alysunsanders13

Summer Lumen has always been a perfectionist. She's had straight As all four years of high school, is President of the student council, and has never missed a single day of school. Top of her class, Summer has already begun writing her valedictorian speech for her high school graduation in just under two years. But when her estranged father dies of a drug overdose, her therapist mother insists she take a week off to "process her emotions". Summer is frustrated to lose her perfect attendance record, but when she finds out that the week off cost her the number one spot in the class, she's furious. And who took her place? None other than Baker Scott, the mysterious high school football star who has no friends and always seems to be sporting a black eye. Summer, who isn't much of a sports fan, didn't even know he existed until she found out he replaced her as top of the class. Now she has to regain her position, which can only mean one thing: the war has begun, and Baker Scott is the enemy. This is a game Summer is sure she's going to win. The only problem? While Summer is playing the game of war, Baker is playing the game of love. And it doesn't take long before Summer is playing right along with him.There's a fine line between love and hate, and Summer is about to find out how fine that line actually is.…

alysunsanders13

Vale Morgan is an open book. He enjoys spending time with his group of friends at the dead mall in their small town. He loves working in his garage flipping cars for extra cash. And there's not a pizza on the planet he won't devour in one sitting. But he has one massive secret that he's spent his entire life trying to hide: He's in love with his best friend. Gen Cross has been his neighbor and ride or die best friend since before either of them can remember. She's been with him through everything, including the abandonment of his mother when he was just a child. Gen is the most important person in his life, and despite the fact that he's madly in love with her, he refuses to act on his feelings in fear of being rejected and ruining what they have already. Until one dare at a summer party after graduation opens his eyes to what could be. Now that Vale's had a taste of what he's always wanted, will he be able to go back to the way things were before? Or will he finally admit his feelings and risk it all to win the heart of the only person he's ever truly loved?A companion story to A Touch of Cinnamon.…

alysunsanders13

Gen Cross has lived her whole life feeling invisible. She's the middle child in her family, born after a rambunctious older sister who is in the process of planning her wedding, and before a younger sister with special needs. With her dad always on the road as a truck driver and her mom wrapped up in handling her other two siblings, Gen is perfectly content spending her time with her group of friends. Especially Vale Morgan, her lifelong bestie who practically lives for Gen's incredible pastry making abilities. Being a pastry chef is all she's ever wanted to do with her life, and she's just been given the opportunity to attend a semester long pastry arts program in Boston. But the program costs $20,000. Unable to pay the tuition costs, Gen begins bartering to raise money to attend this semester long program. A place where she might finally feel visible. But in trying to be seen, will Gen miss out on the one person who's seen her all along?#1 in Trading#1 in Pastries…

alysunsanders13

Emersyn Collins is coming home.It's been four years since 19-year-old Emersyn has been back to her hometown of Coupeville, Washington. Four years since her grandma got sick, and she was forced to move in with her estranged mother in the city. Four years since she's seen her best friends. Four years since she's shared a meal with her Uncle Kiel. Armed with nothing but a bag brimming with clothes, art supplies, and a heartfelt letter from her grandmother bequeathing her the house she grew up in, Emersyn finds herself at a crossroads, uncertain about her future as she returns to her past.But everything changes when she crosses paths with Zeke Thatcher, an enigmatic stranger with his own quest on the island: to locate his father's grave and uncover a hidden connection to a family he never knew. For reasons Emersyn can't quite understand herself, she feels the need to help him. Before long, her days are spent obsessing over the charismatically distant stranger who seems to be struggling not to fall in love with her. And her nights are devoted to the images of gravestones as she tries to translate her new obsession onto blank canvases with the strokes of acrylic paints. But unbeknownst to Emersyn, Zeke is on a deadline to find that familial link. The clock is ticking, and if they can't uncover it before time slips away, they risk losing much more than a passionate summer romance.Hello, Goodbye is a poignant tale that delves into the depths of loss and the shadow it leaves behind. But it's also a testament to the power of love, and the ones who guide us back toward the light.Goodbyes are never easy. But the hellos are what make them meaningful.…

alysunsanders13

When young violinist Lauren Page gets an acceptance letter to the most prestigious music school in the country, she doesn't expect to lose the spark inside of her that made her love playing the violin in the first place. Can Conner Reed, an aspiring photographer who's only in town on a whim, help her find it again?***Lauren Page is an incredibly talented violinist. She's won more than a few competitions, and some even believe her to be one of the best in the country. She's been dubbed by many to be a child prodigy, as she's been playing since she picked up the instrument at three years old. But now, just a summer away from starting her life in New York at one of the most prestigious art schools in the country, she's having a difficult time finding that old spark within her. The music just doesn't feel like it did before. She's scared. Scared she's not good enough. Scared of being a failure. Scared to even try. In comes Conner, an amateur skateboarder and a not-so-amateur photographer, who literally falls into the most important summer of Lauren's life and tries to show her that she's everything she fears she won't be. Crescendo is a story about friendship, family, and first love. But, more than anything, it's about a girl who is trying to figure out her life just before it really begins.3rd place in the Fluorescent Awards for Young Adult Fiction3rd place in the Glorious Awards for Teen Fiction…