Your Fault

Your Fault, originally published in Spanish as Culpa Tuya in 2017, is a new adult romance by Mercedes Ron. It is the second installment in the best-selling Culpables trilogy, which originated on the storytelling platform Wattpad, where it gained a massive following. The first book in the series, My Fault, became a New York Times bestseller, and the story is concluded in Our Fault, the third book in the series. The series was adapted into a Spanish film trilogy by Amazon Prime Video in 2025.

Your Fault continues the turbulent, forbidden romance between step-siblings Noah Morgan and Nick Leister as their relationship is tested by parental disapproval, secrets, and the psychological weight of their pasts. The novel explores themes of The Lingering Scars of Past Trauma, The Destructive Cycle of Jealousy and Control, and The Search for Identity Within Consuming Love.

This guide refers to the 2023 Bloom Books English translation.

Content Warning: The source text and this guide feature depictions of physical abuse, emotional abuse, child abuse, sexual content, graphic violence, substance use, mental illness, pregnancy termination, and suicidal ideation.

Plot Summary

The story opens with a flash-forward to a devastating breakup. In the pouring rain, Nicholas “Nick” Leister ends his relationship with Noah Morgan, telling her, “We’re done.” Noah is left heartbroken, consumed by guilt and the feeling that she deserves her pain.

The narrative then flashes back to 11 months earlier, on Noah’s 18th birthday. She is still grappling with the trauma of her father’s violent death, which left her with both physical and emotional scars. Her stepbrother and boyfriend, Nick, is away in San Francisco for work, and she misses him as her mother, Raffaella, and stepfather, William Leister, throw her an extravagant party. Noah’s best friend, Jenna, and Nick’s best friend, Lion, who are a couple, attend the party. Nick makes a surprise return, and he and Noah share a passionate reunion, sneaking away for a sexual encounter. He gifts her a Cartier necklace with a silver heart, but their public intimacy does little to ease their parents’ disapproval of their relationship.

In the weeks following her birthday, Noah focuses on her high school finals, determined to attend the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), to remain close to Nick. She continues to experience nightmares and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related to her father kidnapping her before his death, and Nick provides comfort and helps her study.

After graduating, Noah receives a new convertible from her mother and William. The celebration is cut short when Raffaella announces she is taking Noah on a month-long trip to Europe. Nick is furious, feeling possessive and excluded from the decision, which leads to a major argument before Noah’s departure. During the trip, Noah’s anxiety and nightmares intensify, and her mother warns her about her unhealthy dependence on Nick.

Meanwhile, Nick struggles with Noah’s absence. He visits his younger sister, Madison, in Las Vegas, where he has an unwelcome encounter with his estranged mother, Anabel Grason, whom he angrily rebuffs. His friend Lion faces financial trouble, which tempts him to return to illegal activities.

When Noah returns from Europe, Nick is not at the airport to greet her. She soon learns he has been severely beaten while helping Lion settle a drug-related debt. Their reunion is tense, as Noah is horrified by his injuries and his return to a dangerous world, but they reconcile physically and express their love for each other. Their happiness is short-lived, as Raffaella and William arrive and insist that Noah return home. Noah does not tell her mother that she plans to move in with Nick.

After a home invasion at Noah’s house forces them to escape through her bedroom window, the incident reaffirms their plan to live together and accelerates preparations for Nick’s apartment. However, when Raffaella discovers their plan, she threatens to cut off Noah’s college tuition, forcing Noah to choose between her education and living with Nick. Compounding the tension, Nick is sent to San Francisco for a work project with an attractive new coworker, Sophia Aiken, which fuels Noah’s jealousy.

Forced to abandon their plans, Noah moves into a campus dorm at UCLA. Her new roommate is Briar Palvin. Noah begins therapy with a campus psychologist, Michael O’Neil. The physical and emotional distance strains her relationship with Nick, and their communication becomes fraught with mistrust. The situation worsens when Sophia inadvertently reveals to Noah that Nick has been offered a prestigious two-year job in New York, a fact he kept from her.

The conflicts culminate at the Leister Enterprises anniversary gala. To appease their parents, Noah and Nick attend with separate dates, Briar and Sophia, pretending to be merely step-siblings. The event descends into chaos when Anabel Grason arrives. She confronts William and Raffaella, revealing that Madison is William’s biological daughter and exposing William and Raffaella’s long-standing affair, which began while William was still married to Anabel. This revelation shatters Noah, who learns her mother lied about being at work on the night her father attacked her. Simultaneously, Briar tells Noah that Nick is cheating on her with Sophia and discloses that they had a past relationship. Devastated by the dual betrayals, Noah flees the gala and seeks comfort from Michael.

Taking advantage of her vulnerable state, Michael initiates a sexual encounter, and Noah wakes in his bed with fragmented memories of the event, which she immediately regrets. Nick, meanwhile, feeling betrayed by Noah’s secret meeting with his mother, impulsively kisses Sophia but feels nothing. He rushes to find Noah to explain the truth about his platonic relationship with Sophia and his past with Briar, confessing that she became pregnant, and his father forced her to have an abortion. Overwhelmed with guilt, Noah confesses her encounter with Michael. In a final, rain-soaked confrontation mirroring the prologue, Nick declares that their relationship is over.

Two days later, Nick is arrested for brutally assaulting Michael. William uses his influence to secure his release, and Michael declines to press charges. Noah, supported by a newly engaged Jenna and Lion, is emotionally numb. Nick refuses all contact, leaving their relationship completely severed. Ten months later, a heartbroken Noah is alone at an airport, still grappling with the pain of their breakup as she prepares to leave the city.