PUBLICATION DATE: SEPTEMBER 11, 2011

shes by Estevan Vega is the sequel to his earlier book, Arson. Adam, Emery and Arson have been kidnapped and are being held in the basement of a mental health facility called Sanctuary. Scientists are conducting experiments on Arson to try taming him. Emery’s parents can’t find her. Arson has been told his family is dead. Separated in this nightmare, the two try to find each other amidst the chaos.

Arson was a dark look into the outer edges of teen life. Unaccepted, this young man tries to tame his fiery super powers to find his way. I assumed Ashes would be a continuation of the same, which I was just fine with. This new story had Vega’s standard dark descriptions and creepy scenery, but Arson was only part of the story. A new character, Adam, took up many of the pages, as did the mad scientists. The plot opened up from being about one estranged superhuman boy to talking about DNA-twisted plots about taking over the world. Now I’m not opposed to taking over the world, but the whole string of stories just seems a far leap from the contained plot of the first novel. If you are going to take your reader on a journey to somewhere more grand with an infinitely larger scope, you want to lead your audience, not push them.

While Vega’s language paints graphic pictures, at times this novel felt overwritten. There seemed to be too much in the characters’ heads and not enough movable action and dialogue. Almost all of the characters had the same bleak sense of humor, which I’m guessing also belongs to the author. Very little closure to any of the relationships made the book feel untidy. A mess of description cluttered with too many loose ends. While I do appreciate an unhappy ending, this book didn’t seem to possess an ending at all, making the climax and the entire journey a little anticlimactic.

Estevan Vega is a talented wordsmith. With this book, however, his vision for where he’s taking Arson seems a bit unfocused. Unfortunately you need great grammar and a gradually unfolding, solid plot for a home-run novel.