Amplified (Balancing Light Book One)

Carl is a clever, ambitious teen who knows how to work the system. Like when he commandeers all the crystals his geotech father finds. And when he uses his mother's crazy metaphysics books to claim the crystals have special qualities, warranting higher prices. What he doesn't expect is to discover a stone and a crystal that, when used together, render special powers. Fame and riches are suddenly within reach. There's just one problem-the crystal belongs to Essie, a straight-laced, mousy do-gooder who happens to be his main academic rival.

Forced to work together, they embark on a fantastic journey to a hidden city in a steamy jungle, high in the chilly Cascade Mountains, where skinny dipping, inhuman strength, and a utopian lifestyle are the norm. When Carl hears that he has to pass a test to become an adult, he grudgingly follows the assigned training. Carl and Essie soon find that opting out of a trial is not possible. Worse, passing some trials can result in violent death. Survival will depend on their new friendships and powers.