By Piers Anthony
Published by Dreaming Big Publications
ABOUT THE BOOK
Terminal cancer patient, Quiti, walks into an abandoned building planning on taking her life. Instead, she encounters a telepathic ball of hair that insists it is an alien seeking to facilitate diplomatic communication on Earth. Quiti assumes it is all a hallucination conjured up by her brain tumor. Because of this assumption, when she saves the alien’s life and it insists on doing Quiti a favor in return, she only asks for her hair back. She soon discovers, however, that the creature’s gift extends much further than her new locks that can change color with a thought. As her powers grow and her deadly illness goes into remission, Quiti quickly realizes that there are those that would want to use her for her abilities and is forced to leave behind everything that she knew. Will this blessing curse her to a life on the run, or does the mysterious hairball have more in store for her? Piers Anthony, critically acclaimed author of the New York Times bestselling Xanth series, brings together humor and adventure in this original story of loyalty, friendship, extraordinary powers, and hair.
Genre: Science Fiction
128 Pages
MY REVIEW
4.5 out of 5 stars
Quiti is at the end of her rope. Not one for optimism, she has accepted that no matter what, she will die within the year of cancer. In a last attempt to seize control of her fate in some way, she resolves to end her life herself, freeing herself of the pain and suffering that is sure to come. Everything changes, however, when a telepathic ball of hair asks for her help and launches her into unexpected and uncharted territory.
Hair Power, acclaimed and prolific fantasy author Piers Anthony’s most recent work, is an exciting and vastly entertaining novella. From the outset of the work, Anthony’s writing style is upfront and appealing, pulling the reader into Quiti’s world. The plot is immediately interesting and unique, continually encouraging the audience to keep reading in order to find out what happens next. One can’t help but feel for Quiti and her situation as her shock at her newfound positivity and happiness following her encounter with the hairball truly showcases the dark emotional place she was in previously. With the new hair given to her by the alien visitor, Quiti finds herself possessing newfound positivity, strength, and even intelligence, each of which in a way reveal some of Quiti’s personality given they are so different from her prior state. Parts of the plot are pretty weird, but this doesn’t diminish the value of the plot or the work. Instead, this simply increases the entertainment value of the novella.
My only issue with Hair Power is at that at times the dialogue and bits of prose can seem a bit stilted or contrived. However, this is not a big issue and doesn’t detract from the work. Overall, I really enjoyed Piers Anthony’s Hair Power. It is a wonderful and delightful addition to the abundance of works in the science fiction/fantasy genre and is sure to appeal to any reader with its enjoyable plot and characters. Personally, I plan on looking into the rest of Anthony’s impressive and imaginative corpus.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Piers Anthony is one of the world's most popular fantasy authors, and a New York Times bestseller twenty-one times over. His Xanth novels have been read and loved by millions of readers around the world, and he daily receives hundreds of letters from his devoted fans. In addition to the Xanth series, Anthony is the author of many other best-selling works. Piers Anthony lives in Inverness, Florida.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for writing a review. I was not required to write a positive review, and all opinions are my own.
https://www.amazon.com/Hair-Power-Piers-Anthony/dp/1534919147/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1468852209&sr=8-3&keywords=%22hair+power%22