I was sent an ARC of When the Stars Lead to You by Ronni Davis, courtesy of The NOVL in exchange for a fair review, and was immediately in love with it just because of THAT COVER! So incredibly stunning! I have been in a bit of a reading slump of late, and I always find that a good YA contemporary is the perfect hangover cure, so I knew it would be a great time to read this. I was not wrong. I do plan to keep this relatively spoiler free, since the book releases in November, so no worries there! But before I start gushing about my feels for this book, let’s get a quick summary!

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About When the Stars Lead to You

Eighteen-year-old Devon longs for two things.

The stars.
And the boy she fell in love with last summer.

When Ashton breaks Devon’s heart at the end of the most romantic and magical summer ever, she thinks her heart will never heal again. But over the course of the following year, Devon finds herself slowly putting the broken pieces back together.

Now it’s senior year, and she’s determined to enjoy every moment of it as she prepares for a future studying the galaxies. That is, until Ashton shows up on the first day of school. Can she forgive him and open her heart again? Or are they doomed to repeat history?

From debut author, Ronni Davis, comes a stunning novel about passion, loss, and the power of first love.

Summary courtesy of Goodreads

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My Review

We all know by know that I am a fairly emotional reader. So when a book has the ability to make me cry, it is a total Five Star Read for me. This was no exception. I cried no less than 4 times, quite probably more, and loved every minute of it. Ronni Davis is a beautiful writer and knows how to create deep and relatable characters, starting with her main character, Devon.

I adored Devon. She was smart, and driven, and a little geeky, and so totally in love. It’s been a long time since I was in HS, but emotions were definitely so much more strongly felt in my late teens, and I feel for Devon as she experiences her first love. The big thing here is that Ashton is very lovable! Unlike a lot of love-interest types in YA, he really is a wonderful person and a great guy. He just suffers from crippling depression, and that is a lot to handle in a boyfriend when you are 18.

I really appreciated how the author addressed mental illness in this story. Ashton is a person who, outwardly, has a dream life. He is absurdly wealthy (he literally drives a Porsche, and even pulls up in a Maserati at one point), lives in a gorgeous home, goes to the best school, has an instant spot in a fabulous college, and is ridiculously good looking. He also has parents that are The Worst, and a mental illness that constantly tells him the world will be better off without him. The author handles this all very well, and with obvious knowledge.

Devon being half-Black, the author also does a great job addressing the issue of racism. What I love is how proud Devon is of her heritage, and how she never lets the comments of others get her down. She is amazing and she knows it. I also adore her parents. Her dad (100% White, of Irish descent) is hilarious and funny and full of dad-jokes. Her mom (100% Black, with a strong family behind her) is strong and open and so supportive. Not only are they very much in love, they also do fun things together like play video games. They are raising Devon right, with so much love and openness, and it is very refreshing to see a YA novel where the MC’s parents are not just visible, but awesome as well.

I won’t get more into the plot, because I don’t want to accidentally spoil anything, but just know that When the Stars Lead to You is an awesome book, by a fabulous debut author. It releases on November 5th, so be sure to pre-order a copy now! You will NOT want to miss out on this wonderful YA Contemporary!!

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To purchase this book on Amazon, click here.

And you can add it to Goodreads here!

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