidnapping and experimenting on psychics. Men and woman around the country have been planning, and the time has finally arrived to take the fight to them.  To these - - dare I say it?

SPOILER ALERT!

SPOILER ALERT!

SPOILER ALERT!

SPOILER ALERT!

Aliens!?!?!

Yes, you read that right.  And yes, that's a huge spoiler if you haven't read the book, but quite frankly, I was thrown for a loop when the beings behind the shadow organization were revealed. For years, I've been enjoying these psychic mysteries, and while this Bishop Files trilogy is set apart from the regular SCU books, it is still in the same world and still has the connection to Bishop and his group. Thus, their entire world is now opened to the prospect that there are aliens living among them - aliens who look like people, act like people, talk like people, and who have been hard at work for decades, trying to figure out how psychic powers work so that they can create their own psychics to go back home and fight against an enemy that is destroying their home planet.

No, I am not making this up.  I wish I were.  This did not in any way feel like a logical conclusion for this trilogy, and the whole alien aspect came totally out of left field.  While I do enjoy some sci-fi series (the old Star Wars, pre-Disney; comic books; an occasional Star Trek), I much prefer more grounded reality mysteries, even those with a psychic twist. But throwing aliens into the mix for this concluding chapter just took me out of the story and kept me wondering what Hooper was thinking when she wrote this.  Heck, I can accept Pendragon much sooner than I can the whole alien abduction story.

I hope that this is the last time that any reference will be made to these aliens, and that Hooper will not be carrying over any elements from this trilogy into any of her future books.  I still have her third book in the "Dark" trilogy to read, so my fingers are crossed that maintains the regular psychic villains that have made her books work so well and be such enjoyable reads to date.

I guess after nearly 20 years, with just as many books in the series, I can't complain too much if one book out of the bunch isn't exactly up to part with the rest. And, ignoring the whole alien element, I did enjoy the interaction of the psychics, and I loved seeing Tasha and Brodie grow closer (and Brodie coming into his powers was a moment to cheer!).  The characterization in the book was definitely standard Hooper fare, so that was one saving grace for the book.

The book and the trilogy are now behind me, so time to move on to bigger and better things!

RATING:  5 screaming babies crying out in terror out of 10 for throwing a huge twist in the works, not just with the alien element, but with Pendragon as well!