High school graduation is a time of transition, change, and excitement. It’s a rite of passage nearly everyone travels, including Xander and Gemma, former friends who dated briefly years earlier. After a humiliating end to the graduation ceremony, Gemma is eager and more than ready to never see Xander again.

And then her mother drops a truth bomb: the grandfather Gemma never knew has died. Though her mom tries to hide from him, a lawyer finally tracks down Gemma and gives her a perplexing puzzle of an inheritance. If she has any chance of figuring out the clues her grandfather left behind, she will need a lot of help from the one person she hates the most: Xander.

Gloria Chao’s young adult story is sweet and sincere, with themes of forgiveness and acceptance woven through the narrative. Readers take a cultural journey with Gemma and Xander to Taiwan as Gemma uncovers clue after clue and reveals an emotional and transformational version of her own family history. I enjoyed the story, the puzzles, and the chance to learn small pieces of Taiwanese culture. Thank you to Netgalley and Viking Books for Young Readers for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.