e-ALC, 11:03:15
Narrated by: LaRaisha Dionne
Release Date: June 23, 2026
Published by: Simon & Schuster Audio
Read from: June 22-24, 2026
Stand-alone
Source: Libro FM (I received this e-ALC from the publisher and Libro FM. I also received a copy of the ARC and the hardcover from the publisher. I immersive read with the ARC. This did nothing to influence my review.)
Content Warning: Emotional Abuse, Homophobia, Abandonment, Addiction
For Readers of: 2sLGBTQ, ARC, Audio, Auto-Buy Authors, Coming of Age, Contemporary, Family Diversity (Missing Mom), Sparkly Covers, Most Anticipated, Racial/Ethnic Diversity, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Stand-alone, YAA teen travels to Jamaica hoping to answer questions about her absent mother, only to discover more about her identity than she could have ever expected—and find herself caught up in an unexpected love triangle—in this dazzling young adult coming-of-age novel.
Jaliya Powell has never had a real adventure, a real boyfriend, or spoken up for herself. She’s never even been kissed. Despite being valedictorian of her high school class, Jaliya is used to fading into the background.
But this summer will be different.
This summer, Jaliya is visiting her uncle and his family in Jamaica. Under the guise of one last vacation before college, she plans to find out more about her estranged mother, whose absence has remained an unspoken mystery. But things have changed in the seven years since Jaliya last visited. Her cousin has his own life and is reluctant to let Jaliya in, her childhood crush has only gotten hotter and more unavailable, and her aunt and uncle aren’t everything she remembered, either. Then she meets India, who’s vibrant, gorgeous, and free-spirited. And who makes Jaliya feel something she’s never felt before.
While searching for traces of her mother across the island, Jaliya finds herself entangled in complicated relationships, tricky secrets, and a passionate new love. As she navigates this perfectly complicated summer, Jaliya must choose between who she has always been or who she hopes to become.
*MY THOUGHTS*
I have been waiting on this book since I found out about it. DeAndra Davis is a force to be reckoned with, so I knew it was going to be good. And yep, can confirm this one is just as good. I really enjoyed this read and I hope DeAndra has more coming already lol
The thing I loved most about this was the setting. I’ve been to Jamaica exactly once for a few hours on a cruise lol But the crazy thing is, some of the places mentioned, I actually went to. (The Dunn’s River Falls) But the other places I looked up and I was in awe. Definitely made me want to go back to Jamaica for more than a day trip. At least I got to feel like I was traveling through the pages of this book tho. The descriptions are just enough for you to get an overall feel, but also pushes you to go Google the place to get a real look at it. If just the setting was done well, you know this book is about to be good lol
And it was. It’s been a long time since I’ve been as immersed in a coming of age book. But with this one you really can’t help it. I knew I was hooked because I was feeling every single emotion while I read this. I felt sad for her because of her mom, I was happy for her because she found these friends who were more like the family she was searching for. I was nervous because I just didn’t know what she would find with her mom, I was nervous because of who she was falling for, and I was nervous because I didn’t want her to get caught by her dad. I didn’t realize how emotional this was. I think too because I could tell the tell tale signs of someone with a possible addiction. *They never came out and said what it was, but as someone with a trigger of addiction, I could relate to a lot of her feelings.* There is so much love and heart, and heart ache basically oozing from this story.
The family dynamic was so crazy! The love between her and her dad was almost palpable. And then there was the anger and jealousy with her cousin, and the romance and flirting with everyone else in her found family (IYKYK lol) I was proud of her for going out to find her mom, but I thought it was worth it to know that she really didn’t have to. She had her real family sitting there all along. But her uncle? Yeah he can catch these hands. (Why is it ALWAYS an Uncle?!)
The romance was also really cute. But it was also one of the reasons I was annoyed by this lol Y’all know how I feel about love triangles, and there is one in this lol I won’t say who, but I didn’t get too mad and I let it slide because it’s actaully different than the standard, good boy vs bad boy. Let’s just say it confirms that the main character is bi lol
I loved almost everythgin about this book. From the cover, to the title, to the book itself. This was so good. I hope y’all understand that this is one book that y’all need to pick up. A hella great follow up to her debut!
Overall, I give this
