Thank you to Wednesday Books, Gretchen Schrieber, and NetGalley for an ARC. All opinions are my own.

I have a lot of thoughts on this book, mostly not good.

First of all - I think the blurb for this wasn’t well done. It basically gives away the entire plot and the “secret”, which makes reading the book feel worthless.

Two - I think I would have enjoyed this book if the characters were aged down. Essentially every 18 year old in this book acted like they were 13; dialogue and actions included. At multiple points the FMC is on dates and the MMC is texting her “advice” and she’s just openly reading texts off her phone in front of her date. She also asks her best friend to kiss her to “practice” while she’s dating someone else, and doesn’t see the problem, but when she does, she blames the best friend whom she demanded kiss her. Like girl, where’s the subtlety? Do you think people don’t see that as suspicious and/or rude? She’s also shocked that people think the two of them are dating - yes, I think most people would assume that when two people are holding hands constantly and standing far too close to one another, like these two were. Piper also uses one parent’s phone to text the other in an attempt to set them up, while they are divorced and have expressed repeatedly they have no interest in a reunion. The boundaries are just…completely invisible, I guess.

The aunts, while grown women, also acted like children - who discourages their niece from having friends she’s close with just because they might not be “the one”?? Also repeatedly asking your niece if she’s kissed a guy yet/demanding she kiss him is weird.

Third - I adore books with disability rep which is part of what drew me to this in the first place, but the mentions of Piper’s disability felt so haphazard and so much like an afterthought added in final drafts, not as a core part of her characterization.

Four - the words “blessing” and “fate were used 280 times in a 352 page book. Every time I blinked it was in a sentence. I’ve read other books that focus on similar topics and use the terms about 50% less. It just became so repetitive.

Five - the logic/explanations are lacking. For example, Piper wants to get her parents back together because she wants to “be part of her family”. How does getting her parents together do that? She goes onto a side tangent about her disability but I still don’t see the connection with her parents reuniting?

Finally - I know arcs tend to have some errors before a final check pre-pub, but this had a wild number of spelling and grammar issues, characters names suddenly misspelled, the whole disaster.

I think this book had potential, but didn’t follow through.

There were many parts about this book that I was hoping to love, and somehow it just slightly missed the mark at times for me. The idea of Fate and meeting your 'Blessing' was really interesting, especially when you think everyone in Piper's family has experienced it and found their person so easily. With the introduction of Piper's parents getting divorced, you realize that fate might not be all its cracked up to be.



The problem is Piper, who is a senior in high school, is determined to prove that her parents actually belong together and that she will find her person too. This means that she ignores other signs that people might be interested in her, which includes her best friend Leo. When she meets Forest at a party, she feels the pull that tells her that he is her 'Blessing' and she wants to fall all into it as quickly as she can. But it gets to the point where she feels more and more like she is forcing something that doesn't feel organic, which I agree with.



The one part of this book I really enjoyed how was the disability rep was written for Piper, which I believe was both visible and invisible disabilities. The way the people around her don't seem to be treating her differently or acting differently because of it is great. She also mentions not using it as an excuse for things and how she is convinced her disability is the reason her parents broke up. The latter of which I wish was explored a little bit more, especially when you have this whole Fate plot line. The author of the book is also disabled, which I think helped make all of Piper's concerns feel more emotional and real. There is also a heavy stance on having your family determine the path you take, or pressuring you into believing something that might not be the best for you and I thought was was handled really well as well.



One of my biggest things with this book is that Piper is 17 or 18 at the time, and the way she looks at her parents divorce feels a bit childish at times. She is also determined to prove her relationship with Forest will work, even when there are signs she shows herself that it isn't. Piper definitely has a lot going on, but there were times where I felt she was just being too immature in general.

Yes you can read this as a rom com about insta-love and fate but you can also read it as a commentary on feeling like an outsider in your own family. Piper's got a disability that she's comfortable with even as her family isn't entirely, Her family has always believed in true love and knowing who the one is for you but then again, her parents are getting divorced. So what does Piper do when she gets that feeling about Forrest? She talks to her pal Leo. You might not be surprised at how things turned out but Schreiber has created a very good character in Piper and you'll root for her. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. A good read.

I loved this book! It made me think of John Green who wrote The Fault in Our Stars. The setting and premise about Fate affecting their lives was original. There is a component of disability with the main character but it is not emphasized much but is more about the characters sense of not fitting in with her family, school and friends. Isn’t that the essence of high school and the turmoil of senior year? I will look for Gretchen Schreiber’s first book to read and that is an indication of my like for this one.

Thanks to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for this ebook to read. All opinions are my own.

Sweet book about a teen girl driven by a family tradition that love is determined by the Blessing: you will meet the one for you and will know they are the one.
It is a cute premise but I found myself bored by the repetition and slow speed.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

(Actual: 3.25⭐) This was such a cute and magical romance! Not to mention a pretty quick read. While I did like the ~vibes and story beats found here as a whole, I will say that I admittedly probably no longer fall under the target demographic for this novel, as I did still also find it to be fairly predictable/formulaic (I'm just.... like, love triangles are *gestures vaguely* and all lol, but it does kind of take me out of the story when you *KNOW* that the odds are already stacked in favor of one MC over the other from the start). That said, I still enjoyed this book and would recommend it out to others, especially YA/NA readers, as Schreiber definitely is a promising new voice & ALL THE STARS ALIGN will for sure find its core audience!

I loved this sweet book! The author did an amazing job connecting us to Piper and taking us through her day to day struggles. Overall this is beautiful and sweet and fun and absolutely worth reading.

A special thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Piper's family has a gift, they know when they meet their true love. The moment it hits, they feel it all. Butterflies, love, and the feeling of forever. Piper has been hearing these stories her whole life and she's desperate to find hers. She already feels like an outlier in her family because she has a disability and her parents just got a divorce. When she meets her "true love" Forest at a party, Piper realizes she has no idea how to date. Piper asks her best friend Leo to help her and together they navigate this "true love" fate. Things get complicated when feelings, family expectations and secrets get in the way. I had a ton of fun reading this! Leo was charming and frustrating but I really liked him.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for a copy of this ARC in exchange for my honest review. I wanted to like this book a lot more than I ended up liking it. The characters just didn’t feel very well rounded to me and it felt like we jumped into a story without enough backstory. I liked the premise of the Blessing and I liked Piper making her own path in life. However, it just felt awkward at times with the love triangle and with Piper’s parents. It was still sweet and a quick read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion!

"To win over the love of her life and a place in her family, Piper must convince Leo to teach her his ways. And it’s all going as planned…until Leo confesses his own love for Piper. Now, she must decide which fate to follow."

I ABSOLUTELY LOVEDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD THIS BOOK!!!! I normally am not the biggest fan of modern YA books because they feel repetitive to me, but this novel goes soooo far above what I've read it's crazy! The disability rep with Piper was so well done, I freaking loved how she handled it and everyone around her did too. I (of course) was rooting for her and Leo the whole time, their chemistry was seriously so good. Piper also grew up so much during this book, she was an amazing fmc and I hope that Gretchen Schreiber writes so many more books with girls just like her!

This was a cute story, but I don’t think the writing was my cup of tea. While I enjoyed the characters, the first person storytelling fell flat for me. I don’t want to put a review on goodreads with a low rating until after it releases, so I won’t.

2.5/5 stars

I really wanted to love this book and was excited to be approved for this title after devouring Ellie Haycock in one day. I struggled to like the main character and her thought process drove me a little insane, so it took me a while to read this book. It's listed as a romance, but I actually think the strongest parts of the book are the conversations around family and belonging. I wish that was a more prominent piece of the promotion for this book because it's was the most impactful! All the Stars Align was just so-so for me, but give how much I enjoyed Ellie Haycock, I'll be curious to read more from Schreiber in the future.

Thanks to the publisher for an advance copy!

I thought this had an interesting premise, but I found the execution lackluster.

At about 25% I realized I knew exactly how the story was going to go. And unfortunately I was correct. There was one obvious choice, and I’ve read enough YA that I saw exactly how we’d get there, which was disappointing.

I also found it to be quite repetitive, with the pacing not working for me. The FMC’s inner monologue was basically the same thing throughout the entire book, and I found myself getting bored.

I did enjoy the disability rep and thought that was done well. And there were cute moments.

Maybe very young teenagers would enjoy this more, but more experienced readers will probably find this disappointing.

Thanks to the publisher for the copy.

Genre 📚: YA Contemporary, Fantasy, Romance
Tropes 💁‍♀️: Fated love, Family curse, Friends to lovers
Rep ✔️: Disabled main character, queer side characters
Rating ⭐️: 4/5

I always knew insta-love was a curse… But to FMC Piper and her family, it’s the greatest blessing. They have the ability to know who their true love is with a single feeling. An overwhelming pull that tells them, “Yes, this person is the one.” While Piper’s aunts are all happily in love, her parents are going through a divorce — which is totally unacceptable. Piper doesn’t want to fail her aunts the same way her parents have, so she’s determined to find her person.

Luckily, Piper does find someone, feeling that overwhelming pull she’s heard so much about. And yet, she’s feeling an entirely different pull toward her childhood best friend Leo. I was drawn in by this concept, as I’m interested in seeing how characters interact with fate. Do they stick with the sure thing, with what’s written in the stars for them, or do they follow their heart? Piper could be frustrating at times, as she was so adamant on ignoring her heart, but her reasoning behind it really made me feel for her. Because she was just desperate for belonging.

A very cute read, with solid disability representation and some of my favorite friends-to-lovers moments. (I’m a sucker for a good "I’ve liked you this whole time, you idiot!")

All the Stars Align had such a cute, dreamy setup—and I wanted to fall for the fated love, the butterflies, the whole magical-romance vibe—but it just didn’t quite hit for me. Piper’s yearning was relatable, and I loved the disability rep and the family legacy of epic love stories, but the execution felt a little uneven. The Cyrano-style love triangle had potential, but the emotional beats didn’t land as hard as I hoped, and the romance felt more meh than magical. I didn’t hate it—I think it’ll work for readers who love soft YA with a bit of angst and whimsy—but for me, it just didn’t make my heart flutter.

All the Stars Align - Gretchen Schreiber

3.25⭐️

I love a book with a well written disability rep. I do wish we had gotten the whole picture of Piper’s disability and not just snippets. It felt like I was missing part of the picture.

The concept of fate is one I love to think about. Piper has grown up with her entire life guided by fate and has to make a choice. Stuck in a bit of a love triangle she has to choose between what she’s always believed, what her family expects of her and what she wants.

I liked so much of this story but it felt like the adults put the weight of the world on a child and couldn’t see that at all. And I just don’t love messy lines in relationships and infidelity. So that kept me from really sinking into the story.

Pub date: April 1

Thank you Wednesday books for the earc.

I enjoyed the overall concept of the story but the execution made it a bit difficult to finish. Disability rep which is great.

Rating - 4/5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Date Read - October 12, 2024
Publication Date - April 1, 2025

*I received an E-ARC of this book for free in exchange for an honest review* - Thank you @gretch_schreiber, @stmartinspress, @wednesdaybooks and @netgalley!

I am not usually one to annotate while reading but there are quotes in All the Stars Align that hit me hard and stuck with me. I am able to relate to the characters and story, which made me feel more invested in the book. I loved Leo and definitely wanted to shake Piper sometimes but I think caring that much about the actions of characters is a good thing! I know I can count on Gretchen Schreiber for the best friends to lovers trope and she did not let me down! Also, the Meant to Bean coffee shop... are you kidding me? So cute!

If you like young adult books that are emotional with friends to lovers and disability rep, you should try All the Stars Align!

Get excited to read All the Stars Align, available April 1! 🎉

*Please check trigger warnings*

Thank you so much for this early readers copy of All the Stars Align. I really enjoyed the family dynamics and focus on fated relationships. This was a perfect spring read.

I just couldn't get into it and it went on forever. It might be the right book for someone but it wasn't for me