{"product_id":"better-than-revenge-isbn-9780593643297","title":"Better Than Revenge","description":"\u003cb\u003eA swoony new romance from the author of \u003ci\u003eSunkissed\u003c\/i\u003e! When her football-player boyfriend and now ex lands the podcast job she’s been dreaming of, a girl takes matters into her own hands by enlisting the help of his nemesis to get revenge.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSeventeen-year-old Finley has only ever had one goal: to become a famous podcaster. This includes coming up with the perfect pitch to land her on her school's podcast team. But when her football-obsessed boyfriend, Jensen, decides to also try out—and uses \u003ci\u003eher\u003c\/i\u003e idea—she's left confused and betrayed. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDetermined to get back at him, Finley and her friends try to find the perfect revenge scheme, but quickly discover that Jensen is almost-impossible to best. Keyword, \u003ci\u003ealmost\u003c\/i\u003e.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBy chance, Finley discovers a knack for kicking and decides to take Jensen's spot on the football team. To help her train, she recruits Jensen's cute but conceited nemeses, Theo. Soon the two discover that their connection runs deeper than football. But Finley can't let herself get distracted, and Theo has secrets of his own. Is true love really better than the perfect revenge? \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eIncludes an author Q\u0026amp;A!\u003c\/b\u003e\"\u003cb\u003eA page-turning, character-driven romance \u003c\/b\u003ethat promotes girl power.\" —\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\"\u003cb\u003e[T]he story delivers all the feels\u003c\/b\u003e....YA ­romancers will not be disappointed in this coming-of-age ­narrative!\" —\u003ci\u003eSchool Library Journal\u003c\/i\u003eKasie West is the author of many YA novels, including \u003ci\u003eBorrow My Heart\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003ePlaces We've Never Been\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eSunkissed\u003c\/i\u003e. Her books have been named ALA-YALSA Quick Picks, JLG selections, and ALA-YALSA Best Books for Young Adults. When she's not writing, she's binge-watching television, devouring books, or road-tripping to new places. Kasie lives in Fresno, California, with her family.Chapter one\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The Central California Coast fog clung to the hills that March morning, which was why I had pulled on a flannel and beanie before leaving the house. I should’ve taken the fog as a bad omen, but I was oblivious, aside from the nervous energy coursing through me. I stood in a line, two people in front of me, seven behind, outside our high school’s recording studio—­a small building near the front office—­waiting for my audition.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I pulled off my hat and shoved it in my pocket. Ava, two steps ahead of me, was practicing, mouthing words to herself. My script was on my phone, and I reviewed it silently.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e A set of arms snaked around my waist, surprising me. I let out a squeal and tilted my head up to see Jensen’s smiling face.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Hi, boyfriend,” I said, leaning back against him. “Come to wish me luck and help me relax?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He was wearing his football jersey. Even though football season was long over, there was going to be a rally today where the football players did some sort of relay.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Hey, babe.” He took in the line and the closed door of the studio. “This is it, huh? The moment of truth.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “This is it.” I drew a deep breath. It was finally time. Only seniors hosted the school’s podcast, and they were in charge of auditions. I’d been waiting since freshman year for this. Two and a half years of broadcasting classes where I learned about soundboards and soundproofing and advertising and creative segues. About hot-­button topics and interviewing. All to prepare me for this moment.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Did you finish writing your pitch thingy?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I held up my phone, where my notes app was open. “I decided on the student highlight feature.” This audition wasn’t just to see how well we could speak on microphone under pressure, but also to see what creative ideas and topics we might bring to the team. One of my ideas was to interview a different student each week to learn more about the people we went to school with.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Really?” he asked.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “You didn’t like that one?” I’d practiced in front of him the night before on my at-­home setup. He’d nodded and laughed and clapped for me, like the perfect boyfriend he was.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “No, it’s good. I liked the weekly puzzle idea too.” That idea had been to give a short but difficult brain teaser or puzzle at the beginning of each week, and the first student to solve it and turn in the correct answer won a prize or extra credit or something. I liked that idea too but didn’t feel like it would better our school the way learning the stories of those around us would, and that was important to me.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Yeah, those were the two I was deciding between. You think the other one would be better?” I asked, trying not to get in my head now, in the eleventh hour.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “No, the interview idea is great.” His eyes traveled to the top of my head, and he reached out and ran his hands down my long light brown hair. It had a slight wave to it, so it was always frizzy when there was extra moisture in the air.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “I was wearing a hat earlier,” I said, helping him in the smoothing process. “And it’s not fair that you can see the top of my head better than most.” I was pretty tall, but Jensen was taller.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He smiled and kissed my forehead. “You look cute.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Thanks.” I shook out my hands as the line moved forward.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Lincoln came out of the building, his face a little pale.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “How was it?” I asked. I knew everyone here. We’d gone through the last couple years together. Sure, we were now competition, but we’d always known that would be the case. Only two people would be picked to be the voice of the podcast, and I was dying to be one of them. Not only was it good experience, it led directly to an internship at the community college as well.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Brutal,” Lincoln said. “I stammered through several words.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e That was my main worry. That I’d trip up on words. Use too many fillers. I didn’t have the ability to edit my performance after the fact like I would in a normal podcast. “I’m sure you did better than your brain is telling you,” I said to him now, and maybe a little to myself.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He held up crossed fingers, then kept walking. “Good luck, Finley!” he called over his shoulder.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Thanks!” I returned.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Ava, now the last person between me and the door, turned around and gave me a nervous face. I reached out and squeezed her hand. “You got this.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e She looked up at Jensen, then at his football jersey. “You’re the kicker, right?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Yes. I’ll be the starting kicker next year.” He was proud of that, and his face beamed when he said the words. He’d been the backup kicker for three seasons, only got to play the final game of last season because Theo, the starter, had been injured. And now, Theo would finally graduate in June. I was happy about that. Theo was arrogant and unhelpful and constantly criticized Jensen’s ability in front of the whole team. He was a bully and a jerk, and next year would be so much better without him getting in Jensen’s head. They were supposed to be on the same team; I didn’t know why he tried so hard to bring Jensen down.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “And how do you feel about your future starting spot?” I said, holding up a fake microphone.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He rolled his eyes and pushed my hand down. He didn’t like it when I played reporter. Especially in front of other people.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Didn’t you used to play soccer?” Ava asked, looking at me. “You both like to kick things.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Balls. We both like to kick balls,” I joked back.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Finley,” Jensen said in a low, reprimanding voice.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Sorry,” I said, even though I thought it was funny.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I used to be a defender on the girls’ soccer team. But it took a lot of time away from what I really loved—­podcasts. That’s what I wanted to do with my life, so I had quit soccer after sophomore season to focus on that. Plus, my parents needed me at home more. “I probably couldn’t kick a soccer ball twenty feet if my life depended on it these days.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Jensen let out a sharp laugh. “Anyone can kick a soccer ball twenty feet, babe. That’s not very far. Plus, a soccer ball basically rolls all by itself.” He winked at me.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Oh, right, I forgot, a football is \u003ci\u003eso\u003c\/i\u003e much harder to kick,” I said, heavy with sarcasm.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “It is,” he returned. “The shape alone—­”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I held up my hands, stopping him midsentence. “I get it—­you’re a stud.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He squeezed me into a hug. “I try.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The door opened, and Lisa came out.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Here I go,” Ava said.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e That left me staring at the door.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “How are you feeling?” Jensen asked.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “My stomach hurts.” I hugged his waist, resting my cheek on his chest. Even though the last few years of my life had been preparing me for this moment, something in the back of my mind told me that I still wasn’t good enough.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Jensen held me for several long minutes as I stared at the door, which was red with rust streaks near the hinges.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Did you know Marcos could juggle?” I said, trying to focus.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “How do \u003ci\u003eyou\u003c\/i\u003e know that?” he asked.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “When I was preparing for this pitch over the last several months, I asked a few people in my classes to tell me their hidden talents.” That was why I loved this idea so much. It allowed me to learn about people.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “That’s cool,” he said.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Maybe you could be one of my student interviews. Like a real interview,” I said, waving my pretend microphone in the air. “Not one of my fake ones. I can ask you about your rise to starting kicker and how it felt to wait in the wings for years.” Assuming I was chosen. We’d find out today at lunch.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Nobody wants to hear me complain,” he said.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Everybody likes a good underdog story, Jensen,” I said.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “I guess.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The door whined as it opened, and I let out a surprised yelp.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “So jumpy,” Jensen said.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Kiss for luck?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He pulled me against him and gave me a passionate kiss in front of that whole line of students, leaving me a little lightheaded. Cheeks flushed, I stumbled into the studio.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e My pitch went well. Really well. I was warm and my voice was smooth and I even got in a witty aside on the spot. My transitions were on point, and as I stood and smiled at the senior inter­viewers and our broadcasting teacher, Mr. Whitley, I felt pretty confident.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e I stepped outside, where Jensen still stood near the front of the line. I was surprised to see him. First period had started ten minutes ago.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “You didn’t have to wait for me,” I said, but it was sweet that he had.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He studied my face. “How did it go?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Great.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e His brows shot down, and I got the weirdest feeling he was disappointed by that answer. I reached out my hand, ready to lead him away to where I could tell him all about the audition and then try to make it until lunch without losing my mind.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “Actually”—­he pointed at the door, not taking my offered hand—­“I think I’m going to try out.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e “What?” I said, my heart jolting in my chest. It seemed to under­stand his meaning more than my brain did. I was so confused.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e He didn’t clarify; he just disappeared through the door with one small smile over his shoulder.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Mason, who was next in line, pointed at the closed door. “He totally cut the line.”","brand":"Delacorte Romance","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46304160514277,"sku":"NP9780593643297","price":12.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780593643297.jpg?v=1767722493","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/better-than-revenge-isbn-9780593643297","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}