In the Middle of Nowhere (Willow's Journey #1)

After a tragic set of circumstances alters her life forever, Willow Flynn, named after the shady, weeping tree, finds herself transplanted, moving far away from the small Massachusetts town she grew up in. Willow loses her beloved father in an accident and she and her family have no choice but to accept her uncle’s charity by relocating to his summerhouse, off the coast of Maine, on an island, in the middle of nowhere.

Fifteen-year-old Willow leaves behind her closest friends and must try to fit in and find her own niche in the ever-cliquey high school world and, at times, feels as isolated and alone as the small, remote island she now lived on.

At the beginning of the school year, a sickly, but cute boy named Michael sends Willow the first of many cryptic notes during homeroom. He stares at Willow and gives her the creeps. Michael never returns to school after that, but Willow ends up connecting with the poetic and mysterious boy on-line where they strike up an unusual friendship.

In the midst of the loud and chaotic lunchroom, Erica and Taylor, two best friends who grew up together on Pike’s Island, befriend Willow. Willow tries to connect with the pair, but things never fully click between them especially since Willow doesn’t thrive on hurtful gossip the way they do.

On the other hand, the sassy and stuck-up Tessa Anderson, who prefers the company of male co-eds, sees a bit of herself in the new girl and promptly takes Willow under her wing. Tessa introduces Willow to the hottest and most popular senior boys and let’s her new little friend tag along to some of the coolest parties on the island where Willow ends up doing things she never would have imagined.

As Willow tries to find her place and maneuver through the hallways and heartbreaks of her teenage years, the one thing she is certain of is that she will never open herself up again to love. She had already lost her father and couldn’t bear the thought of losing anyone else.
But fate has a will of its own and Willow slowly begins to realize that she can’t keep her fragile heart guarded forever, even to a boy whose existence remains uncertain.