Burning Midnight
by Will McIntosh
Science Fiction
Suspense
Thriller
Young Adult
* * * Stars (Pretty good)
Spheres, marble-like objects, suddenly appeared all over the planet one day and people discovered that different colored spheres gave them different abilities, gained by “burning” two spheres of the same color. 17-year-old David Sullivan’s (Sully) claim to fame is being swindled by a billionaire who bought an ultra-rare sphere off him, only to cancel payment when it didn’t do anything for him personally. Now Sully and his mom are on the brink of eviction trying to make ends meet by running a stall in the flea market buying and selling spheres. He meets a girl named Hunter who is an experienced sphere tracker and they pool their resources to find and sell rare spheres. During one of their expeditions, they discover a new, gold sphere that leads them to its twin and, when burned, reveals new information about where the spheres came from and what they really are. Sully and Hunter and their friends must use their new abilities and knowledge to save the world when the truth is ultimately revealed. Although it suffers a little from dated name-dropping, its intriguing plot keeps the pages turning in this fast-paced sci-fi offering.
