Joanna Archer returns in City of Souls: The Fourth Sign of the Zodiac. In the last
book, Joanna had given part of her chi to Jasmine Chen, the changeling who wrote the manuals
for the Light. She no longer wrote them, because she refused to turn things over to her sister,
Li. Instead, Jasmine wished her powers to grow. She wanted to be one of the immortal agents who
fought for the Light. But Joanna was already chosen for that sign. Unless she died, that sign
would be filled forever.
Meanwhile, Li languished with an undiagnosable malady that was draining her strength. She
would die soon unless Joanna figured out a way to fix Jasmine so that she would grow older and
grow up, instead of living the rest of her life as a thirteen-year-old girl. The answer,
according to Warren, lay with a man named Jaden Jacks. He was a former Light agent who had
accidentally killed his changeling. As a result, Joanna wondered how he had tried to fix his
changeling, how he had repaired the child, or if he had killed him as it was rumored. According
to Warren, Jacks was in a place called Midheaven, a place Warren had formerly sworn did not exist.
City of Souls is a nonstop action story, the ending of which is not visible until
you get there. The characters are human in some ways, but not in all. As in any story
concerning the paranormal, there’s a lot of magic involved. The battle between good and evil
is never-ending. This time though, Joanna must correct the imbalance that places evil in the
driver’s seat. The four novels in the "Zodiac" series are well worth reading. This winter will
be a good time to snuggle in with a stack of good books. Pick up all four and enjoy a winter’s
ride.