The First Book in the Restricted Waters Trilogy: For months, a mysterious black crust has been spreading up the coast. It is fouling shipping ports, devouring harbor towns and sinking ships at sea. As it threatens to destroy the entire Atlantic coastline, world-renowned marine biologist, Dr. Candace Warren, and her team of experts set out to find the source of the destruction. Sixteen-year-old Alannis Summers has talked her way on board as a volunteer, hoping to find adventure and a taste of life as a marine biologist. But when they wander too close to restricted waters, Alannis discovers something more mysterious, and more devastating, than the Fouling. As she risks her life to explore farther into the deep, the captain’s son, Jake, steps in to provide a ready explanation for her distracted behavior. Their fictitious romance removes the team’s suspicions, but casts her as a boy crazy teenager and crushes her hopes of earning their respect. That is, until she finally introduces Dr. Warren to the secret she’s discovered—one that could change everything we know about ourselves.