Now in paperback, a compelling YA story with a magical realism twist about a girl whose pregnancy shocks everyone . . . most of all herQuinn Cutler is sixteen, the daughter of a candidate for congress in Brooklyn, and a student at a private school in Park Slope. Shes also pregnant, a situation made infinitely more shocking by the fact that she has no memory of actually having sex. Scared and confused, Quinn struggles to piece together what might have happened: An unlikely accident while she and her boyfriend were fooling around? A rape that shes repressing from trauma? Before shes had any revelations, the situation becomes public, putting her most intimate life up for scrutiny and ridicule, and jeopardizing her fathers political career. Religious fanatics begin gathering at the Cutlers house, believing shes pregnant with the next Messiah. As things spiral out of control through a frenzy of brutal online gossip and rumor, the clues that Quinn uncovers reveal more about her childhood and her family than about the pregnancy itself. She starts to realize that much of her life is built on secrets and liesstrange, possibly supernatural ones that her father is desperate to keep concealed. And uncovering the mysterious secrets is the only way shell learn the truth about her pregnancy, and the only way shell discover why, despite all evidence and logic, a deep down part of her believes the truth isnt an ugly one. Might she, in fact, be a virgin?

 

 

There are 400 pages in this book.

It is aimed at Young Adult readers. The term Young Adult (YA) is used for books which have the following characteristics: (1) aimed at ages 12-18 years, US grades 7-12, UK school years 8-15, (2) around 50-75k words long, (3) main character is aged 12-18 years, (4) topics include self-reflection, internal conflict vs external, analyzing life and its meaning, (5) point of view is often in the first person, and (6) swearing, violence, romance and sexuality are allowed.

This book was published in 2023 by Abrams .

Marianna Baer has an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts and is the author of the young adult novel Frost (HarperCollins/Balzer & Bray). She lives in Brooklyn and works as a freelance editor.