Book excerpt: Shortlisted for the 2011 NZ Post Children's Book Awards, Young Adult Fiction category, this powerful post-apocalyptic drama is a sequel to the award-winning novel The Sea-wreck Stranger. 'No matter how much you might want to leave a place, if it's where you were raised it holds a piece of you it doesn't easily give up.' Ness is looking out to sea, waiting for the arrival of Dev. It's been two years since the two set out in a dinghy, escaping the wrath of the Islanders of Dunnett; two years since their shrivelled and sun-battered bodies were coaxed back to health by Dev's people. Ness's new home, the city of Vidya, is in ruins; the air is unsafe, and the buildings scarred by fire. Towers loom empty and hollow. The community of Vidya is bravely building a new society and Ness yearns to find a place where she might belong. Sent to work on the home farms, Ness becomes caught up in surprise attacks and ongoing land battles. Working tirelessly in the medic room at Ebony Hill, she helps mend the wounded and worse, and suffers much hardship. Questioning the treatment of prisoners and witnessing the realities of war challenges Ness's commitment to this brave new society. Will she find a place for herself here? A stunning sequel to The Sea-wreck Stranger, Ebony Hill is a gripping and suspenseful novel. It's packed with a standout cast of characters and explores not only the harshness of war but the resilience of the human spirit.