Intrigued? Read on to discover the synopsis and an excerpt from Welcome to Merlin Academy by Melissa de la Cruz, which releases on May 12th 2026.

Before their Descendants rocked the world, the baddest villains made waves in the classroom.

It’s the first day at Merlin Academy, and the new students have no idea what to expect. Hook hopes he’ll get closer to the legacy he was destined for. Hades is determined to impress the already-infamous Maleficent. Uliana recruits Morgie to do some hands-on spellwork so they’re not stuck at a desk all day. And Ella’s not sure where she fits in to all this magical royalty and villainy. Luckily, her new friend Bridget’s got her back. 

The one thing they have in common? They’re all intrigued when headmaster Merlin transforms the school’s fountain into the Sword in the Stone. A challenge is issued: pull Excalibur from the rock and a life-changing prize awaits. 

But when Merlin and the famed Sword in the Stone vanish, all eyes narrow in on the Villains. Typical. It doesn’t help their image when classes are constantly interrupted by wayward magic and a powerful, ancient spell book goes missing. Amidst secrets and accusations, will the students find Merlin and have a chance at that life-changing prize? Or will their time at Merlin Academy be over before it’s even begun?

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Intrigued? Read on to discover the synopsis and an excerpt from Forbidden Mountain by Brandon Mull, which releases on April 14th 2026.

Every Anoran child dreams of the day they will enter the sacred bonding hut and match with a guardian—a spiritual guide who grants magically enhanced abilities. A lucky few will bond with Advocates, who promise greatness and glory. Others will be tempted by forbidden offers from the Accursed—dangerous spirits who bring nothing but destruction and a penalty of death to any Anoran who chooses them. But when Mako discovers that the worst of these agents of chaos has returned to spread an ancient evil through the empire, he faces an unthinkable choice: Will he bond with one of the Accursed to gain the power to stop another?

Halfway across the empire, Arden has no guardian and no prospects of adventure…until she infiltrates an underground criminal network to find her missing friend. Relying on her knack for sensing the truth through even the smoothest lies, Arden finds herself at the center of a sinister conspiracy that runs much deeper than she ever imagined.

Soon Mako’s and Arden’s fates collide, and together they must face bandit armies, dark secrets, and untold dangers to fight an enemy who could destroy all they’ve ever known.

You can also learn more about the author’s tour schedule here or below!

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Intrigued? Read on to discover the synopsis and an excerpt from All That Chandni Knows by Khushboo Patel, which releases on March 31st 2026.

For twelve-year-old Chandni, 1999 is the year everything must be perfect. And why shouldn’t it be?

Her parents are well-respected doctors in the community, she’s the leader of her friend group, and her crush is even hinting at liking her back. She also has her sights set high on a spot at India’s most prestigious boarding school for girls. If she stays focused and works hard, the dream just may be within reach.

But as the boarding school selection deadline looms closer, Chandni is overwhelmed by a devastating secret that’s threatening to tear her family apart. With life and relationships spiraling around her, Chandni will have to decide between pursuing her ambitions and protecting her family.

Set against the vibrant turn of the millennium in India, this debut middle grade novel in verse is a beautiful and vulnerable story about the seismic events that life throws at us and the love that helps us brave it all.

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Intrigued? Read on to discover the synopsis and an excerpt from You Are Now Old Enough to Hear This by Aaron Starmer, which releases on March 24th 2026.

The Toe Beast looms large in the Barnes family lore—a tale concocted by twelve-year-old Roman’s grandpa to explain his missing toe. But Roman has never actually heard the full story, and after his grandpa dies suddenly, it seems like he never will.

That is, until Roman is tasked with clearing out his grandpa’s house, and stumbles upon some strange things. An old mason jar full of formaldehyde, a mysterious handwritten book about a girl and a pack of dogs, a rusty metal bucket with peculiar abilities. And they all tie back to extraordinary secrets from the distant past.

By unraveling even more unbelievable stories that have been hidden from him, Roman is forced to rethink how he fits into his family’s history. Now it’s up to him to see his own story through to the end. Because the Toe Beast was only the beginning . . .

EXCERPT

One Quick Thing

On the eve of his twelfth birthday, Roman Barnes made a wish. Alone in his room, tucked under his covers, he softly said the following words into the dark: “I wish I had someone to talk to, someone who understands me and what I’m going through, someone who will tell me everything is gonna be okay.”

The next morning, he received a gift.

“Oh, a magic eight ball,” he said as he sat cross-​legged on the sofa, opening a box covered in shiny silver paper. “You ask it ‘yes or no’ questions and it tells your fortune, right?”

“Yep, just give it a shake and voilà, the answer will appear,” Roman’s dad said, and then he turned to Roman’s mom. “Where’d you find that?”

She shrugged. “Wasn’t me.”

“Must’ve been from his real parents,” Roman’s brother, Alex, said. “I guess now’s as good a time as ever to reveal the family secret. You’re adopted, Roman.”

“Not true and definitely not funny, Alex,” Roman’s mom said.

Roman was used to this sort of teasing from his brother, so he focused on the magic eight ball instead. He asked it, “Will you be nice to me?”

Roman shook the ball and an answer emerged in the murky waters. It was a definitive:
Yes.

“Well, it is your birthday,” Alex said. “It has to be nice to you on your birthday.”

Maybe that was the case, but it turned out that the magic eight ball was nice to Roman all the time.

Over the next week, he asked it more questions. Countless queries about who he was and what he wanted to be.

“Am I smart?”

“Will I make a difference when I’m older?”

“Do I matter?”

Whatever Roman asked the magic eight ball, it always answered with the same solitary word.

Yes.

Roman knew magic eight balls were supposed to be equipped with a whole slew of answers, phrases like Without a doubt, or Outlook not so good, or even Ask again later. But this particular magic eight ball would only ever answer with that short and sweet yes.

Such unbridled optimism meant the toy was clearly ­defective. Perhaps the floating die inside was unevenly weighted, or maybe the entire thing was misprinted with the same word on every surface. Yes, yes, yes, twenty times over. For this reason, Roman didn’t dare ask it any morbid questions such as “Will my parents die soon?” or “Will I always feel so alone?” because he couldn’t bear to see it confirm these things. Though he did posit a few silly scenarios, like “Will I grow up to be a capybara?” and “If I started training now, could I jump high enough to touch the moon?”

Yes. Yes.

Eventually, Roman grew bored with the toy. He stuffed it away somewhere and forgot where he put it. He didn’t even think to ask it about the Toe Beast.

Part One
The Toe Beast

Chapter 1

Roman’s cousins weren’t afraid of the Toe Beast. Neither was his brother. To them, it was simply a creature in a creepy tale that Grandpa Henry told when he pulled off his slippers and revealed his nine toes.

“How’d you lose that pinkie toe, Grandpa?” one of his grandkids would say.

And Grandpa Henry would arch an eyebrow and reply, “The losing part is the prologue. The real story is what came after the losing.” Then he’d proceed to tell whatever crowd had gathered about the Toe Beast and they’d cringe or laugh or gasp, but they’d all act as if it were harmless fiction.

Roman suspected it was fiction, but he couldn’t know for sure. Because he had never heard the story. At least not the entire thing. Bits and pieces would slip out of his cousins’ mouths when they were crowded around the kids’ table at Thanksgiving or scrunched up in the back of Uncle Pete’s van on trips to the beach.

The storms. The ax. The jar.

Invariably Roman’s brother, Alex, would say something like, “He’s not ready for that yet,” and the others would clam up immediately. Roman found that suspicious, even though he appreciated it. As the youngest of the cousins, his default mode was to be on the defensive. In most other instances, his brother—​and the rest of the Barnes clan—​would not be quite so considerate of his feelings.

The funny thing was, Roman really liked stories. But he couldn’t handle ones with blood and gore, and he suspected the story of the Toe Beast was full of both. So, whenever Grandpa Henry unveiled his foot, Roman would sneak away to another room until the tale was complete. He had no idea what the Toe Beast even was. He told himself he didn’t want to know.

There was a problem, however. Just because a guy tells himself he doesn’t want to know something, it doesn’t mean he won’t wonder about it. So, on some nights—​many, in fact—​Roman would lie awake in bed for hours pondering the Toe Beast. Was it a beast made of toes? Or was it a beast that ate toes? And what did it have to do with his nine-​toed Grandpa Henry?

Grandpa Henry lived alone as a widower in a small house not far from Roman’s home. His wife, Dorothy, was gone by the time Roman was a baby, but the old man still talked about her constantly and lovingly.

“You and your grandma would’ve been the best of pals,” he told Roman on more than one occasion. “She was a thinker like you.”

Roman wasn’t sure if he was a thinker, but his mind often wandered and clearly often wondered.

What does Grandpa Henry do all day alone? He comes to our house for Sunday dinners, and I see him cheering at all my Little League games, but how does he spend the rest of his hours?

It was on a blazing hot summer day when some of the things Roman wondered about began to reveal themselves. He had gone to Grandpa Henry’s house to cut the lawn, something his parents insisted he do because his grandfather, a former barber, had “already done two lifetimes’ worth of cutting.”

Roman found the old man behind the house, attaching a substantial padlock to his red toolshed. Sweat was dripping down his neck, and his hands were trembling.

“Roman!” Grandpa Henry said in shock, spinning around. “Why are you . . . I mean . . . I’m . . . happy to see you.”

He didn’t look happy, though. He looked scared.

“What’s going on?” Roman asked.

“It’s the Toe Beast,” he said, grabbing Roman by the shoulder a little too tightly. “He wants out again.”

Roman wished he hadn’t heard those words, because now he had to do something about them. “You look exhausted, Grandpa,” Roman said, pulling himself away from the old man’s grasp. “Do you have any lemonade inside?”

The boy knew the answer before even asking the question. Lemonade was a fixture in Grandpa Henry’s refrigerator, so of course the old man nodded in response, and Roman was able to take him by the arm and lead him into the house, away from the red toolshed.

When the two were sitting safely at the kitchen counter with tall, full glasses in front of them, Grandpa Henry once again put a firm hand on Roman’s shoulder. “Promise me you won’t let it out.”

“The Toe Beast?” Roman asked.

Grandpa Henry nodded vigorously. “I don’t know how much longer I have to live, but now that it’s fully grown, the Toe Beast might live for hundreds of years. Maybe thousands. They’ve found hair on mummies, you know?”

Roman took a long sip of his lemonade because he didn’t know how to respond. He was so worried.

“I’ve told you about that despicable Toe Beast, haven’t I?” Grandpa Henry said, pushing his glass of lemonade away from him like it was poison.

“You’ve told me many times,” Roman said, which was a lie, of course, but an understandable one. He certainly didn’t want to hear the story now. Not because he feared the Toe Beast but because he was scared for his grandfather. There was something not right about him. Something strange and different. An attitude? An . . . illness? Roman wasn’t clueless. He knew that when people got old, they sometimes suffered from delusions, and he wanted to stop this delusion right in its tracks. He figured the more he agreed with him, the sooner Grandpa Henry would change the subject.

“Hardly anyone believes me about the Toe Beast,” Grandpa Henry said. “Your Grandma Dorothy did. You do too, right?”

“Of course I believe,” Roman said, and he couldn’t feel bad for this lie either because it made his grandfather’s face brighten. But the brightness had a sheen to it, a redness, a simmering anger that didn’t look right on the typically serene old man.

“Good, good, good,” Grandpa Henry said, his lip curling. “You’re the only one I’m telling this. But you know what to do if it gets out, right?”

Roman had no idea what to do if some imaginary creature got out. He nodded just the same, which seemed to satisfy his grandfather, who nodded back and then retreated to the comfort of his bedroom. Before long, it started to rain and Roman realized he would have to wait to cut the lawn. He went home without saying goodbye.

Grandpa Henry died the next day.

The post Read An Excerpt From ‘You Are Now Old Enough to Hear This’ by Aaron Starmer appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Intrigued? Read on to discover the synopsis and an excerpt from Glory Be by Jamie Sumner, which releases on March 10th 2026.

Disappeared. Vanished. Vamoosed.

Glory has the best dog in the world. Roux wags his tail so hard his whole round little body shakes. He touches his nose to hers like E.T. phoning home. Roux is always there for her—but now he’s gone. And Glory is worried her daddy had something to do with it.

Daddy’s been getting into trouble since the day Glory was born. Now it’s worse than worse. As she searches all over New Orleans for her lost pup, Glory discovers some things about her city and herself. Enough to make her wonder: How do you know when to hang on to the ones you love…and when to let go?

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Intrigued? Read on to discover the synopsis and an excerpt from Hail Mariam by Huda Al-Marashi, which releases on February 24th 2026.

Sixth grade wasn’t supposed to be this complicated.

Iraqi American Mariam Hassan transfers to a local Catholic school and before her first day her parents remind her that she might be the first Muslim her classmates have ever met. No big deal, right? Just represent an entire religion while making new friends, keeping up with schoolwork, and figuring out who she is.

When Mariam’s younger sister, Salma, is diagnosed with a serious lung condition, her family faces endless doctor visits and sleepless nights. Mariam tries to lighten their burden and keep her own problems to herself—including the fact that she’s just been cast as Mary in the school’s Christmas nativity play.

Mariam wants to honor her faith and her new community, but she’s terrified of crossing a religious line. Can a Muslim girl be the lead in a Christian story? What will her family think? And why does she feel like every decision she makes represents all Muslims?

Mariam discovers that faith, much like friendships, isn’t about perfection—it’s about connection. As she leans on her family, friends, and school community, she begins to see the power of interfaith cooperation and learns she doesn’t have to carry the weight of the world on her shoulders.

Hail Mariam is a celebration of the beauty of finding common ground.

EXCERPT

When I close my eyes, Jesus with the flaming heart—­the one from the portrait hanging above Ava’s bed—­appears in my mind like a hologram. He is life-­size but see-­through.

And I know exactly why he’s here.

Prophets are too holy to be drawn or represented, but I’d glanced at Jesus’s portrait while we were playing board games on the floor.

Okay, more truthfully, I stared at Jesus. I couldn’t help it. His light brown eyes; his long, wavy hair; the beard that parted for the deep cleft in his chin. I had so many questions.

How did the people who drew Jesus know what he looked like?

Is this a Christian Jesus? Like, if Muslims were allowed to draw pictures of prophets, would they draw Nabi Isa differently?

What kinds of thoughts are you allowed to have about a picture of a prophet? Are you supposed to admire them and think they look nice? Or are you supposed to be in awe and sort of scared of them? And is it right to have feelings about the picture? Or is it wrong?

Well, apparently it was wrong because this vision of Christian Jesus is here now to warn me.

I quickly open my eyes and vow, Ya Allah, I promise I will never look at another image of Nabi Isa again. And then I add on a prayer for forgiveness because I probably need that too. Ya Allah, I’m sorry I convinced Mama to break our no-­sleepover rule for this.

Yesterday, I wore Mama down for hours with a very convincing three-point argument. It was truly some of my best work.

1. Ava’s dad and brother were camping for the weekend, so there wouldn’t be any boys in the house.

2. Ava lived up the street, and I could walk home in the unlikely event of an emergency.

3. SumMer was almost over, and didn’t my parents, who love me, want me to do this one fun thing with my one friend, the only best friend I’ve ever had, before I start at a new school, where I know no one?

But the fun ended as soon as Ava and I stopped playing for the night. I wish Mama had told me that this might happen. I don’t know why I thought it would be fun to follow the rules at Ava’s house—to eat her mom’s broccoli casserole dinner, and to go to bed when her mom said (which was WAY earlier than when I go to bed at my house, and we weren’t even done making our friend- ship bracelets for each other), and to sleep on Ava’s hard floor in a hot sleeping bag.

I stare at the strawberry-­shaped alarm clock on Ava’s night- stand and count down the hours until morning. I’m afraid to close my eyes because Jesus is probably still there, waiting for me.

So I’m stuck holding my eyes open while Ava snoozes away under the canopy of her comfortable, beautiful bed.

I’m stuck in this house that smells more like essential oils than cooking oil.

And I’m stuck rehearsing how I’m going to tell Mama that now I really can’t go to the middle school she chose for me anymore.

Our Lady of Mercy Catholic School is covered in pictures of Jesus.

Excerpted from Hail Mariam, by Huda Al-Marashi. Kokila, 2026. Reprinted with permission.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Huda Al-Marashi writes for both children and adults. She is a coauthor of the middle grade novel Grounded, which won the Walter Dean Myers Honor award, and the author of the memoir First Comes Marriage: My Not-So-Typical American Love Story. Her other writing has appeared in various anthologies and news outlets, such as the New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and Al Jazeera. She is a fellow and mentor with the Highlights Foundation Muslim Storytellers Program, and she lives in San Diego, California with her husband and three children.

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Intrigued? Read on to discover the synopsis and the cover for The Thing About Giants by Christopher Galvin, which releases on June 9th 2026.

Twelve-year-old Jacq Dyer is the daughter of two renowned giant hunters, although she’s never had much stomach for what they do. In a city built from giants’ bones, people rely on hunters to keep them prosperous and safe, and everyone knows that giants are violent, senseless creatures . . . aren’t they? But when an accident leaves Jacq lost and injured in the wilderness, she ends up face-to-face with Corman, a frightened young giant. Corman has just lost his dad to hunters, and he and Jacq must learn to trust each other if they’re going to find their ways home. But as they start finding out the truth about giant hunting—and the shadowy Resistance Jacq has grown up hating—they discover there’s more at stake than either of them know.

With captivating world-building and rich characters, debut author Christopher Galvin offers an engrossing and thought-provoking tale.

Jacket illustration © 2026 by Brie Schmida.

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Now read on to discover the synopsis and first chapter in both written and audio formats, read by the author herself!

The game is far from over. In fact, it’s only just begun.

Having finally reached the Isle of Ever, Everly “Benny” Benedict thinks she’s won the game of clues her ancestor Evelyn Terry set out for her in her will. Only she can’t prove it yet―not until her new friends are safe from the curse that has kept them trapped for centuries!

And now there’s a new game. It turns out that Evelyn has more secrets in her diary and another task for Benny: to find the lost piece of pirate treasure needed to break the curse once and for all. It won’t be easy. One of her best friends has betrayed her; the kids from the island are just discovering twenty-first- century life, and a mysterious stranger mentioned in Evelyn’s diary has somehow turned up in present-day Greenport.

Benny has to figure it all out in just a few days. If time runs out, someone else can claim the inheritance, and the Isle of Ever will disappear again for another two hundred years!

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Intrigued? Read on to discover the synopsis and an excerpt from The Aftermyth by Tracy Wolff, which releases on February 3rd 2026.

What’s your myth?

Penelope Weaver has spent her whole life preparing to attend Anaximander’s Academy, where students learn how to bring to life the stories of Greek mythology as well as discover the Greek god whose principles they most embody. Penelope knows she’s an Athena—all smart, practical, and rule-following girls who take part in stories that matter are Athenas.

But when Penelope and her twin brother Paris arrive at Anaximander’s, it appears fate has other plans. Penelope isn’t placed with Athena but with students who are anything but practical and who prefer parties to rules. And that’s just the beginning. She’s given the world’s worst muse, her assigned tasks feel impossible, and the magic of Anaximander’s is overwhelming. Not to mention, there are two very different boys making her new life even more confusing.

But as things go from bad to dangerously worse, one thing becomes clear: in a world where everything is fated to happen a certain way, some stories need to be rewritten. As the world around her shifts and cracks, Penelope is asked to forget everything she thought she knew to help create a better story…even if that changes every plan and breaks every rule.

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About Bea Mullins Takes a Shot: A League of Their Own meets The Mighty Ducks in this fierce and heartfelt queer middle grade contemporary novel about learning to face your fears even when your goals are on thin ice.

Thanks in large part to the runaway success of Jacob Tierney’s Heated Rivalry TV series (based on the Game Changers books by Rachel Reid), queer sports romances are having a moment. Whether it’s falling for a teammate or getting together with a rival player, there’s something about the high-intensity environment of sports that pairs so perfectly with the heightened emotions of a romance novel. Plus, let’s be honest: who can resist seeing their crush in a uniform?

While the Game Changers series is aimed at adult audiences, there’s a whole world of queer sports romances out there for kidlit readers, too. If you’re searching for stories that are just as full of feelings as Heated Rivalry but tailored to a younger crowd, look no further than these eight queer middle grade contemporary novels. From sporty tweens facing first crushes to young athletes on journeys of self-discovery, there’s something here for everyone waiting for the next episode of Heated Rivalry to drop.

Bea Mullins Takes a Shot by Emily Deibert

Yes, I wrote this one, but it’s hard not to recommend my own sapphic ice hockey novel when we’re talking about a queer hockey romance! Twelve-year-old Bea would rather spend middle school on the sidelines, but after reluctantly joining her school’s ragtag girls’ ice hockey team, she winds up falling for the sport—and the team’s star player, Gabi. When a lack of funding threatens her team’s future, Bea has to face her insecurities to keep her friends (and her crush) on the ice. There are high-action hockey scenes, wintery skating dates…and maybe even a kiss in the hockey rink’s locker room!

Crushing It by Erin Becker

This dual-POV first-crush romance sees ex-besties and current soccer teammates Mel and Tory falling for each other without realizing it in a You’ve Got Mail or Love, Simon style twist. After a fight breaks apart their friend group, Mel and Tory are at odds with each other both on and off the soccer field—and at the same time, both girls are connecting with anonymous new friends through their school’s messaging app. This book is fast-paced and swoony, and interspersed with the girls’ texts and poems throughout. It totally brought me back to that butterflies-in-stomach feeling of being thirteen years old and hopelessly crushing on someone.

It’s All or Nothing, Vale by Andrea Beatriz Arango

Fans of rivals-to-crushes romances will love this poignant novel in verse by Newbery Honor-winning author Andrea Beatriz Arango. After a life-changing accident, champion fencer Vale struggles with her sense of identity and her feelings toward fencing when she returns to her gym. Complicating matters is new girl Myrka, a fencing prodigy who’s all but replaced Vale…and the fact that Vale can’t quite decide if she wants to be Myrka, or just plain wants her. This was an incredibly moving exploration of queer identity, disability, and self-discovery that will appeal to anyone who’s ever grappled with what it means to be the best at something.

Vote for the G.O.A.T by Ali Terese

Burned-out soccer star Meg and chronically ill overachiever Jo have to team up to save their school’s missing goat mascot (and yes, it’s an actual goat!) in this zany middle school heist with the cutest romantic subplot. Sporty Meg and lone wolf Jo don’t initially have much in common, but become friends through their shared campaign to save their school’s goat mascot, Babette—and the way their friendship develops throughout this laugh-out-loud story is incredibly sweet. This book also has a great message about bodily autonomy in the context of sports, and culminates in what might just be the most adorable school dance scene of all time!

Thanks a Lot, Universe by Chad Lucas (and the sequel You Owe Me One, Universe!)

Thanks a Lot, Universe by Chad Lucas remains one of the most tender, heartfelt explorations of identity and tween friendships I’ve ever read. In this dual-POV story, basketball teammates Brian and Ezra become close after problems at home lead Brian and his younger brother to run away. Ezra tries to help Brian through his struggles with anxiety, while at the same time coming to terms with the fact that he’s started developing feelings for Brian, which he’s not sure that Brian reciprocates. This book (and its fantastic sequel, You Owe Me One, Universe) will have you laughing one moment and crying the next. 

Skating on Mars by Caroline Huntoon

Skating on Mars is another novel set in the world of ice skating, but this time it’s figure skating that takes center stage. Nonbinary tween Mars is dealing with the recent death of their father (who they never got to come out to), while also trying to find their place in a historically gendered sport. The rink is where Mars feels most at home, but when a hotshot figure skater challenges them to compete as a boy, Mars has to grapple with the binary expectations of the sport they love. At the same time, Mars develops a seriously sweet crush on new girl Jade.

Kenzie Kickstarts a Team by Kit Rosewater (and the rest of the books in the Derby Daredevils series!)

This illustrated series about a group of roller derby-loving tweens is perfect for readers on the younger end of middle grade. In the first book, Kenzie and Shelly (aka Kenzilla and Bomb Shell in the derby world) need to wrangle together three new teammates in order to compete in their city’s new junior derby league. But things get awkward when Shelly recruits Kenzie’s neighbor Bree—who also happens to be the girl Kenzie’s secretly crushing on. Full of humor, heart, and lots of roller derby action, I adored this entire series!

The Queen Bees of Tybee County by Kyle Casey Chu

Written by Kyle Casey Chu, aka Panda Dulce (a founding queen of Drag Story Hour!) The Queen Bees of Tybee County sees basketball-loving Derrick discovering a love for drag. Although Derrick’s initially reluctant to spend the summer with his fashion-loving grandmother, things change when she introduces him to the world of beauty pageants—and Derrick starts to realize that maybe he’d like to compete, too. At the same time, he’s worried about what his dad will think, while also starting to wonder whether he might like his best friend JJ as more than just a friend. A must-read for anyone trying to discover their authentic self!

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