cover image Second Sight

Second Sight

Beth Amos. HarperCollins Publishers, $6.5 (449pp) ISBN 978-0-06-101288-4

After having been blinded in an explosion, TV journalist Marlie Kaplan is implanted with an experimental computer chip that allows her to see an energy field (the color ranges from evil black to passionate red) that surrounds everyone and reveals their hidden emotions. When Marlie happens upon a grisly murder, she realizes that the crime could have been committed by any of the three men in her life (an antagonistic detective, a sneering ex-husband and a charming would-be governor) and is forced to rely on her extra sense to find the guilty party. Writing from inside Marlie's mind, Amos (Cold White Fury) ably shows Marlie's attitude develop from an understandable after-surgery bitchiness to the focused thoughtfulness required of a reporter. Many readers will appreciate such exposition, but it may discourage those who like their mysteries with a little less introspection. (Nov.)