by Josh Petty (Author)
In The Garden, everyone must have a purpose. Nick's purpose is HERO, an augmented reality war game where students compete in brutal combat, sometimes to the death. It's taken Nick two lives to become an elite HERO. He's put in countless hours of training and wants to win the tournament so badly he can taste it.But when he meets a mysterious cadet named Lisa, Nick's world begins to unravel. She haunts his dreams while he struggles to win matches. New rivals appear to challenge his ablities both on and off the battlefield. His only chance is to defeat them all and win the tournament, but to do it he'll need the help of the brilliant Dr. Naomi and his rival the viz-poet.For HEROs like Nick, losing is a fate worse than death. If he can't win, he'll be forced to face the ultimate punishment: learning the truth.