Book 1 of the Alissa Awakens Series

Her mind was made for discovery. Society was built to stop her.
Alissa Adams, in her last semester of college, moves through the lab like a ghost—present, precise, and mostly ignored. Eyes slide past her. Voices quiet when she enters. Her hands are steady over the flame, her data flawless, but none of it matters. In a world built for men, she’s the anomaly—an error to be corrected.
It is 1950 in New York City. Running late to class, she collides with a gorgeous bohemian classmate, who turns her world upside down. Papers flying, he grabs her by the waist to keep her from falling, his voice calm and steady. As she looks into those stunning blue eyes, a fierce flame explodes inside her. Unlike her other classmates, he looks beyond her gender. Acknowledging her brilliance, he asks her to join him in a one-of-a-kind project that could change her future. Despite the red flags, she says yes, hoping to gain the approval from her peers she desperately seeks.
The partnership sparks quickly—on screen and off. Late nights stretch into friendly conversations; careful words give way to confessions. Kirk listens differently, watches more closely, makes space where no one else has. But Alissa already wears a ring. Tom is thoughtful, dependable, a student with a promising career in economics—and a heart set on building a life with her.

Torn between two very different men, Alissa begins to ask a far more dangerous question: does she need either of them to become who she’s meant to be?

This is the first book in the Alissa Awakens series – a sweeping journey of fierce ambition, forbidden longing, and one woman’s fight to belong in a world determined to keep her quiet.