YA fantasy, full of horses, magical crystals, and mystery on the icy island of Elsmier.

Layli is a lonely kitchen girl saving all her coins to start a new life in the city. It’s high summer on Elsmier Island when she discovers no one ever paid her birthtax. In a world ruled by the restrictive hand of The Union, where water is scarce and soil is precious, everyone must offset their mere existence. Failing to pay means crippling interest and debt so high Layli is more likely to get thrown in a work camp than ever pay it off. Not ready to surrender, she steals a prized stallion with plans to sell him at the Rendez—a traveling market that deals in contraband. The only problem is she has no idea where it’s located.

Alone in the woods, Layli finds a mysterious crystal that sings the echo of an ethereal song and allows her to understand the language of animals. She credits the experience to exhaustion and focuses on how much the crystal and her stolen horse are worth. Desperate for clues about the Rendez, Layli stops at a mercantile where a stranger mistakes her for a messenger and begs her to deliver a letter to the top of a mountain peak. He offers to pay Layli in silver and give her directions to the Rendez, so she agrees.

Soon Layli learns the message is a warning that Elsmier’s water supply is about to be contaminated, all because a Union Ambassador is searching for the very crystal in her possession. What good is silver or even freedom if there is no water to drink? Feeling a responsibility to help the island she loves, Layli tangles herself in a mission to stop the pristine rivers from running with poison.
SONG OF THE STARSTONE is a YA Fantasy that offers the whimsy of Woven In Moonlight by Isabel Ibañez, the horses and adventure of Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater, with a dash of Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan. It stands alone at 115,000 words with sequel potential. It has a market with equestrian enthusiasts like followers of the YouTube channel ‘This Esme’.