Gere McClellan, author

Normal. Safe. Just like everyone else. That’s been Nori’s Sullivan’s goal for 25 years, but it’s never worked out for her. The youngest of five siblings, she’s always been the wild child — dancing when she’s supposed to stand still, making messes when she’s supposed to clean house, going to college to study art when she’s supposed to be making babies. She’s stubborn, too, clinging to her memories of the one aspect of her childhood that never seemed normal: The strange little boy who lived in her grandmother’s attic and mysteriously disappeared after her death, 20 years ago.

Nori had planned to have a nice, normal life with her college sweetheart, but that fell apart when he slept with her best friend. The next boyfriend seems perfect — fun to be with, considerate, financially secure — until Nori realizes he’s gay.

And then her mother is found dead, senselessly murdered while out on a date, and none of the rest matters. 

Still grieving, Nori tries to build herself a new life in a new town, but she’s afraid she’s made a big mistake until she crosses paths with grandma’s mystery boy. He’s not at all what anyone expected — and he knows all the secrets Nori’s grandmother and mother never told their daughters. 

Nori’s not the person she thought she was — and seeking justice for her mother may put her own life in peril.