3.5 stars
This read was certainly very out of my comfort zone and I'm not sure if I'm the intended audience. Despite that, I found myself very interested in certain aspects of the story like the conversations and banter, especially that surrounding religion. I do believe belonging to a religion shapes you in so many ways particularly when it is a minority group.

I had a phase when I loved plants more than anything else and I love how Zoe finds comfort in this beautiful hobby. It is unusual and the depiction made me feel seen in many ways.

Like I said, a lot of these topics are slightly foreign to me or these are themes that I'm aware of but haven't explored much/felt too drawn to. When I say this I'm mainly refering to the discussion about gender and understanding sexuality. I've read many LGBTQ+ books and was aware this book would fall into that category but not the extent it delves into it.

I recommend this book for anyone who's going into it with an open mind and interested in learning more perspectives. I'll be sure to consume books with such topics occasionally after this read.

I loved this. I think I’m very much the target audience. Recently graduated from college, queer, non-binary, and a LOVER of long train travel.

This was super well written and very cute. It’s definitely more of a coming of age story with a side plot of love as opposed to a straight romance. But the love story was well plotted and didn’t feel rushed at all even though the train ride only covered about 4 days.

My only gripe is that this didn’t need to be YA! I wish this was classified and sold as new adult and given a little more breathing room to get more honest about certain aspects of queerness and mental health.

This was an enjoyable and quick read that tackled some heavy topics in a nuanced and thoughtful way. Leaving the Station follows Zoe as they travel from NYC to Seattle on a cross country train home from the first semester of college. On the train Zoe meets quite the collection of characters, including Oakley, who she quickly strikes up a banter with.

I really liked how the relationship between the two grew over the course of the book. Although it really only took place over 4 days, the development of their romance did not feel rushed. I also liked how the majority of the book took place on the train, Arlow really captured the magic of what it feels like to escape from reality just a little bit, when you are travelling in unconventional ways. I enjoyed the flashbacks to Zoe’s time in college, they felt more like memories than actual jumps back in time, which continued the feeling of still being on the train.

I overall really enjoyed this book, and its messages (loved the epilogue!), and my only complaint is that some of the other characters on the train felt a bit one dimensional. It seemed like a big takeaway was supposed to be how Zoe got to know the other people on the train, but some of them felt more like characters playing a role than actual people. However it did not take from the overall messages of the book or the story.

I highly recommend this read and I thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an ARC. I look forward to reading more Jake Maia Arlow books in the future!

Leaving the Station by Jake Maia Arlow is a tender and deeply resonant story about self-discovery, identity, and finding one's way—both literally and figuratively. Arlow’s poignant prose captures the raw emotions of navigating love, loss, and new beginnings, all while set against the backdrop of a transformative journey. With complex characters and a beautifully crafted narrative, this book is an evocative exploration of what it means to move forward while holding onto pieces of the past.

I don’t know if this was intentional or not, but this book is convincing me to go on a long train trip. I’ve only been on a train a couple times in my life, but usually I keep to myself. There are so many good lessons about humaning that gives the reader more perspective. I love queer stories and this one was no exception. This was a much needed read. Thank you.

A cute queer coming of age story with a bit of a love story woven in.

Zoe is trying to find the slowest way home from college for thanksgiving break and decides on a 4 day train ride from New York to Seattle. She’s running from the mistakes she made during her first semester in college, running from herself and the questions she has about her sexuality and gender and future, and she’s not trying to run towards the disaster of a conversation she’ll have to have with her parents when she arrives home over break.

So she takes the train. Hoping the slow ride and distance will help sort things out. But instead she meets people, makes friends, and her whole life and perspective begins to change from these random strangers on a train.

Zoe meets Oakley, a girl who grew up in the Mormon church and left for New York City hoping to find an accepting queer community, only things didn’t quite work out that way. So she’s running from herself mistakes in New York too. As she heads home to Washington on the train Zoe catches her eye, someone who is very outwardly queer appearing. And she’s intrigued. They form a reluctant friendship at first that morphs into something more as they open up about what they’re running from and what they might be slowly riding the train towards.

I did like this a lot but I do think Zoe was just kind of a terrible person for most of the book, realistic but still not great. Her relationship with Alden was also very strange. It felt very manic pixie dream girl meets manic pixie dream boy and very self serving on both sides. But she does seem to redeem herself when she gets her head out of her ass so it works out in the end.

I feel . . . conflicted on this book.

As someone who's contently cis, I don't have a deep understanding of struggling/deconstructing gender like Zoe does throughout this whole book. I was able to sympathize because the writing and their actions screamed they were struggling a lot. They also had identity issues outside of gender revolving around the perception they should be the mature, doctorate-pursuing daughter they were raised to be. While I was able to understand the whys of Zoe, the people who aren't inside Zoe's head shouldn't, but they do because the story calls for it.

Despite the constant neglect and usage of their friends and boyfriend in the three-ish months they spent at college, Zoe is forgiven by these people at the end of the book far too quickly. When they explained they were going through a gender identity crisis, their friends were instantly understanding and asked if they could hang out again?? And when Zoe admitted to using Alden, the boyfriend, to project their ideal gender self onto, he's too nonchalant about it?? The narrative insists there was still a genuine connection even if it wasn't romantic, that Zoe and Alden could still be friends, but I cannot imagine that. That kind of devastation of being used for as an experiment is something that I don't think is easy to get past. For my own sake, I'm hoping Zoe never speaks to her friends and her ex again so everyone can move on with their lives.

The romance with Oakley also didn't really sit right with me? I really like how both characters were both struggling with deconstruction, gender with Zoe and religion with Oakley. Oakley being an (semi) ex-Mormon was interesting, too, which was an interesting perspective I haven't really seen in YA before, especially from a queer character, too. I found the conversations about that with Zoe and comparisons to Judaism to be the most enjoyable parts of the book. Other than that, their banter, for a lot of it, felt kinda mean. Because of the way she was raised, Oakley was determined to learn a lot and, as proclaimed by Zoe many-a-times, is pretty smart, but in a "I know and will brag about it" kind of way. This trait of her makes the sarcastic banter between them not fun. I feel like she's trying to outsmart Zoe when it really isn't necessary. It really doesn't help that she interferes on family matters she had no right to and not even apologizing for doing so afterward. I was just really soured by Oakley and couldn't get into the romance because of it.

The side characters are nothing much, either. One-note personalities with no intrigue beyond what's shown. There's also so many weird instances that I can't really overlook without a side-eye, like the scene with the mom, baby, and the guy peeping on them?? No one outside Zoe and Oakley felt like a real person, just stereotypes for them to bounce off of to fill in the story.

All in al, while there are good pieces here, I find the narrative as a whole to not stand up with it. I still wanna read Arlow's other works, though, but probably not any time soon.

This is the story of Zoe finding herself in a place she never would have imagined. Arlow spins a tale most teens can relate to in his YA book Leaving the Station. Their story of Zoe and the struggles she faced as she tried desperately to fit all the molds. Heartache, fear, hope, acceptance and love tug at the heart strings as you walk with Zoe in her all to realistic world.

This was a quick read about Zoe, who finds herself on a cross-country train ride after (most of) her first semester of college and the people she encounters on the train, including Oakley, a queer ex-Mormon who is also heading home after trying to live independently in New York City. Flashbacks throughout the book tell the reader why Zoe is running away, but we rely on Oakley to tell Zoe her story. There isn't much plot here, but Zoe's journey is more introspective than active. Although there were parts of the book that I questioned, including aspects of Oakley's character that I found quite grating, I think Zoe's inner journey of understanding who she is—and why she is drawn to a boy despite identifying as a lesbian—is the most powerful here. I hope this one will get into the hands of teenaged readers who will find Zoe's journey valuable and relatable. 3.5 stars, rounded up.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children's Books for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book! I loved Zoe’s relatable journey of “do I like him or do I want to be him?” I felt more invested reading the college parts of the book vs. the train parts, but I still had a good time during both. This is a great story of finding yourself, learning to live for the present, and finding community.

This book is so important and needed. Wow, I am so blown away. The way it handled identity and coming-of-age sexuality impressed me and made me wish I had books like this when I was younger. It was refreshing to see a NB lesbian as a lead.

-Dual timeline (we follow them through college semester as well as on a train ride)
-The train ride gave me the same feeling as that Jerry Seinfeld show "Riding in Cars With Celebrities" or whatever the title- you are really IN the moment with them as they talk and it feels anything but ordinary, even though they are sitting on a train (or in cars, you get the idea).
-Descriptions!! I felt like I was there
-This book reads like NA and could definitely cross over into that market space. I would've been more ready for it in college, it's so clever and wise.

Amazing work, all of the stars!!!!!

Thank you for the advanced reader copy of this book.
Leaving the station is the first time I have ever read a story with a non-binary lead, so it was both informative and interesting to me. I thought that it was much more complex than I had initially thought, but it was still very interesting and easy to read. Overall I liked it!

I am so excited for this book to be out and to be in the hands of nonbinary lesbians out in the world. At a time where a lot of people are wrongfully questioning the validity of being lesbian AND nonbinary, I'm glad that a book like this exists because it shows young adults that their existence is not up for debate. I especially enjoyed the discussions on lesbian being a gender as well as a sexuality because we rarely read such content in traditionally published work. This story explored gender envy and sexuality exceptionally well, in addition to other topics such as religion, friendship, and questioning your career path. I am looking forward to reading more from this author.

4.25⭐️
First off, thank you to NetGalley, HarperCollins, and Jake Maia Arlow for the opportunity to read this ARC!
This book follows Zoe as she takes off on a cross country train ride. Along the way she meets many important people including Oakley, Aya, Edward, and Virginia (among others). Zoe is on a journey of her own: wrangling with the challenges of college, her internal battle of figuring out sexuality and gender, and what’s next for her. While Oakley is on a journey battling religion & community with who she knows she is and wants to be. It’s a push and pull between these lovable characters on a life changing train ride.

Overall, I found this book pretty dang enjoyable. It takes on some pretty serious topics of religion, sexuality, gender, and self-discovery while still having a light & fun air to it. One note is that I wish there was more to the ending, I can’t say more without giving anything away but a more substantial epilogue would’ve been nice. 💕 I really felt connected to the characters at the end, and I would’ve love to hear more about their life after the train!

This was cute! I very recently saw Before Sunrise for the first time, so it was nice to explore similar themes here. I wasn't quite as delighted by it as How to Excavate a Heart, but I thought it was a fun premise with some interesting facets (ex-Mormonism, trains, etc). The end was a little too schmaltzy for me, but that's not unforgivable. It'll be a great one for the YA set who like early college books with some gender stuff and, in terms of sexual content, a relatively light romance.

This was a beautifully done novel, it had that element that I was looking for from the description. I was engaged with the characters and how everything worked in this world. Jake Maia Arlow has a strong writing style and was glad it worked well overall.

Leaving the Station by Jake Maia Arlow

3.75

Release Date: August 19, 2025

Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books | Storytide

Genre: YA romance/fiction

Spice level: 🌶️🌶️

Zoe is headed home for Thanksgiving after a first college semester that didn’t go to plan- at all. Plagued with questions and confusion about her identity, her relationships, and her desires for the future, she books a days-long train ride to give her space to think before arriving home. Only: she didn’t expect to meet several people on the train that she’d grow to care for in such a short time… or that would help her in ways she didn’t imagine.

I loved this arc!! Going in, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but this was a sweet and unexpectedly deep read, delving into topics regarding gender, sexuality, friendship, and romantic relationships. Told in a dual timeline, you get to see both the Tran journey and Zoe’s time at college, giving a lot of necessary context to her current feelings. The train setting provided a sense of urgency in the plot that worked very well with the circumstances, and I loved that each character Zoe met had their own fleshed-out personality. In addition, even though the plot was definitely serious at times, I loved that there was still humor injected throughout. I’ve never read a novel with this concept before, and I highly enjoyed it!

Read if you like:

~ LGBTQIA+ representation

~ dual timelines

~ questions about identity and sexuality

~ unique plots

Thank you to Storytide, an imprint of HarperCollins, for providing a review copy of this book through Netgalley!

Pros of the Story
Queer romance
Setting on the train and all it represents
Conflicts were common to college freshmen

Cons of the Story
Love story too simplistic, even for a train ride
Why do queer people trying to find themselves always have to destroy friendships to figure out themselves? She had a perfectly accepting group of friends at college, why not grow through their friendship?
The blond Mormon was too stereotypical. Love the addition of her but was presented too surface level.

A wonderful queer romcom that tackles some deep content while also being descriptive, sweet and relatable. Sure to be one of the top sapphic romances of 2025.

Zoe is escaping from their first semester in New York, they are figuring out if pre-med is right for them. In fact, they're figuring out a lot of stuff. Zoe has a great group of friends from freshman orientation, but soon becomes interested in Alden, another college student that they love hanging out with.

The narrative is dual-linear, meaning we are following both Zoe's experiences on a cross country train ride from New York to Seattle, as well as Zoe's experiences in their first college semester up until fall break. The experiences on the train are well crafted, character-driven, and nuanced. There is a strong theme of train travel and how the characters of Zoe and Oakley evolve and grow as they are on the journey. There is something so romantic about train travel- and everyone on the train has a story as to why they have chosen that transportation method and how they are experiencing the trip.

The narratives following Zoe in college, while starting only 3 months apart, show us that Zoe has learned more about themselves in the experience. The train gives us a side character of Aya, a 9 year old traveling with her mom, she is precocious, sweet, and very realistic.

Jake Maia Arlow writes young people very well, they are bright, clever, and insecure while being confident. It is the ultimate contradiction of teenagers, they simultaneously view themselves as both inferior to and superior to others. Some YA romantic fiction really misses the mark on an 18 year old, their inner dialogue sounds like a much younger child. That is certainly not the case here, and it is a breath of fresh air. I absolutely loved this book. It's so smart.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. Book to be published August 19, 2025.

“You can’t go back, can’t get rid of that knowledge. But at least now you get to find out who you are in the knowing.”

rating: 4.5★

before sunrise but with a nonbinary jewish lesbian and a freshly ex-mormon lesbian, leading to many conversations about sexuality, gender, and religion.

this was funny and thought-provoking as zoe and oakley sort through their conflicting, confusing, and sometimes illuminating thoughts and revelations around identity and life.

"The room technically labeled me properly; I was a woman. But if that was true, why did it feel like I was playing a part?"

i loved the setting of a cross-country train - it's something i've always wanted to do, but the metaphor of that transient place in life of adolescence / early adulthood (and all of life, really), the mingling of people of all walks of life in a short but intimate voyage, the feeling of temporarily (or maybe even permanently) being a new version of you for the duration.

Because I wasn’t perfect, and I didn’t even know if I was a girl. I was just a mess.

i just read arlow's other book excavate and something about their writing just hits for me. it's exciting and refreshing to see someone writing about gender and identity like this in YA and i genuinely hope it paves the way for more.

"Even if you do the same thing over and over, you can find new people, new places. Even if it’s just for a few days, they can change the course of your life."

an honest arc review ♡