Breeding Evil

May 10, 2004
The race to capture a couple of mad scientists intent on breeding an army of humans with super psychic abilities propels this fast-paced but flawed first novel from Wolfe. The story starts out promising—with a speedy launch into private investigator Shelby Parker's undercover operation, prefaced by some amusing banter between her and her former handler at the FSA (Federal Security Agency)—but it quickly devolves into a series of low-intensity action sequences. Shelby is charged with casing out The Center, where Dr. Ruth Carlson and Dr. Jonah Thomas conduct their evil experiments, and rescuing two gifted psychics being held there. But handsome Harrison "Mac" McRae, an FBI psychiatrist who's working undercover at The Center, beats Shelby to the punch. Together, Shelby and Mac spirit the psychics off to a safe house, which turns out to be not so safe. Shelby has no troubles thwarting the villains, however, and she even has spare time to steam up the sheets with Mac. Although readers will admire Shelby's espionage expertise, they will quickly tire of her mulish mantra, "I work alone." Indeed, it's hard to see why Mac finds Shelby so appealing and harder still to find a basis for their happily ever after (since they only connect on a physical level). While this story may not suit romance readers, its clean prose and suspenseful buildup bode well for Wolfe's writing future.