Seventeen-year-olds Willa Thompson and Dan Martin are falling in love. But there’s one major problem: Willa lives in New York. Dan doesn’t.

Teens with divorced parents, Dan, a comic book nerd from Texas, and Willa, a sassy urbanite, have spent the last three years coordinating their monthly trips to visit the parent they don’t live with so that they can meet up during their layovers. As their junior year wraps up, Willa and Dan realize that their feelings for each other are more than friendly.

When they begin a long-distance relationship, Dan and Willa find out that there is more working against them than geography—both are serious students who aren’t applying to any of the same colleges. To make matters worse, Dan’s ruthless ex sees Willa as nothing more than a challenge to overcome, and Willa’s more-experienced-in-love best friend doesn’t trust Dan. as far as she can throw him. Which is not at all.

Spanning a year and told from Willa and Dan’s alternating perspectives,Taking Flight captures the many stresses of being a high school senior, and how very difficult—but also how very easy—love can be.