There’s a trope that consists of teens discovering they have powers. This trope did great for Marvel’s X-Men back in the 1960’s, and it’s one that still gets brought out whenever there is a special boy or girl discovering they have a destiny and a decision as to what they’ll actually use their powers for. Will those powers help others or, perhaps unintentionally, harm them? That is the dilemma facing Rowan Sterling, the teen heroine of The Harrowing, written by Kristen Kiesling and illustrated by Rye Hickman.
Rowan lost her mother to very tragic circumstances, but her mother may have left the girl with a powerful legacy. Her first intimate moment with her best friend Lucas and his touching of her hand leads to her discovering that she is a Harrow, someone who can touch a person and see their future, particularly the violence they will commit. She goes to her father for help but is instead taken to a secret facility called Rosewood where she meets other Harrows who use their gifts to find potential murderers before they commit heinous crimes. She mostly enjoys her time at Rosewood, but she also discovers that something sinister is going on within Rosewood’s walls, one that might put Rowan’s love interest in danger.
Kiesling’s story focuses on Rowan’s experience not only discovering her powers but finding out secrets about her family. That focus allows the reader to see the entire story through Rowan’s eyes: experiencing the innocence of attempting to make a friendship more, discovering the frightening power that she has once she takes her gloves off, making friends at Rosewood, and discovering something shady is happening. The story might seem like a familiar one, but Rowan, being a three-dimensional and relatable character who is trying to discover who she is, keeps the story from seeming trite. Adding another layer to Kiesling’s coming-of-age tale is the moral questions it asks about predestination and the ethics of punishing someone before they commit a crime.
And speaking of Rowan’s eyes, they see a lot of death and Hickman does show the kind of violence that a Harrow might experience. What prevents this book from being thrown immediately into the adult collection is Hickman’s artistic choices. Characters look human but not overly realistic, and most of the colors are very muted grays until a splash of orange, red, or black appears on the page and immediately draws the reader’s eye. Hickman depicts death, sometimes very violent death, but the art also reduces the gore factor and leaves it more fitting for its teen audience.
The Harrowing is a good book for YA collections because of the themes of growing up and the burdens of having psychic powers. This book is an especially good fit for those teen patrons who like horror and action-adventure reads as well as those who like protagonists who are going through many of the same non-psychic trials of growing up.
The HarrowingÂ
By Kristen Kiesling
Art by Rye Hickman
Abrams, 2024
ISBN: 9781419760846
Publisher Age Rating:Â 14-18 years
NFNT Age Recommendation: Adult (18+), Older Teen (16-18), Teen (13-16)
