High school junior Nick’s got great parents, a wonderful best friend in Steve, and a promising start on a romance with smart and confident Eden. Despite all this, his emotions are thrown into turmoil when he learns that his dad gave up a baby for adoption twenty-nine years earlier. Nick’s growing anger and sense of betrayal are confusing even to him, and his bouts of self-pity prompt him to indulge in some deplorable behavior. He sabotages his relationship with Eden, and while he knows he’s behaving badly, he doesn’t seem able to stop himself. Nick’s emotional journey feels believable in both its intensity and relentless self-centeredness. The strong support of his friends and family eventually give Nick the ability to see his dad in a new light and to begin to pull himself together again. A meeting with his half-brother, while not easy, offers Nick a glimpse of the upside of having a sibling, even an unexpected one. (Ages 13–16)