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COMING SEPTEMBER 2, 2025
Reasons to Hate Me
“A masterclass in wholly authentic character development, sharp, revealing dialogue, and pitch-perfect voice-driven storytelling.”
— Book Pipeline
“Edgy and fast-paced.”
— Tallahassee Writer’s Association
“Entertaining and witty … great characterization with psychological depth.”
— Searchlight Writing for Children Awards
“Compulsively readable … offers a fresh perspective on the tropes of the YA contemporary space.”
— Book Pipeline
A hilarious and heartfelt novel about a neurodivergent theater nerd that tackles slut-shaming, what it means to be a friend, and the power of forgiving others—and yourself.
There are countless good reasons to hate 17-year-old Jess Lanza, Stone Bridge High’s premier autistic theater nerd and Champion of Questionable Life-Choices. Unfortunately, the cyberbullies that hounded her all summer are stuck on last year’s life-ruining mistake—the one that earned Jess the title “Boyfriend-Stealing Slutbag.”
To relieve the bullies of their stale content, Jess vows to dazzle them with online posts about her own ridiculous fails and embarrassing character traits. But somehow, all of Jess’s posts circle back to her friendship with Chloe—the friendship her alleged sluttiness pulverized—and the gaping hole she left in Jess’s life. As Jess chases Chloe’s forgiveness, she must confront some of her darkest weaknesses—and darker still, the truth of what happened with Chloe’s boyfriend, a story neither of them wants to hear.
Told through a series of blog posts and short scripts, this cleverly staged and structured debut novel crackles with spot-on dialog, features a range of fully developed neurodiverse characters, and sharply evokes high school in all its hilarious and agonizing complexity.