Secretly in love with his best friend Sam, Ethan takes a chance and gives him a kiss, setting into motion a wild series of events full of romance and chaos. Follow Ethan as he navigates the challenges and drama of high school, growing up, & coming out. Heartbreaking and happy, exhilarating and playful, Hot News is a roller coaster ride full of emotion, romance, and hope.

The idea of 'coming out' in high school can be such an uncomfortable thought for many. With it being senior year in Hot News, time is running out, and the main character must decide whether or not to act on their emotions. Exploring the complexities of taking a chance, Ethan navigates the many events that unfold - thrilling, devastating, hopeful, heartbreaking, romantic, happy, and everything in between.

Hot News was written to be down-to-earth and realistic - and with realistic comes some 'spice.' What do we mean by spice? Spice is referring to a variety of things in the story, but mostly, the amount of romance and some language. Profanity is used lightly in the storyline to align with strong emotional outbursts only, and is not used extensively throughout the story. Sexual themes are described in a romantic nature, mentioning the intimate acts without specifically describing the acts in vivid detail.

With the want for the story to be 'real' in feeling, 'spice' felt necessary to accurately depict the high school experience, as it is a time when many already know 'bad words' (that can sometime slip out in moments of heightened emotions), and when many begin to explore romance, and tackle questions about self identity, and sexuality. For these reasons, we give the book a 'Spice Rating' of 2/5

If you're looking for a gay love story full of playful happenings, emotional moments, and a whole lot of heart - this story is for you!