It's my own fault that I didn't pay enough attention to the fact that this book is the second in a series. Still, I think it works fine as a standalone. I'm not usually a fan of paranormal books where the main character steadfastly denies the existence of their powers or gifts (or, indeed, the paranormal itself!). I didn't mind it as much in The Palm Reader, though, because you can understand Jackson's reasons for denying his abilities. The book is filled with some really unsavory characters, but also some true gems. I didn't feel like the violence was gratuitous or unnecessary, same as the sex scenes. I think both fulfilled their purpose and enhanced the story. I enjoyed the book as a whole, and look forward to more from Christopher Bowron.
3 stars

I think this book is best read in the order of the series. Jackson is doing his best to deny the gifts he has, partly tied to his Native American genetics. This story is action-packed and kept me reading, but I had to skip a great many places due to graphic violence and sex scenes. Those really make me want to walk away from a book. You can put things in without going overboard. It also had a LOT of languages and those issues reduced the rating for this book in my case.

My copy came from NetGalley. This review is my own.

Thank you to netgalley I received this as an ARC. I enjoyed it very much was good solid read. Solid 3.75 Stars for me!

An interesting concept that was well written. I enjoyed this book - would read more by this author in the future.

This book was grotesque, if it had been a movie I would have shut it off. The content was lacking the substance that made the first book readable. I struggled to finish because the imagery was gory and not really my thing.

I did not read the first book, but this one is great as a stand alone. It does give enough details of the previous book to let the reader know the basics of what transpired. (I do wish I had known about the first book. I would have read it first).

I really like the book cover. It lets the reader know at first glance, that they're in for a story of a dark, evil psychological nature.

This was a fast paced psychological thriller...Hmmm …. dark, devious, demented. The characters are well developed, the location (gator and snake infested swamp of Florida) is the PERFECT setting!

Jackson Walker – Seminole Indian who was born with a “strong gift of the spirits” - which he refuses to acknowledge since his early teens. Ex-pro football player, now a lawyer on his first big case. But the case is bigger and ore deadly than anyone could have imagined.

Throw in a “Spirit Talker” (his guardian and uncle, a Seminole Shaman), add a psychic palm reader, a satanic cult, and, hmm, a Russian “organization” involved in the porn industry.

It's bound to be deadly – you'll have to read the book to see how it evolves! This was an excellent book.

Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The premise of this book was really inventive and the characters were great! I loved Jackson Walker and his struggle to resist his true self and calling. Lolita, the Palm Reader, was a colorful character that endears herself to the reader, as she struggles to steer Jackson in the right direction. Gramps was also a favorite, along with Janie. Basically this book is filled with wonderful characters and a GREAT plot. I love a good thriller and this book delivered. I have not read the first book, "The Devil in the Grass", but plan to do so. Christopher Bowron is now one of my new favorite writers. (I was given this book for my honest review, but would have gladly paid to read it.)

This book is the sequel to the authors first book , Devil in the Grass , but it can be read as a stand alone . This book is a great read, Jackson is now working for a lawyer as an investigator . He gets a case which kind of turns his stomach , when he has to find the client after he disappears . As they enter the world of taboo pornography they don't realize there is an evil man from Jackson's past. Ther head of a church of Satan setting up Jackson to become the sacrificial lamb in a black mass ritual
The story well written and the characters are so well written . Jackson Walker is a character that is very complex . He has gone through so much and has come through it . Now he is well adjusted and but there are things that he has in his past and his childhood . He is a good guy and there is more to him then meets the eye . There is a magic to him . Nathanial Walker , gramps . is a shaman and is a very pivotal part in the book . He is a tough old man who is more then just a man . They are strong men in their own rights . Jacks nemesis Mason Matye is pure evil . You can't like this man even if you tried . Now Lolita is the best character in the book , she is hilarious but also kind of spooky at the same time . The way she acts its the best some of the one liners will make you giggle .
This is a fast read, I read it in an afternoon out at the lake . The author takes us on a roller coaster ride . The book is edgy and just a little on the creepy side. There are moments in this book that you honestly think of the possibility of it actually happening in the world . The plot isn't far fetched, it can happen in todays society . So if you want a book that has mystery . intrigue. murder and mysticism . This is the book for you , just sit back and enjoy you will not be disappointed .

I did not read the first book, so I am going on this book's own merits. Jackson Walker is now a lawyer and is working at Robertson and Robertson legal firm. Jackson is informed by his grandfather that Jack’s nemesis, a Satan-worshipping Frenchman named Mason Matye, is likely free from prison and will most certainly try to fulfill his vow to end Jack’s life. Jack dosen't really believe in all the things his mother and grandfather call a 'gift'.
But, does that mean it isn't true? The writing of this book will make you think about things you may or may not believe in. I voluntarily reviewed this book from Net Galley. I found it quite entertaining.

Jackson is on the trail of a Russian ring of pornographers, thanks to a client. This client is just plain trash. He was arrested because of child pornography. This leads Jackson to the Russians. The whole time….strange things are happening. Jackson is blaming the Russians, but is it really? Could it have something to do with the Church of Satan?

I have not read the first book in this series, The Devil in the Grass.
I will go back and pick it up. If it is half as good as this one…I gotta have it.

I loved the strange characters in this book. I think Lolita and Jackson’s grandad, Nathan, are my favorite. Nathan is an Indian shaman and Lolita is a palm/ tarot card reader. Plus, there is Jackson. He is one tough lawyer. He doesn’t always play by the rules. That is what I like about him!

There are places in this story that are disjointed, especially at the beginning. I think it is the way the author introduces all the players. It takes a few chapters to actually figure out what is going on. But when you do…WOW!

Sometimes you just need a little change of pace. Well! This one is definitely a change of pace! Let me tell you, this book is evil, hypnotic and downright scary! This is not a read for every one. But, if you need a fast paced thriller…GET THIS ONE!

I love thrillers, but don't read them often. The Jackson Walker thrillers for some reason fell right up my alley at the right time.

Filled with a good amount of action, mystery, intrigue, supernatural mysticism and murder, The Palm Reader is a great Thriller to sink your teeth into.

Jackson Walker is back; fighting his demons and still ignoring his powers and the lineage he got them from.
The twists and turns were somewhat predictable, but still entertaining. I happily read through this in two nights. A great Thriller to read.

Thank you netgalley for a copy for review. I don’t usually read these kind of books but I wanted to try something different. I found this book haunting at times. It was hard for me to put down . I did enjoy this book.

This is definitely unlike any book I have read before. A man is arrested for child pornography and this takes the lawyers of this man to the strip joints. This leads to the dark side of being a stripper. All the while a woman contacts one of the lawyers and says to meet her for free for unsolicited advice. Jack also has the church of Satan after him. I am not sure why since I haven’t read the first book yet. This does keep you intrigued from the very beginning. You can usually judge a book by the first 10 chapters and this was no exception. I haven’t read the first book in this series but I definitely want to. The only complaint I have is so much switching back and forth and it can get a bit confusing. But overall this was a decent read. Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to review this. Because of this I purchased the first book in the series because I have so many questions.

This is totally my kind of book! I love supernatural themed stories and this one was low-key supernatural, but still so satisfying to read! I adored Jackson and appreciated how the author made his personal conflict interesting and without the OTT angst that most authors do now-a-days. So, thank you for that, Mr. Bowron!
I wasn't crazy about Janie, but I was able to ignore her for most of the book, meaning whenever she was on page I read through it quickly just to get past it. I don't know why...I just didn't care for her.
I have not read 'Devil In The Grass', but I will be doing so now! This was a fantastic story from start to finish!

Summary:
This is a Jackson Walker thriller. It’s a sequel to his previous outing “The Devil in the Grass”, and is set in and around the Florida Everglades, but it can be read as a stand-alone book.

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Main Characters:

Jackson Walker: The protagonist is a young Seminole Indian, former pro football player, and now lawyer-cum-detective who “is strong with the spirits”, but disavows this part of his heritage.

Mason Matye: French, and Head of a satanic sect that was destroyed by Jackson in the previous novel, now escaped and, pardon the pun, hell-bent on revenge.

Lolita: Eponymous palm reader, she aligns with Jackson to battle the satanic cult.

Janie Callaghan: forty-something cross between a PI and a lawyer, employed by Robinson, and assumes something of a maternal interest in Jackson, with whom she works to resolve this case.

Minor Characters:

Gramps: (Nathaniel Jackson) Jackson’s grandfather, a Seminole chief, who wants Jackson to come fully into his spiritual powers.

Eli: Local Russian Mafioso boss.

Peter Robinson: Jackson’s boss.

Plot:

The satanic cult leader wants revenge. Jackson killed most of his sect in the last book, (timeline 5 years previous), and had him imprisoned. Mason creatively gets himself out of the jail, and now aims to track down his nemesis, to sacrifice him in a Black Mass in order to get back into Satan’s good books (or should that be bad books??).

Meanwhile, Jackson & Janie have been called to do some preliminary preparation work, to help defend Robert Lopez. This guy is a peddler of porn, and was caught with some paedophilia on his laptop. He denies ever having it, etc., though admits he is in the porn business, and also insists he’s being framed by some local Russian criminals, who themselves are purveyors of porn and snuff films. Robinson feels there is more to this story than they are being told, however, and before agreeing to take the defence (but after getting a 10k retainer!), sends Jackson and Janie to find out more.

The two go to Aversions, the strip club owned by the Russians, to get more information, and naturally Jackson falls out with these dangerous and callous criminals, Eli the boss and Boris his enforcer.

This begins two parallel storylines, with both evil sides aiming to hurt or kill Jackson, and anyone else affected is just collateral damage.

Lopez goes on the run, and indeed there does seem to be more to him than he has let on.

Jackson is completely unaware of Matye’s lethal interest in him, and focuses solely on the Russians. He ignores the dreams he is having, as well as his grandfather’s attempts to get him to accept the powers, and the portent of the dreams.

Lolita then appears, a person who herself has visions or intuitions, yet when she intimates to Jackson that their lives will be closely interwoven and one or both may possibly die, she is rudely dismissed by Jackson. She meets his grandfather, and the two recognise and respect the power in each other.

Ultimately, after a few close calls and violent incidents, Gramps gets kidnapped. Thinking it was the Russians, Jackson and Janie attempt to spring him from the strip club, only to be proven disastrously wrong. Hooking up with Lolita, Jackson goes in search of Gramps. He begins to believe in his spiritual powers, and realises how horrible he has been to the people around him who were only trying to help.

He finds himself back on the farm where five years ago he destroyed the cult. There is a new gathering of Satanists now, there to witness the sacrifice of Jackson. These is quite a lot of action at this point, before Jackson & Mason finally face off.

What I Liked:

It’s well-paced, with the story moving faster as it climaxes.
The spiritual powers didn’t become a Deus Ex Machina that sorted out all the problems, but were merely pointers that could be followed or ignored.
Characters were well-written, if sometimes a little too predictable, but meshed well to give a strong impetus to the story.
What I Didn’t Like:

No real emotional development in the protagonist, which would be needed to grow the character.
There is some extraneous stuff at the start, while probably good for stage-setting, but doesn’t really grow the story.
Overall:

I don’t really go for this genre, as it can be formulaic, but when it works it can be amazing. This worked for me, however, as I was interested to see what would happen to this young, hot-headed yet likeable guy, whom Trouble has marked out for special attention.

I think this is a series that has great potential. It most definitely is not a YA audience (i.e. younger than sixteen), as there is a lot of violence, sexual abuse and exploitation, language and casual death.

Walker has potential to be a really strong protagonist, a champion for the minorities, an action-orientated guy, and coupled with the natural spirituality (non-religious!) angle, the focus on loyalty and importance of family, could really carve a niche for himself.

Suspenseful, fast-paced, multi-faceted, multi-layered, the plot keeps twisting right to the explosive end. It was an interesting read, with enough at the end of the book for the series to continue. I’d recommend it as an adult holiday read.

Acknowledgements:

Thanks to NetGalley and the author for a free copy of the book, in return for an honest and objective review.

What a unique and suspenseful premise, well-executed and packed with plot surprises, even for jaded readers like me. The delicious unraveling of a couple of sub-plots keeps you guessing what happens next, and I have to admit that there were a couple of curves I didn't see coming. What a great tale to read late at night with the lights off! Very recommended...

Wow! I absolutely loved this book. Even better than the first! The bestselling Devil in the Grass.

Jackson is back and still denying his Native American special gifts, despite his Grandfather’s best hopes. They are of Seminole blood and in the last book Jack took out a lot of very evil people and it’s not over yet.

Revenge is in the air...

I found the book paced up gradually (stick with these earlier chapters, trust me!) and pretty soon it was non-stop action. This is a thriller with supernatural and spiritual elements, it makes it really unique. I really liked the first book and gave it 4 big stars but this, this is even better!

Jack teams up with some great characters, working for a law firm and a case he takes on takes some crazy turns. Whilst this plot rolls out there is another fantastic plot yet again involving evil satanists. They are out for blood.

I really feel Chris has done a lot of research. His telling of satanic beliefs and rituals are so realistic but please don’t be put off. He doesn’t cross any lines to put off the squeamish. He tells the story well, using good and dark characters and my Adrenalin was seriously pumped in the latter quarter of the book!

In fact there are a few great plots all inter-weaving to big outcomes and keeping me, the reader thrilled and engaged. I was yelling at the book “Come on Jack!” - a few breathless moments whilst reading. Someone has to pick these books up for a great TV mini-series or movie. I can see it so clearly.

What did I love? Strong characters you’ll love to love or hate, different plot lines that really move along. fascinating combination of Native American, Spiritual and satanic beliefs. (I won’t give satan a capital letter). The ride to the ending and the final chapters were original, exciting and explosive.

This would appeal to many readers. I can’t box it to one genre, it’s just a really awesome novel. 5 stars from me, another one of my favourite books of 2018 so far!