Other Words for Love by Lorraine Zago Rosenthal

Flashback to the 1980s and flashback to what it was like to feel real love as a teenager for the first time. Rosenthal writes a heartbreaking story about first love, friendships, raw mother/daughter relationships, and sibling rivalry and all it entails. Ari, is a plain girl who is whisked away to a private school Hollister in Manhattan due to a family inheritance. She finds herself naively falling for the glitz and glamour of a strikingly handsome older guy whom she falls head over heels in love with. The romance is reciprocated and heats up quickly. Ari finds herself amidst friendship problems and losing herself in a whirlwind romance. Can she compete with his upscale world, deal with her Catholic mother's ranting, and stay strong as the relationships becomes too much to handle? Older teens will enjoy this emotional tale of love and longing.