The Enchanter Heir by Cinda Williams Chima

Jonah is an enchanter but spends much of his time hunting down and killing shades; they're kind of like zombies. He was experimented on as a child at Thorn Hill and managed to survive a poison that spread throughout the facility, killing thousands. A woman named Lilith is now organizing shade attacks, something never done before, and young wizards are being targeted. Wizard parents are directing blame toward survivors of Thorn Hill, now attending school at the Anchorage, and Jonah will do anything he can to protect the children. Jonah's poisonous touch is fatal to others, and his emotions are confused by a new savant with unknown powers. Jonah is at the center of a growing conflict, but he is holding a secret that could cause events to explode.

First off, I didn't like how the book ended. There were too many unanswered questions that I assume will be resolved in the next book. As in previous books, this one introduced new characters and then blended them with characters we already knew. I expected the familiar characters to have bigger roles in the plot, so that was disappointing. The relationship between Jonah and Emma was sensitive, since Jonah's attraction could kill her. Emma's character was fiery from living on the streets, but she was lost among all the magical characters. She didn't know who to trust, so her decisions and thoughts were unpredictable. Despite any of my concerns, I'm still enjoying the series and plan on starting Sorcerer Heir soon.