2026 Lodestar Award for Best Young Adult Book Finalist

New York Times bestselling author Trang Thanh Tran crafts a harrowing story about a teen searching for a future where she can finally be free . . .

A red algae bloom has taken over Mercy, Louisiana, ever since a devastating hurricane hit. Mutated wildlife lurks in the water that rises by the day, but Mercy has always been a place where monsters walk in plain sight. Especially at its heart: the Cove, where Noon’s life was upended long before the storm at a party.

Now, Noon is stuck navigating the submerged town with her grieving mom. Alone with the pain of what happened, Noon buries the truth: she is not the right shape.

When Mercy’s predatory leader demands Noon and her mom catch the creature drowning residents, she reluctantly finds an ally in his deadly hunter of a daughter and friends old and new. But the next storm approaches, and Noon must confront the past and decide if it’s time to answer the monster itching at her skin.