For most 14-year-olds, California summers in the 1970s mean sun and surf, the waves sleek and the sand warm despite the Cold War. But not for Eden. Thanks to her AWOL father, Eden’s life is in a tailspin, landing her wrong side up in a remote beach town, good for pier fishing and gossip and not much else. Caught in her parents’ own cold war, Eden finds solace by singing with the church choir on Sundays and gambling in poker matches on Fridays, ditching her severely disabled brother every chance she gets. After all, if Mama hadn’t insisted he return home from the institution, they’d still be a family, with a home in the city.
Distracting Eden from her misery is the arrival of an immigrant girl, as mysterious as Eden is miserable. When a series of disturbing crimes rattles the town, rumors pin the blame on the “Commie,” sending Eden in pursuit of the truth. What begins with curiosity rapidly becomes a dangerous dance as Eden stumbles onto Raven’s secret—and finds that chasing another is easier than facing herself.