Ana Lee delivers brilliant urban fantasy in Red Summer. Wilder Ansley has spent his seventeen years moving between foster homes. The last one involved a mysterious fire starting in the bedroom, and only where his foster brother’s bed was. Wilder knows it was his fault, but he can’t explain how it happened. He also can’t explain animals’ interest in him or the little people watching from the trees. Still, New Orleans has always felt like home. When Wilder is pulled into a world hidden from human sight, he finally finds a place where he belongs. In this world, he learns more about himself and his powers. And when that world faces a ruthless threat, Wilder is ready to fight to protect his new family.

Author Ana Lee has created an amazing world filled with magical creatures that any reader can happily get lost in. Characters are described with a depth that surpasses the norm. Descriptions are vivid, leaving you free to explore your imagination without boundaries. This book is filled with sensory stimulation that will have you reeling from one page to the next. What I loved most was the brilliant combination of all the possible magical creatures and their bonds in this new world. Red Summer is the first book in the Stone and Scale series and ticks all the boxes for plot, action, and adventure. This book is suitable for young adult readers, with mild explicit language and only mentions of sexual situations. I now have another favorite author and eagerly look forward to the next book.

Red Summer by Ana Lee is about a loyal and resilient youngster who struggles with his supernatural abilities, as well as his past and future, and seeks a place where he finally feels wanted and needed. Wilder Ansley is a seventeen-year-old foster kid who does things he doesn't intend to do, and notices creatures watching and following him that no one else can see except him. Wilder longs for a family of his own, but he knows no one sticks around forever. One day, after a ferocious storm and with an owl's guidance, Wilder arrives at a Gothic-style cathedral. Shortly after, a young girl named Terra tells him that he's not quite human, that there's a whole world out there behind a veil he knows nothing about, and that he, as a Fae, is capable of powerful magic. Wilder learns that there is a Council that deals with finding lost Fae like him. He also discovers that a war is underway. As a result, he must choose between rejoining the human world or joining the Council in a great cosmic battle.

Red Summer (Stone and Scale Book 1) by Ana Lee is an enthralling novel. In this epic tale of hope, pride, self-discovery, friendship, and vengeance, the author brings together fascinating world-building, magic, and action, along with well-developed and intriguing characters, all combined with fantasy elements and emotional depth. This young adult urban fantasy, with a Southern Gothic and New Orleans flair, should be at the top of the must-read list for those interested in a story featuring ancient dark magic, forbidden love, high stakes, whispers of lost dragons, and more. Red Summer is a brilliant and immersive story.