Augusta Pine Does Not Exist

By: Lloyd-Jones, Emily

Published by Balzer + Bray, 2026-07-07

A teen criminal hacker turned secret operative must outwit a band of cyberterrorists in this gripping novel from the acclaimed author of The Bone Houses.

I was fifteen when I became a murderer.

After a hack gone tragically wrong, a teen girl is given an ultimatum: accept a harsh prison sentence or leave her old life behind, adopt a new identity, and use her talents in the service of a covert government agency.

Three years later, the newly-named Augusta Pine has become a skilled wraith, one of the Identity Security Division’s secret operatives. She has no home, no family, and her only friends are her coolly professional handler and a snarky sentient AI spybot. So when she is sent to Portland for her next assignment, she seizes the chance to catch a glimpse of her grandmother and rents the apartment next door.

What begins as a little nostalgic stalking turns into a fight for survival when a group of cyberterrorists hacks the building and imprisons the residents. Augusta doesn’t know what they want, but she does know they are ready to murder for it. With her quick wits, tech savvy – and help from a distractingly hot fellow hostage – Augusta must race against the clock to stay one step ahead of the killers.

AUGUSTA combines the suspense of a thriller and the intrigue of spy fiction to create a totally original novel about identity, connection, and the struggle to build a future on the scars of the past.