Transcendent

A young woman struggles with matters of faith and destiny in the wake of a horrifying terrorist attack on American soil. Seventeen-year-old Iris Spero discovers that she is the product of an immaculate conception (her mother is Mina, from 2015’s Immaculate), and possibly the next messiah. As she reels with the idea that her family has lied to her all her life, resisting the notion that she has divine powers or purpose, Iris’s identity is leaked to the public, forcing her to hide even as the world clamors for her to prove herself and heal those wounded by the attack. But Iris lacks faith in herself, let alone a higher power, and her road to self-realization is fraught with danger and doubt. Detweiler again presents an intriguing contemporary riff on Christian themes, but her heroine’s insecurity and indecisiveness grow tedious as she repeatedly rejects friends, family, and the truth. Iris’s drawn-out path to actually do something productive and an incidental romantic subplot lessen the impact of the emotional journey and actualization at the heart of the story. Ages 14–up. Agent: Jill Grinberg, Jill Grinberg Literary Management. (Oct.)