Leah on the Offbeat meets We Are Okay in this pitch-perfect queer romance about falling in love and never quite falling out of it--heartbreak, unexpected new crushes, and all.Before Quinn Ryan was
in love with Jamie Rudawski, she loved Jamie Rudawski, who was her best friend. But when Jamie dumps Quinn a month before their senior year, Quinn is suddenly girlfriend-less and best friend-less.
Enter a new crush: Ruby Ocampo, the gorgeous and rich lead singer of the popular band Sweets, who's just broken up with her on-again, off-again boyfriend. Quinn's always only wanted to be with Jamie, but if Jamie no longer wants to be with her, why can't Quinn go all in on Ruby? But the closer Quinn grows to Ruby, the more she misses Jamie, and the more (she thinks) Jamie misses her. Who says your first love can't be your second love, too?
Katie Heaney is a full-time senior writer for the
Cut, a former editor at
BuzzFeed, and the author of the memoirs
Never Have I Ever: My Life (So Far) Without a Date and
Would You Rather? Girl Crushed is her YA debut.
On sale: October 19, 2021
Age: 12 and up
Grade: Grade 7 & Up
Page count: 352 Pages
ISBN: 9781984897374
Reading level: Lexile: 830L
Katie Heaney is the author of the memoirs
Never Have I Ever and
Would You Rather?, and the novels
Dear Emma and
Public Relations. She is a senior health writer at the
Cut, and you can find her on Twitter at @KTHeaney.
"The pacing is spot-on, and the exploration of lesbian relationships—particularly post-breakup—is handled deftly. Fresh and charming." —
Kirkus Reviews
"This charming romance also addresses the all-too-common practice of discounting or ignoring the queer identity of people in hetero relationships, the complicated road back to friendship after a romantic relationship ends, and the importance of adjusting expectations as you go." —
SLJ
“Hilarious and heartbreaking, often all at once. I loved
Girl Crushed, which radiates with humor, awkwardness, and heart. It’s a joy to have Katie Heaney’s voice in young adult literature.” —Amy Spalding, bestselling author of
The Summer of Jordi Perez “
Girl Crushed is the perfect book about queer longing, immediately relatable for anyone who’s ever obsessed over someone impossibly cool. I’m smitten.” —Britta Lundin, author of
Ship It
