Winterveil

By Ava Reid

The Secret History meets The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes in #1 bestselling author Ava Reid’s brand new, thrilling, dystopian YA novel.

There is no application process for Valeran Academy, but it boasts the brightest – and precociously criminal – students in the nation.

A disgraced politician from a powerful American dynasty.

A coldly brilliant strategist who will sacrifice anything to win.

A former pageant queen with a talent that could change the world.

A prodigious female soldier with an enigmatic past – and a dangerous secret.

With eerie war simulations, cutthroat competitions and foreboding new technology, Valeran trains its students to be elite assets in a Cold War that has dragged on for nearly a century. But as a sinister conspiracy takes shape and these four are drawn together for a mysterious mission, their loyalties are tested, their convictions shaken and they all begin to wonder: are they ushering in a new era of freedom, or tyranny?

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Author: Ava Reid
Format: Trade Paperback
Release Date: 24 Sep 2026
Pages: 592
Price: £14.99, £14.99 (Export Price) , €None

Ava Reidis the #1New York Timesbestselling author ofA Study in Drowning,A Theory of Dreaming,An Archive of Romance, Fable for the End of the World, Lady Macbeth, Juniper & Thorn,andThe Wolf and the Woodsman. Her books have been published in over fourteen territories. She lives in the New York area. Follow her on Instagram @avasreid and find her online at tumblr.com/avasreid.

Praise for Ava Reid’s novels: -

A Study in Drowning: -

A love letter to stories – and to everyone silenced or forgotten in their retelling. ― Allison Saft -

A wonderfully written, tense and moving novel that offers its audience an endlessly readable mix of historical fiction, gothic mystery and fantasy romance that will draw you in again and again. ― CultureFly -

As merciless as a rising tide and as beguiling as a fairy's bargain. ― Melissa Albert -

A masterclass in pacing, characterisation and tension, with a beautiful meditation on stories and who gets to have an authorial voice. ― The Nerd Daily -

Praise for A Theory of Dreaming: -

Rarely before has a sequel ever felt so entirely necessary … A true dark academia fairy tale, combining magic, mystery and mythology with literature, politics and intertextuality to craft a haunting story of authorship, identity and love. ― CultureFly -

A deftly woven mystery, brimming with lyrical writing and compelling characters who will steal your heart. – Rebecca Ross, bestselling author of Divine Rivals -

We've been counting down the days ever since until we can find ourselves reunited with Effy and Preston ― Cosmopolitan -

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