What do you do when you want to run away -- but you end up finding yourself?

A dual citizen of Mexico and the United States, Carlos Portillo is happy to follow the well-worn path to a future of comfort and ease in Mexico City that's been planned for him since birth. But when his older brother Felix--who defied their parents to live a life of adventure--is tragically killed, Carlos is determined to live out his own dreams for the both of them.

He escapes to San Juan Island off the coast of Washington state and gets a job with a celebrity chef he's admired from afar for years. But while things are coming together for him in the kitchen, a forbidden romance with his boss's daughter could end his career before it even begins. Finally living for himself, Carlos learns that reality doesn't come with a road map to an easy life -- but does finding your true path mean following your head? Or your heart?

"An exceptional tale of grief, ambition, love, and maturity."--Kirkus Reviews, starred review

A YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adult nominee
A Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year
A TAYSHAS Reading List Book