First published 2012
John's world feels empty after his parents split up. His mother won't touch him anymore. Her new fiancé wants to move them away from Boston. His father barely tolerates their weekly dinners. John channels his anger into writing pieces like "Interview with the Stepfather" and "Memoirs from Hell." His only escape comes from reading underground zines, especially Escape Velocity by Marisol, who calls herself a "Puerto Rican Cuban Yankee Lesbian." John hangs around Tower Records waiting for new issues until he finally meets Marisol in person. They bond over their shared love of zines, broken families, and dreams of getting away. As their friendship deepens, John starts dropping his guard. But he confuses growing closeness with romantic love. When he takes Marisol to his junior prom, the night ends badly and destroys their friendship. Desperate to repair the damage, John talks Marisol into attending a zine conference with him on Cape Cod. At the Bluefish Wharf Inn, with the ocean stretching before them, John learns what it really means to love someone.
Genres: fiction, romance, contemporary, young-adult, lgbt, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family, second-chance
Setting: Boston, Cape Cod
Period: contemporary
256 pages · Kindle Edition · Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers
Content warnings: emotional-abuse