• Age: 10 to 14
• Grade: 5 to 9

The first book in bestselling author Kenneth Oppel’s explosive new trilogy

It was just rain.

But after the downpour, odd black plants begin to shoot up.

Suddenly—

They. Are. Everywhere.

They take over fields and twine around houses. They bloom and throw off toxic pollen—and feed.

Strangely, three Salt Spring Island teens seem immune. Anaya, Petra and Seth. What’s their connection? What’s their secret? A week ago, they wouldn’t have thought they had one.

But they’d better figure it out fast—the invasion has already begun.

KENNETH OPPEL is the author of numerous books for young readers. His award-winning Silverwing trilogy has sold over a million copies worldwide and was adapted into an animated TV series and stage play. Airborn won a Michael L. Printz Honor Book Award and the Governor General’s Literary Award; its sequel, Skybreaker, was a New York Times bestseller and was named Children’s Novel of the Year by The Times (London). He is also the author of Half Brother, This Dark Endeavor, Such Wicked Intent and The Boundless. Born on Vancouver Island, he has lived in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, and in England and Ireland, and now resides in Toronto with his wife and children.

WEB: www.kennethoppel.ca

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/kennethoppel

JON KLASSEN is the author-illustrator of This Is Not My Hat, winner of the Caldecott Medal and the Kate Greenaway Medal, and I Want My Hat Back, a Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Book. He is also the illustrator of Cats' Night Out, which won the Governor General’s Award; The Dark, a finalist for the same award; House Held Up by Trees, a New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Book; Extra Yarn, a Caldecott Honor Book; and Sam and Dave Dig a Hole, also a Caldecott Honor Book. He created the concept art for Coraline, the stop-motion animated film based on the book by Neil Gaiman. Originally from Niagara Falls, he now lives in Los Angeles.

WEB: www.burstofbeaden.com

TWITTER: https://twitter.com/burstofbeaden

Kenneth Oppel's profile page

• Red Maple Award Winner
• CBC Best Book of the Year
• Kobo Top Picks of the Year
• Amazon.com Best Books of the Year

"The perfect book right now for young readers searching for hope, strength, inspiration — and just a little horticultural havoc." — New York Times

"A phenomenal kickoff to an enthralling trilogy. . . . An edge-of-your-seat, apocalyptic alien plants versus heroic hybrid teens adventure." — School Library Journal (starred review)

"Kenneth Oppel has written a thriller so exciting that the pages might well have been printed with adrenaline. . . . So propulsive that some readers may find themselves using one hand to cover the paragraphs they haven’t read yet, to keep their devouring eyes from jumping ahead." — Wall Street Journal

"Absolutely riveting . . . Superb storytelling, great characters and an environmental crisis will completely captivate young readers." — Globe and Mail (Toronto)

"A terrifying non-stop thriller." — Quill & Quire

"Oppel steadily adds new horrors, potently escalating the story’s pace, stakes, and anxiety." — Publishers Weekly

“A thrilling alien-invasion novel based on a chillingly nefarious premise.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Bloom is a lightning-paced adventure that grabs hold of you and doesn’t let go. This book is ridiculously fun … and by ‘fun’ I mean terrifying!” — Jonathan Auxier, author of The Night Gardener