Girl Reflected in Knife

A high school junior must reconcile past trauma to save herself from heartbreak in this propulsive novel from Rissi (Wishing Season). Young Destiny Black copes with the pain of being repeatedly abandoned by her alcohol-dependent mother, April, and enduring physically abusive foster homes by mentally retreating into Arantha, an imagined fairy tale–inspired world. During a period spent in a psychiatric hospital, Destiny discovers that Arantha is a product of dissociative delusions, and learns other means of coping with trauma from her childhood. Now 17 and once again reunited with her mother, the family moves to Dexler, where April embraces sobriety and Destiny falls in mutual love-at-first-sight with local football star Ryan. For one perfect summer, Destiny feels as if she’s finally living the fairy tale life she’s always imagined—until Ryan dumps her and she believes herself pregnant. As the line between “what feels real and what is real” blurs, Destiny returns to the safety of Arantha, a decision that could drastically jeopardize her sense of self. Alternating clipped chapters and dreamy poetry culminate in a deceptively compact novel about learning to live, not just survive. While some readers may find the loosely drawn setting and abrupt shifts in verb tense distracting, these elements deftly emphasize the internal struggles of a fractured girl’s efforts to be cognitively present in her everyday life as she puts her world—and herself—back together. Characters cue as racially diverse. Ages 14–up. Agent: Michael Bourret, Dystel, Goderich & Bourret. (Apr.)