Primer

Book excerpt: Primer introduces a brand-new superhero with a colorful array of superpowers. Ashley Rayburn is an upbeat girl with a decidedly downbeat past. Her father is a known criminal who now sits in federal prison, but still casts a shadow over Ashley's life. Ashley has bounced from foster home to foster home and represents a real challenge to the social workers who try to help her-not because she's inherently bad, but because trouble always seems to find her. Ashley's latest set of (presumably short-term) foster parents are Kitch and Yuka Nolan. Like Ashley, Kitch is an artist, while Yuka is a geneticist working for a very high-level tech company that's contracted out to work for the government and the military. And it's Yuka's latest top-secret project that has her concerned. Developed for the military, it's a set of body paints that, when applied to the wearer, grant them a wide range of special powers. Fearful that this invention will be misused, Yuka sneaks the set of paints home. Ashley comes home from school one day with her new friend Luke and, thinking that the Nolans have purchased a surprise gift for her upcoming birthday, finds the set of paints. It isn't long before she realizes that she's stumbled upon something much bigger...and a lot more dangerous. Although she uses her newly discovered powers for good, it's not long before the military becomes wise to what happened to their secret weapon. And this spells big trouble not only for Ashley, but for her newfound family and friends, as well.