By Julie Anne Peters
Regan can't get out from under the shadow of her older brother. At school, her teachers expect her to be as brilliant as Liam is. And everything else in her life is impacted by the fact that Liam is transgender, and Regan is his only support system. Regan loves her brother, and so she lets him use her room at night to dress up, put on makeup, and become his real self: Luna, a confident drama queen obsessed with her looks. But the pressure of the closet is getting to Liam, and Regan becomes his bodyguard and moral support as he begins to let Luna out in public. Regan really does love her brother. But the pressure of lying aroun
d the secret of Luna to everyone is messing up her relationships with her parents, her friends, and the cute new guy at school, and something has to change.
I didn't like Regan's way of thinking of Luna and Liam as two separate people with separate pronouns, but it kind of makes sense in character. Otherwise, the plot was enthralling and unpredictable, and Regan's stress over juggling all the lies is treated as valid but not less important than Liam/Luna's struggle with dysphoria. It's an angle not usually seen, but important not just for trans stories, but all forms of queerness and also mental illness. When you lean on one person for your whole support system, and they can't talk to anyone else about it, it takes a toll on them. It's safer and healthier for both of you if you can develop a wider support network, so you don't have to worry about slipping through the grasp of any one person, and they feel like they have the ability to say "Not today."
Overall rating: 4/5.
Project upshot: It's an important angle to keep in mind for the story. How is Jimena taking all this?
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