Brandon, J: Edge of Being

James Brandon

A tender and heartfelt queer YA novel about the multiplicities of grief, deeply held family secrets, and finding new love.It's been exactly four years since the Big Bang in Isaac's life. The cataclysmic event that broke his family into so many shards, it seems impossible they will ever fit together again, especially without their missing piece-Isaac's twin brother Jacob. Partners in everything, Isaac's connection to Jacob has been unbreakable and even after his death, Isaac sees his twin's spirit around all the time. To others this might be unbelievable but for Isaac, talking to his brother's ghost is as natural as breathing. Then, on their eighteenth birthday, Jacob gives Isaac a warning. Something bad is happening to Jacob and if Isaac doesn't figure it out soon, Jacob's time as a ghost will be over and he will be gone forever.To keep Jacob's ghost with him and in hopes of knitting his family back together again, Isaac decides to find the first piece of their family that went missing-their dad. As Isaac traces his family's forgotten past, he uncovers letters from his father during the weeks leading up to the Compton's Cafeteria Riot in San Francisco, a precursor to the Stonewall Riots a few years later. As family secrets are revealed, Isaac must navigate his own changing feelings and finally face his grief head-on as he comes to realize that time, distance, and even death have no bearing on our missing pieces as those we love will always be a part of our being.

PRAISEWORTHY AUTHOR: Ziggy, Stardust & Me published to glowing reviews and landed on several best book lists (EW, Seventeen, and Refinery29). The Matrix of Being has the same heart, emotional impact, and honesty that reviewers and readers alike loved and will be thrilled to see in James Brandon's latest.A NUANCED LOOK AT GRIEF: Readers will grieve and ultimately heal alongside Isaac as he comes to terms with his brother's death. The story doesn't shy away from the fractures that can form in a person and family after tragedy and shows how messy and long the healing process can truly be.ENDEARING MAIN CHARACTER: Isaac's vivid imagination and his unique and enduring connection to his brother give an intimacy to his character that readers will bond with and root for.SWEET ROMANCE: Isaac's budding romance is so tender and builds so beautifully it will have readers positively ecstatic for his new relationship by the end.LGBTQ REPRESENTATION AND HISTORY: As Isaac investigates his father's past, he learns about a crucial piece of LBGTQ history, the Compton's Cafeteria Riots and the police and public's ill treatment of transgender people during that period. Most of the characters in the story identify as LGBTQ and there is a variety of representation as well. As in Ziggy, Stardust & Me, James handles the rarely represented parts of LGBTQ history and his characters with sensitivity and nuance.