Nancy Farmer

Matteo Alacrán was not born; he was harvested. His DNA came from El Patrón, lord of a country called Opium — a strip of poppy fields lying between the United States and what was once called Mexico. He is a boy now, but most consider him a monster — except for El Patrón. El Patrón loves Matt as he loves himself, because Matt is himself. As Matt struggles to understand his existence, he is threatened by a sinister cast of characters. Escape is the only chance Matt has to survive. But escape is no guarantee of freedom, because Matt is marked by his difference in ways he doesn’t even suspect.

Jack, a young apprentice still learning how to control his magic powers, is kidnapped, along with his sister, by an evil king and half-troll queen. When Jack casts a spell on the queen and makes her hair fall out, his punishment is to sail across the dangerous Sea of Trolls; otherwise, his sister will be sacrificed. Along his route, Jack encounters many strange and imposing creatures. But will he be able to save his sister?