Tornado Siren

Gabridge's imaginative first novel puts a supernatural spin on twisters. Narrator Victoria Thomas researches tornadoes for the National Severe Storm Lab in Oklahoma, and, while investigating a tornado, she comes across footprints of a man and a dog that show the pair walked through it. After Victoria comes across the same pattern in a year later, she searches the Midwest for the pair and finds Ben Fulgar and his dog Kimat while chasing a tornado in Colorado. Victoria barely escapes with her life from this twister, though Ben and Kimat, standing near her, are unscathed. After Victoria learns that Ben and Kimat travel the Midwest on foot seeking out storms that might spawn tornadoes, she joins them to discover the truth behind this weather phenomenon. Scenes of Victoria's cross-country trek with the supernatural storm chasers are among the best of the book, as she teaches an innocent mystic how to ride a bicycle and how to deal with an overzealous state trooper. However, when Victoria returns home, her relationships feel flat and formulaic. Natural disaster buffs will enjoy Gabridge's paranormal take on nature's destructive powers.