Dirt poor. Hillbilly. Backwoods hick. Mountain folk. Tenleigh Falyn struggles each day to survive in a small, poverty-stricken, coal mining town where she lives with her sister and mentally ill mother. Her dream of winning the college scholarship given to one student by the local coal company and escaping the harshness of her life, keeps her going. Kyland Barrett lives in the hills, too, and has worked tirelessly—through near starvation, through deep loneliness, against all odds—to win the Tyton Coal Scholarship and leave the town that is full of so much pain. They're both determined not to form any attachments, but one moment changes everything. What happens when only one person gets to win? When only one person gets to leave? And what happens to the one left behind? Kyland is a story of desperation and hope, loss and sacrifice, pain and forgiveness, but ultimately, a story of deep and unending love. 

It has everything I was looking for in a book!

I love angst, I am such a sucker for angst that I personally want to try having my heart broken lol but anyway this will definitely bring you to tears, if it doesn’t you can hunt me down (please don’t omg im just kidding), I also like stories with infidelity altho I do not condone it in real life!!!!!!! This has that tiny pinch of infidelity (sort of but not really) plus tragedies, drama makes a story better right? And there’s the issue of somewhat forbidden love because they’re rivals for a sole scholarship that could help them escape their tragic situation.