Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler (Reviewed by Angela)

Summary (from Amazon): "Don't worry, Anna. I'll tell her, okay? Just let me think about the best way to do it." "Okay." "Promise me? Promise you won't say anything?" "Don't worry." I laughed. "It's our secret, right?" According to her best friend Frankie, twenty days in Zanzibar Bay is the perfect opportunity to have a summer fling, and if they meet one boy ever day, there's a pretty good chance Anna will find her first summer romance. Anna lightheartedly agrees to the game, but there's something she hasn't told Frankie---she's already had that kind of romance, and it was with Frankie's older brother, Matt, just before his tragic death one year ago. Review: This touching, sweet book is one of the best I’ve read this year. All of the characters are very believable, complex, and well-developed. Anna, the main character, is compassionate and kind, but she can’t get over Matt’s death and continues to write to him in her journal. She can’t talk to her best friend, Frankie, about it, because she is scared what Frankie will do when she learns her best friend secretly dated her brother, who is now dead. Frankie has dealt with her brother’s death in a different way, becoming a social butterfly and devoting herself to makeup, clothes, and boys. Frankie’s parents refuse to talk about Matt and continue to pretend that everything is okay in their household. When they all go on a summer vacation to California, everything about Matt’s death will have to be resolved, especially if Anna and Frankie want to stay friends, come to terms with their grief, and accept Matt’s death. This poignant, beautifully written story about grief and friendship is definitely a must-read this summer. -Angela Purchase Twenty Boy Summer, released today, here.