THE CONTINENT

Engaging with questions of social responsibility, the nature of peace and violence, and the value (and danger) of nationalism, Keira Drake’s debut is as thought-provoking as it is fast-paced and surprising, a heart-pounding and heartbreaking story of strength and survival.

For her sixteenth birthday, Vaela Sun receives the most coveted gift in all the Spire—a trip to the Continent. It seems an unlikely destination for a holiday: a cold, desolate land where two “uncivilized” nations remain perpetually at war. Most citizens tour the Continent to see the spectacle and violence of battle—a thing long vanished in the Spire. For Vaela—a smart and talented apprentice cartographer—it is an opportunity to improve upon the maps she’s drawn of the vast, frozen land. But an idyllic aerial exploration is not to be had: the realities of war are made clear in a bloody battle seen from the heli-plane during the tour, leaving Vaela forever changed. And when a tragic accident leaves her stranded on the Continent, she has no illusions about the true nature of the danger she faces. Starving, alone, and lost in the middle of a war zone, Vaela must try to find a way home—but first, she must survive. Keira Drake is an avid gamer. DUNE by Frank Herbert is her favorite book. She reads very widely—sci-fi, fantasy, historical fiction (her favorite), contemporary fiction, etc. and she has a particular interest in books about the sea. She goes full nerd. Star Wars, Star Trek, Stargate, Doctor Who, Supernatural, Wonder Woman, LEGO Technic, Metal Earth steel model kits, Halo, Assassin’s Creed, Mortal Kombat, Fallout, Zelda. Part action-adventure, part allegory, and part against-the-odds survival story, THE CONTINENT is her first YA novel.