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They are called Violets because of the color of the iris of their eyes. They are conduits for the souls of the dead, humanity's connection to the world beyond. Making up a small percentage of the population in the United States, Violets are licensed by the North American Afterlife Communications Corporation. Violets receive different job assignments. The lucky ones are assigned to the Visual Arts Division or to archaeology as conduits for artists, authors, sculptors, architects, musicians. Being a conduit allows the deceased to complete their work or even start a new project. Other Violets work with law enforcement as conduits for souls who have been murdered and are looking for justice. The stage is set when the reader first meets Natalie Lindstrom, licensed Violet as she appears in a court room to testify in a murder case. She is described as a pale young woman with a shaved head wearing clothes at least a size too large for her. Her head is shaved and is tattooed in several areas. Natalie is attached to a SoulScan -- a sophisticated electroencephalograph that will detect the presence of the victim's soul as it merges with Natalie. The testimony of the deceased begins. After Natalie's court appearance she is met by Special Agent Dan Atwater, FBI Special Support Unit. The FBI needs Natalie's help. Someone is killing Violets. Before Atwater can give Natalie any details, she tells him that she knows why he is there and that she knows the details. Her friends, the killed Violets, have knocked and warned her to be careful. In order to function outside the court room, Natalie must wear a disguise -- contact lenses to cover her violet eyes and wigs. Stephen Woodworth was a first-place winner in the Writers of the Future Contest. He has written and published speculative fiction for a decade and THROUGH VIOLET EYES is his first novel. This novel will not win any literary awards. I'd call this novel a hardboiled, speculative fiction whodunit. The deaths of the Violets are detailed and violent. While his ideas are chillingly good, the characterizations in some cases are left incomplete. Which is too bad as the novel is filled with eccentric characters and this reader likes eccentric. The writing is spare. However, the whodunit is well plotted with red herrings galore. THROUGH VIOLET EYES would make a good movie and perhaps that is what bothered me about Woodworth's writing style -- it was too much like a screenplay. Woodworth's second novel WITH RED HANDS also features Natalie Lindstrom. While THROUGH VIOLET EYES has its problems, I'll give Woodworth's next novel a try just to see where his ideas have taken him and if he has grown as an author.
Reviewed by Lane Wright, November 2004
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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