Crooked Half Smile

By Ellie Royal

Mallory learned young that some kinds of love were easier to survive if you kept them to yourself.

Nadine was her best friend before Mallory had words for what she felt. The girl who knew where she came from, knew the mess of her family, and knew her before she learned how to leave. But one impulsive kiss changed everything, sending Mallory away with a broken heart and a determination to build a life that didn't revolve around the one person she could never quite forget.

Years pass. Miles stretch between them. Mallory builds a career, falls in and out of relationships, and learns how to stand on her own. Nadine builds a life of her own. Still, through letters, phone calls, long silences, and unexpected returns, neither of them ever manages to completely let go.

Because some people don't disappear just because you leave them behind.

And sometimes the person you spend half your life trying to get over turns out to be the one who has been leading you home all along.

Crooked Half Smile is a queer love story about friendship, first love, growing into yourself, chosen family, and the complicated, imperfect road between the life you thought you were supposed to have and the one that was waiting for you.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0HHJWW9C2
• ISBN13: 9798171381325
• Release Date: September 2026
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 138 Pages
• Weight: 0.43 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.3" x 6.0"