Premonitions by Jamie Schultz

Title: Premonitions
Author: Jamie Schultz
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Premonitions #1 

Mass Market Paperback, 384 pages
Publication: July1, 2014 by Roc

Source: I received a review copy from the publicist in exchange for a honest review. 

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TWO MILLION DOLLARS...

It’s the kind of score Karyn Ames has always dreamed of—enough to set her crew up pretty well and, more important, enough to keep her safely stocked on a very rare, very expensive black market drug. Without it, Karyn hallucinates slices of the future until they totally overwhelm her, leaving her unable to distinguish the present from the mess of certainties and possibilities yet to come.

The client behind the heist is Enoch Sobell, a notorious crime lord with a reputation for being ruthless and exacting—and a purported practitioner of dark magic. Sobell is almost certainly condemned to Hell for a magically extended lifetime full of shady dealings. Once you’re in business with him, there’s no backing out.

Karyn and her associates are used to the supernatural and the occult, but their target is more than just the usual family heirloom or cursed necklace. It’s a piece of something larger. Something sinister.

Karyn’s crew, and even Sobell himself, are about to find out just how powerful it is… and how powerful it may yet become.

Premonitions was a pleasant surprise, part Thriller-part Urban Fantasy but way darker and grislier than I expected. I loved it all. 

The book opens on a suspenseful note as Karyn and her crew does a B&E to retrieve an artifact of supposed power for a client. Karyn and her team are notorious in retrieving/stealing. There aren’t any locks or security they can’t bypass as Karyn is some sort of oracle, Johnny dabbles in the dark arts, and Nail and Anna are the brain and brawns of the operation. Premonitions is narrated by various POVs from Karyn’s crew to crime lord Mr. Sobell to zealous cult members.The multiple third person POVs was a little confusing at first because the narrative would some time jump mid paragraph and it was hard to differeciate who was speaking but after a few chapters I got used to it. 

I really like the cast of characters. They’re not your typical UF heroines, heroes, or villain. Everyone is motivated by different reasons for being in the type of business that they’re in. I like that they’re flawed characters, aren’t apologetic (much) for their actions and basically as real as it gets. There’s also no specific bad guys or good guys in this book, which is refreshing…well there are some characters that I’d say are more shady than the other but again everyone isn’t perfect and the world they  inhabit isn’t any better.  Another great thing about this UF is that there aren’t any werewolves, vampires, fairies, or shifters lurking about. Don’t get me wrong, I love them all but it’s nice to change it up once in awhile. The book has some demons being summoned and regular folks practicing black magic. What’s Interesting about practicing black magic is that if the person is using too much, it not only eats away at one’s soul but eventually a person becomes vulnerable to possession by a demon. 

The overall characters development wasn’t as strong as I’d like since readers are getting multiple characters POV and the magic system isn’t fully explained (at least I don’t think so); but I hope with a sequel the author will divulge more into the characters and world-building. Other than that the pacing was great, a lot of actions and suspense. Again, I’d remind the readers that the author is very detailed when it comes to describing the gory bits…definitely not for those who are squeamish. Lastly, if anyone was looking for some sort of romance in this book, look elsewhere. Premonitions is all about the main plot, and introducing us to the world and characters. There is a romantic connection between Anna and another of Sobell’s contractor but its plays a very very small role in the book. 

Premonitions is a great start to a new Urban Fantasy by Schultz. I highly recommend this to UF and Horror fans. If you’re looking for a new and refreshing Urban Fantasy, definitely check out this debut! I’m already looking forward to the next book!