The Fate of Flames (the Effigies #1)

by Sarah Raughley

Summary from Netgalley

Four girls with the power to control the elements and save the world from a terrible evil must come together in the first epic novel in a brand-new series.
When Phantoms—massive beasts made from nightmares and darkness—suddenly appeared and began terrorizing the world, four girls, the Effigies, each gained a unique power to control one of the classical elements: earth, air, fire, and water. Since then, four girls across the world have continually fought against the Phantoms, fulfilling their cosmic duty. And when one Effigy dies, another girl gains her power as a replacement.
But now, with technologies in place to protect the world’s major cities from Phantom attacks, the Effigies have stopped defending humanity and, instead, have become international celebrities, with their heroic feats ranked, televised, and talked about in online fandoms.
Until the day that New York City’s protection against the Phantoms fails, a man seems to be able to control them by sheer force of will, and Maia, a high school student, unexpectedly becomes the Fire Effigy.
Now Maia has been thrown into battle with three girls who want nothing to do with one another. But with the first human villain that the girls have ever faced, and an army of Phantoms preparing for attack, there isn’t much time for the Effigies to learn how to work together.
Can the girls take control of their destinies before the world is destroyed forever?

Confession:

Sarah Raughley has created a really interesting world here.  It is very much like our own, with the same history and technology, except for the phantoms. These are some truly creepy creatures. They appear to be a cross between something mythical and something from the underworld, like a demon. They helped shape this world and how it functions.  They are also the reason the Effigies exist.  There have been many Effigies since the phantoms first showed up.  Some have been great some have been indifferent, but they all had one thing in common, none of them asked to become an Effigy. Maia is the newest Effigy, and she controls the element of fire.  Maia is a great character, with many conflicts and insights in to who the Effigies are and who they could be.  She really wants the other girls to like her and work with her, but she sees their flaws and understands them. I like the other girls as well. They are all great characters with their own issues and flaws.  They can all admit how scared they are of what they are and their powers, but they hold it together to get the job done.  The action sequences are well done as well, and helped to keep the book moving.  The writing was good as well.  The pacing was good, slow when it needed to be and fast during the action. This was a hard one to put down and kept me wanting more, oh so much more.  I am so happy that it is a series with more books to come.