Cursed Boys and Broken Hearts
Adam Sass. Viking, $19.99 (352p) ISBN 978-0-593-46481-6
being “kind of a bad kid” in his childhood. Induction into the society seems to be Cal’s surefire way toward a successful future, but as the process wears on, he wonders if the Seven Eyes—and Luke—are more sinister than they appear. Through Cal’s introspective narration, Milman (Swipe Right for Murder) builds anticipation and unease by hinting at but never quite revealing the society’s true intentions. Though the third act is somewhat rushed and the political intrigue inherent within the academy feels underdeveloped, the central romance is by turns tender and tragic in this satisfying dark academia thriller. Ages 13–up. Agent: Sara Megibow, KT Literary. (July)
Middle school friends reunite to save a moldering B&B in this energetic secondchance romance from Sass (Your Lonely Nights Are Over). Grant Rossi, 18, has always blamed his poor dating record on a mangled wish he made five years before on the wishing rose, the centerpiece of his Italian American family’s vineyard and B&B. Fresh off a breakup with his influencer boyfriend, Grant impulsively speeds from Chicago to the exurb Valle upon his aunt Ro’s request to help refurbish the vineyard from his youth, which is in disrepair; the end-of-summer Rose Festival is their only chance to raise enough money to forestall selling the establishment. He’s thrown for a loop, however, when the summer gardener turns out to be Scottish American Ben McKittrick, 13-year-old Grant’s true love who broke up his first relationship by kissing
Grant’s then-boyfriend. The teens agree to be civil, especially after Grant’s carefully planned social media post drums up fresh business. But lingering unsupportive family dynamics, long-held hurt feelings, and the impending return of Ben to Scotland cast a long shadow in this clamorous romance, which Sass renders via high emotion and some lightly fantastical flourishes. Characters cue as white. Ages 14–up. Agent: Michael Bourret, Dystel, Goderich & Bourret. (July) the trail and head back home without her. When Alana never returns from the hike, Maya contends with conflicting feelings surrounding her emotionally abusive exgirlfriend suddenly vanishing from her life. Then Alana reappears as a ghost with an ultimatum: either Maya helps her possess someone so she can renew her lease on life, or she will frame Maya for her disappearance. Urgent feeling first-person prose shifts between past and present, simultaneously depicting a serpentine ghost story alongside flashbacks to Alana and Maya’s relationship. Ages 12–up. Agent: Chloe Seager, Madeleine Milburn Literary. (July)