CRASHING INTO YOU

Leticia Rivera is a pro at outracing her problems—until she isn’t.

Sixteen-year-old Leti is a street racer in Maryland, something her older brother and primary caregiver, Santos, taught her—from driving at age 11 to mastering auto mechanics. Santos wanted her to be confident and know that the road was hers. Attending the fancy Philmore Academy on scholarship, Ecuadorian American Leti sticks out at the private school—“my body doesn’t fit into this uniform just like I don’t fit into this school”—and she’s not interested in the sexual advances of wealthy, popular Derek O’Neil, school quarterback and her rival on the underground racing circuit. Leti endures sexism, fat shaming, a barrage of microaggressions, and being abandoned by her best friend in favor of the popular kids, effectively solidifying her status as an outcast. She’s falling for fellow outsider Jacob Fleckenstein, an autistic boy who’s full of kindness and has a passion for outer space. Leti’s dreaming of getting an invitation to the Underground Race, with “winnings so big they could carry me far away,” when tragedy strikes. The novel starts out strong with its compelling setting, no-nonsense protagonist, and cast of quirky side characters, but it falters in melding together a love story, a tale of redemption, an underdog storyline, and a plotline about grief. Readers might stay for the action but become overwhelmed by the number of elements, some of which are executed less skillfully than others.

A bumpy but largely enjoyable ride.