Danforth Emily M. Libri

When Cameron Post's parents die suddenly in a car crash, her shocking first thought is relief. Relief they'll never know that, hours earlier, she had been kissing a girl. But that relief doesn't last, and Cam is soon forced to move in with her conservative aunt Ruth and her well-intentioned but hopelessly old-fashioned grandmother. She knows that from this point on, her life will forever be different. Survival in Miles City, Montana, means blending in and leaving well enough alone (as her grandmother might say), and Cam becomes an expert at both. Then Coley Taylor moves to town. Beautiful, pickup-driving Coley is a perfect cowgirl with the perfect boyfriend to match. She and Cam forge an unexpected and intense friendship--one that seems to leave room for something more to emerge. But just as that starts to seem like a real possibility, ultrareligious Aunt Ruth takes drastic action to "fix" her niece, bringing Cam face-to-face with the cost of denying her true self--even if she's not exactly sure who that is. The Miseducation of Cameron Post is a stunning and unforgettable literary debut about discovering who you are and finding the courage to live life according to your own rules.

In 1902, at The Brookhants School for Girls, Flo and Clara, two impressionable students, become infatuated with each other and the daring writer Mary MacLane, known for her scandalous memoir. To express their devotion, they form a secret club called The Plain Bad Heroine Society, meeting in an apple orchard, which becomes the site of their tragic deaths. Their bodies are found with a copy of Mary’s book beside them, victims of a swarm of yellow jackets. Less than five years later, the school closes after three more mysterious deaths occur on the property. Fast forward over a century, the abandoned Brookhants gains attention when writer Merritt Emmons publishes a book celebrating its queer, feminist history. This leads to a controversial horror film adaptation featuring celebrity Harper Harper as Flo and former child star Audrey Wells as Clara. As filming begins, the past and present intertwine, blurring the lines between the curse of Brookhants and Hollywood's exploitation. The narrative unfolds as a story within a story, enriched with black-and-white period illustrations, exploring themes of obsession, tragedy, and the haunting legacy of a once-prominent institution.