Editorial Content for Places No One Knows

When you're the protagonist character of a YA novel, you usually have a shameful past or a bleak social life --- maybe even a massive scar slashed across your face. After all, a flawless main character evokes more eye rolls than admiration. So when Waverly Camdenmar declares herself "so virtuous it makes you want to die" in the novel's first chapter, you know PLACES NO ONE KNOWS doesn't shy away from YA taboos.

Instead, Brenna Yovanoff plunges into the underbelly (or should I say under-flat stomach?) of the infamous Mary Sue. Junior Waverly's GPA is a 4.0, her body is a 10, and she spends her nights running until her feet bleed. And though Waverly might reign over her high school as the queen bee's second-in-command, "Miss Perfect" strategizes every word, fakes every emotion and forgets to smile unless she's reminded.
 
So when Waverly falls asleep --- finally! --- only to wake up in loser Marshall Holt's bedroom, the girl of endless knowledge...she doesn't know how to react. Not at all.

Yovanoff's love of figurative language plunges readers into the surreal; Waverly's narration might seem painfully real, but the novel's stark, elegant prose carries readers beyond the confines of reality.

But even as Waverly and Marshall forge a heart-wrenching romance in the dead of night, "Miss Perfect" doesn't dare befriend a slacker, stoner and all-around loser in the hallways' fluorescence. So when a startling (but not exactly shocking) betrayal forces Waverly to choose between her heart and her façade, navigating this social dilemma will take more than a killer strategy and a phony grin. For the first time in all her years of high school, this self-proclaimed robot will actually need to feel something.
 
Waverly might fake all her smiles, but I guarantee PLACES NO ONE KNOWS will coax a genuine smile --- and frown and wince and laugh and grimace --- out of readers, no overarching strategy for social dominance needed. From Waverly's piercing narration to Marshall's heart of gold (and coughs of a smoker's lungs), Yovanoff stuffs her novel full of beauty, tragedy and gritty high school reality. PLACES NO ONE KNOWS isn't just a novel; it's an exposé, tearing past the glamour and thrusting the cruelty and brokenness of high school's social stratosphere into the daylight.
 
But when your protagonist thinks of herself as an android, she can only seem so human. While Marshall's deeply, almost dangerously, human, his narration stumbles into self-pity. Waverly's fierce intelligence doesn't just impress readers, it daunts them; after all, when Waverly proclaims her knowledge of immolation --- whatever that is --- on page three, you know you're in for an intellectual challenge.
 
But if you're in the market for six hours of intellectual challenge, PLACES NO ONE KNOWS sure beats the SATs. Yovanoff's love of figurative language plunges readers into the surreal; Waverly's narration might seem painfully real, but the novel's stark, elegant prose carries readers beyond the confines of reality. Think the lovechild of Salvador Dali and Regina George.
 
So if you spent MEAN GIRLS longing for a few more floppy clocks, congratulations --- consider your wish officially (and beautifully and triumphantly) granted.