ONCE

Samantha "Sam" Cooper once had a life most girls would envy. She lived in the biggest house on the block and was best friends with Tyler Evans-the golden boy of their school and her next-door neighbor. She is his rock, and he is hers. So when Sam's mom is unexpectedly promoted, and the family relocates from California to Florida the summer before high school, Sam is determined to remain close to Tyler. But her letters and calls go unanswered, and the silence grows.
In Florida, Sam finds solace in surfing, guided by lessons from her father. She also becomes a big sister to baby Ben. But the ocean that brought joy soon takes it all away: Ben drowns, then, six months later, her father is gone too. Grief-stricken, Sam's mother moves them back to her childhood home-and back to the town where Sam left her heart behind.
Now seniors in high school, Tyler has changed-he is haunted, distant, and hostile. His mother's death is cloaked in secrecy, his father's alcoholism rages beyond control, and beneath the surface lies a devastating truth about why Sam's family really left. A truth long buried by betrayal, selfishness, and greed-one that could destroy them.
ONCE is a sweeping story about two young people torn apart by forces beyond their control and reunited by fate-only to confront a truth that could shatter them forever. It's a story of first love, the weight of secrets, and the painful path to healing.