All the Stars Align is a heartfelt YA romance about two teenagers whose lives change when they meet during a period of uncertainty and hope. The story follows Evie, who is coping with her fears about the future, and Theo, who faces struggles he keeps hidden from others. As they spend time together, their bond strengthens, and the book shows how love, trust, and vulnerability can help heal past wounds and create new beginnings.

The main themes focus on first love, self-acceptance, and the courage it takes to be honest about what you want. It also examines how grief, illness, and insecurities influence the way we view ourselves and how others perceive us.

What works especially well is the emotional depth of the characters. Schreiber captures the tenderness of young love while also showing the tougher sides of growing up, like dealing with health issues and the pressure of expectations. The romance feels authentic, with plenty of sweet, funny, and heartfelt moments.

On the downside, some readers may find the pacing somewhat uneven. Certain parts of the story dwell on minor details, while larger conflicts can feel rushed. A few plot twists are predictable, but they don’t detract much from the overall charm.

Many readers, especially teens and young adults, will relate to the characters’ struggles to discover who they are and what truly matters. It’s also a great choice for anyone who enjoys romances that mix lighthearted moments with deeper emotional truths.

Overall, All the Stars Align is a heartfelt and charming YA romance with humor, emotion, and just the right touch of drama. I’d rate it 4 out of 5 stars.

As a disabled person, I can appreciate reading a novel where a character is represented.

This is a youthful coming of age and discovering love romantic novel. Fated romance and finding your one true love. Piper, the main character, is conflicted between a love triangle and feels pressure from her family and her upbringing. It has a sweet message and all the good feels of a romcom. Probably should be a Netflix movie.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an e-arc copy. I hope it gets picked up for a movie.

In All the Stars Align, Gretchen Schreiber weaves a heartfelt and enchanting tale of love, fate, and self-discovery. The story follows Piper, a young woman from a family where every woman knows her true love at first sight, yet she struggles to experience this herself. As Piper navigates the complexities of family expectations, personal insecurities, and a blossoming love triangle, Schreiber masterfully explores themes of identity and belonging. The novel's blend of magical realism and contemporary issues creates a compelling narrative that resonates with readers. With its engaging characters and thoughtful storytelling, All the Stars Align is a must-read for fans of romantic fiction.

I think sometimes authors try to use too much in their stories. Disabilities, divorce, and fate? It just felt like a lot of reaching and extra twists for no reason.

Unfortunately not for me! This book included a plo tline that correlated to my personal life that I would've rather not revisited. Had I known, I would've never accepted this arc.

All of the women in Piper’s family have known their true love at first sight and can feel the pull of the string of fate between them. Piper has a physical disability and has also just found out her parents are getting divorced, so her aunts are convinced Piper is doomed unless they conspire to get her parents back together and also try to find her fated partner as soon as possible. She finally meets her fated match at a party but does not have a lot of dating experience so she botches their first meeting and realizes she will need dating help and advice from her best friend Leo who goes on dates all the time. The only problem - she hasn’t spoken to Leo in 6 months because he decided he needed “a break” from their friendship. Will she be able to orchestrate the stars aligning and seal her fate as well as the fate of her parents? Which path will she follow?

I really wanted to love this one but it just wasn’t for me. I love the classic story of Cyrano and I love the premise of a Cyrano role reversal, as well as the disability rep. However, this just really did not come together. The book reads very YA and there is way too much obvious miscommunication between the characters. Piper and Leo were both very annoying to me and seemed to have no common sense or critical reasoning skills. Also, she’s literally in high school and doesn’t even know what she wants to do with her life yet, but she’s obsessed with meeting the love of her life already? And she’s also obsessed with getting her parents back together even though they’re clearly not happy? And her adult aunts are encouraging it? This is also listed as a fantasy book but really the only obvious magical aspect was the idea of strings of fate linking true love partners together. There was discussion of lore and magic in the area where they lived but we didn’t really see any more of it than that. I did like the message that life doesn’t have to always go to plan and everyone has to discover their own path. I just feel like the overall concept was so creative and so much more could have been done with it, so I felt disappointed. It was very predictable and repetitive. I kept expecting it to get more exciting or eventful and it fell flat for me. Thank you to NetGalley, Gretchen Schreiber, and St. Martin’s Press for the gifted ARC. This is a voluntary and honest review.

All the Stars Align is a contemporary YA romance that intertwines themes of fate, family, and self-discovery. The story follows Piper Hadley, a teenager from a family where every woman experiences true love at first sight, a phenomenon they call "the Blessing." Piper, who has a physical disability, feels like an outsider both in her family and in the realm of this mystical love. When she believes she's found her true love at a party, she seeks the help of her estranged best friend, Leo, to win him over. However, complications arise when Leo confesses his own feelings for Piper, leading her to question her beliefs about fate and love.

The novel delves into complex themes such as disability representation, people-pleasing, and the tension between fate and free will. Piper's journey of self-discovery and her struggle to define her own path, independent of family expectations, are central to the narrative. The setting in the small town of Crescent Falls adds a charming backdrop to the story.

However, some readers may find the pacing slow, particularly in the early chapters. The romance subplot, while central to the story, may not resonate with all readers, as it takes a backseat to the primary themes of family and self-identity. Additionally, the portrayal of Piper's disability, while present, may not be as deeply explored as some readers might hope.

Overall, All the Stars Align offers a thoughtful exploration of love, destiny, and personal growth. While it may not offer groundbreaking originality, it provides a cozy and satisfying escape into a world of budding romance and self-discovery.

This book was cute but felt a little insta love to me. Especially with the love at first sight aspect. I do believe this book had a good premise and strong foundation.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this eARC. All opinions are my own.

This was an enjoyable reading experience.

Piper feels pressured by her happily married aunts to find her "happily ever after," especially after her parents announce their divorce, creating a ripple effect throughout the family. of course there is a crush she wants to win and a best friend who love her, I like Leo and Pipe rand was rooting for them. It was an easy-to-read romance that blends the magic of a Swiftie universe with a friends-to-lovers trope. I highly recommend it to fans of the genre or anyone seeking a heartwarming and enchanting story. I think teens will really enjoy this book.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ebook to preview.

I spent a lot of this book really frustrated with Piper and her obsession with the family blessing and trying to “fix” her family. But, after finishing, I think I understand her motives a little better (and I’m glad of the growth she showed).

All of her life, Piper’s aunts have convinced her that their family has been blessed by fate to have one perfect match, and once they find that match all will be well. But Piper’s parents have gotten divorced, her mom is now an outcast for going against the blessing, and Piper feels like she has to fix everything to be accepted by her family.

It doesn’t help that Piper never really feels like she fits in anywhere, except with her two best friends, due to her disability. She puts so much pressure on herself to find “the one” and to take over the family’s jewelry shop to continue the tradition. Even though she would much rather do something else.

Leo and Piper have been best friends forever. And he has probably been in love with her for almost as long, though she has been obsessed with her family’s gift and refuses to even consider Leo because he isn’t the one fate chose for her. This has caused issues in their friendship and causes a lot of tension when she finally does meet Forest, the one fate has chosen for her.

Her relationship with Forest is strained and forced at times. They seem to have nothing in common and all of their interactions are on the surface, with nothing deeper. Yeah, they’re high school seniors, but there still should be some depth in their relationship.

Seeing the way Piper interacts with everyone, trying to fit herself into their molds, was heartbreaking. But it was also frustrating because she just refused to see why the mold didn’t really fit. Even after she finally starts realizing things, she still chooses her extended family over her own happiness.

Watching Piper grow and finally admit that she would make different choices without the blessing was good. And I liked the way the story finished, with hope and joy.

Disclaimer: I received an eARC for review consideration though NetGalley, on behalf of the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book was described as Taylor Swift's Enchanted meets Cyrano, and I don't think that fits at all. Based on that description, I was excited to read this book. Unfortunately, this book missed the mark.

I found Piper infuriating and immature, which made this book difficult to read. The family dynamic was awful and made things worse. I understood Piper wanting to feel like a part of her family and to "fit in" when she has always stood out due to her disability. But she goes way overboard with it. She denies her feelings for Leo because he wasn't "fated". It was just too immature for me. The plot was extremely predictable and repetitive.

I enjoyed the disability aspect to Piper's character. I love to see diverse representation in books.

While there were enjoyable moments in the book, I just don't think I am the right audience for this book. I could see really young readers (pre-teens) enjoying this one.

All the women in Piper's family have had a particular life-changing experience: knowing their true love at first sight, then marrying and living with them for the rest of their lives. Piper is eager to have her own. She's grown up with story after story of that particular moment, and she wants to become a member of this club so badly.

But it hasn't happened for her yet, and she feels under pressure and on the outside of her family, which is only reinforced by her physical disabilities, and because her mother and father are now divorced, in spite of her mother's true love being Piper's dad.

Also, Piper's best friend Leo called a break to their friendship six months ago, and she's feeling alone. Her parents seems to be moving on with their individual lives, and she can't understand what happened, and wants desperately to get them back together.

Then she meets a boy, Forest, and she feels it: the butterflies, and a deep certainty that the boy in front of her is her true love. And then, Leo renews their friendship, but something feels a little different with him. She's just so happy that Leo is back, and can't seem to see him as anything more than her friend, despite her other best friend, and others, trying to get her to open her eyes to who is right there beside her.

Piper is just so happy that she's had her true love moment with Forest, and that her aunts seems to have finally accepted her. But she's afraid of not being able to keep Forest, so she asks Leo to help her communicate with her new love, which he does, despite it obviously being something he is reluctant to do.

The story is entertaining, if a little unbelievable. It reads fast, and Piper is sweet, but a little too taken in by her aunts and their stories and insistence that there is only one way to be a part of the family, and that fate is the only thing that matters.

Piper learns a lot about herself, her parents, her wider family, and about what is really important to her to be happy with herself and with those she loves over the course of this sweet, without being saccharine, story.

Thank you to Netgalley and to St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for my review.

DNF @ 25%

Thank you to the publisher for sending this copy to review. Unfortunately, it was not for me.

As a teacher, I have the privilege of seeing students at different parts of their emotional maturity journeys. There are some students who would, like the main character's friend Diana, think that Piper is too naive and idealistic and really have a hard time connecting to her. I have other students who are more like Piper and would hold out hope against the odds single-mindedly, despite warning signs. So, it's to these students that I would want to hand this book. As a grownup of some self-awareness and experience, I winced very hard throughout a lot of this book and started skimming through the parts in which she seemed to dismiss her parents being "wrong" about their divorce. But I signed up to receive galley copies with my students in mind, and it's those students like Piper that I'm thinking of as I type this.

(Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for my ARC of this book!) Gretchen writes about disability so beautifully – about how it affects the way you think about yourself, the way others view you, and the ways it can leave you feeling different and left out, despite the best efforts of the people in your life who love and care about you. Piper is part of a family that has a secret – everyone is able to know who their true love is the moment they meet them. There’s just a feeling, and a knowing. Piper is in high school, and spends every day wishing and hoping for the moment to hit her. As a girl with a disability, Piper is so used to being different from everyone else she knows, and all she wants is to be able to share this with her aunts and her parents. Then it happens, but Piper is… unprepared. And nervous. And the only person she can go to is her best friend Leo… even though he hasn’t been talking to her for the past six months after he abruptly told her he needed a break from their friendship. I really loved how this story was about taking fate into your own hands, and about how no one knows what’s best for you more than you do. It also has the rare love triangle where you can’t decide who you want to root for, which is impressive!

I really thought this book had a great premise. I was eager to read it based on that premise. Unfortunately, I didn't think it came together quite like I had thought it would and it didn't live up to my expectation.

Gretchen Schrieber has written a sweet novel about trusting yourself, the way families can stifle you even when they only profess the best for you and is fate really fate?

All the women in Piper's family have met and married their true loves due to the Blessing, and now Piper is trying to find her own Blessing and true love. But is the boy who makes her heart flutter with her Blessing her true love?

I quite liked this concept and also really liked how hard Piper works to fit her life into the confines of what the Blessing seems like to her before realizing that it's okay to want different things than what your family does and it's okay to have boundaries around your family.

A YA novel, I would recommend this for mid-teens and up.

I received an ARC copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I wasn't aware how YA this book actually was (and that's on me!), but I will start off by saying I'm not the target demographic for this novel. I would say this would work best for younger readers (specifically, tweens) as it explores those awkward years where you're no longer a child but also don't have all the agency you wish you did, all the while you're actively trying to understand yourself and relationships. Even though the characters were 17-18, I fear this might read too young for high school seniors already.

I loved the disability representation. It's so important that young girls see themselves in romance books as the heroine, so the author's decision of making her heroine physically disabled will hopefully bring joy to readers who identify with Piper. And not only does she have one love interest, but TWO! Piper was a great protagonist with a very empowering arc, where she decides life for herself instead of taking the route everyone else wants for her.

Even though there was a love triangle, the main male protagonist was clear from the start and the friends-to-lovers dynamic made this romance sweet and better than if it had been fated! I think the tension was there but I'm not too into young romances so it's hard to evaluate (again, not the target audience!).

Overall, I would recommend this to readers between the ages of 10 and 15, as I think the messaging is good and could be very relatable.

“I want you. I see you. And I’m no longer willing to let you go without a fight.”

This was cute. I was intrigues by the way Fate was brought into the story and how Piper’s (our MC) family had a “Blessing” which helped them know who the love of their life would be.

Piper has always felt out of place with having such a hard time finding “the one”. She feels that without this she will never fully be part of her family. But everything is about to change when she feels that special tug at a party with a boy and she decided that he is “the one”.

Since the Blessing helped all her aunts and even her mother find their significant other, Piper is determined to make this work. However, she considers herself awkward and out of place so she enlists the help of her long time best friend, Leo.

I enjoyed Piper and Leo’s relationship. Leo has always been a supportive friend and you could tell how much he cared about her. Piper on the other hand is completely oblivious, and there were moments she truly frustrated me with her actions. Piper had a lot going on at the same time and that sometimes mad her make rash decisions.

I was satisfied with the ending to Piper’s journey of finding herself. I feel like there was some good growth by the end of the story, although I did want to shake sense into her most of the time.


*Thank you St. Martin’s Press / Wednesday Books for providing me with an eARC for review via NetGalley. All thoughts are my own.*