Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves

Ever since her mothers died on the racing trail five years ago, 17-year-old narrator Sena Korhosen has lived by one simple rule—“No wolves. No sleds. No racing”—even though the frozen Edge World of Tundar relies upon the annual race of genetically engineered vonenwolves across the frozen waste to mine precious, seasonally accessible exocarbon. Determined to eventually start over on a less brutal planet, presumed-white Sena makes ends meet as a pickpocket, but when she runs afoul of a brutal syndicate leader, she’s forced to use the skills taught by her late mothers—one a racer, the other an ice-dwelling scavver—to heal his injured, unengineered prize fighter wolf, Iska. Sena’s desperate bid to get off-world sees her stealing Iska and joining the 1,000 mile race, where danger waits around every turn. In this atmospherically told debut with a leisurely beginning, Long skillfully navigates her resourceful heroine through a treacherous, chillingly described tundra setting. Sena’s growing bond with Iska, and her relationship to the natural world and struggle for survival, aptly explore themes of corporate greed, environmental care, and personal resilience. Ages 12–up. Agent: Alexandra Machinist, ICM Partners. (Jan.)