• ISBN13: 9781665972550
• Binding: Hardcover
• Subject: Creative Writing, Fiction
• Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
• Publisher Imprint: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
• Publication Date: August 19, 2025
• Pages: 400
• Original Price: USD 19.99
• Language: English
• Edition: N/A
• Item Weight: 454 grams
• BISAC Subject(s): Social Themes / Death, Grief, Bereavement

A "harrowing yet hopeful" (Amber Smith, New York Times bestselling author of The Way I Used to Be) novel about a Korean American teen navigating grief and first love who agrees to accept money from her estranged father in exchange for letting him get to know her.

Each night, Winter Moon counts her earnings dreaming of escape. Once she's saved enough, she and her grandmother can finally take flight and disappear. But when her spiteful mother steals her money and blows through it all in one day, Winter is forced to turn to her estranged father, who recently reappeared in her life after being absent for more than a decade. They agree upon a simple contract: she spends time with him in exchange for payment.

It's not easy reconciling the past and the present, though, and when she's struck with a sudden loss, Winter flounders in grief and rage. The only person offering a hand is Joon, the new boy at school who sees Winter when no one else does.

When Winter discovers a secret her father has been keeping from her, things get even more complicated. As she navigates grief, first love, and forgiveness, Winter begins to forge connections, new and old, that make her question everything: her future, her conviction to disappear, and what it really means to be family. Winter knows that broken things can never be fixed, but can they come back together in a different way?

Yi, Joanne: - Joanne Yi grew up in Orange County, California, and currently resides in Los Angeles. She graduated from the University of California San Diego and holds an MFA in creative writing from Antioch University. When she's not writing, she enjoys baking, horror films, Korean dramas, and spicy food. You can visit Joanne online at JoanneYi.com and on Instagram @WritingJoJo.