IA: Initiate

IA: Initiate by John Darryl Winston   218 pages

IA: Initiate is a young adult novel touted to be a supernatural thriller. Taking place in a dystopian America seemingly not far into the future, IA: Initiate is the story of thirteen-year-old “Naz” Anderson. He’s lucky. He and his little sister, Meri, have been fostered by the same parents, but the urban area, the Exclave,  in which they reside seems something out of the Kurt Russell movie, Escape from New York or any of the inner cities of the country’s largest cities.

The setup for the story opens in the past, which is written in present tense. Winston does a good job with this. Then, beginning with Chapter One, the timeframe moves to the present, told in past tense. Interesting concept.

Naz does his best to keep a low profile. It’s rather difficult. His foster parents are awful. He sleepwalks. He hears voices. All that makes a great composite for a character, but that’s the extent of the supernatural powers he has. He tried to stay off the streets if at all possible for fear of the gangs. 

One day he sees some of the gang members while he and Meri are going to school. He manages to dodge them long enough to get Meri to school, but on his way to a different school, there is a confrontation. Luckily, his best and only fried, Ham, is there to help him. Ham gets stabbed, but Naz escapes. It seems as if Naz drops Ham like a hot potato. He never goes to check on him or even worries about him.

I must have missed a lot in my reading. First, I didn’t see any supernatural powers. I read on Amazon that Naz has telekinetic and telepathic abilities.  I don’t recall any, other than the hearing of voices. Then there is the IA. I thought, until I finished the book and read it on Amazon, that IA stood for International Academy. On Amazon, I learn that is one of the Exclave’s most infamous gangs, Incubus Apostles. Third, I’m assuming that the chapters were about Naz andMeri’s biological parents, but I was never sure.

There is a sequel to IA: Initiate. Hopefully, it’s better than this one. IA: Initiate. gets 2 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.