FIRST LOVE LANGUAGE

A 17-year-old juggles a search for her origins with an unexpected role as a dating coach.

Biracial (white and Taiwanese American) Catie Carlson yearns to find her biological mother, Ya-Fang. They lost touch after her parents divorced when she was 5; Catie’s late father brought her to America from Taiwan, and now she lives with her white adoptive mom, Andrea, and stepsister, Mavis, also 17. Since Andrea’s lost her job, they’re leaving San Diego for Salt Lake City to stay with Joanna, Andrea’s sister who’s a devout member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Their more progressive family, especially pansexual Mavis, dreads the change. Catie finds a summer job at a salon and meets co-worker Toby Yoon-Hanson, 19, who’s Korean and Blackanese. They strike a deal: Toby, who just spent a year abroad at the University of Taipei, will teach Catie Mandarin if she’ll teach him how to talk to his intimidatingly perfect longtime crush, Nichole Yung. But Catie doesn’t tell him she’s never even had a boyfriend—a deception that comes to haunt her as their feelings for one another grow. Meanwhile, genealogical records at Aunt Joanna’s church provide Catie with hope of finding the answers she seeks. Valentine deftly interweaves themes about identity, trust, tolerance, trauma, and forgiveness throughout the story. An engaging plot and details of daily life provide glimpses into the diversity within LDS and adoptive family cultures.

A sweet, thoughtfully developed romance with some unusual twists and layers.