SHORTLISTED: 2026 Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards, John Marsden Prize for Writing For Young Adults

There’s something dangerous in the air. It shimmers in the night, wrapped in the warm, humid breeze. I stand on the kerb outside my cousin’s house waiting for my sister.

Zillah has always been a good girl – nothing like her rebellious big sister Nik. After Nik has an accident that leaves her comatose, Zillah has to find a way to navigate life and high school in Cairns without Nik’s guiding light.

Determined to fit in, Zillah seeks out the secrets of her school’s after-hours party scene and discovers Moondust – a sparkling elixir with magical properties. Could this have something to do with Nik’s accident? To find out, she must plunge further into a world of moonlit parties and take out-of-character risks.

As Zillah unravels what might be going on at Craigmont High, she forges friendships with other Island students and starts falling for a boy who might know more about Nik than he lets on. But Zillah is not entirely sure who she can trust. And she has no idea of the danger they’re all in.

A wonderful new voice in YA fantasy with a unique story about family and friendship, mysterious parties and unknowable secrets.