Born into a family shrouded in secrets, orphaned at age seven, and raised by an abusive aunt in the urban underclass, Raven Rios grows up fast. Blessed and cursed with excess courage, a quick wit, and precocious sensuality, she employs the grit and guile required to survive her past to carve out a future.
In the wake of a financial emergency, a fateful decision, and an unplanned pregnancy, Raven becomes a teenage mother intent on defying stereotypes and ferociously loving her mildly developmentally disabled son, Ricky.
Longing for a father, incessantly bullied, and periodically self-injurious, an endearing and preternaturally moral Ricky maintains a kind, gentle, and generous spirit. But as major losses and daily indignities mount, his capacity for compassion and optimism are tested.
To meet Ricky's needs for narrative simplicity and digestible closure, Raven crafts a greatly sanitized version of his paternity. However, a long-forgotten tragedy and figure from their past emerge, threatening their hard-won stability and demanding reconciliation.
Shifting between humor and heartache, simple joys and profound tragedies, major guilts and minor redemptions, the story weaves together the lives and perspectives of multiple characters, as well as complex realities surrounding intellectual diversity, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, race, and social class in contemporary America.
Ultimately, the novel explores how our trauma, shame, regret, and longing shape who we are, whom we love, and how.

Morales deftly tackles the difficult issues of teen pregnancy, domestic abuse, loss, and redemption, ultimately finding hope in lives that appear doomed by society. An engaging, optimistic family tale that spotlights strong characters.
Kirkus Reviews
9/27/2022