Rising

In a flooded world where survival hinges on selective breeding, Nova is one of twelve teens facing four grueling tests over seven days to prove she deserves to become Bound and earn the right to have children. Alongside fellow candidates Kian, Dex, and Wren, she starts to suspect the system deciding who is fit to parent is hiding darker truths than anyone admits. The opening book of the Thaw Chronicles begins a post-climate-collapse saga about worth, control, and quiet rebellion.