If You Were Here
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- Pre-Order
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- Expected 28 Apr 2026
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- 10,99 €
Publisher Description
A charming and emotional standalone grumpy/sunshine romance set during a Nantucket summer, perfect for fans of Sarah Dessen and Jenna Evans Welch!
Lili Gardner hasn’t been back to Nantucket, her dad’s favorite place, since her parents divorced six years ago. But Dad passed away recently, leaving her a house on the island and an unsolved mystery about a maligned Gardner ancestor. Lili is determined to finish his life’s work, and convinces her mom and sister to spend the summer in Nantucket with her while she looks for answers, and for a connection to her dad.
Wren McCleave has a passion for history, but his father refuses to showcase anything real in their tourist trap of a “museum.” So when Lili asks Wren for help with her research, Wren can’t resist the opportunity to throw himself into something real, even if he dislikes tourists on principle.
Lili and Wren only have a summer to find out the truth about Lili’s ancestor. But the most surprising truths they uncover aren’t about the distant past, but about themselves right here in the present, and about what they want out of the future.
"Summertime fun meets idyllic Nantucket meets a centuries-old mystery. Abigail Johnson skillfully crafts a fun, romantic story that gets at the tough and tender questions of life: how to honor our past, how to let go, how to apologize, and when to open your heart to love again."—Claire Forrest, award-winning author of Where You See Yourself
"A perfect summer romance! A mystery, a grumpy but loveable hero, and some falling in love? What more could you want? As with everything Johnson writes, I adored this one."—Kasie West, author of Better Than Revenge
"A summer vacation, a history lesson and above all an absolutely charming romance, If You Were Here had us savoring every page and never wanting to leave Lili and Wren’s Nantucket. With a warm, inimitable voice, Johnson weaves a little mystery and an abundance of heart into an original, perfectly joyful summer love story."—Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka, authors of The Roughest Draft and If I’m Being Honest
"Part mystery, part love story, all heart—Abigail Johnson has mined an absolute gem of a book. If You Were Here reminded me why I fell in love with YA romance in the first place."— Emiko Jean, New York Times bestselling author of Tokyo Ever After
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Johnson (Every Time You Go Away) offers both summertime romance and a historical mystery in this sensorial grumpy-sunshine love story set on Nantucket. Seventeen-year-old Lili Gardner is thrilled to be back on the island to fix up her late father's house. But Lili has more on her mind than home renovations; she also hopes to solve a decades-old mystery about a distant relative accused of smuggling, which her father researched all his life. Following a tip from a neighbor, Lili visits McCleave's Mermaid Museum, where she meets 19-year-old Wren McCleave, the museum's cranky manager, who uses a wheelchair. While Wren's father happily displays tourist-pleasing "mermaid" skeletons, Wren longs to exhibit their authentic historic objects. The teens' interest in local lore—and Lili's uncanny ability to charm Wren out of his perpetual crankiness—first sparks amiable companionship, then sunny romance, conveyed via lively prose. Alluring history about Nantucket's maritime roots and its bustling present-day tourist scene enliven the idyllic seaside setting. Lili and Wren cue as white. Age 13–up.
