Promposal

February 15, 2023
High school senior Autumn Reeves' plans come to a screeching halt when she gets waitlisted at her dream school. Despite what her parents think, Autumn only applied to one school, because Mercer School of Business at Great Lakes University is where she wants to be. She was confident that with her 4.0 grade point average she was going to be accepted, and now she is questioning everything she believed about herself. When a promposal she planned for a friend garners her attention from other seniors looking for help, Autumn decides that turning this idea into a business proposal will definitely help her stand out. But she doesn't know how to start a business, so she joins Young Black Entrepreneurs, a student group where she has to enlist the help of her freshman year crush, business whiz Mekhi Winston, with the business plan for PROMposal Queen. Autumn and Mekhi have a complicated history--it cost Autumn a friendship and broke both their hearts--but she is willing to do anything to move to the top of the waitlist. The secret history around the events of freshman year is revealed at a good pace, keeping readers engaged. The main characters, all of whom are Black, are well developed. Autumn experiences complex emotions related to feelings of inadequacy because her self-worth is tied up in her overachiever status. Garrett balances romance, friendship, and self-discovery, with the theme of second chances running throughout the story. An entertaining twist on college admissions stress. (Fiction. 12-18)

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

February 20, 2023
Focused, driven Autumn Reeves, a high school senior in southeastern Michigan, has her heart set on attending Mercer School of Business at Great Lakes University in hopes of becoming an event planner. Autumn is convinced she’ll be a shoo-in, especially since Mercer already awarded her a scholarship. After she’s waitlisted, however, she schemes to grab Mercer’s attention through her budding start-up, PROMposal Queen, a service for teens looking to make an event out of their prom-date ask. Except Autumn doesn’t know how to start a business, so she joins her school’s elite Young Black Entrepreneurs club and begrudgingly requests help from Mekhi Winston, her former best friend and freshman year crush with whom she had a disastrous falling-out. Mekhi agrees to assist, and word of PROMposal Queen spreads quickly, garnering positive reviews and a swiftly building client list. But while Autumn can’t deny that her and Mekhi’s business partnership works well, she’s not sure if she can move on from their hurtful past. Balancing romantic, lighthearted fare with the often anxiety-inducing drama of college admissions, debut author Garrett presents an endearing second-chance love story brimming with grand depictions of devotion, forgiveness, and friendship. Ages 12–up.

April 1, 2023
Grades 9-12 Garrett's debut is an adorable romp filled with funny and heartwarming moments. When high-school senior (and aspiring events planner) Autumn Reeves gets wait-listed at Mercer School of Business, she can't believe it. She'd already been chosen as a Mercer scholarship recipient--something she thought guaranteed admission to the school, but apparently she was wrong. And then, as if that weren't enough, her boyfriend dumps her. This is not how she pictured her senior year going. When Autumn goes online to accept her place on the wait list, she notices a link for submitting additional materials--and knows this is her chance to add something extra-special to her application. Why not become her high school's official promposal organizer? Already in demand after helping her neighbor in this department, Autumn joins the Young Black Entrepreneurs club to get some additional help with her new business venture. What follows is a spirited story filled with sparkling banter and relatable ups and downs, including unexpected romance and pressures felt by many high-schoolers. An inspiring read for rom-com lovers.

COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.