WHEN YOU WERE MINE

A contemporary retelling of Romeo and Juliet set in a modern day California high school with a twist: the story isn't told from Romeo or Juliet's perspective it's told from the point of view of Rosaline, the girl that Romeo loved first, before he met Juliet.

In this retelling of the story, Rosaline is your average high school girl popular but not the center of attention. Rosaline is well-liked by all and everyone assumes it's only a matter of time before she winds up in a relationship with Rob (aka Romeo). Rob and Rosaline have been best friends since they were kids and have only grown closer over the years. A romantic tension has sizzled in their friendship of late and it bubbles over one day when Rob asks Rosaline out on a date. Rosaline accepts enthusiastically and all seems to go well and certainly headed in the direction of them being a couple. As she always knew they'd be. The next day at school a mysterious girl arrives. Juliet. And suddenly Rosaline is left both heartbroken and in lurch as she looses her best friend and her new boyfriend all in one fell swoop. When the snarky, smartass Len Stephens comes to her rescue after Rob unceremoniously leaves her in the lurch, Rosaline is left wondering if maybe she'd been wrong about Rob all along maybe he wasn't her perfect fit. Maybe finding love is more about choice than Rosaline originally thought. In the vein of Before I Fall, The Sky Is Everywhere and Susane Colastanti, ROSALINE dares to ask the question: What if the greatest love story ever told was the wrong one? Smart, funny, and deeply romantic, ROSALINE tackles Shakespeare's themes of fate and destiny, but ultimately settles on a different conclusion-- that choice is the most powerful force of all.
The author, Rebecca Serle, is a Huffington Post contributor with a popular column in which she writes about children's literature, literacy, and all things related. She holds an MFA from The New School and her work has appeared in numerous literary journals such as SLICE Magazine, The Ampersand Review and KP Press. She's also contributed to Brooklyn Based Young Adult blog, Forever YA. Last year, Rebecca founded Nurturing Narratives, a children's program centered around empowering children through story.