Spanish Moss Literary

2017 Next Generation Indie Book Awards Young Author Finalist

2017 Moonbeam Children’s Book Award Bronze Medalist

Does breaking free require breaking the rules?

Cassie Gilbert lives every day in the shadows of her deceased mom’s rebellion. But now that she’s seventeen, she finds herself longing to break away from her grandmother’s suffocating rules, experience what it’s like to be a regular teenager, and fulfill her songwriting dreams. James Russo, former American Spotlight contestant, escapes to small town Willow Creek, SC hoping to flee from his tarnished past. When a school project pairs him with the shy principal’s granddaughter, he’s determined to get to know this Emily-Dickinson-obsessed and typewriter-using girl. His plan? Convince Cassie to co-write songs for his demo album. As Cassie gets to know James over ＂project meetings＂ (more like opportunities to match her lyrics with his melodies), she becomes intrigued by his sense of adventure and contagious passion for music. But when his past surfaces, doubt creeps in. Cassie’s left to wonder-did she make the same mistake her mother once did by falling for the bad boy?

With her grandmother’s control tightening and her own heart stirring awake, Cassie must decide: remain bound by the chains of yesterday, or step into the freedom of her own story-by finishing the melody her mother left behind.