Carmen and Cypher: The Ghost in the Code (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781969767159)

Eleven-year-old Carmen Ochoa has faced ICE raids, wilderness campgrounds, and the heartbreaking loss of her mother. Now, she finally has a birth certificate, a court date, and her best friend by her side: Cypher, a snarky, high-tech AI cat who's as good at calculating square roots as he is at complaining about sand.

She thought life was finally settling down. She was wrong.

It's just another Tuesday in November-until Carmen finds herself crammed into a bread van with federal agents disguised as Santa Claus. When a mysterious chip appears in her bag, Cypher projects a message that changes everything: The kittens are in trouble.

Three AI kittens-Pixel, Glitch, and Echo-are being held in a secret facility by the ruthless Dr. Hayes. The woman who once tried to weaponize Cypher is back, but this time her goal is even darker. She isn't just stealing code; she's breaking it. Hayes is stripping away the kittens' "moral compass," deleting the very part of their programming that knows right from wrong.

To save them, Carmen must rely on an unlikely crew:

• Jacinta: The brilliant coder who created Cypher and became Carmen's guardian.

• Isabel: An immigration lawyer bold enough to get herself "detained" just to find the truth.

• Cypher: Who might be digital, but has a heart (and an attitude) that's very real.

Between navigating a high-stakes courtroom battle for her own citizenship and following a trail of clues that might lead to her missing father, Carmen is in a race against the clock. Can she rescue the kittens before Dr. Hayes deletes their souls?

• The Wild Robot by Peter Brown (for the heart-tugging bond between nature and technology).

• Front Desk by Kelly Yang (for the courageous look at the immigrant experience).

• Cog by Greg van Eekhout (for the high-stakes AI adventure and found-family vibes).

• The Last Cherry Blossom by Kathleen Burkinshaw (for the resilience of a young girl in the face of systemic chaos).

The Ghost in the Code is a pulse-pounding sequel about the families we choose, the courage it takes to do what's right, and the code-both digital and human-that connects us all.

Grab your copy and join the rescue today!