 My name is Laurel Flores Ventuso and I'm the author of the young adult novel My Heart Underwater. My Heart Underwater follows Corazon Tugubia, a closeted Filipino-American teenager at a conservative Catholic high school who has a very intense crush. When her father gets into a work accident and her mother makes an intense discovery, Cory gets sent to live in Quezon City, Philippines with a half-brother she's never met before. The book was partly inspired by growing up Catholic in California and the Philippines with a Panayama mantitas. If you want to read longing, queer anxiety, family secrets, and getting closer to what real love is, I think you'll enjoy My Heart Underwater. You can check out My Heart Underwater from the wonderful San Francisco Public Library, or you can buy it from your local independent bookstore. Maraming salamat.