Powers

Jacobs's (The Same Difference) semi-intense cross between a juicy high school melodrama and an experiment in teen E.S.P. gone haywire, flip-flops from scintillating to campy. Told in the alternating voices of two 17-year-olds-Gwen (the ""Watcher"") and Adrian (the receiver)-the at times heavy-handed story unfolds as the teens learn how to brandish their unwieldy psychic powers. While Gwen attempts to interpret her ""visions"" so that she can use them as story leads for the town newspaper (she's a photographer), she also grapples with her lust for Adrian and the fact that he seems to be inexplicably drawn to her overweight-and-thick-glasses-self. Conversely, the too-cool-for-school Adrian blatantly feeds off of Gwen's powers (he can read minds, thanks to her) while trying to figure out why he finds her so attractive. Clearly, the two are destined for each other, yet push each other away-the classic ""you always want what you can't have"" scheme that makes romance novels so enticing. This novel may disappoint those looking for deeper, philosophical meaning sans dramatic overtones (""If I can't have you, I don't want The Power""), but readers who are hoping for a fun, somewhat fantastical read where things don't make sense (and don't necessarily have to) will likely be titillated. Ages 12-up.