Will Haden never dreamed he’d be rethinking his entire life while holed up alone in his eccentric coworker Lillian’s mansion, but a mortifying public humiliation had upended his world. Enter two young men – opposites – who change everything: Ryan, his boyhood crush who holds dark secrets, and sexy, scruffy Casey, who challenges Will’s narrow worldview. Is one the solution to his crisis? When Ryan’s self-destructive behavior threatens to rip his friends apart, Will must learn to be true to himself or lose them forever.
The Shocking New is a 70,000-word, LGBTQ+ dramedy, with the humor of Red White & Royal Blue, the quirkiness of Michael Chabon’s The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, and the sweetness of Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera’s What If It’s Us.
Set at the birth of Seattle’s grunge music explosion and against the backdrop of the AIDS crisis, the novel investigates timeless themes of self-discovery, friendship, class, first love, and conquering fear.
