Fresh starts aren't nearly as glamorous as they appear. And love isn't any easier the second time around.

Avery Broussard was savoring her long-dormant optimism. It was the first anniversary of her husband's death, and she was fi nally going to buy the dress boutique from her former mother-in-law. After a year of saving, the deal was nearly done. Avery was about to get her life back.

But every deal in Samford, Louisiana, can change at the whim of a Broussard. After being unceremoniously ejected from the very boutique she planned to buy--the boutique she...

Two-time Pulpwood Queen Book Club Teen Book of the Year Wreath Willis is finishing high school by day ... and living in a junkyard by night. Wreath is sixteen, alone after the death of her mother and on the run from a horrid man named Big Fun. As she sets off in search of a better life, Wreath makes a list in her trusty notebook: "Find a place to live. Buy cheap food. Finish high school." Then she adds: "Avoid notice"-because Wreath is pretty sure most people won't understand a teenager living alone. But it's hard to go unnoticed when life puts a cute boy named Law on her path and brings in...

What's next for Wreath after life in the junkyard? Wreath Willis expects a summer of fun before college-with a roof over her head, an almost-boyfriend, a growing group of people who care for her, and the vile Big Fun behind bars. But the arrival of an unnerving-and oddly intriguing-stranger who needs her help catapults Wreath to the brink of danger. INCLUDES BOOK-CLUB & CLASSROOM DISCUSSION GUIDE