The Weight of Stars by K. Ancrum
Ryann Bird dreams of traveling across the stars. But a career in space isn’t an option for a girl who lives in a trailer park on the wrong side of town. So Ryann becomes her circumstances and settles for acting out and skipping school to hang out with her delinquent friends.
One day she meets Alexandria: a furious loner who spurns Ryann’s offer of friendship. After a horrific accident leaves Alexandria with a broken arm, the two misfits are brought together despite themselves—and Ryann learns her secret: Alexandria’s mother is an astronaut who volunteered for a one-way trip to the edge of the solar system.
Every night without fail, Alexandria waits to catch radio signals from her mother. And its up to Ryann to lift her onto the roof day after day until the silence between them grows into friendship, and eventually something more . . .
In K. Ancrum’s signature poetic style, this slow-burn romance will have you savoring every page.
Representation Includes
- Black, lesbian, and butch protagonist (Ryann)
- Black and biracial sapphic love interest (Alexandria)
Content Warnings
physical fight, bullying, injuries, hospital, sexual assault, pretend deafness, mention of suicide, alcohol & drug use, mention of parental death, references to homophobia, mild violenceReviews:
Where to Find
Details
- Published March 19th 2019 by Imprint
- Hardcover ISBN13: 9781250101631)
- Paperback isbn13: 9781250101655
Hi! I’m queer and black 😊 this book also doesn’t qualify as sci-fi, it’s actually contemporary!
Thanks for letting me know! I’ll move your review to the top of the pile.
There’s enough people categorizing it as science fiction on Goodreads that I’d assume it’s a borderline case? I think I’d prefer to keep it in if that’s the case, since I’d rather cast a net that’s too wide than too small.
FWIW, contemporary and sci-fi are not exclusive. The fact that the second character’s mom is on a one way trip to the edge of the system makes it sci-fi, as that is nogt something we can do contemporarily.