Firestorm is another spinoff of the Eve Duncan series. Various characters have been introduced to have special psychic powers in other Iris Johansen books.
In Firestorm, Kerry Murphy is able to detect fires. She hides her ability by being an arson investigator with an "amazing" arson dog. Kerry "discovered" her ability after she woke up from a two year coma that was a result of being hit by an unknown man at the scene of a house fire that killed her mother. She continues to have nightmares about that night but is never able to "see" the man's face.
Brad Silver is a controller who knows her secret and needs her help. He, under the orders of the President, is after a pyromaniac. However, Brad also has a personal agenda. This pyromaniac, James Trask, is also responsible for the death of his brother, a US Senator, and his sister in law. Brad witnessed them being burned alive.
The US government needs to locate the unstable Trask. Trask had been in charge of a secret scientific project funded by the government. When the funding was pulled and the project terminated, Trask began targeting his enemies, those behind the end of his pet project.
Brad draws Kerry in to help to find Trask before he kills more people. As a controller, Brad is able to help Kerry with her nightmares and along the way, also teaches Kerry how to manipulate minds.
However in the meanwhile, Trask gets personal and targets Kerry's brother and his pregnant wife. Kerry's brother is burned and her sister in law loses her baby.
Not only does this not scare off Kerry, it motivates her even more to go after Trask. When Trask kidnaps Kerry's brother and father as an attempt to bring her to him, Kerry is ready for him. Kerry is able to use mind control to manipulate Trask into position so that Brad could take him out.
Kerry also learns the extent of her father's love for her brother when her father was willing to give up his life and hers for her brother. She had always known that her brother was the favored child and that there was a lack of a father daughter relationship. She did not begrudge her brother because she loved her brother as well.
Kerry finally gets a breakthrough and realizes that the unknown man and cause of the fire that killed her mother was her brother. Her father knew the fact and covered the fact. Knowing something was wrong her brother, her father spent his life trying to make it up by being a better father to him. Unfortunately, he did not have enough love to go around.
I have a little bit of trouble with the direction that Iris Johansen has taken this series. I think the main reason is that the Eve Duncan series starts out without any of these paranormal abilities. So I think I have difficulty transitioning from a normal forensic storyline to a paranormal one. Once I get past it, I begin to enjoy the story. I really enjoy the Iris Johansen books. I have to admit at first it did take a little bit getting used to the idea that Iris Johansen the romance writer was also a wonderful suspense writer.
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