A dark, propulsive tale of affliction and transformation that fuses the seductive bargains of Stephen King’s Needful Things with the aching heart of Patrick Ness’s A Monster Calls.

Owen Lawrence’s secondhand botany book is talking to him, leaving messages on loose papers and bookmarks. He isn’t sure how it works or what the book is trying to accomplish, but when it offers him a reward in exchange for a simple task, he can’t help but accept.

An unmarked package arrives at Lori Ellis’s doorstep. Inside is a strange plant with gray flower petals and a note with instructions. A few quick bites of this plant, claims the note, and Lori’s recently diagnosed lung cancer will be no more.

In time, Owen and Lori’s miraculous gifts arrive. Owen with a promotion and new girlfriend. Lori breathing fresh, hopeful air. Both are telling themselves it’s a coincidence. A stroke of luck. But something dark and patient has been trading in desperate wishes for a long time, and every gift comes with a price. Owen and Lori are about to learn that the earth doesn’t just take the dead. Sometimes, it asks first.