A review by bookbruin
In the Orbit of You by Ashley Schumacher

emotional hopeful reflective sad tense
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

3.5

 I’m a big fan of Ashley Schumacher’s writing and In the Orbit of You started off really strong. The premise intrigued me (please be sure to check CW’s) and I was drawn into the story right away. Unfortunately, the beginning, middle, and end chapter format/breaks didn’t make the most sense to me and the story went from love to like by the end.

Ashley Schumacher captured all the yearning, joy, confusion, and heartache of young love well. I wanted to root so hard for Nova and Sam (even if it was a little odd that they would have such deep and lasting feelings for each other starting at the age of 5/6). As certain plot points continued to drag on and on (and on) though, things started to derail. I can forgive a certain amount of back and forth and lack of communication, even more so in YA, but this pushed me beyond my limit.
The emotional cheating (and ultimately physical cheating) really soured the romance between Sam and Nova for me. His childhood was 100% heartbreaking, but just like Abigail pointed out - that doesn’t excuse his terrible behavior. Sam said “cheater” was a trigger for him and Nova’s previous boyfriend cheated on her, yet they still did this. I guess these choices just drove home the author’s point that Sam and Nova are young and needed to step back and figure themselves out first, before anything else.
The ending was hopeful though and allowed our characters to grow into themselves. It left me smiling, but I’m sad this one didn’t fully work for me.

*I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book* 
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