Waif's Refuge

"Sometimes surviving the night is the hardest part of growing up."

After four years of living on the streets, he was ready to start a new life.

At fourteen, Robert had the best day of his life thanks to a boy named Sam. Following a long talk after school, the boys shared a kiss in the boy's locker room and for the first time, they both know they are not alone. That same day soon becomes Robert's worst. His father has found out his son is gay, and he greets the teen with the icy words, "I will not have a fag living in my house." With nowhere else to go, Robert takes to the streets and learns to survive, even if survival means doing anything necessary to eat or have a place to sleep.

At the crossroads of life. Now, having spent four years on the icy streets off the shores of Lake Michigan, Robert wants out. After deciding he's tired of mere survival, he puts an ambitious plan into motion. A plan life tries to thwart at every turn and is made more complicated when he meets cute college boy Mark. Love slowly blossoms, but will it wilt under the truth of Robert's life? After all, Robert is damaged goods, and he knows it. A mere waif to be used and tossed aside at the whim of others.

Read a gritty yet hopeful coming out and coming of age tale of gay teen romance and friendship in the upper Midwest.

Gritty, heartbreaking, and deeply human, Waif's Refuge is a raw coming-of-age story about survival, found family, queer identity, and learning to believe in second chances.

For fans of Benjamin Alire Sáenz (Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe) and Adam Silvera (They Both Die at the End), this powerful LGBTQ+ coming-of-age story will break your heart and piece it back together.