From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks

That weekend, when she asks to apply for the show, her mother and stepfather Paul (whom Zoe calls Dad) do not give her permission. The Food Network site advertises auditions for a new season of Kids Bake Challenge!, the show Ruby Willow won. To avoid them, Zoe flips through the cookbook and looks online. She wants to mail her letter from the corner mailbox so her mother will not see it, but Trevor and two teammates are on the porch near the mailbox. She chats about several topics and asks why he called her “Little Tomato” in his letter. Zoe wants a career as a pastry chef and would love to achieve similar fame. Ruby won, receiving cash and a cookbook deal.

Ruby Willow is a young baker Zoe saw on a Food Network baking competition. She is surprised that Trevor got her Ruby Willow’s cookbook. After many summers of adventures and years of close friendship, Zoe now feels betrayed, angry, and wary. Zoe does not want to talk to Trevor last month, she overheard him saying unkind things about her. While Zoe debates what to do about the letter, her next-door-neighbor and former best friend Trevor arrives with a birthday gift. She does not understand his reference to his other letters to her, as this is the first letter she ever received. Zoe does not like to think about being related to someone who committed a terrible crime when she reads the letter, Zoe is surprised that Marcus sounds nice and caring.

Zoe immediately hides the letter, thinking that her mother might not let her read it.

He was convicted of a murder that took place before Zoe was born. Just home from her 12th birthday party, Zoe Washington discovers a letter from her biological father, Marcus Johnson, whom she has never met. This guide refers to the 2020 edition by Katherine Tegen Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks