Celine Bangura and Bradley Graeme, Afro-British teens living in Nottingham, are former best friends who fell out in early adolescence. From Celine’s perspective, Brad rejected her for popularity. From Brad’s, he just wanted to branch out socially. Now in their last year of high school, both have been selected for a program that offers participants professional networking opportunities, with one winning a scholarship at year’s end. Celine is fierce and funny but emotionally guarded because of her lawyer dad’s abandonment of their family; sharing her true feelings and trusting people is hard. Brad’s life appears effortless on the surface, but he’s quietly battling the buzz in his brain from his OCD with the help of therapy, and doubting his dream to become a writer—a dream he can’t find the courage to share with his own lawyer father. The enrichment program includes two camping expeditions, and as they engage in tasks requiring cooperation and teamwork, as well as creative thinking, leadership, and resilience, Brad and Celine learn about themselves, each other, and how they each perceive what happened in the past. And they fall in love. This entertaining romance is elevated by the thoughtful development and individual growth of each of the two protagonists. (Age 13 and older)

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A pair of ex-best friends turned high school rivals must work together to survive the great outdoors—and each other—in this cozy enemies-to-lovers romance from the beloved author of the Brown Sisters trilogy.

“A pure delight. This book is confirmation: no one does love stories like Talia Hibbert.”—Leah Johnson, author of You Should See Me in a Crown and Rise to the Sun

Bradley Graeme is pretty much perfect. He’s a star football player, manages his OCD well (enough), and comes out on top in all his classes . . . except the ones he shares with his ex-best friend, Celine.
 
Celine Bangura is conspiracy-theory-obsessed. Social media followers eat up her takes on everything from UFOs to holiday overconsumption—yet, she’s still not cool enough for the popular kids’ table. Which is why Brad abandoned her for the in-crowd years ago. (At least, that’s how Celine sees it.)

These days, there’s nothing between them other than petty insults and academic rivalry. So when Celine signs up for a survival course in the woods, she’s surprised to find Brad right beside her.

Forced to work as a team for the chance to win a grand prize, these two teens must trudge through not just mud and dirt but their messy past. And as this adventure brings them closer together, they begin to remember the good bits of their history. But has too much time passed . . . or just enough to spark a whole new kind of relationship?