January 30, 2023
Soon-to-be stepsisters employ Parent Trap-style hijinks in an effort to break up their newly engaged parents in this middle grade debut from Desombre (I Think I Love You). Twelve-year-old Autumn has an epic summer mapped out, involving New York City outings with best friend Saskia and avoiding game nights with her mother’s boyfriend Harrison (“Harristinks,” per Autumn) as well as his “boring” 12-year-old daughter Linnea. Those plans implode, however, when her mother announces her engagement to Harrison and the family’s upcoming move to his home in Connecticut. Desperate to regain her old life, Autumn hatches a plan to break up her mother and Harrison, roping her soon-to-be stepsister into the scheme, which involves sabotaging moving day and wedding planning. But the longer she shares a room with Linnea, the more her resolve falters, and Autumn’s emotions are further complicated by her own confusing feelings for Saskia and her mother’s inability to see Autumn’s deep, internal struggle with their rapidly changing life. The realistically middle grade voice pairs with a raw, real portrayal of a tween navigating a newly blended family and a burgeoning queer identity. Characters default to white. Ages 8–12. Agent: Penny Moore, Aevitas Creative Management.