Published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers on August 10, 2021
Genres: Magical Realism, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 432
Format: Hardcover
Source: Publisher
I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Moon Fuentez is the ugly sister, destined to stay behind the camera for her beautiful twin, Star, who is a social-media sensation. But Moon really wants to escape her sister’s shadow and create her own art. To save money for art school, she takes on a job as the merch girl on a tour bus full of beautiful influencers. When she builds an unexpected camaraderie with the hot, grumpy merch guy, Santiago Phillips, she begins to wonder if she too is worthy of love.
As a disclaimer, this book isn’t going to be for everyone. Moon has suffered a lot (see trigger warnings below), and she has years of trauma to unpack and process—which means she has a hard time recognizing and accepting love freely given. At times, she can take a step forward only to take a few steps back. Having gone through some things (though not to the extent that Moon has), I know healing takes a long time. While it certainly takes more than one summer to fully heal, and even then some traumas will always stay with us, I love how we get to see Moon come out of her chrysalis and stretch her wings. Even better, the book makes it clear that getting a guy won’t make her better; Moon has to go through the healing process herself before she can begin to have a healthy relationship. As a family person, I also love that Moon View Spoiler »
I love the love-hate banter between Moon and Santiago (the latter loves to get a rise out of Moon) and the obvious chemistry they share, the beautiful art that Moon creates and how at-home she is in nature, the nod to the millennia of lost history due to European colonialism, and the beautiful poetry of the words—the way Moon explores the images and sounds of words, and her appreciation for them.
This book broke my heart and put it back together again.
Diversity: View Spoiler »
Trigger Warnings: View Spoiler »
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