Thirsty Ground - by Kimber St Lawrence (Paperback)

About the Book

Conway 12-1 is just weeks from Hydroseeker initiation when he'll join the elite squadron that scours the universe for viable water to sustain the spacenation Tsimmaon. At 17, Conway is already the strongest motorover rider among them, making him certain this is his calling. Then one failed mission changes everything.

Left for dead on the fabled Arid Planet with a life-altering injury, Conway is taken in by the citizens of Adamah, a community no one knew had survived the Dry Death. But these people have a secret: their water is deadly if you don't follow its rules, mutating the drinker into one of the gruesome creatures that prowl their woods. As a purifying Conduit, Adamah's young sovereign Selah is key to the water's safety and, Conway realizes, the key to the survival of his spacenation. If he can bring this revelation back home, he might still have a shot at being a Hydroseeker. He just needs to convince himself that betraying Selah is worth it, which gets harder the more he learns about her... and the more he discovers about his own people.

Book Synopsis

They call it Tsimmaon. Thirsty Ground.

It's been thirteen decades since Tsimmaon left the Arid Planet in search of water, carrying only 1 percent of the human race in a bid to keep the species alive. There's no one thirstier on that space ark than the young recruits eager to earn their spot on the elite Hydroseeker League and find the next water source. Seventeen-year-old Conway 12-1, the strongest moto-rover rider among his cadre, is just weeks from Hydroseeker initiation. Until one failed mission changes everything.

Left for dead on the fabled Arid Planet with a life-altering injury, Conway is taken in by the citizens of Mayanah, a community no one knew had survived the Dry Death. But these people have a secret: Their water is deadly if you don't follow its rules. Mayanah's beautiful young sovereign Selah is the key to safe water and, Conway realizes, to the survival of his spacenation. If he can bring this revelation back home, he might still have a shot at being a Hydroseeker. He just needs to convince himself that betraying Selah is worth it, which gets harder the closer they become . . . and the more he learns about his own people.

Kimber St. Lawrence conjures an exhilarating world in this moving postapocalyptic sci-fi novel. Featuring cinematic action and a love against all odds, Thirsty Ground will leave readers breathless.

Review Quotes

"With this novel that explores themes of identity, duty, and destiny, YA readers are in for an adventure."
--School Library Journal

About the Author

Kimber St. Lawrence is a former television producer and host who won a New England Emmy Award with the magazine-style television series Styleboston and explored New England ski resorts with The Mountain Report on NBC Sports Boston. She is now the chief marketing officer for a business training company. She is also a member of SCBWI and the creator of the viral digital short on social distancing called "Time to Come In, Bear." Thirsty Ground is her first novel. Kimber lives on a small hobby farm in New Hampshire with her border collie, a dozen chickens, and her husband Ryan, a spinal cord injury survivor and para-athlete.