LitPick Review
Anna Kalinczyk is not your average arson investigator. Ever since she was a child, paranormal Lantern Anya and her salamander familiar Sparky have been followed by spirits and other beings. She has the power in inhale ghosts like a giant vacuum, but refrains from doing so unless it is absolutely necessary to revive a human being. Being a Lantern has never really affected their lifestyles-- until now. An arsonist is on the loose, dropping cryptic clues and devouring spirits, leaving the city of Detroit in flames. His motive? To awaken a fiery entity that will destroy the city and Anya. With the help of her team of Detroit ghosthunters, she embarks on a quest to stop this dangerous Lantern who uses his powers for evil from destroying all that Anya holds dear, including a man who sees her for what she truly is. To take on this task requires an immense amount of skill and power, but Anya Kalinczyk is up for the challenge to save all that she knows.
Opinion:
This book was painful to finish. If it were not for my obligation to Flamingnet, I would have chucked this book in the back of my closet after reading halfway through the novel, never to return to it. The major problem I had with this book is the terrible characterization. Anyas character is left undeveloped, and I really dont feel compelled to read more about her crime-fighting antics. The other characters have even less of a story behind them; the supporting characters are just names written on a page. The other big issue with this book is that its actually marketed for adults. There are some romantic scenes that teens really wouldnt relate to at all; theyre not like the paranormal romances teens read today. The action, or lack thereof, might be what adults like rather than what is popular in teen fiction. The final reason why this book didnt work for me is the farfetched plot. The story of magical people who eat spirits didnt really appeal to me, and it probably wont appeal to you unless you like plots that are really different from other books. I would recommend Embers to adult women who want to read about a crime-fighting woman and her endeavors with her lover and her fight against evil.
