I love Ashley Schumacher's writing, and In the Orbit of You was another gem. It's a heartwarming and poignant YA novel that explores themes of friendship, identity, and second chances. The story follows Nova and Sam, two childhood friends who reconnect after years apart, and navigate the complexities of their pasts and the uncertainties of their futures. Definitely one to pick up for YA fans.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me.

“But we’ll always be friends. When we’re big, I’ll find you again.”

I … honestly expected more from this book. The thing is, that quote above was on page two and I appreciate when a book can break my heart that early. So, I had high hopes for this book and I really wanted to like it.

And this cover is beautiful.

I loved the book at the start, but right up to their early reconnection days as teenagers.

I’m glad that Nova and Sam being childhood friends wasn’t a mystery for the whole book. I love that we didn’t waste time on figuring that out. And at that point, although the book is short, we really got to see the depth of their friendship and how it lingered throughout their lost years.

But that was it. I didn’t really like what happened after.

Firstly, Abigail wasn’t the best character, but nobody deserves to be emotionally and physically cheated on. And the fact that Nova, who experienced something similar in a past relationship, was cool with it? No.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the ARC!

Ninety-nine percent guaranteed, you’ll be captivated by the enduring love story of Sam and Nova—a beautifully woven tale of destiny, choice, and self-discovery. Their connection begins in childhood, forging an unbreakable bond through shared imagination and mutual support. Nova’s compassion offers solace to Sam, who silently battles abuse, and his promise to reunite after leaving adds a bittersweet note to their early years.

Years later, fate brings them back together in high school, where a compatibility test scores their connection at an astounding 99%. Yet, life isn’t simple—Sam is entangled in a relationship and a football career, while Nova wrestles with her transient upbringing and resentment toward her mother. Despite the complexities, their rekindled friendship deepens, leading them to confront their feelings and discover facets of themselves previously untapped.

This poignant coming-of-age story masterfully explores the resilience of love and the intricacies of personal growth. With raw, authentic characters and a satisfying conclusion, it’s a tale that will stay with you long after the final page.

Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the opportunity to review this soul-stirring novel.

This is a beautiful coming of age story about discovering who you are and being true to that person, even if it means telling hard truths to your loved ones.

In the Orbit of You by Ashley Schumacher
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Nova was five when the boy who lived next door moved away. Sam was her best friend and they made a promise to find each other when they were grown. Now, teenage Nova and her mom have just moved to a new town and who should Nova meet on her first day at school but that same boy.
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What I liked:
-This is my third book by Ashley and man, does she know how to write an emotional book. I teared up a few times for these teens.
-I love how this story wasn’t a typical YA story. There were some serious topics and I appreciated how they were told through the story.
-I loved the talks that our teens had with their parents towards the end of the story.
-The ending was sweet and I really liked how they author did it.
-I also love galaxy themes and stars and I really wish I could have the dress Nova wore towards the end. It sounded amazing.
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4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The audiobook was good and I enjoyed reading that way.

Nora Evans and Sam Jordan were childhood friends, until he moved away. His aunt and uncle discovered he was being abused and rescued him. Nora and Sam promised to find each other when they were older. After years of moving around Nova lands at a Texas High School where Sam is a football star with a cheerleader girlfriend. When they take a schoolwide personality test, they find out they are a 99% match and complications ensue. Told in alternating POVS, the story of childhood nostalgia and abuse focuses on teens learning to follow their own heart.

This was such a sweet young adult story following two childhood neighbors who lost touch when one moved away, but run into each other years later at the same high school.

I love Schumacher’s writing and this enchanting story of fate bringing people together was no exception. It’s a heartwarming story of self-discovery and confidence with a bit of romance along the way.

It’s an emotional and beautiful story of friendship, invisible strings, and second chances and I’d recommend for YA fans.

Ashley Schumacher is a solid writer and always knows how to write great characters and stories with heart. This story in particular is a soft second chance romance between two people who know one another from their youth. I love those moments where memories strengthen the current relationship and continue to build. The writing style is strong and Ashley has a great way of pulling you into the story with themes of soul mates and coming of age tropes. There was some implied/physical cheating in the story, that made me a little frustrated with why it had to be in there in an other really solid story. I liked how the two were opposites in personality and brought out the best in eachother even while there were elements that I didn't enjoy. I will continue to read and try more of Ashleys books.

I’ve been a huge fan of Ashley Schumacher’s novels so far, so I knew I was going to read this book as soon as I heard it announced for publication. I love the way she writes relationships. All the characters have really specific personalities and interesting ways of relating to one another. It makes the main characters’ friend cosmos seem very real.

This story addresses the trauma of childhood abuse and references Sam’s healing journey through therapy and his adoption into a family. I thought the author presented those sensitively but without romanticizing the harm that abuse causes. Nova recalls seeing bruises and injuries on Sam’s face and arms when they were little. She knew something was wrong but processed it much like a little kid would.


There’s a fair amount of romantic suspense and poor communication in this book. I know that’s a thing for some readers, so be aware if it’s something that would bother you. There are things that would end the story pretty early if the characters sat down and talked to one another.

The miscommunication tropes don’t usually bother me too much, so that wasn’t a hindrance for me. It made sense why Nova and Sam couldn’t be honest with others when they couldn’t even be honest with themselves. Also, weirdly, I think my favorite character was Sam’s girlfriend Abigail. She’s sweet and kind and doesn’t jump to conclusions. She invites Sam to communicate with her but she doesn’t hesitate to call him out when he’s wrong about things. I appreciated that about her a lot.

All in all, I enjoyed this book and its exploration of the gravitational pull between two people and what it means. If you like books with a more subtle, very slow-burn romance, this one will scratch that itch.

This post will go live on October 26, 2024

Another throughly enjoyable, emotionally gut wrenching book from Ashley... she always makes me cry and I love it!

While I did enjoy this - I liked the characters and the plot - it just kind of felt lacking. I dont really know how to explain it. Ashley Schumacher's first two books were captivating and made me feel everything - they were utterly magical. And while I liked In the Orbit of You more than her last release, it just didnt hit the mark in the way i really hoped it would.

Sam is leaving, escaping the house next door with the yelling and bruises, and all the things little kids don't understand. But before he leaves he promises that when he's older he will find his best friend, the little girl next door.

Nova is starting at a new school, that's her thing... new schools. Constantly picking up and moving around Nova plans to blend into the background before its time for her and her mom to move again.

Until she sees him, Sam, the friend, the little boy who made up her childhood.

This book was a cute read, I love Ashley Schumacher's writing.
This one is quite a bit lighter than her other books, but I was all for it.
I loved watching Sam and Nova reconnect, watching as they fell back into their comfortable friendship.

Nova and Sam were childhood best friends, always escaping to their backyards to play. When Sam suddenly moves away, they promise to find each other when they grow up. Years later, Nova and her mom move for what feels like the hundredth time. She goes to her new school, and Sam is there. The two start getting close again despite it going against the individual plans they each had for that year.

Ashley Schumacher writes the most incredible emotional stories. And while this book thankfully didn’t make me ugly cry the way her other books did, it definitely tugged at my heartstrings. The trauma and demons both Nova and Sam had to fight through were heartbreaking, but their friendship was so incredibly special. This unique story really looked at how friendships change over time and situations in a way that is so raw and real. It led to an incredibly beautiful story.

Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the advance copy.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

4.5 ⭐️
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I have loved Ashley’s previous books knowing I’m in for a tear out your heart story. This was really sweet and coming of age dealing with a lot of trauma from childhood abuse. So be forewarned if it’s a trigger.
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While sweet and pretty realistic, it didn’t have that full emotion at me like past books. But this still has humor, quirky moments and whimsy. All things I associate with Ashley’s YA books. So much depth and understanding of character and humanistic storytelling.
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These characters could be real. I loved the whole space/orbit because my husband loves space. He always talks about space and how big it is and things like the earth and universe orbit and move through space. So that if you were to tell a genie you want to go back in time, that the space coordinates would need to be exact otherwise you’d be in space in the middle of nowhere. So coincidences and second chances really are rare and close to stars aligning.
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Maybe we’re twin planets and our options are either to distantly orbit the same star or else collide and take everything down with us. [loc 2334]

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This book released earlier this year. Thanks to the publisher and Net Galley for the e-arc copy. These are my own thoughts and opinions.
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Can be a trigger: past childhood trauma and memories, mentions of past physical abuse, mild language including a few F-words, fire

I absolutely loved this book! The relationships are deep and nuanced, and the portrayal of difficult themes like child abuse and trauma is both realistic and respectful. The main character's journey of self-discovery adds a compelling layer to the story. The romance adds just the right amount of tension without overshadowing the plot. Ashley Schumacher has a real talent for evoking strong emotions and making you fall for the characters.

*In the Orbit of You* by Ashley Schumacher is a heartfelt and beautifully crafted story that captures the complexities of love, loss, and self-discovery. Schumacher's tender prose and relatable characters make this novel a compelling and emotionally resonant read.

There is beauty in the unknowing and in the knowing. This book dives into the unpacking of it and the connection between Nova and Sam.

Sam and Nova were childhood friends. Together, they invented an imaginary world called “snailopolis” with adornments in the dirt and, of course, snails. It was largely to take them away from the reality of the bruises and cigarette burns on Sam’s body. The very ones that Nova kissed when Sam moved away to live with his uncle. The two promised to find each other again one day.

Over a decade later, Nova is tired of constantly moving for her mom’s job. She can hardly unpack and forget about making friends. Now, she is at another school in her junior year of high school. But then Nova can’t believe it—Sam is here—it’s her Sam.

This was a very heartwarming story about long-lost friends reunited. Sam and Nova had had an incredible bond. Sam had a horribly abusive home life, and Nova was his refuge, his comfort. But when they reunite, Sam has a new life—he’s a football player with friends and a girlfriend, so Nova does her best not to interfere. But call it fate or destiny, Sam and Nova can’t seem to forget their promise to each other all those years ago.

There are some really cute and touching scenes that melted my heart. I enjoyed both Sam and Nova, but I wouldn’t call this an angsty YA romance. Yes, they started to develop feelings for each other, but you don’t get the tension and heat like in some romances. This is more about the struggle of losing each other for good. While this touches on important and serious topics, it doesn’t get heavy or dark; it’s more about Sam and Nova’s relationship.

3.5 ⭐️

Thank you @wednesdaybooks for the gifted ebook via Netgalley.

I thought I could give this two stars, but I started to write this and realized it's a one-star review. I'm so mad because it had so much promise with a cute idea but went down the drain with a cheating trope. To make matters worse, the MMC is cheating with the FMC, but they are doing it "privately so no one gets hurt" (🙄😒 I hate people), and, to make matters even worse, the MMC's girlfriend's previous boyfriend cheated on her. I thought maybe they would be better people, but the emotional cheating went on, which kept losing my interest in pushing through by the 50% mark. By then, I only liked Abagail (the girlfriend) and his two friends. If it weren't a cheating trope, I would have enjoyed the book as the author writes good prose.