Description

From New York Times bestselling YA author Rebecca Mix comes the first book in a breathtaking middle grade fantasy duology about a young fairy who has always lived in her heroic grandmother’s shadow but now must step up and embark on a quest to save her mother from the ever-creeping mold overtaking their world.

The mold takes all.

Twelve-year-old fairy Canary Mossheart knows this better than most. A few years ago, the mold took her papa, and even her famous, former-chosen-one Gran never found a cure. So when Ary's beloved mama falls ill, Ary decides it’s taken enough. Armed with only a bucket and a prayer, she sneaks out to find a magical, underground lake whose healing waters are straight out of Gran’s adventures.

But when Ary gets there, the lake’s bone dry, and instead of healing waters, she finds a terrifying secret: Her entire world is actually trapped inside a giant terrarium—one they were meant to leave centuries ago. Worse, Gran knew and hid the truth, dooming Ary and her generation to a dying, rotting world.

Now, allied with only her doomsday-obsessed frenemy, a timid pill bug, and a particularly grumpy newt, Ary has one week to unravel the clues and find a way out of the terrarium—or they’ll be trapped for good.

Perfect for readers who loved Brandon Mull's Fablehaven, The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau, and Endling: The Last by Katherine Applegate.


  • A Hidden World with a Dark Secret: Ary’s home isn’t just a village—it’s a giant, decaying terrarium, and the heroic grandmother she trusts has been lying about it for generations.
  • Unlikely Friendships: To survive, Ary must team up with her doomsday-obsessed frenemy, a timid-but-loyal pill bug, and a particularly grumpy newt.
  • Eco-Fantasy Adventure: A mysterious and ever-creeping mold has taken Ary's father and now threatens her mother, forcing her on a desperate quest for a cure in a dying world.
  • A Coming of Age Quest: Stepping out of her famous grandmother's shadow, Ary must find the courage to become the hero her family and her fragile world desperately need.

About the author(s)

Rebecca Mix is a New York Times and indie bestselling author of stories about messy girls, eerie magic, and hope. She spent her childhood tromping through swamps and falling out of very tall trees—which, in hindsight, explains a lot. A reluctant reader at first, she fell in love with books after joining a reading contest to spite her fourth-grade nemesis. Visit her online at rebeccamix.com

Reviews

"In this immersive middle grade fantasy debut, Rebecca Mix crafts a larger-than-life cast of ordinary heroes who grasp hope in the unlikeliest of times and places. A thought-provoking and unflinching reckoning of what it means to be the 'Chosen One' in a thankless, dying world -- where yet, still, love burns bright." - Katie Zhao, author of the Winnie Zeng series and The Dragon Warrior duology

“A tender, touching, and thrilling exploration of how we can save the future by challenging the past.” - Sofiya Pasternack, Sydney Taylor Honor Award-Winning author of Black Bird, Blue Road

"Boasting rich, confident worldbuilding and complex interspecies relations in a starkly rendered setting, this stirring middle grade debut from Mix (The Ones We Burn) passionately explores the courage it takes to lead with empathy and to become a hero in the face of older generations’ failures.” - Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"An exciting, honest, and hopeful tale that speaks gently and clearly to kids’ fears and needs. It urges them to value their own experiences, reassures them that it’s OK to be angry when they’re left to pay for the mistakes of adults, and reminds them that kindness must guide us, even when we’re afraid. A wonderful story for all the scared people doing the right thing because nobody else will." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

More by Rebecca Mix

More Fantasy & Magic

More Juvenile Fiction

More LGBTQ+

More Multigenerational

More Family

More Dystopian

More Fairy Tales & Folklore

More Blended Families

More Mysteries & Detective Stories

More Girls & Women

More Boys & Men

More Imagination & Play