Some truths glow in the dark.
Axel Lotl has always been pink. Everyone else in Muddy Bottom Pond is brown, or green, or invisible in the mud - but not Axel. His mother says pink is the color of ancient magic. She isn't lying. She just isn't telling him everything.
When masked strangers rise from the water asking questions no twelve-year-old should have to answer, Axel learns his color was never an accident. He's a Wayfinder - the kind of mage the Ministry of Deep Waters swore they'd erased forever.
Torn from his mother and thrown into a school built on secrets, Axel has to figure out who he can trust before he even figures out what he is. With only a cousin who complains too much, a pufferfish who calculates too much, and an electric eel who trusts too little, he must learn to control a magic that's supposed to be extinct - and find out what really happened to the last Wayfinder anyone ever loved, before the truth finds him first.
An underwater fantasy adventure about hidden identity, found family, and the truths worth glowing for.
Perfect for readers who love:
• Animal and creature-led fantasy adventures
• Magic school stories with real stakes
• Found-family friend groups
• Underdog heroes discovering who they really are
Featuring black-and-white illustrations at the start of key chapters, for readers ages 8-12.