e-ARC, 272 pages
Release Date: April 21, 2026
Published by: Roaring Brook Press
Read from: April 19-30, 2026
Stand-alone
Source: Netgalley (I received this e-ARC free from the publisher and their app. This did nothing to influence my review.)
Content Warning: N/A
For Readers of: Contemporary, e-ARC, Sparkly Cover, Middle Grade, Racial/Ethnic Diversity, Realistic FictionA heartwarming and funny middle grade novel about family, resilience, and the power of second chances where one girl’s summer punishment turns into a mission to save her aunt’s struggling nail salon and bring her family together.
Twelve-year-old Domi Pham had the perfect summer lounging by the pool, making art with her best friend, and celebrating her escape from seventh grade. But one costly mistake puts her dream summer on hold. Instead, she finds herself deep in debt to her parents, and shipped off to New Mexico to work at her Auntie Q’s nail salon for the next three months.
At first, Domi is miserable—surrounded by nosy aunties, constant nail polish fumes, and endless work. But as she gets to know Auntie Q and the people in the salon, she starts to see their struggles and resilience in a new light. When she discovers that the salon is at risk of closing, Domi puts her creativity and determination to the test to help save it.
*MY THOUGHTS*
Ok I’m not gonna lie…. This is a MG novel and I got got with the title lol I thought this was a fantasy book. I thought she saw dragons at her aunt’s nail salon LOL But no, that is not what this book was about. That’s on me tho. I need to start reading the synopsis lol
Ok so one thing I loved about this was the way it also taught the reader about financial planning. She had to recoup that money for her parents, but things kept coming up and she wasn’t able to save as much as she wanted. It really taught her how hard making and saving money is and I think it will work the same for the other teens as well.
I also loved the people. She made it a point to make everyone’s personality different and even their interactions with Domi different. I found it hilarious that at the end of this novel this 12 year old had a found family filled with mostly adults and one other 12 year old lol It was weird, but they truly were her family. And the way she was riding for them by the end and vice versa. I loved all their relationships.
I was disappointed that this wasn’t a fantasy book, so I did wish there was something more about the nails or even the customers. Just judging by my local nail show I know there’s some colorful people that come in there (even myself LOL) so I thought that would have been entertaining. But the whole logo thing was also pretty entertaining. I would have paid good money to see her face after they were done with her.
This was a lot of fun! Nail shops are one of my favorite places, so I grabbed this one up as soon as I saw the title. And it did not disappoint. I hope we see more of Domi and her Auntie’s nail salon!
Overall, I give this
