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Sixteen-year-old Martha and her mother move constantly, never staying anywhere for long. So she knows better than to ask if they've been evicted again when her mom says they're going on a "vacation" to meet the grandmother Martha didn't know existed.

Laredo, Texas, is like no other city she has seen. Driving past businesses with Spanish names and colorfully painted houses with burnt lawns, Martha can't imagine her mother living somewhere so ... Mexican. At her grandmother's pink house, she's shocked and hurt when her mom abandons her, even though a part of her had been expecting it.

Suddenly Martha must deal with a way of life that is completely foreign. Her grandmother doesn't speak English, so communication is difficult, and she's not the typical, sweet grandma who dotes on her grandchildren. Even weirder, it turns out that her grandmother is revered as a healer, or curandera. And there are tons of cousins, aunts, and uncles all ready to embrace her

At her new school, Martha can't be anonymous like before because everyone knows she's Do a Gonz lez's granddaughter. Meanwhile, a girl who has it out for her makes things unpleasant. As Martha struggles to adjust to her new life, she can't help but wonder why her mother left Laredo. No one is willing to discuss it, so she'll have to unravel the secrets herself.

Frankie Maria Corzo is a film and voice-over actress and audiobook narrator. She obtained a BA degree in theater studies from Montclair State University.

Alex Temblador is the author of Secrets of the Casa Rosada and a full-time freelance travel writer with publications in Fodor's, Amuse (VICE), Hotels.com, Oyster, and Matador Network, among many others.