The Deadlands: Hunted -- Skye Melki-Wegner, Hardcover

Wings of Fire meets Jurassic Park in this action-adventure middle grade debut series by Skye Melki-Wegner about five outcasts--and former enemies--who are the only hope to save their warring kingdoms from impending doom.

"My favorite middle grade book of the year." --New York Times-bestselling author Amie Kaufman

Battle rages between the dinosaur kingdoms of Cretacea.

When the Fallen Star struck, it brought death and despair, ash and toxic rain. But some dinosaurs survived . . . and were changed. Their minds grew alert. They learned to speak. To dream. To wage war.

As the two remaining dinosaur kingdoms fight for territory, Eleri, the disgraced son of a prince, is exiled from his home for saving an enemy soldier. Banished to the merciless Deadlands, a terrifying desert full of tar pits, poisonous gas, and ruthless carnivores, he must join forces with a group of questionable allies--including the enemy soldier he saved--to avoid becoming prey.

When Eleri and his fellow exiles discover the horrific truth behind the war, the unlikely heroes must do all they can to save their kingdoms from a lurking predator. . . and a secret plot that might destroy them all.

Author: Skye Melki-Wegner
Publisher: Henry Holt & Company
Published: 04/04/2023
Pages: 304
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.83lbs
Size: 8.48h x 5.78w x 1.17d
ISBN: 9781250827692
Audience: Ages 9-12

Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 02/01/2023
Booklist 03/15/2023 pg. 49
Publishers Weekly 03/27/2023

About the Author
Skye Melki-Wegner started writing as soon as she could hold a pen. She was immediately drawn to fantasy--and soon her notebooks overflowed with dragons, pixies, and wizards. After graduating with an honors degree in law, she traded in practicing law for writing fantasy novels. Her first middle-grade trilogy, The Deadlands, draws inspiration from her time working in a museum (where some of her colleagues were dinosaurs).