Debating Darcy by Sayantani Dasgupta

From Scholastic:

It is a truth universally acknowledged that there are two types of people in the hypercompetitive world of high school forensics competitions: speakers and debaters. Nobody knows this better than Leela Bose, a life-long speech competitor. When she meets Firoze Darcy, an incorrigible debater, Leela has no choice but to try and tolerate him. His elitist private school is included in the state league she’s competing in and their paths will inevitably cross.

But why simply tolerate Firoze when Leela can one-up him? She decides to switch into the debate category of the competition to prove that women are just as capable as men. But the situation is more complicated than Leela anticipated, and her participation in the tournament reveals that she might have tragically misjudged the debaters in the forensics league — including Firoze Darcy.

Leela will have to confront her assumptions, not only about other people, but about herself, if she’s to have any hope of deciphering her complicated feelings for Darcy or succeeding in the forensics competition.