COME HOME TO MY HEART

Isolated in their small, conservative town and hiding behind the masks they wear to protect themselves, two queer girls find refuge, understanding, and belonging in one another.

Gloria Forman loves her family and her hometown of Fisherton, South Carolina. Ever since an incident in the seventh grade that made her parents question Gloria’s faith and values, she’s strived for perfection. She gets top grades, participates in a full spectrum of extracurriculars from school social committee to Math Team, and keeps her attraction to girls buried in a deep corner of the internet. But when Gloria, who’s white, forgets to delete her browser history, her carefully constructed life crumbles. Unlike Gloria, Xia Harper can’t wait to leave Fisherton next year for college. Already bullied for being Chinese and white, she works hard to maintain her socially unwelcoming demeanor so no one will get close enough to realize she’s a lesbian. After Gloria’s Baptist parents kick her out, her determination to survive brings her to the bookstore where Xia works. Despite their walls and secrets, they open up to one another, for the first time taking the risk of inviting another person in. The chapters alternate between the girls’ first-person perspectives. Both leads are dynamic, fully realized, and complex. They demonstrate refreshing empathy for one another, even when their views conflict. Redgate’s prose is poignant and aches with longing.

A palpably genuine and romantic queer coming-of-age story.