Fathom Fall

by Matteo L. Cerilli

The Maze Runner meets Fortnite in this action-packed young YA about a boy who finds out the monsters from his favorite video game are real.

They came for our water, but they'll settle for our blood.

Fourteen-year-old Wyatt is number three on the leaderboards for his favorite video game, Fathom Fall, but in real life, he's the “Water Baby” kid of engineers at Hydrexo, the company that supplies 75% of North America's water. He's always had easy access to water while others have to line up to pay exorbitant prices at public taps, and he's totally awkward and feels totally useless. To prove he's more than a privileged Water Baby, Wyatt is determined to win the upcoming Fathom Fall championship and finally make a name for himself.

But when the water-guzzling monsters from the game start appearing in real life, Wyatt suspects that the tournament is about more than prize money. More than ever, Wyatt wants to win, and as the tournament approaches, he starts to worry: Why won't anyone tell them what's really going on? Why would the military train kids to hunt the monsters for them? And how far is he willing to go to prove himself?

Set in a near-future, water-scarce Toronto, Fathom Fall is a high-octane speculative thrill ride that questions the ethics of new technology and how it defines our very reality.

Genres: Dystopia, Science Fiction, Young Adult, Action, Young Adult Science Fiction

304 pages, Hardcover

First published March 3, 2026

About the author

Matteo L. Cerilli (he/him) is a transmasc author specializing in speculative fiction for all ages. His writing aims to erase the barrier between liberation movements and the people they’re for, by opening doorways to Big Ideas like queer justice, neurodivergent liberation, youth equity, and community care. His activism work includes setting up gender care for trans students at York University, helping to found the Students for Queer Liberation—Toronto, and organizing with the No Pride in Policing Coalition. He currently lives in Toronto, within walking distance of so many people and places that he loves.

Reviews

[Chris G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awkward, socially blundering Wyatt is a “Water Baby,” the privileged son of Hydrexo employees who are tasked with maintaining and protecting the world’s shrinking water supply. Hydrexo has created an immersive game that Wyatt loves; he’s thrilled when he is one of ten players chosen to pilot a new AR version with the run streamed and the chance for the top three contestants to move on. Wyatt works hard to prepare and even considers how he might team up with some of the others in the top ten but once the game starts, everything he thought he knew to be true about the world and about himself is called into question. Gamers will delight in the intensely described action. Earc from Edelweiss.

[Ms. Yingling · Rating 3 out of 5]

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Definitely a more young adult, darker dystopia.

[JXR · Rating 4 out of 5]

interesting sci-fi super-interesting book about a world where water is tightly controlled and a protagonist who's the kid of a powerful group who administer the water. 4 stars. tysm for the arc.

[Becky]

Nothing wrong with the story, I’m just very much not its audience. And I get it enough to be able to recommend it to reluctant readers.

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

Will pass on this one dnf.