School Library Journal
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Gr 9 Up—This is young adult summer romance at its best: lots of flirting, inner monologues of "do I like him/her?" as well as lying on a blanket looking at the stars, passionate kisses, tragic pasts that need to be reconciled, consummation, and a twist that only the most astute readers will see coming. Ray, who is Black, has one other friend of color at her all-white boarding school. She's home for the summer before her senior year, making found poetry art from discarded library books. Orion, also Black, is headed to Howard in the fall on an academic and athletic scholarship. He's an award-winning swimmer who always lives up to his dad's high expectations. Ray and Orion meet at the roller rink, and even though he is awkward around girls, and she thinks love means risking loss, they have an undeniable attraction, which is encouraged by their more confident best friends. Can their love survive a tragedy that unexpectedly links their families and their parents' secrets? Ray's found poetry punctuates the descriptive and enchanting prose. Pages of real novels with the poem's words circled demonstrate Ray's authenticity as a poet. Alternating chapters from Ray's and Orion's points of view reveal the theme that art can be self-care for Black kids, according to the author's note. With plot laid thick at first, this novel starts slowly but gains momentum with the evolution of the relationship, and the twist at the end will keep pages turning until the satisfying conclusion. VERDICT This one's a keeper. Purchase where romance is popular.—Jamie Winchell

Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Two teens summer romance gets complicated by a long-kept family secret.Jupiter Moon Ray Evans parents were in a car accident the day she was bornher father died, and her mom suddenly became both a widow and a mother. Ray is named after the dad she never knew, and his absence is a tangible part of her family. She hates that her birthday can never just be about her, but this year her best friend from boarding school is coming to Memphis, and they are celebrating at the roller rink, the one place Ray can get lost in her own world. While skating she meets Orion, and for both of them, it is love at first sight. Orion is also missing a piece of his family: Almost 10 years ago his little sister was hit and killed by a bus, and his happy family was destroyed. Orion finds a feeling of peace in swimming, which helps with his sensory processing disorder as well as providing an escape from his dads grief. Although the two Black teens will be in different states in the fall, they tentatively pursue a relationship. However, when a family secret that links them is revealed, they must decide if they can ever be anything to one another. Through a blend of prose and found poetry, this quiet novel thoughtfully explores the impact of absence on love.An emotional debut that celebrates the joy that comes from healing. (Fiction. 13-17) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Publishers Weekly
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Following her father’s death on the day she was born, Jupiter Moon Ray Evans, newly 17, has always lived with the constant reminder that her birthday is never just about her. Nevertheless, she’s excited to spend her 17th birthday with Rhode Island boarding school roommate Bri, who’s visiting her in predominantly Black Whitehaven, Tenn. While celebrating at a roller rink, Ray meets and falls for Orion, who has sensory processing disorder. Orion finds solace in swimming, especially when navigating his family’s lingering grief over his little sister’s death 10 years prior causes sensory overload. Orion’s eager romantic pursuit dissolves Ray’s initial hesitance, letting their love of poetry and the arts bond them together. But as their tentative courtship unfurls through alternating perspectives and snippets of Ray’s poetry—which she compiles on loose pages of her tattered copy of The Great Gatsby—family secrets threaten their first chance at love. Via the teens’ open communication and their respective self-expression methods, Rowe’s emotionally layered debut is packed with introspective prose, emphatic characters, and undeniable romantic chemistry. Ages 13–17. Agent: Chelsea Eberly, Greenhouse Literary. (May)

Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

When Ray and Orion meet at the skating rink, their attraction to each other is almost instantaneous. Though Ray and Orion are fundamentally opposite, with Ray being emotionally closed off, and Orion being socially inept, they find solace in each other’s company. When the two teens finally overcome the emotional barriers of their budding relationship, a long-kept secret threatens to break the fragile love they have only recently begun to build. Rowe’s debut novel—a mixture of lyrical prose and Ray's enigmatic found poetry—offers a take on teenage relationships that's a refreshing change from classic YA romances. Rowe deftly weaves a story of young love that explores the different ways grief can affects us. This isn’t a story about objectifying love and making it into some unattainable thing; rather, Ray and Orion’s love is something that is grounded in grief, longing, and collective healing. Rowe leaves readers with a story that features three-dimensional characters who are beautifully flawed and unerringly honest. A love story that deserves to be told.

Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Two teens’ summer romance gets complicated by a long-kept family secret. Jupiter Moon Ray Evans’ parents were in a car accident the day she was born—her father died, and her mom suddenly became both a widow and a mother. Ray is named after the dad she never knew, and his absence is a tangible part of her family. She hates that her birthday can never just be about her, but this year her best friend from boarding school is coming to Memphis, and they are celebrating at the roller rink, the one place Ray can get lost in her own world. While skating she meets Orion, and for both of them, it is love at first sight. Orion is also missing a piece of his family: Almost 10 years ago his little sister was hit and killed by a bus, and his happy family was destroyed. Orion finds a feeling of peace in swimming, which helps with his sensory processing disorder as well as providing an escape from his dad’s grief. Although the two Black teens will be in different states in the fall, they tentatively pursue a relationship. However, when a family secret that links them is revealed, they must decide if they can ever be anything to one another. Through a blend of prose and found poetry, this quiet novel thoughtfully explores the impact of absence on love. An emotional debut that celebrates the joy that comes from healing. (Fiction. 13-17) Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.