49 parts Complete Matureβ‘I was shocked to see whose still bewitching eyes had just accidentally met with mine. Giovanni! A boy, a crush, and one fantastic kiss. I thought I'd never see him again. β‘Dual POV β‘
It's the mid-90s on the West Coast: grunge music, mix tapes, pagers, skateboarding and baggy clothes. Lauren, an ordinarily shy 8th-grade girl, risks the first move to approach her long-time elusive crush, Gio, a gorgeous and mysterious outsider who has a secret crush of his own. The night of the school dance, they get exactly what they dreamed of: a first dance, a first kiss...but the timing isn't on their side, and the budding relationship slips through their fingers.
Fast-forward to her junior year-the worst year of her life so far-and Lauren feels anything but confident. Gio reemerges at school after a three-year absence, and the unexpected encounter sends tremors through both of their lives. But their attraction to each other is as intense as ever, and interactions between them heat up quickly. However, Gio's school life is a disaster, and he harbors a secret he won't share, but it's the truth that Lauren keeps from him that really threatens to tear their young romance apart.
"This is a great teen romance with angst, humor, and two incredible main characters. Ren is the friend I would have loved to have growing up, and Gio . . . well, he is just teen crush perfection! Also, it's set in the late nineteen nineties, which was my own teenage era, so I love revisiting the nostalgia of that time! " -Polly Ford.
"This is a heartwarming and nostalgic read that will take you back to the late nineties, where we follow Ren, who is so relatable, as she comes of age on her journey with the swoon-worthy Giovanni, who will make your heart melt several times! Their journey is emotional, passionate, and both heart-wrenching and heart-warming-such a beautiful book! " - Heidi Carroll.
