Don't Let It Break Your Heart

Ages 14 to 18

Perfect for fans of The Half of It, Maggie Horne's debut YA contemporary novel is an ode to lifelong friendships and discovering queer community.

You only get one soulmate, and I'm not throwing mine away.

Alana and Gray have been the perfect couple ever since they got together before high school – and neither of them think that should have to change just because Alana came out as a lesbian.

Sure, things are a little different now: their romantic relationship is over, but their best-friends-since-forever relationship is stronger than ever. And yeah, Alana sees the way her other friends now exclude her in tiny, almost unnoticeable ways, but she still has Gray, and that’s all that’s ever mattered to her. Really, the only difference is that instead of kissing Gray herself, Alana sets him up with other girls to do that.

But when new girl Tal arrives, she stops Alana and Gray in their tracks.

Suddenly, Gray’s all-in on his plan to get Tal to fall in love with him, and, for the first time, Alana’s reluctant to help. As Alana and Tal grow closer, and Alana begins to think Tal might share her feelings, she has to decide whether to embrace her queerness and risk losing the life she thought she was building, or continue to hide parts of herself and maintain the status quo.

Don’t Let it Break Your Heart is a tender and romantic exploration of identity, love, and friendship that turns the friends to lovers romance trope on its head.

About the Author

Maggie Horne is a writer who grew up near Toronto, Canada. She now lives in the UK with her wife, where they keep a collection of dogs and children. She is the author of Hazel Hill is Going to Win This One (an Indies Introduce Summer/Fall 2022 Selection, Indie Next pick, and Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection) and Noah Frye Gets Crushed from Clarion Books, as well as Don't Let it Break Your Heart, from Feiwel & Friends. She’s always trying to write the queer stories she wishes she could have read growing up.