Lisa Acerbo – författare

Mina Rubenstein has a secret. She doesn't just sketch elves; her drawings transport her into the kingdom of Auralon. Once there, the princely Callon informs her the king has vanished, dark forces are rising, and Mina is the Netherworld Witch. According to the prophecy, only she can shape the ethereal darkness into anything imagined, find the missing monarch, and save the realm. Mina never asked for magic, let alone a destiny, but refusing Callon's plea to save his father could doom Auralon.The only thing worse than her possible death at the hands of mythical monsters is junior year at St. Benedict's Catholic School. When bullies target her, Mina's best friend Ayden becomes her sanctuary and first love. But as the torment escalates, Ayden reaches a breaking point. Desperate and angry, she buys a weapon and begins talking about revenge. Trapped between two worlds, Mina searches for peace in both. One world is filled with family, Ayden, and school. The other full of wild magic and Callon. As Mina's existence at St. Benedict's descends into pandemonium, she wonders whether her quest in Auralon is fate or a way to avoid the pain of reality.

When the dream stream fulfills every fantasy, reality becomes a nightmare.Below the streets of New State, Grounders fight to remain free of the advanced technology that controls the citizens above. To do so, Wren risks her life raiding the city and fighting its deadliest killing machines, Phantoms. On one of her clandestine visits, she meets Codex, a New State citizen who doesn't fit her preconceived expectations. Codex introduces Wren to the dream stream, a computer simulation that allows people to live out their fantasies devoid of emotional entanglements.Worlds collide, opposites attract, and the two grow close. Wren's unexpected and intense feelings for Codex are punishable by death. To save their lives and their secret, Wren convinces Codex to leave New State and join her fight for freedom. This one small act sets off a momentous chain of events, and the unrest between New State and the underground escalates. When New State threatens to destroy her world and the Grounders retaliate, nothing goes as planned. Families are arrested, loyalties are strained, and Wren is forced to choose between her people and her emotions. One wrong choice could condemn Codex, and reality could slip away forever.