As a reader, what I dread the most is the middle ground, the lukewarm, the books that lack whatever alchemy is needed to ensure they land on my heart with a sound of impact. I relish the risk incurred by picking up a book that might inspire love or hate because both ends are passionate. My brain: *slamming fists on table* REGRET REGRET REGRET REGRET REGRET REGRET REGR “Adults and older teens who appreciate stories with close ties among magic, science, and political machinations will find this first novel appealing.Me: *picks up a book with very high expectations and ends up disappointed* Diverse characters, frank discussions about sexual and mental abuse, and reasonably plausible science-based magic elevate this above many dystopian peers.” - Kirkus Reviews With references to the Holocaust as well as present-day issues of immigration, deportation, martial law, and racism, Lee has worked philosophical and current-day realities into a promising series opener.” - Booklist “This fast-paced, issue-driven thriller will collect readers, who will eagerly anticipate the sequel. “Lee thoughtfully gives the subject of refugee and immigration policies center stage…the setup of this new world and planned series is genuinely compelling, and it’s filled with striking moments…Readers will be absorbed as the book melds fantasy and action with psychology and political intrigue.” - The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

But then he meets the minister’s son-cruel, dangerous, and achingly beautiful-and the way forward becomes less clear.Ĭaught between his purpose and his heart, Noam must decide who he can trust and how far he’s willing to go in pursuit of the greater good. Sensing a way to make change, Noam accepts the minister’s offer to teach him the science behind his magic, secretly planning to use it against the government. The son of undocumented immigrants, Noam has spent his life fighting for the rights of refugees fleeing magical outbreaks-refugees Carolinia routinely deports with vicious efficiency. His ability to control technology attracts the attention of the minister of defense and thrusts him into the magical elite of the nation of Carolinia. In the former United States, sixteen-year-old Noam Álvaro wakes up in a hospital bed, the sole survivor of the viral magic that killed his family and made him a technopath. Featured in Seventeen, The Verge, Hypable, School Library Journal, Publishers Weekly, The Nerd Daily, Booklist, and SyFy Wire.

The fever king