The Delta Codex
-
- Pre-Order
-
- Expected 14 Apr 2026
-
- 12,99 €
-
- Pre-Order
-
- 12,99 €
Publisher Description
A girl whose subconscious contains dangerous ancient knowledge finds her voice in this gripping middle grade sci-fi fantasy perfect for fans of Diana Wynne Jones and Scott Reintgen.
Is there safety in silence?
In the city of Danak-Tol, children known as codexes are chosen to safeguard echoes—fragments of ancient knowledge too valuable to destroy but too dangerous to use. Forbidden to speak lest she accidentally release her echo, codex Delta lives a lonely life. Still, she knows she must obey the wardens’ strict rules to keep her home safe from the vicious beasts, heretical Scrappers, and toxic blood storms that lurk beyond the city walls.
But when Delta breaks her vows to help a young girl escape a blood storm, she begins to have strange dreams, which lead her to question everything she knows to be true about herself and her city. To find answers, Delta must journey to the one place she most fears: the wasteland beyond the walls of Danak-Tol.
Together with her small but feisty mechanical companion Flick, Delta dares the perilous ruins of a long-abandoned skyship, the gullet of a ravenous sphincter worm, and even befriends a young Scrapper named Drii. But all these adventures only lead to more questions. What is the true danger that threatens her entire planet—is it really her echo, or is it the silence that has imprisoned the truth for so long?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A sheltered tween embarks on a perilous quest to save her home in this electric novel by Fagan (A Game of Noctis), which recalls elements of Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. Young Delta is a codex, one of few gifted children capable of housing a memory of the past, called an echo, in their minds. In the grand city of Danak-Tol, it's considered an honor to become a codex—to keep the city safe from mysterious hazards beyond its walls by protecting its "most powerful knowledge... but also the most dangerous." All their lives, codexes keep vows of silence, are forbidden from socializing with others, and must never reveal their echo. But when Delta encounters a rebellious minister's children and they challenge her to use her echo to help stop the deadly bloodstorms plaguing Danak-Tol, she must choose between following her teachings and listening to her instincts, which insist that something sinister is afoot. Expository dialogue and intermittent flashbacks gradually establish the intricate lore of Danak-Tol. Concise, economical storytelling and steady pacing mold a vast dystopian world whose charismatic leads evoke protective warmth from the jump. Characters are described as having various skin tones. Ages 10–up.
