Dear Dad, I promised Matt I’d do this—become a Junior Cadet. That I wouldn’t let you break me down. I know you hate me. Blame me for everything you lost. But that day I lost my brother and my dad. You could never be proud of me, could you? I was too “different.” So, just in case you haven’t figured it out yet, I’m saying good-bye. Maybe someday you’ll miss me. Reece Reece’s words make her ache. Amanda understands wanting to belong. As a foster kid, she only feels at home at the firehouse where she volunteers. She wants to help Reece, but his dad is her boss. And she won’t risk her place as a Junior Cadet—it’s all that she has. But when a string of arsons points to Amanda’s foster brother as the culprit, her whole world is about to go up in flames. And the only way for Amanda and Reece to save each other is to risk getting burned.
Author
Patty Blount grew up quiet and a bit invisible in Queens, NY, but found her voice in books. Today, she writes smart and strong characters willing to fight for what’s right. She’s the award-winning author of edgy, realistic, gut-wrenching contemporary and young adult romance. Still a bit introverted, she gets lost often, eats way too much chocolate, and tends to develop mad, passionate crushes on fictional characters. Let’s be real; Patty’s not nearly as cool as her characters, but she is a solid supporter of women’s rights and loves delivering school presentations. Patty is best known for her internet issues novels, SEND, a 2012 Junior Library Guild Fall Pick and TMI, a 2014 Watty winner, and her #MeToo novels, including SOME BOYS, a 2015 CLMP Firecracker winner and SOMEONE I USED TO KNOW, a 2019 double Athena Award winner. Visit her website at pattyblount.com, where you can sign up for her newsletter. She blogs at YA Outside the Lines and is also active online. She loves hearing from readers, especially when they tell her she’s cool (even though she knows it’s not true), and is easily bribed with chocolate. Never underestimate the power of chocolate.
