Synopsis: 14-year-old Ion Jacobs just wants to belong to a family and feel normal. But his past is a mystery, his future is a question, and his whole life is about to change.

Tossed from one foster home to another and shadowed by his mysterious past, Ion fears he’ll never fit in — until one day, when he drops a pencil and instead of falling to the floor…it floats.

Shocked and bewildered, Ion searches deeper and discovers an undeniable truth about himself: he possesses extraordinary powers beyond his control. Healing injuries, levitating objects, and superhuman strength come as easy to him as breathing. Now Ion only has one goal: make sure no one finds out what he’s capable of.

Struggling to keep his newfound abilities a secret, Ion finds himself more isolated than ever — until he meets a mysterious stranger in the woods who seems to understand Ion better than anyone else. As tensions rise at home with his new foster family, Ion finds it harder and harder to control his powers. And when he accidentally sparks a fire that nearly destroys their home, Ion is forced to face the reality of his situation: not only is he capable of healing — he’s also capable of fatal destruction.

Anomaly is the gripping paranormal prequel to The Blood Race series by K.A. Emmons.

Review: ***Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you NetGalley and K.A. Emmons!!***

This was an enjoyable litte novella. It introduced me to the world of Ion quite well. I assume that the first book in the series picks up where this left off, with Ion trying to figure out his powers. It was nice to get a sense of the things he is able to do. Obviously he can control things with his thoughts. But it isn’t fleshed out to a great extent since I assume that is the plot of the first book.

Ion was an enjoyable narrator. He felt genuine as a 14 year old boy who has spent his entire life in the foster care system. His anger and despair at being abandoned by his parents and then shuffled from home to home was poignant. I feel like this series was written for a middle grade, early high school audience and I think that’s the right audience for it. At an age when bullying and despair at not fitting in are common, Ion would be a relatable companion.

While this novella doesn’t get too deep into the world or the characters it did interest me enough to want to check out the series. So, it did just what it was intended to do.