Self-styled "beautiful boy" Toby Ryerson dreams in stardust but lives in the dirt. Haunted by the specter of his mom's overdose, he itches for a life of fun and fabulosity far from his backwoods, Adirondack town. Toby knows his older brother Jimmy didn't sacrifice everything to raise him so he could waste his life on men and partying like Mom did. But why can't Jimmy see that he is their mother's son? When Toby outs the boy who broke his heart in a fit of rage, the web of lies he's spun to manage Jimmy's expectations quickly unravels. A brutal beating leads to a campaign of cyberbullying, culminating in even greater disaster.

Enter Gabe, a sexy stranger from Mom's past who seduces Toby with the keys to the Big Apple. But when Toby's dreams of a fabulous life in the city quickly turn into a nightmare, will Jimmy's love be enough to save him, or will he end up just like Mom? An Ugly World for Beautiful Boys is a gritty and harrowing queer coming-of-age novel as well as a love story between two mismatched brothers coping with the burden of secrets and a legacy of shame.