“In Search of Rohan Chang” by Lincoln Lee

• 06/07/2023
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In Search of Rohan Chang

Lincoln Lee
Independently Publishe(2022)
ISBN: 978-1945316098
Reviewed by Leigh Kimberly Zoby for Reader Views (06/2023)

“In Search of Rohan Chang” by Lincoln Lee is an action-packed adventure based in the heart of New York City in 1997 amidst the hunt for a serial killer. Rohan, our main character, is a typical Asian-American teenager struggling to balance his school, social, and personal life, all while trying to figure out his place in the world.  Rohan is a street artist who paints graffiti murals and often finds himself running from police. One evening while trying to elude the police, Rohan begins hearing voices, gains unusual physical abilities of speed and strength, and stumbles upon a gruesome murder scene. Overwhelmed by the voices in his head and innate physical abilities, Rohan panics, questioning his sanity.  He flees the scene, unsure if the killer is still lurking nearby. 

As days pass, Rohan’s newly discovered abilities progress while the voices teeter on his consciousness of self-serving or sacrificial. After a day of testing the limits of his physical strength and teleporting abilities, Rohan finds himself exhausted and outnumbered by local gang members in a city park. Battered and bruised, Rohan goes to the local hospital, where he meets a father desperately praying for his daughter, who is battling cancer. Miraculously Rohan’s touch removes the dying child’s cancer and sets him on a new path to help as many people as possible. It is when Rohan accidentally teleports himself and his girlfriend Amayah to a slave carriage heading for a Mississippi plantation that he realizes the gravity of his powers and the current situation. It is up to Rohan to regain the strength to save himself and Amayah and travel back through time to find a serial killer before someone else dies.

“In Search of Rohan Chang” by Lincoln Lee is one of the few books I have read this year that I did not want to end. Author Lincoln Lee labeled the book as written for young adults, but I believe it would appeal to anyone over age twelve. The action is non-stop, with a plot full of twists and turns and hair-raising unexpected time jumps that keep the reader biting their nails as they turn the pages. Lee’s writing style brings vivid scenes to life through descriptive world-building and personable characters. Emotions pour off the pages as Rohan struggles with his internal battles. “In Search of Rohan Chang” has it all; suspense, mystery, big city crime, pivotal historical events, theological lessons and beliefs, and coming-of-age love interests, combined with superpowers.