The Weight of the Stars

"A YA romance about girls and stars and friendship. . . . and what we owe each other and what we give away to lift each other up . . . a masterpiece" —Seanan McGuire, New York Times–bestselling author of Every Heart a Doorway

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 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 girls 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 now it's up to Ryann to lift her onto the roof day after day until the silence between them grows into friendship, and eventually something more.

The Weight of the Stars is the new LGBQT+ young adult romance from K. Ancrum, written with the same style of short, micro-fiction chapters and immediacy that garnered acclaim for her debut, The Wicker King.


"As bright as it is stellar . . . a story with a lush, dark atmosphere; heartbreaking circumstances; bright, new love that blossoms from ugliness; and vividly real, magnetic characters." —Booklist, starred review


"Touches on sexual identity, friendship, nontraditional families, and the price of human space exploration. . . . a satisfying read." —Kirkus Reviews

"Their slow-burn romance . . . is sweetly, devastatingly understated." —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books