The Cityborn

Willett (the Helix War series) wraps his capable new adult science fiction adventure around the fate of a mysterious many-tiered city and its inhabitants. The Captain, the only person who can access the city’s repair systems, is dying, and First Officer Kranz and his allies bred a handful of special children, the Cityborn, to replace him—but all but one of the Cityborn have died. Alania, Kranz’s ward, is thought to be the only surviving Cityborn. When a surprise rebel attack sends Alania down a trash chute to escape, she ends up many tiers down in the Middens and encounters Danyl, another Cityborn who was raised in secret. With rival forces hunting them, the two must fight to survive and decide for themselves which side they’re on. Readers will probably work out the city’s secret long before it’s formally revealed, but Willett’s spunky protagonists and colorful world will entertain SF adventure fans. Agent: Ethan Ellenberg, Ethan Ellenberg Literary. (July)