by Alex Aster
First published 2026
Barbie has spent years preparing for her Fate assignment at Swancrest Academy in the pink paradise of Heartland. Everything follows perfect order here, controlled by mysterious powerful beings who decide each graduate's destiny. She has studied relentlessly and conquered every test, confident her efforts will earn her a worthy role. Then graduation arrives and the impossible happens. Barbie becomes the first person in Heartland's history to receive no Fate at all. Her structured world crumbles around her. Lost and directionless, she faces an uncertain future with no predetermined path. A strange necklace begins glowing with secret power, pulling her beyond Heartland's protective barriers. Her journey takes her across sun-soaked beaches, shifting dangerous terrain, and shadowed magical forests. Each new realm challenges her bravery and intelligence while revealing hidden abilities she never suspected. The farther she travels, the closer she comes to uncovering a buried secret that threatens to transform everything she believed about her world. This fantasy explores breaking free from rigid expectations to forge your own destiny.
Genres: adventure, coming-of-age, fantasy, young-adult
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: chosen-one, fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Heartland, Swancrest Academy
336 pages · Hardcover · Mattel