by Malinda Lo
First published 2021
Seventeen-year-old Lily Hu finds herself asking dangerous questions in 1954 San Francisco. When she discovers a book about two women falling in love, something awakens inside her that demands answers. The moment arrives when she and Kathleen Miller step beneath the neon lights of the Telegraph Club, a lesbian bar that becomes their secret refuge. But America during the Red Scare offers no safety for girls like them. Lily faces threats from every direction. Her Chinese American family already lives under suspicion as Communist paranoia grips the nation. Her father's citizenship provides little protection against the deportation orders targeting their community. In Chinatown, traditional expectations weigh heavy on daughters. Lily and Kath must choose between the love growing between them and the security of staying hidden. Their relationship blooms against a backdrop of political fear and cultural pressure, forcing Lily to decide what she's willing to sacrifice for the chance to live authentically.
Genres: romance, american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, coming-of-age, lgbt
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Chinatown, San Francisco, Telegraph Club
Period: 1954
409 pages · Hardcover · Dutton Books for Young Readers
Content warnings: homophobia, racism