Jude hopes to finally become who she wants to be, away from tiny Churchtown and the father who cannot get over her mother's death, by joining a drama program in London until Stella, her childhood friend, returns and causes Jude to wonder if she really wants to be the center of attention.

She's back. Jude's childhood friend — sexy, daring Stella— returns to their stifling hometown, and life will never be the same again.

Sixteen-year-old Jude has to get out of tiny Churchtown. She has to escape her outcast status and her pathetic dad, who hasn't gotten past her mother's death. The one bright light is drama, her way out, if only she can get into the Lab, a prestigious program in London. Then Stella, Jude's childhood best friend, swaggers in after years away. With bold and magnetic Stella by her side, Jude knows she's capable of anything. But Stella's influence extends well beyond the theater. Soon Stella's wild and dangerous streak begins to cause trouble for Jude — yet Jude can't bring herself to abandon Stella and the attention she's always craved. And besides, now that Stella's back, there's no stopping her. In Jude's dark and tangled story, British author Joanna Nadin plumbs the aftermath of loss and the consequences of becoming the person you always wished you were.