Waiting on Wednesday: When You Get the Chance by Emma Lord

"Waiting On Wednesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking The Spine where we highlight some of the upcoming books we can't wait to read! 

Title: When You Get the Chance
Author: Emma Lord
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Hardcover, 320 Pages
Publication Date: January 4th, 2022

Summary: othing will get in the way of Millie Price’s dream to become a Broadway star. Not her lovable but super-introverted dad, who after raising Millie alone, doesn’t want to watch her leave home to pursue her dream. Not her pesky and ongoing drama club rival, Oliver, who is the very definition of Simmering Romantic Tension. And not the “Millie Moods,” the feelings of intense emotion that threaten to overwhelm, always at maddeningly inconvenient times. Millie needs an ally. And when a left-open browser brings Millie to her dad’s embarrassingly moody LiveJournal from 2003, Millie knows just what to do. She’s going to find her mom. There’s Steph, a still-aspiring stage actress and receptionist at a talent agency. There’s Farrah, ethereal dance teacher who clearly doesn’t have the two left feet Millie has. And Beth, the chipper and sweet stage enthusiast with an equally exuberant fifteen-year-old daughter (A possible sister?! This is getting out of hand). But how can you find a new part of your life and expect it to fit into your old one, without leaving any marks? And why is it that when you go looking for the past, it somehow keeps bringing you back to what you’ve had all along?

I read Emma Lord's TWEET CUTE and loved it so dang much (you can read my review here), so of course I added YOU HAVE A MATCH to my TBR (and it's on my summer reading list for this year!). So, when I found out that she had a third book coming out, I was over the moon. Emma Lord's writing voice is equal parts snappy, hilarious, and intriguing in a way that I love so much. I don't think I've ever read a book as quickly as I read TWEET CUTE -- and the premise itself was adorable! WHEN YOU GET THE CHANCE will be no different, I'm sure. I can't wait to have it in my hands next year to start reading!

What are you waiting on this week? Leave your links so I can stop back! 

ARC Review: An Emotion of Great Delight by Tahereh Mafi

Title: An Emotion of Great Delight

Author: Tahereh Mafi

Publisher: HarperCollins
Rating: 2/5 Stars
Hardcover, 256 Pages
Published June 2021

Summary: It’s 2003, several months since the US officially declared war on Iraq, and the American political world has evolved. Tensions are high, hate crimes are on the rise, FBI agents are infiltrating local mosques, and the Muslim community is harassed and targeted more than ever. Shadi, who wears hijab, keeps her head down. She's too busy drowning in her own troubles to find the time to deal with bigots. Shadi is named for joy, but she’s haunted by sorrow. Her brother is dead, her father is dying, her mother is falling apart, and her best friend has mysteriously dropped out of her life. And then, of course, there’s the small matter of her hear— It’s broken. Shadi tries to navigate her crumbling world by soldiering through, saying nothing. She devours her own pain, each day retreating farther and farther inside herself until finally, one day, everything changes. She explodes.

I received an advanced copy of AN EMOTION OF GREAT DELIGHT from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. When I first heard that Tahereh Mafi had a new contemporary novel out, I was intrigued -- A VERY LARGE EXPANSE OF SEA was not one of my most favorite novels around, but both myself and my co-bloggers all absolutely adored the SHATTER ME series. I even had the chance to meet Tahereh a few years ago at a signing, and she was such a gem! So when I was asked about a copy of AN EMOTION OF GREAT DELIGHT, I was thrilled to dive into another Tahereh Mafi story. 

As the summary explains, the story is told in a dual-timeline, both parts from the perspective of Shadi, a Muslim-American teenager who is dealing with the onslaught of harassment, assault, and horrors that came with being a Muslim in a post-9/11 world. On top of that, after the death of Shadi's brother, her whole family is falling apart -- her father is sick, her mother is filled with grief, and her sister hates her. The book basically deals with Shadi's bottling up of pain, grief, emotions, and anything and everything that she wants to say, keeping herself small and out of the way, trying not to make trouble. But people can only bottle up their pain for so long, and eventually Shadi finds herself with a burning need to speak out and be heard -- exploding in a million different directions. 

Unfortunately, I didn't find myself as enamored by this book as I had hoped to be. For starters, it felt a little bit too literary for me, which isn't a bad thing in and of itself, but just isn't my type of writing style that I usually love. Even though the chapters and sections would clarify which timeline -- 2001 or 2003 -- that part of the story was taking place in, there were a lot of moments where I had to go back and reread a few sections to get clarity on what was happening, because I felt really confused. 

I think, looking back on all of Tahereh's books that I've read, I've been very invested in her sci-fi/fantasy stories, and not so much with her contemporary writing. While it seems like plenty of people adore it, I just had a hard time really connecting with it. Something about the way she writes contemporary stories with such a literary lean makes it a bit hard for me to connect with, and I felt like so many major things happened in this book and then were just sort of...done. Not addressed. And it left me with a lot more questions than answers. The book itself is a little under 250 pages, so maybe that's why it felt that way to me, but it feels like barely any major plot points were sewn up by the conclusion of the book.

(Spoilers in this paragraph, so skip to the next one to avoid them!) An issue that I had with A VERY LARGE EXPANSE OF SEA that I'm noticing again here is the lack of resolution in the story. Sometimes, books end off leaving the reader wondering what would happen, but in that case some other loose ends are usually tied up. Shadi and Ali seem to be beginning a relationship, but there was so much else I wondered about: Does her mother get help? Does her father find out what her mother was doing to herself? Is he cured of whatever ailments were happening with his heart? What happens with the friendship -- or lack thereof -- with Shadi and Zahra, especially after finding out about Shadi and Ali? And what about Noah?! I loved him so much in the few short bursts that he was on the page, and I really wish I could've seen him more. I remember getting toward the end of the book and realizing that I had only 10-20 pages left, and realizing that basically NONE of my questions were even close to being addressed. It felt a little too open-ended for me, which is where I feel that the book fell short, thus giving it two stars -- our rating here which translates to "It was okay." 

However, there were some aspects of AN EMOTION OF GREAT DELIGHT that I enjoyed as well. Like I mentioned above, Noah was a character that I loved seeing, and his kindness and the way he was constantly reaching out to Shadi even when she was trying to withdraw into herself really made me smile. It goes to show that you never really know when someone can use a friend. And watching the way that Shadi dealt with grief and pain and harbored it all, bearing the burden for her entire family until she couldn't handle it anymore, was a very sharp, poignant, important image that reading about really struck me with. It tugs on your heart to realize that there are some people in this world who are so misunderstood, forced to carry so much pain, and forced to endure so much more than anyone ever realizes.

Overall, while AN EMOTION OF GREAT DELIGHT didn't feel like my cup of tea and what I was hoping for with the book, that is just my opinion on it! Just because I didn't particularly enjoy a book doesn't mean that you won't! So if this book was on your TBR and you were considering reading it, I definitely still encourage you to give it a try. Plenty of people ended up loving this book, and it just so happened that this one wasn't my cup of tea.

Review: One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

Title: One Last Stop

Author: Casey McQuiston

Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Paperback, 432 Pages
Published June 2021

Summary: For cynical twenty-three-year-old August, moving to New York City is supposed to prove her right: that things like magic and cinematic love stories don’t exist, and the only smart way to go through life is alone. She can’t imagine how waiting tables at a 24-hour pancake diner and moving in with too many weird roommates could possibly change that. And there’s certainly no chance of her subway commute being anything more than a daily trudge through boredom and electrical failures. But then, there’s this gorgeous girl on the train. Jane. Dazzling, charming, mysterious, impossible Jane. Jane with her rough edges and swoopy hair and soft smile, showing up in a leather jacket to save August’s day when she needed it most. August’s subway crush becomes the best part of her day, but pretty soon, she discovers there’s one big problem: Jane doesn’t just look like an old school punk rocker. She’s literally displaced in time from the 1970s, and August is going to have to use everything she tried to leave in her own past to help her. Maybe it’s time to start believing in some things, after all.

Ever since I read RED, WHITE & ROYAL BLUE back in 2019, I fell in love with Casey McQuiston's quirky, sassy, hilarious rom-com writing style. So when I found out about ONE LAST STOP, I knew I had to add it to my TBR. And then so many of our blogger friends were Tweeting about how great the story was, and how much they loved it, and how excited they were that they got to read ARCs of it, and I just found myself more and more excited. And then I was actually near Books Are Magic in Brooklyn on the book's release day, so I decided to pop in and just see if the book was there or not. Not only was it there, but it was signed -- so I took that as a sign that this was a book I needed to buy right then and there. So I did, and I also got a cute Pancake Billy's tote as a celebration, and it was just a really nice day all around. And then I started the book on the train ride home, and I ended up falling into a story that I loved so much! 

As the summary explains, August moves to New York City, and she's a pessimist who doesn't believe in things like fate or true love or anything like that. She spent most of her life trying to help her mother track down her long-lost uncle who just vanished one day, and constant dead ends leave her bitter and tired. So she certainly wasn't expecting to meet -- and then fall for -- the mysterious, sarcastic, elusive, attractive Jane Su on the Q one morning. But lo and behold, she does -- and as her and Jane's relationship unfolds, more secrets come to light. Like the fact that Jane doesn't just dress like a retro 1970's punk rocker, but she actually is from there. And she can't leave the subway, no matter how hard she tries. So now, not only does August have to wrap her head around falling in love after believing nothing of the sort for so long, but she has to decide if she believes Jane's situation -- and if so, how to help her. 

I really loved reading this book! It's a contemporary story with a bit of a magical sci-fi twist that requires a bit of suspension of disbelief, but that's really what I enjoyed about it. And as I mentioned, Casey McQuiston is a master of writing witty banter between characters. Part of what took me so long to read this book (almost two weeks, which is pretty slow for me) is the fact that I spent so much time stopping to take Snapchats of funny, sarcastic, or shocking lines to share with my boyfriend. He hasn't even read the book, but he pretty much can say that he has since I've sent him almost 90% of the book's quips and quotes anyway! 

My favorite character in this book was absolutely Jane. Not only is she mysterious with a fascinating backstory, but I love how fiercely she lives her life -- embracing everything, trying new things, using her voice, exploring the world, never shying away from expressing herself, etc. She wasn't just a fun character to read (who made some pretty hilarious or blush-worthy comments), but she just felt so vivid and alive, like she was going to jump off the page at any moment. As someone who is a writer myself, I aspire to create characters that feel as real and as three-dimensional as Jane. Niko was also hysterical, with his third eye wisdom and the little quips he'd make when he was two steps ahead of August all of the time. And seeing Niko and Jane interact together as friends? Forget it -- I was over the moon! I seriously loved them both so much and enjoyed every single second that they were on the page. It was also really great to see the way that August's character arc changed throughout the story, and how incredibly different (in a good way) she was by the end of the novel. Overall, it was brilliant work writing-wise! 

**MAJOR spoilers in this paragraph -- skip to the next one to avoid them!** We also need to talk about that ending, because it had me smiling and crying happy tears to see August and Jane finally get the life that they both dreamed about. At first, when it seems like Jane wasn't saved or was instead sent back to the 1970s, my heart sank a little bit. I know that's where she belonged and everything, but I was really hoping that they'd end up together. And then, for a little while, you think that they don't get that. But when she walks through the door at Billy's, I actually cheered out loud and was smiling so big that I couldn't stop myself. I was so glad to see them get their happily ever after, and getting to see the glimpse of their life together made my heart so fluttery and happy. And I even love the way the book leaves off, wondering how Jane's family and August's mom will take the news about everything. Normally, I don't love when books end on cliffhangers like that, but in this case, I feel like it left it open-ended enough to make you wonder, but all of your major questions (mainly about August and Jane's happiness) are answered. 

Overall, I loved ONE LAST STOP and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking to pick up a hilarious, quirky, adorable queer romance story to read poolside this summer. I spent so much time reading instead of doing the other things I had to do (such as school assignments, blog work, etc.) because I was so drawn into the story and just didn't want to put the book down to return to my daily life. Casey McQuiston's writing is definitely something that I can say with certainty that I love the writing style of these books, and will definitely picking up more of Casey's books in the future.

Did you read ONE LAST STOP? What did you think of it? Comment down below and let me know! 

2021 Debut Author Interview: Melissa Hope!

In 2019, we made it our goal is to work with as many debut authors as possible and to spread the word about their debut novels. It was such a success last year that we decided to continue the fun for years to come! Follow us this year as we pick the minds of the 2021 debuts and chat with them about their writing process and what it's like to be a new author. Also stay tuned for news of giveaways, Twitter chats, and more!

At the end of 2020, we Tweeted about wanting to discover more debut authors and their books. We ended up finding Melissa Hope and her novel SEA OF KINGS, and we have been interested in it ever since! We are so excited to have Melissa on the blog today to answer some of our questions! 

Ask Melissa how she became a writer and she’ll give you two reasons:

stubbornness and an idea. The stubbornness began at age twelve when she trekked to the mailbox in a Canadian blizzard and opened the letter she’d been hoping for — her poem would be published in a book. She knew then writing was her future. And hopefully, hot chocolate to thaw out her toes. The idea came years later when she met her Marine Biologist husband. Together, through car rides across the country and conversations over burned homemade pizza, they created the tropical world of her debut novel, SEA OF KINGS. Though still a Canadian at heart, Melissa escaped the snow and now lives in Florida with her family, a bipolar cat, and a growing collection of scuba gear. Even though writing is her passion, Melissa has developed an equal passion for the writing community which has shaped her career in the last year. Through her AuthorTube channel and her Instagram, which has reached over 10K followers, Melissa shares writing advice and updates on her own writing journey. 

Keep up with Melissa: Website / Twitter / Instagram / Goodreads

The Book Bratz: First of all, congratulations! How does it feel to be a debut author? 

Melissa: Thank you! It's amazing. I've dreamed of publishing for years now, that it's almost hard to believe I've done it! I am still pinching myself every time someone sends me a picture of their copy that arrived in the mail, or I see it on the shelf at the bookstore.  

The Book Bratz: In your opinion, what's the best part of the writing process? What's the hardest? 

Melissa: I love to create. I get an adrenaline rush outlining a new story and especially the new world. I also enjoy the early stages of editing because you are not working with a completely blank page (writing the first draft is the hardest for me), and you're not quite at the tedious stages of editing when it's just commas and such. Drafts 3 and 4 may be my favorite! 

The Book Bratz: Where did you get the idea for SEA OF KINGS? 

Melissa: My husband gave me the idea for the Sea of Kings setting, a realm called Aztrius. He was working in the Bahamas tagging sharks and thought: what if kingdoms ruled these tropical islands? From there, we worked together on the outline, and then I wrote and wrote and wrote.  

The Book Bratz: Who was your favorite character to write? Who was the most difficult? 

Melissa: Dagan is my favorite character to write. He's the main character's brother, also the black-haired boy on the cover, and he's such a goof with a heart of gold. Any time I could get those two brothers together, I would. That being said, Noa was the hardest to write. He has so much to learn in this book and so much heartache and guilt associated with his burden to be a prince that I struggled with portraying him the way I saw him in my head. I remember writing one of the most challenging scenes for Noa, and I started getting emotional as I wrote it. I finally had found the words for him that he had been holding inside him for so long, and I don't think he's ever felt more real.  

The Book Bratz: Are there any other books or authors who give you inspiration for your own writing? 

Melissa: Everyone! I try to grab inspiration from literally every book I read. I have received countless ideas for Sea of Kings from reading non-fiction books, for example, Seafaring Lore & Legend by Peter D. Jeans, and I have also learned a lot about writing for children by reading my favorite children's books: Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine, anything by Roald Dahl or Robert Munsch, and Harry Potter, to name a few. 

The Book Bratz: What do you hope that readers will take away from SEA OF KINGS?  

Melissa: I want readers to have fun! I want them to go on an adventure they can't stop thinking about. I also hope they will come away from reading with faith in the power of forgiving—themselves and others. 

The Book Bratz: Do you plan on returning to the world of SEA OF KINGS in the future, or do you have any other projects in mind? Can you tell us anything about them? 

Melissa: I can't say, but I would LOVE to return to the world of Sea of Kings. Hopefully, it won't be too long before I can give you an update on that! I am also exploring picture books and have several ideas in the works, and that's been fun to try something new. 

Title: Sea of Kings

Author: Melissa Hope

Publisher: Jolly Fish Press 

Published April 2021

Summary: Thirteen-year-old Prince Noa has hated the ocean since the day it caused his mother's death. But staying away from the sea isn't easy on his tropical island home where he's stuck trying to keep up with his dim-witted and overconfident younger brother Dagan--the brawn to Noa's brains. When a vengeful pirate lays siege to their home, Noa and Dagan narrowly escape with their lives. Armed with a stolen ship, a haphazardly assembled crew, and a magical map that makes as much sense as slugs in a salt bath, the brothers set sail for the realm's other kingdoms in search of help. But navigating the sea proves deadlier than Noa's worst fears. To free his home, Noa must solve the map's confusing charts and confront the legendary one-eyed pirate before an evil force spreads across the realm and destroys the very people Noa means to protect.

Thank you so much to Melissa for stopping by and answering our questions! We are super excited about SEA OF KINGS, and it's out in the world now for you all to enjoy! 

Waiting on Wednesday: This Might Get Awkward by Kara McDowell

"Waiting On Wednesday" is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking The Spine where we highlight some of the upcoming books we can't wait to read! 

Title: This Might Get Awkward
Author: Kara McDowell
Publisher: Scholastic Press

Hardcover, 336 Pages
Publication Date: March 1st, 2022

Summary: Seventeen-year-old Gemma’s favorite kind of beach is an empty one. Social interactions are too much for her to handle. She always says the wrong thing—if she manages to say anything at all. She can’t even bring herself to speak to her longtime crush, Beau Booker, without losing sleep over her own awkwardness. During a solo outing to her favorite beach, Gemma realizes—to her horror—that the popular kids from school have shown up to throw a party. Before she can sneak away (and possibly puke behind her car) Gemma is pulled into the action and ends up talking to Beau, who asks her to pretend that they’re “close.” Gemma is too flustered and flattered to refuse, and mostly, she’s wondering why Beau is talking to her at all . . . right up until the moment when he falls off the boat, hits his head, and ends up in a coma. After rescuing Beau from the water, Gemma is mistaken for Beau’s girlfriend by his friends and family, including his mysterious older brother, Griff, who has returned to town after a year away. Gemma tries to correct the record, but her social anxiety (and a nosy reporter) gets in the way at every turn. Before she knows it, she’s in too deep to backtrack. And when Beau’s warm, boisterous family pulls Gemma into their orbit, she realizes how much she wants to keep them in her life. For the first time, Gemma has everything she’s ever wanted: friends, big family dinners, and Griff—a boy who she can be herself around. But how can she embrace her new dream life when everything is built on a lie?

I've been a huge fan of Kara McDowell ever since we covered her as a debut author a few years back, so when I found out about this book -- and saw this lovely cover! -- I was so excited. This sounds like the perfect kind of YA contemporary story that I've been itching to read, and I can't wait to have it in my hands next year! 

What are you waiting on this week? Leave your links so I can stop back! 

Top Ten Tuesday: Bookish Wishes

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl in which we create bookish lists about everything from our favorite characters to love triangles and everything in between! 

This Week's Theme: Bookish Wishes

This week's theme is all about bookish wishes. According to the prompt, everyone is supposed to share their Amazon wishlists so people can grant their wishes and give them books, but I'm currently on a book-buying ban while I get through my towering TBR of the books I already have. However, I still wanted to participate in the prompt this week, so I'm sharing ten books that I wish I could buy and definitely plan to, as soon as I catch up with my TBR! Some of them are already out, and some are ones that I wish I could preorder. So without further ado, here are my picks:

         

So those were some of my picks for books that I wish for after I tackle my current TBR! What are some of yours? Leave your picks (and your Amazon wishlist links) down below so I can check them out!

2021 Debut Author Interview: Brianna Bourne!

In 2019, we made it our goal is to work with as many debut authors as possible and to spread the word about their debut novels. It was such a success last year that we decided to continue the fun for years to come! Follow us this year as we pick the minds of the 2021 debuts and chat with them about their writing process and what it's like to be a new author. Also stay tuned for news of giveaways, Twitter chats, and more!

At the end of 2020, we Tweeted about wanting to discover more debut authors and their books. We ended up finding Brianna Bourne and her novel YOU AND ME AT THE END OF THE WORLD, and we have been interested in it ever since! We are so excited to have Brianna on the blog today to answer some of our questions! 

When she's not writing, Brianna Bourne works as a stage manager for ballet companies around the world. Originally from Texas, she grew up in Indonesia and Egypt and now lives in England with her husband and their two daughters.

Keep up with Brianna: Twitter / Instagram / Goodreads

The Book Bratz: First of all, congratulations! How does it feel to be a debut author?

Brianna: Thank you so much, and thanks for having me on your blog! It feels absolutely incredible to be a debut author. After years of slog and self-doubt, it feels unreal to be at this stage. Of course, navigating a debut year comes with a steep learning curve, but I’m loving the work!

The Book Bratz: In your opinion, what's the best part of the writing process? What's the hardest?

Brianna: That’s a tricky one—every part of the writing process is so different, from early daydreams to plotting to drafting to editing. I do like the daydreaming stage, when my ambitions for a book are totally unrealistic but I haven’t realized that yet, but I think I love editing the most. It’s so fun when my editor starts to feed back on a project, and so satisfying to finally fix problems that initially had me stumped. The raw drafting stage is definitely the hardest for me, because I want to just sit in a chapter and fine-tune it for weeks until it’s perfect. I have to constantly remind myself that perfection is unattainable and that I need to concentrate on writing forward.

The Book Bratz: Where did you get the idea for YOU AND ME AT THE END OF THE WORLD?

Brianna: My favorite stories always zoom in tightly on two characters as they radically alter each others’ lives, and I knew I wanted YOU & ME to do the same. I was also obsessed with an image I had in my head of a girl walking barefoot down an empty 12-lane highway. I wanted to explore what it would be like if all the things my two main characters knew—school, parents, friends—were ripped away, leaving them the last two people in an empty city. What impact would going through something so unusual and traumatic have on them as a pair? Would they panic? Or would they find the freedom to become who they actually wanted to be all along? Of course, this was all fascinating and was going to be really groundbreaking, and then… it became our reality (thanks, Covid.) I wrote YOU & ME long before the pandemic, when I didn’t know that empty streets were something we’d be seeing every day. But I think Hannah & Leo’s struggles with isolation will resonate even more deeply now that we’ve had a taste, and the situation they’re in is definitely different enough that the book will still feel like escapism. Maybe just the kind of escapism we need right now.

The Book Bratz: Who was your favorite character to write? Who was the most difficult?

Brianna: Hannah was definitely the more difficult character to write. Leo is so vivid and energetic, and it was obvious to me how he’d react to the situations they got into. I expected Hannah to be easier because she’s a bit more like me, but her complexity was much trickier to wrangle onto the page.

The Book Bratz: Are there any other books or authors who give you inspiration for your own writing?

Brianna: I love reading high-concept contemporary: books that are grounded in our present day world but that thread in one impossible difference. Like Mia’s ability to roam outside of her injured body in Gayle Forman’s IF I STAY, or the concept of being told it’s your last day in Adam Silvera’s THEY BOTH DIE AT THE END. I love it when authors use hooks like that to ask big questions about life and death, so those types of books have definitely inspired my writing. As a teenager, I also borrowed heavily from my grandma’s romance novel collection, so that’s probably why I like to have lots of steamy romantic tension in my novels!

The Book Bratz: What do you hope that readers will take away from YOU AND ME AT THE END OF THE WORLD? 

Brianna: My greatest hope is that readers will take chances on friendships (or more) with people they initially thought they wouldn’t click with. You can’t grow if you never leave your comfort zone!

The Book Bratz: Do you plan on returning to the world of YOU AND ME AT THE END OF THE WORLD in the future, or do you have any other projects in mind? Can you tell us anything about them?

Brianna: I don’t currently have plans to write a sequel for Hannah and Leo, but I do have an idea on the horizon that would return to their world and explore the speculative element from a different angle with two new characters. The novel I’m working on right now, which is set to come out from Scholastic in 2022, is definitely in the same vein as YOU & ME—it also features a swoony, slow-burn romance, an atmospheric setting, and a supernatural/speculative twist. I’ll let you know more about it once I’m allowed to share! In the meantime, I hope you love YOU & ME AT THE END OF THE WORLD when it hits shelves July 20th, and thank you so much for having me on your blog!

Title: You and Me at the End of the World

Author: Brianna Bourne

Publisher: Scholastic Press

Publication Date: July 20th, 2021

Summary: Hannah Ashton wakes up to silence. The entire city around her is empty, except for one other person: Leo Sterling. Leo might be hottest boy ever (and not just because he's the only one left), but he's also too charming, too selfish, and too devastating for his own good, let alone Hannah's. Stuck with only each other, they explore a world with no parents, no friends, and no school and realize that they can be themselves instead of playing the parts everyone expects of them. Hannah doesn't have to be just an overachieving, music-box-perfect ballerina, and Leo can be more than a slacker, 80s-glam-metal-obsessed guitarist. Leo is a burst of honesty and fun that draws Hannah out, and Hannah's got Leo thinking about someone other than himself for the first time. Together, they search for answers amid crushing isolation, but while their empty world may appear harmless . . . it's not. Because nothing is quite as it seems, and if Hannah and Leo don't figure out what's going on, they might just be torn apart forever.

Thank you so much to Brianna for stopping by and answering our questions! We are super excited about YOU AND ME AT THE END OF THE WORLD and can't wait for it to be out in the world on July 20th!