Kyrie McCauley, author of the William C. Morris YA Debut Award winner If These Wings Could Fly, delivers a powerful contemporary YA novel about the lasting bonds of friendship in the aftermath of a school shooting – We Can Be Heroes.

Beck and Vivian never could stand each other, but they always tried their best for their mutual friend, Cassie – who was shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend, the teenage heir to Bell Firearms, a local gun company. After the town quickly moves on from Cassie’s murder, Beck and Vivian finally find common ground: vengeance. They memorialize Cassie by secretly painting murals of her around town, a message to the world that Cassie won’t be forgotten.

When their murals catch the attention of a podcaster covering Cassie’s case, they become the catalyst for a debate that Bell Firearms can no longer ignore. With law enforcement closing in on them, Beck and Vivian hurry to give Cassie the closure she needs—by delivering justice to those responsible for her death.

After exploring domestic violence in her debut novel, McCauley looks at themes of teen dating violence in her sophomore effort—this time in the aftermath of a school shooting and the way in which our society routinely ignores victims. According to Kirkus Reviews, We Can Be Heroes is “a heartbreaking, intelligent exploration of an all-too-real menace.”