Book#240, International Collection, Themes: The Revenge Makeover / The Trap / Enemies to Lovers (Unrequited) / Found Family, Keywords: Bully Romance, Scholarship Student, Elite School, Fake Identity, Revenge Plot, Internalized Homophobia, Blackmail, Feminization, Prom Queen, Found Family
He wore the mask to destroy his enemy. He didn’t know the mask would eat him alive. Simon Kataria is the “Songbird” of Somerset High—a scholarship student with a voice like an angel and a face too pretty for his own good. Tormented by the wealthy, charismatic bully Sid Arora, Simon wants only one thing: revenge. Enter Richa, the school’s dethroned queen bee. She offers Simon a devil’s bargain: disappear, and return as “Simona Marino,” a glamorous Italian exchange student. The plan is simple: win the school election, humiliate Sid, and vanish. It works too well. Sid doesn’t just lose; he falls in love with Simona, revealing a confusing, tragic secret about his own sexuality. But as Simon begins to enjoy the power of his new identity, Richa turns the screws. Jealous of her creation’s popularity, she issues a terrifying ultimatum: Simon must undergo permanent surgery to become Simona for real, or she will expose him to a scandal that will ruin his life. From the high of the election to the horror of a hospital room, and finally to a shocking revelation on the Prom stage, this is a story about the lies we tell to survive and the truth that waits when the music stops. (A dark, gripping, and emotional drama about the brutality of high school and the resilience of the soul.)
[CONTENT WARNING: BULLYING/COERCION] Contains themes of: Severe Bullying, Blackmail, Non-Consensual Medical Transition, Outing, and Internalized Homophobia.
Heat Level (1-5) 2 (Emotional / Traumatic) The story focuses on the psychological tension between Simon, Sid, and Richa. The romance that develops with Pamela is sweet and healing, serving as the antidote to the toxicity of the other relationships.