Nicola Yoon meets Jenny Han in a heated first-love romance about two teens who are torn apart one summer by prejudice and mental illness, and find each other once again.
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 summer ever, she thinks her heart will never heal … 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 galaxies. That is, until Ashton shows up on the first day of school.
Can she forgive and open her heart to him 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.
When the Stars Lead to You is lovely, so lovely. A diverse story full of heart and hope, truth and acceptance, that tackles the tough stuff even as it leaves you breathless. As one of the characters says, there is so much love here, and I didn’t want it to end.
review on my blog
https://www.emilythebooknerd.com/2019/11/when-stars-lead-to-you.html
I was very excited to read When the Stars Lead to You because the cover caught my eye. It’s one of the prettiest covers that I have ever seen. The story is all about a girl named Devon who is a very type-A student and person. She dreams of being an astrophysicist and loves everything about the stars.
One day, while on vacation she meets the boy of her dreams. Devon and Ashton immediately fall for each other and embark on a whirlwind romance. The story conveys all the ups and downs of falling in love for the first time. Both characters were extremely relatable. Ashton struggles with major depression and it starts affecting their relationship. As someone who struggles with depression, I related to both characters. I am also a very type-A person. In high school, there were many times that I overworked myself like Devon does throughout the book. My first relationship/love ended a lot like how the characters did in the book.
I enjoyed seeing the contrast between the two characters. How depression not only affects the person dealing with mental health issues but how it also affects loved ones and relationships. There are a lot of triggers in this book though… So don’t go into reading it if you do not have a strong mindset to read anything dealing with depression, suicide, etc.
Devon is a very determined character. She dreams of becoming a scientist. Most of the book is her preparing for college. I loved seeing the troubles that are presented when applying for college and all the waiting you have to endure. The book also deals with dysfunctional families and racism. I felt for Ashton so much while reading. There were times when I wanted to punch his parents. Even in modern times, there is racism. Especially where money is concerned. The novel portrayed that very well.
This isn’t your average young adult romance novel and the plot has a lot of substance behind it. The hard topics were dealt with extremely well and not one time did it feel forced like so many other young adult novels. This was Ronni Davis’ first novel and I cannot wait to see what she writes in the future. Her writing was so beautiful and seamless.
The ending was beautiful and very realistic. I loved reading the author’s note at the end. This made the book and plot all the more powerful to read. Thank god for a realistic ending in a young adult romance for once! I was very emotional while reading this book. There were times that I was more invested in the plot and others that I didn’t care much for. That’s the only reason why I did not give this book five stars. I reserve my five-star books for my absolute favorite books. However, I did love this story. Thank you, to Ronni Davis, The FFBC, and the publisher for a finished copy to review!
The beautiful cover is what captured my attention but the opening chapters are what kept it. Ronni Davis pulls you in by your heartstrings. The book starts off as a whirlwind romance and you don’t know until you’re already deeply into Devon’s story that there is so much more to it. Mental illness, sex, class and race are all discussed generous and with grace. The author’s note at the end about Davis’ own experience with depression was also lovely.
This is a hard book for me to rate and review. There was one aspect of the story that I really loved. However, most of the rest of the book, I didn’t enjoy.
I’ll start with what I didn’t love. The romance never felt truly solidified to me. I found it based more just on some cutesy moments rather than anything deep. By the time the deep moments did arrive, Dev and Ashton were already declaring their love.
I also didn’t like how forced the characters felt. None of them came off as realistic to me, except for the best friend. Everyone else seemed like the author sat down and made a list of all the quirky characteristics that she could give each one and instead of editing the list back, she threw it all in there. Instead of it being interesting, I found it annoying.
So, what did I love?
This story deals with depression. While a lot of stories do, most don’t get it right for me. When the Stars Lead to You did. It was real, it was emotional, it was given the time and respect it deserves. It wasn’t a superficial plot point. I have always believed that if you’re going to write about illness like this, you should write with responsibility. Love doesn’t conquer all. It can help but it isn’t a cure for everything. It was clear that Davis understood that and it’s what saved this book for me.