Emily VonPeer hopes that she never meets the man of her dreams. For years, she's been haunted by visions of an unknown lover destined to die in her arms. When her aunt's death brings her home to her family's estate in upstate New York, she meets Nicholas Flynn, who happens to be the man from her dreams. Nicholas is an agent of Paladin, an enterprise dedicated to the study and eradication of demons, and he's seeking answers for a slew of magically-related murders tied to the VonPeer family.
Although his intentions are suspect, Emily follows Nicholas into the investigation, hoping to spare him the fate promised by her premonitions - at least, that's what she tells herself. When their exchange with a demon goes awry, Emily sustains an injury that threatens to turn her into a monster. Her transformation places her in the crosshairs of sorcerers, senators, and a seductive stranger who promises eternity.
Emily VonPeer, comes home to the family estate where her Aunt Maeve lives. Emily keeps having dreams that she meets the man of her dreams and he dies. She just can not shake the eerie feeling she gets after these dreams. Her Aunt has always been known as eccentric, some even claim she is a witch. Unexpectedly her Aunt turns up missing and is presumed dead. But Emily is not too sure of this. Strange things begin to happen.
She meets Nicholas Flynn he is an agent of Paladin, a group dedicated to the study and destruction of demons. He is sent on the mission to investigate the murder in the Von Peer Family. Emily decides to join him on this quest, knowing the risks involved, for she feels he is the man of her dreams, that keep haunting her.
She begins to learn of her powers and how to use them, but she is weak and still new to using them. As they get closer to the truth Emily is in danger and is at risk to turn into a dangerous creature. Nicholas and his friends now need to save Emily from a horrid fate and to uncover the secrets of the VonPeers.
Filled with action, witches, demons and angels The Problem with Power was an all night suspense filled page turner. Well written with great detail, I felt as if I were being pulled into Emilys' world, I could not put it down. A fantastic read from the fist page up until the very end.
Oddly enough my favorite scenes from the book are from the interaction of other characters with the house's character. She is funny, intelligent and strong willed. I really enjoyed the pull the author has to involve me in the Emily's discovery of herself. I think this book is of movie quality. I can see it playing in my head vividly. It is an easy read, yet does have elements of worldbuilding and clues left over for another book, which I would also enjoy reading. Especially if it has more of the angels storyline and/or a discovery of what Emily is growing into next.
With a rich beginning this first book for this author gives us a great start for many adventures to come. With just the right is of fantasy,romance, and mystery it's a great read. I can't wait to see where she goes next with this story with so many options left open by the first book for continuing adventures and interesting histories to tell it should be a great ride!
Emily VonPeer has always believed herself to be a powerless witch. She comes from a line of witches with considerable strength and reputation. When she finds herself having to deal with the loss of her Aunt Maeve, whose death she and her house can’t accept, she’s forced to step up as head of her household. The last of her line. She has to rely on herself and find the power within her to go forward.
As it turns out Maeve’s death is quite suspicious to The Paladin, a very powerful organization working to rid the world of demons. Maeve died with an agent and The Paladin suspects the VonPeer family is behind some very dark magic.
Nicholas Flynn is put on the case and stationed next door to the VonPeer property, putting him in very close proximity to Emily.
Let me say I’m a huge fan of dreams in books. I love when they’re a foreboding of sorts or a message for what to avoid. Agnes uses them very sparingly with Emily. And it’s just perfect. The dreams show Emily a lover who dies in her arms. When Emily meets Nicholas, she recognizes him from her dreams.
The two pair up to try to solve the mystery behind Maeve’s death and the death of the Paladin agent. Emily goes from being unsure of her own abilities to tracking down demons far more powerful than her wildest dreams. She becomes the target of a very seductive demon’s love. (That is if you can call it demon love!)
With the help of friends who turn out to be far more than the average couple Emily and Nicholas uncover demonic plots, the truth about Maeve and the Paladin Agent who died with her, Emily finds her power and Nicholas proves himself to The Paladin.
I loved the twists and turns and the world Agnes built. I fell right into the story excited and nervous for Emily. Both the hero and heroine are great characters and I loved their individual stories as well as their romance. One of my favorite characters was The House. She’s got a personality all her own, is powerful, loving, and sad for Maeve. She’s protective of Emily and peaceful at times.
Agnes has written a great story with lots going on- a little something for everyone.
I really enjoyed this read. Right from the beginning you are thrown straight into the story and straight into the action.
The storyline was engaging and the characters felt real. The author really did create a very unique and unusual story and world, however,I couldn't help feeling a little lost throughout reading the story. Like there was something vital I had missed that would explain exactly what was going on.
Unfortunately the author never fleshed out the world that she had created. Vital details were left unsaid and many things left unanswered. We never really did get much background on the characters, just short tidbits here and there and I never felt like I ever truly knew the characters and certainly never felt a much needed connection to them.
I really wanted to know more about the Paladin and how the organization was started. About Nicholas and his relationship with his mother. I wanted some more background info on the demon Malphat (although we do get a little bit) and sadly I just didn't get any of it.
I did enjoy this read though and like I mentioned above, it truly was a fun unique read and for that I will give this 3 Stars. I do hope that the next book will flesh out the world and characters a little better and give us some much needed background details so we can really get a feel for the world and the characters
This was a very interesting, well done story. It has all the twists and turns of a good suspense while adding a dose of the paranormal and romance.
Emily knows she descends from a line of witches but doesnt believe she has any power. Nicholas was born to be a demon hunter but has issues with others of his type. Emily has dreamed of Nicholas since she was little and has hoped never to meet him because her dreams never end well for him. But when he shows up on her estate one day, investigating mysterious events and disappearances including that of her aunt. She feels she has to do whatever she can to help him.
The characters both main and secondary are well developed and interesting. You want to read their stories and find out about them. Following along on their journey is fun and great to read.
My only issue with the book was at the beginning a couple times I got lost with characters and past history that I felt we should know. Either explained in this story or from a previous. However, it didnt last long and did come together in a way that made sense.
All in all it was a great book and I am looking forward to reading more from this author.
Emily VonPeer hopes her dreams never come true. In them, her lover dies in her arms and that is something she cannot bear to experience. When she meets Nicholas Flynn, she attaches herself to him in order to prevent his demise. At least that's what she tries to tell herself.
Her Aunt Maeve's death is hard to take and Emily finds herself as head of the house--a witch's house that is. The Paladin, an organization working to get rid of demons, finds Maeve's death suspicious so they send Nicholas Flynn to investigate.
Together, Emily and Nicholas work to uncover the truth about Maeve's death. They discover friends who are not what they seem and Emily grows into her powers, using them to fight off demons far stronger than herself. (Even the sexy one.)
THE PROBLEM WITH POWER kept me up until I finished it through that did not bode well for a good work day. When a book keeps me up, I know it's good.
I'm really excited about this series as this is the genre I love and THE PROBLEM WITH POWER is as good as it gets.
This is a great debut book. Perhaps because I live near a river, the landscape came to life for me. Though I do not live in NY, I imagine areas near my river that are similar to the setting of the book. The story's secondary characters are not flat -- in fact, my focal characters were not main ones but a few of the background characters.
As I was reading, I believed I knew where the storyline was going...then came the left turn, which then turned out to be not quite what it seemed. I like a story that is not predictable.
The end (not quite the end) of this book was satisfying. I cannot say more without spoilers, but I am looking forward to the sequel, and to more works by this author.