Birds of California

Julia Whelan calls Katie Cotugno a YA writer who she "always felt was much better than she was getting credit for." Her newest release, which Julia narrates, is about two child actors who played brother and sister on a show. Five years later, one of them has recently experienced a public meltdown and has been in self-imposed exile since. But a reunion of that old show is brewing, and she has to agree to participate if it is to move forward, and so they send in the guy who played her brother to talk her into it ... and romance ensues. Julia says that not only is the story fun, with characters you feel compelled to root for, but Katie's wizardry with character and dialogue elevates the reading experience.