My Life with the Walter Boys

When a tragic accident leads Jackie to move into a house filled with twelve boys, she gets far more than she ever expected. This sweet YA romance is perfect for fans of Kasie West and Jenny Han―and is one of the most beloved Wattpad books ever!

Moving in with twelve boys was not part of the plan.

Jackie's goal is perfection―perfect grades, the perfect look, getting into the perfect school. If she can achieve that, then maybe her too-busy mom and dad will take notice. But when her parents die in a tragic accident, Jackie is shipped off across the country to live with the Walters, her new guardians…who just happen to have twelve sons (well, eleven, but their daughter, Parker, is basically one of the boys).

The Walter boys are loud, dirty, annoying―and, okay, some of the older boys might be Greek god level hot, but they don't think a city girl belongs on their horse ranch. How is Jackie supposed to fit into their chaotic world when she needs to keep her parents' memory alive by living up to the promise of perfect?

But as Jackie spends more time with the Walter boys, she begins to wonder if the perfection she's always strived for isn't the only way to find love after all.

Amazon: Check Best Offer

Romance Young Adult

Release date: September 3, 2019

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Ali Novak

Long before her books landed on bookstore shelves or inspired a Netflix adaptation, Ali Novak was a teenager in Wisconsin, scribbling stories that captured the rush of first love and the chaos of growing up. At fifteen she uploaded her debut novel, My Life with the Walter Boys, to Wattpad. What began as a quiet experiment quickly caught fire, drawing in millions of readers who recognized something authentic in her characters’ tangled emotions and unpredictable lives.

That story, about a girl uprooted from her world and dropped into a household of eleven brothers, has now been read more than 150 million times online. It launched Novak from an aspiring young writer into one of the most recognizable voices in contemporary YA romance. When the book was published, it went on to become a Goodreads Choice Award nominee for Best Young Adult Fiction, and later laid the foundation for a Netflix series that brought the Walter family to an even wider audience.

Novak followed that success with The Heartbreak Chronicles, a series that leans into grief, healing, and the messy joy of falling in love again. Titles like The Heartbreakers and Paper Hearts highlight what has become her hallmark style: dialogue that feels unfiltered, characters who stumble toward connection, and the balancing act between heartbreak and hope. Readers return to her work because it mirrors the intensity of adolescence, relationships that are as confusing as they are exhilarating, friendships that reshape identity, and the bittersweet realization that growing up means change.

While her stories have traveled far, her writing life remains rooted in simplicity. Novak studied creative writing at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and today she still begins her mornings early with coffee, writing in long stretches before revising again at night. She describes herself as a "plantser," charting rough outlines but leaving room for characters to surprise her. Beyond writing, she shares her love of travel, fantasy novels, and the occasional Netflix binge with her husband Jared.

With new books like My Return to the Walter Boys and Heartstrings joining her catalog, Novak continues to expand the world she first created as a teenager while introducing new stories that speak to the same themes: family, belonging, and love in all its messy, transformative forms. Her career is a testament to the power of storytelling that begins online and blossoms into something enduring, stories that resonate because they feel like they could belong to any of us.

My Life with the Walter Boys

When Jackie Howard’s carefully ordered life shatters, she’s forced to leave behind the glittering skyline of New York City and move to rural Colorado. There, she finds herself in a house unlike anything she’s ever known: a sprawling, chaotic home shared with eleven Walter brothers. For a girl who once thrived on schedules and silence, every day in the Walter household becomes a test of patience, resilience, and unexpected connection.