Explorer Academy Vela: The Unbreakable Bond (Book 2)

Ages 8 to 12, Grades 3 to 7

The thrilling conclusion to Sailor York’s mission to find her sister and save her from an evil wildlife-trafficking ring.

In this suspenseful sequel to The Sailor Cipher, Sailor York must learn to control her extraordinary ability to communicate with animals to save her sister—and the planet.

The deadly animal-smuggling ring Hydrus is at it again: They’ve created a high-tech device that lures animals to be captured and sold. Sailor and her Explorer Academy friends Lani, Cruz, and Emmett—aka the Vela Squad—are determined to stop Hydrus at any cost. Their secret weapon? Sailor’s mysterious powers, which she is still learning how to use, all the while juggling their most challenging semester at Explorer Academy yet! To add to the pressure, it’s not just animals’ lives at stake, but the life of Sailor’s missing sister, Keel. Following a trail of clues around the globe leads the Vela Squad to an astounding discovery and daring race against the clock. In the end, their courage—and everything they thought they knew about Explorer Academy—will be put to the test.

Series Overview: The exciting Vela duology picks up where the original Explorer Academy series left off. With the same cast of characters and near-future setting, Explorer Academy features a gripping fact-based fiction plot that inspires curiosity with new technology and innovations; amazing inventions and gadgets; a cast of diverse, relatable characters; secret clues, codes, and ciphers to track down within the text; vibrant illustrations; elements of STEAM; and National Geographic Explorer profiles in the Truth Behind the Fiction section in the back of the book.

About the Author

TRUDI TRUEIT is a gifted storyteller for middle-grade audiences, and has written more than 100 fiction and nonfiction books for young readers, including the Explorer Academy series, beginning with Explorer Academy: The Nebula Secret. Trueit was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, and lives in Everett, Washington. Web: www.truditrueit.com.

Author Hometown: Everett, Washington

KHADIJAH KHATIB is a Malaysian illustrator and concept artist from the hot, sunny city of Kuala Lumpur. She spends most of her time relaxing with her cats, traveling, and playing her guitar when she isn’t creating intricate illustrations for books and video games. Khatib has illustrated book covers for publishers such as Disney, Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan Publishers, and HarperCollins, to name a few. One of her notable cover illustrations is the cover for Rick Riordan’s Daughter of the Deep. She has also had the opportunity to illustrate an album cover for K-pop’s AleXa, and has worked on multiple game development projects as a concept artist.

Illustrator Hometown:Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia