Spin

High school sophomore Kisrie Kelley has always been a misfit, a fact her nemesis Wendy, who’s bullied her since elementary school, won’t let her forget. Kisrie longs to fit in and feel normal, but is that even possible when color guard and photography are her only talents? Her Reese’s Peanut Butter cup addiction and a pestering “prodigy” little sister who thinks she’s a bush baby don’t help, and some days Kisrie contemplates moving to a different planet. Will she ever please her perfectionist mother and get to be just a normal teen?

But Wendy has troubles and secrets of her own. Her beauty pageant dreams are her only hope of escaping her poverty and her mother’s questionable lifestyle. Everything spins out of control, and cyberbullying takes things to a whole new level when Kisrie overhears Wendy plotting to spread vicious rumors about her English-teacher uncle. Kisrie must decide whether to snitch and risk Wendy’s wrath or shut up and watch her uncle’s career crumble.

Only the truth can set them all free, but will Kisrie be too late? Hilarious, heartbreaking, and honest, Spin is a novel you won’t soon forget.

I could not put this book down. With a fresh voice, a lot of laughs, and unique characters, Gudger captures the essence of teens and the extraordinary temptations and issues they face. And I want to go spin a flag now. —KIMBERLEY WOODHOUSE, award-winning author of All Things Hidden, No Safe Haven, Race Against Time, and Denali Dreams

What if all life’s ups and downs aren’t about you? What if the people you’ve known forever live a different life than you’ve imagined? What if God asked you to see your worst enemy through His eyes? Darcie Gudger asks readers these introspective questions via her debut novel, Spin. Readers will identify with many of the usual suspects of high school hallways as they reconsider if the grass really is greener on the other side. —LAURA L. SMITH, author of It's Addicting