Trouble Girls
A Novel
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
"A fiery thriller." —Kikrus
"Breathless." —School Library Journal
A queer YA reimagining of Thelma & Louise with the aesthetic of Riverdale, for fans of Mindy McGinnis and Rory Power.
Love on the dark side of freedom
When Trixie picks up her best friend Lux for their weekend getaway, they’re looking to forget the despair of being trapped in their dead-end rustbelt town. The girls are packing light: a supply of Diet Coke and an ‘89 Canon to help Lux frame the world in a sunnier light; half a pack of cigarettes that Trixie doesn’t really smoke, and a knife she’s hanging on to for a friend that she’s never used before.
But a single night of violence derails their trip, and the girls go from ordinary high schoolers to wanted fugitives. Trying to stay ahead of the cops and a hellscape of media attention, Trixie and Lux grapple with an unforgiving landscape, rapidly diminishing supplies, and disastrous decisions at every turn. As they are transformed by the media into the face of a #MeToo movement they didn’t ask to lead, Trixie and Lux realize that they can only rely on each other, and that the love they find together is the one thing that truly makes them free.
Julia Lynn Rubin takes readers on “a blistering, unapologetic thrill ride” (Emma Berquis) that will leave them haunted and reeling. Trouble Girls is a “a powerful, beautifully-written gut punch” (Sophie Gonzales).
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Rubin (Burro Hills) delivers a thought-provoking perspective on surviving rape culture in this queer #MeToo-era Thelma & Louise reboot. All that small-town West Virginia teen Trixie Denton, a diner waitress, wants is to leave her complicated home life behind for a weekend camping trip with best friend Lux Leesburg, the secret object of her affections. But their Appalachian getaway becomes a nightmare when Lux is violently assaulted by a wealthy frat boy at a college bar, and Trixie kills to defend her. Fearing that the police won't believe a claim of self-defense from two poor girls, the white teens take to the open road, with little money and no real destination in mind. Faced with dwindling options and unseen dangers, the two must decide what they'll sacrifice, both for each other and to remain free. Rubin tenderly illustrates the growing tension between friends on the brink of romance, and thoughtfully portrays the way unresolved trauma can cast deep shadows. The road trip is more introspective than eventful, and references to a protest movement that arises around the teens' flight are powerful but cursory. Nevertheless, Rubin's exploration of the culture of misogyny that allowed Lux's assailant to go unpunished for his prior crimes is all too realistic. Ages 14–up.
