Stranger

Many generations ago, a mysterious cataclysm struck the world. Governments collapsed and people scattered, to rebuild where they could. A mutation, "the Change,” arose, granting some people unique powers. Though the area once called Los Angeles retains its cultural diversity, its technological marvels have faded into legend. "Las Anclas" now resembles a Wild West frontier town… where the Sheriff possesses superhuman strength, the doctor can warp time to heal his patients, and the distant ruins of an ancient city bristle with deadly crystalline trees that take their jewel-like colors from the clothes of the people they killed.

Teenage prospector Ross Juarez’s best find ever – an ancient book he doesn’t know how to read – nearly costs him his life when a bounty hunter is set on him to kill him and steal the book. Ross barely makes it to Las Anclas, bringing with him a precious artifact, a power no one has ever had before, and a whole lot of trouble.

Review
"Infused with a generous spirit - call it a utopian dystopia . . . Characterization is rich and stereotype-free . . . Equally exceptional is the depiction of conflict. The confusing adrenaline rush of war is followed by PTSD, its lingering afterimage. The five dynamic narrators and action-packed plot deliver thrills while slyly undermining genre clichés. A first-rate page-turner that leaves its own compelling afterimage." -Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Told in alternating third-person narratives by teenage citizens of Las Anclas (a desolate future Los Angeles), this dystopian novel follows a town's attempts to survive after a solar storm ravaged the world and mutated some of its inhabitants. The setting is both bizarre (deadly 'singing' trees can kill humans) and familiar - the story has a 'wild west' atmosphere as the town battles the elements and invaders with only basic weaponry . . .The story's characters and their tightly woven relationships are well developed, and Brown and Smith provide plenty of narrative diversity, making each character's entry feel fresh, distinctive, and unexpected. The buildup to the action-packed ending does not disappoint." -Publishers Weekly

"A fresh story with well-developed characters, fast-paced action, a fantastical world, and a hint of romance." -School Library Journal (starred review)

About the Authors
Rachel Manija Brown is the author of the memoir All the Fishes Come Home to Roost: An American Misfit in India. She lives in Southern California.

Sherwood Smith is the author of many fantasy novels for teenagers and adults, including Crown Duel and the Mythopoeic Award finalist The Spy Princess.