18 CANDLES

One unforgettable week. One forbidden love. And a secret that could blow everything apart.It's June 9th, 1995—Ian Mitchell's last day of high school and the day before his eighteenth birthday. But while his older brother's lavish wedding consumes the Mitchell Mansion and three hundred guests are expected to flood the halls, Ian feels like a ghost inside his own home. His family has forgotten his birthday. His future feels like someone else's idea. And the boy he's been in love with for half his life? Totally off-limits.Derek Lawson is his brother's best friend. The best man. The golden boy who once helped Ian hang glow-in-the-dark stars on his bedroom ceiling. Now, years later, Derek is back—older, hotter, and more dangerous than ever. When a chance encounter at Detroit's legendary Menjo's gay nightclub turns into a dizzying kiss, Ian is thrown into a secret romance that could destroy everything: his family's trust, his brother's wedding, and whatever fragile grip he has on his place in the world.And then there's Blake—Derek's jealous ex. He's back, bitter, and bent on making sure secrets don't stay buried for long.As Ian stands at the threshold of adulthood, caught between who he's expected to be and who he really is, he must decide whether to keep hiding in the background or risk it all for the kind of love that changes everything. Can he find the courage to finally step into the light when it might cost him everything he's ever known?Set to the unforgettable pulse of the 1990s, 18 Candles is a gorgeously nostalgic, pulse-pounding love story about first love, fierce friendship, and the dreams that scare us most—because sometimes, those are the ones worth chasing. Read more