Coming Soon: The Climb

Blurb

THE CLIMB is the coming out story of Skyler Phoenix, a smart, handsome teenaged boy forced to become part of the foster care system after the death of his mother. Several years later, Skyler had finally pieced his life back together. He thrived in his sophomore year at Cornerstone Christian Academy and his peers respected him as a star athlete and leader, even if he didn’t accept the beliefs they lived and breathed every day.

Knowing that coming out would not be an easy feat, Skyler and his best friend, Cameron, struggle over how and when they should tell their conservative Christian families. When their deepest secret is accidentally discovered, their best efforts at surviving the onslaught of Biblical truth are thwarted by the very message of love—and condemnation—their churches preached every Sunday. Nothing prepares Skyler for the toil of rejection and abandonment when his foster parents discover he is gay.

It wasn’t easy for Skyler to pick up his life for a third time, leave the place he had come to know as home, and expect a strange new family, hours away, to welcome him—sinful gayness and all—into their home. But that’s exactly what everyone expected Skyler to do. When Skyler meets the Kelley’s and their teenage son, Colton, he’s thrown off by the welcoming arms that accept him and offer unconditional love without judgement. With defenses around his heart and his trust at an all-time low, the once-strong Skyler struggles to accept himself even when his foster brother and his new friends offer him the chance to thrive, grow, and eventually love himself enough to become an advocate for his LGBTQ peers.

THE CLIMB is the coming out story of Skyler Phoenix and his journey to overcome the rejection he faced when he embraced himself as gay.