WHEN YOU GET THE CHANCE

A teen seeks the answer to a long-buried family secret during a drama-filled summer.

Millie Price knows she wants to perform on Broadway, where her outgoing and larger-than-life personality will shine, and attending a prestigious musical theater pre-college program in Los Angeles for her senior year would help her get ahead of the game, not to mention offering a fresh start after being haunted by an excruciatingly embarrassing viral video from her middle school musical. Unfortunately, she would be leaving behind New York City; her school’s epic senior year musical; her theater crew; her lifelong best friend, Teddy; and her single father. The summer after junior year, Millie and Teddy, both implied White, discover the LiveJournal her father kept at age 20 and realize from clues it contains that Millie’s mother, who left her as a baby, might be living in the city. Millie leaps into Mamma Mia!–inspired action, tracking down the three women who could be her mother. Chock-full of musical theater references and humor, the novel includes high-stakes emotional drama that is balanced by supportive friendships and strong, deep family connections. The slow-burn rivals-to-lovers romance with Oliver, a Chinese American classmate, is satisfying and relies on a slowly built relationship of trust. Millie’s anxiety contrasts with her flamboyant and outwardly confident personality, adding to an intriguing exploration of self-image, self-worth, and belonging as she searches for her mother.

An entertaining personal journey with plot twists galore.