Review: Ember by Carol Oates

Title: Ember
Author: Carol Oates
Publisher: Omnific Publishing
Publish Date: July 19, 2011
Genre: YA, paranomal
Pages: 256 (ebook)
Source: From publisher for review
Series: Ember #1
1. Ember
2. Iridescent (expected pub 2012)

Synopsis:
When Candra Ember wakes up in hospital after a dangerous encounter with a red-haired woman, she is shocked to discover that seeing a winged boy wasn’t her imagination. Candra is exposed to a world of rivalry and sacrifice she never knew existed, and the aftermath of a war to save humanity thousands of years ago. Soon she finds herself relentlessly stalked by Sebastian, a beautiful and arrogant Watcher Angel and romantically pursued by his darkly seductive rival, Draven. Ultimately, dubious about her own goodness, Candra’s very existence compromises a tentative peace in the city of Acheron.

From Goodreads

Anyone who tries to get between me and an angel book better be careful. I devour them like nobody’s business. As soon as I started reading Ember, I couldn’t stop. The characters drew me right in. So did all of the questions that are brought to light within the first few chapters. I had to read more to figure out what was going on and what kind of situation Candra was stuck in.

I got the feeling from the synopsis that there would be a love triangle, but not like the one I got. Candra’s relationship with Sebastian was... difficult to say the least. And what goes on between Candra and Draven... I don’t really know what to call it or say about it. It’s odd and complicated. But Sebastian is my guy for sure. It was a bit hard equating Sebastian’s thoughts and feelings. He’s not supposed to like Candra for what she is, but he’s trying to protect her. He knows he feels something more, but tries to deny it. It was so frustrating knowing that he cared about Candra, but was trying so hard to avoid his feelings. He was a jerk a lot of the time because of this. And very hot-and-cold. Sometimes it was so quick I felt like I was getting whiplash, and I know Candra felt the same way. He is a very complex character with lots of layers.

It was really interesting seeing Candra slowly learn about who she is and who Sebastian, Lofi, and Brie are. It was confusing at some points, where I felt there were gaps in the story or that I’d missed something. I actually skipped back a couple of times to see if I’d forgotten something I’d read because I was confused, but only realized that it hadn’t really been explained at all. Eventually, these gaps were closed in later or by method of deduction on my part. So I feel like there were some continuity issues that could have been better handled.

Ember is another great angel story to add to the list. I can’t seem to get enough of angel stories. Although it is comparable to some stories purely because of the angel lore, it definitely stands on its own as a strong story with great characters. Aside from the continuity issues, this is a fantastic novel that I’m super happy I got to review!

Thanks to Omnific Publishing for the ebook review copy!