Home Is Where The Drama Is. . . Mariana Ruiz is bringing a lot home from her vacation in Puerto Rico, including memories of a hot summer romance, a new understanding of her (sometimes crazy) family. . .and her cousin Lilly Sanchez, who's enrolling in Mariana's suburban Philadelphia high school. Mariana's best friends, Madison and Emily, aren't thrilled about the new arrival, especially when Lilly soars through the ranks of Spring Mills High's social circles. But Mariana has other things on her mind. Like Mariana's developing crush on her locker buddy, Bobby, the one boy to ever take Emily on a real date. But it's the revelations at Mariana's Sweet 16 party that make it clear that life at Spring Mills High School will never be the same again.

For fifteen-year-old Mariana Ruiz, it's not so much an unexpected vacation as a literal "guilt trip"--her father's way of atoning for ignoring his Puerto Rican roots. But freedom from her parents is little compensation for being forced to spend two months with complete strangers rather than with her best friends in Philadelphia. Once on "vacation," her worst fears come true. The heat is merciless, the food is spicy, and her great aunt and uncle's mountain house teems with relatives, only one of whom--her distant cousin Lilly--speaks English. Bored, and hoping to make up for missing her best friend's star-studded Sweet 16, Mariana offers to help in the planning of Lilly's Quinceañera. Soon, despite herself, Mariana clicks with new friends who open doors to romance and long-hidden secrets. Suddenly the summer she dreaded is ending way too quickly. It might turn out that the last place she ever wanted to go is the one place she truly finds herself.

What happens in Puerto Rico doesn't always stay there. . . Mariana Ruiz thought she left her summer fling in Puerto Rico, that is until she finds Alex sitting across from her at the breakfast table. Living two doors down from her visiting old flame isn't easy, especially given the unresolved sparks still lingering for her locker buddy Bobby--and they don't exactly go unnoticed. Her best friends are little help as Madison deals with her IM-only "boyfriend" and Emily sinks into secret mode after her parents' recent breakup. The only relationship that seems to be working is her estranged aunt Teresa who's tying the knot on New Years with Mariana and her cousin Lilly as bridesmaids. But the last wedding detail left unplanned is who will Mariana kiss at midnight? Strained friendships, stolen kisses, and secret loves create plenty of surprises to unfold before the New Year's bells start ringing. . .