Book 1 HomeLess Book 2 ReckLess Book 3 SenseLess Being homeless isn't the end of the world. At least, that's what Zachary thought when he found himself on the streets after being kicked out at seventeen. It hadn't been his fault. His father had used him as a scapegoat and won his mother over, thinking that her husband was telling the truth about his cheating and that Zachary was the one who was bringing women over, trying to ruin their marriage. He'd argued his side, but once his mother decided on something, her mind would not be changed. That's how he came to live in the alley near the end of 73rd street between the old bakery and a laundromat. It wasn't anything special, but after three years he'd managed to spruce up the place and make it almost-bearable to live in. Over the years he'd made friends with random people he often passed on the streets and did manage to hold down a few random jobs, but like everything else, they came, then went. Now he was left with fifteen dollars and twenty-two cents, a torn blanket, one outfit, and a dream for a better life. He just didn't know that he'd find it somewhere he'd never thought to look... or with someone he never knew he'd want.

**Wattys 2016 Winner!** Fifteen-year-old Emmeline Jefferson doesn't have time away from the Demons. Not a minute to say goodbye to her family, not a moment to wonder "Why me?" Every second she's not possessed is spent begging stranger after stranger for help. But no one believes a sporadic girl who claims Demons have spent more time in her body than she has. No one until she finds Dumaine. Dumaine Chartres's whole life fits in his accordion case, his friends are nonexistent, and this fascinating girl is telling him Demons exist. These things all make perfect sense. What he doesn't understand is why humans have such outrageous issues with murder. Death is natural. If he wasn't supposed to kill anyone, they wouldn't have died. Nobody even noticed the bodies anyway. In return for a break from his internal demons, Dumaine offers Emmeline help, and she's willing to receive it from anyone. Maybe this boy can finally be the keeper she needs. Maybe chasing these Demons can explain why he's so different from everyone else. Maybe this friendship can work. With a wise but demented old man, and enough determination to perturb the Demons, Emmeline and Dumaine concoct a plan to unriddle their lives. The first step is to confront the Demon's creator. But something else seems to have found the creator first. And it only looks like an Angel. Human Spines is part one of a YA dark Urban Fantasy written in a style similar to Tahereh Mafi's Shatter Me and Elana Johnson's Possession. It's the first of a series and told from the viewpoints of Emmeline, Dumaine, and their rambling but wise navigator, Hans. Through a diverse cast, it explores themes of learned distrust, fear of the unknown, and the battle against the evil inside us all, in a way similar to a Studio Ghibli film. Cover by ecclesia-