The Firstborn by Conlan Brown

Devin Bathurst is a member of a secret society called the Firstborn. The Firstborn is divided into three groups-the Prima, the Ora, and the Domani. The Prima have the power to see certain pasts, the Ora have the power to see the truth of the present, and the Domani have the power to see certain futures. Past, present, future. Devin is a member of the Domani.

The three Firstborn groups have been separated for some time because of dissension and fights among the groups. Each group thought that they were better than the others rather than be unified in Christ.

But now the time has come for the groups to come back together, for a terrorist has threatened to attack America. Many of the Domani have for seen the tragedy and want stop it. But someone is trying to break up the groups from within by causing old scars to surface on the minds of the Firstborn. As they get distracted from their task, key people begin to die.

Conlan Brown isn't like most other debut authors on the market. For the most part, he reminds me of Robin Parrish. Brown writes well-written suspense that actually means something. The Firstborn is not mindless suspense like most other books on the market.

None of the characters are perfect. For me, that's a HUGE step in the right direction. Not only are they imperfect, but they also show personality. Good characters is a rare feat that is not achieved by most suspense authors.

The idea of the Firstborn is not a mindless superpower idea. Brown bases the source of their powers directly on a Scripture verse not many of us think of. It's very unique and believable at the same time.

Finally, ends are not usually very good in suspense. But Brown has defied the typical and has gone the opposite direction. There's no predicting the end of The Firstborn. Not many things work out right. For me, that is an excellent suspense novel.

It seemed to me like Brown left the end open ended so he can write a sequel. I believe he will, but I must advise him to be careful not the wear out the original idea or try to fix everything he didn't fix.

Brown has claimed to write high octane but thought provoking fiction. These two aspects are the foundation of truly great suspense and he has captured them both most excellently.

5 stars