Although there was nothing specifically wrong with this book as a whole, the writing style didn't quite merge well with me as a whole. The arching story was an interesting light Sci-fi, with lgbt elements making it an entertaining quick read. However, some elements of the story (the non-sci fi parts) seemed a bit unrealistic. A random student who hasn't even finished high school is somehow offered an internship at buzz feed and has thousands of followers on his news journalism account? Possible but seems highly unlikely. I did however like the illuminae vibes that came off of the story setup with the mixture of story, and TV show excepts.

This being said this is by no means a bad book, it did keep me relatively entertained throughout, and I would recommend the book to people that like the genre.

Believe the hype! The Gravity Of Us is one of the best YA books I have ever read. A beautiful queer love story, Hunger Games levels of world building around space/NASA/StarWatch and a realistic portrayal of mental health.

The Gravity of Us is a story about Cal, a teenage boy who is finishing his last year of high school: he wants to become a journalist. He has a platform where he posts regular live videos about Brooklyn, politics and NASA's newest mission, Orpheus V.

Cal's father is selected to be involved in the mission, which means that they are relocating to Texas, away from his best friend, and promising internship. The only silver lining is that he meets Leon, the cute ex-gymnast son of Grace, another astronaut on the project.

I found the concept really interesting, combining reality TV with NASA. The novel didn't hit you over the head with science and I loved that while the reality show focused on drama, Cal focused on getting the facts about the mission out there.

The romance between Leon and Cal was cute, but a touch insta-love. It was set up for them to be together before they had even met. I wanted to see more of a slow build than going from friends to lovers in a few chapters. The other problem I had was Cal himself, he seemed selfish at times, especially when his friend Deb wanted to talk about what was going on in her life, and he made it about himself. I always wish we saw more interaction with Kat, Leon's sister. She seemed like nice fun character who was interested in coding, but we didn't get to see much of her.

The discussion about mental health was interesting, and that you can't just "fix" people, there is no simple solution that will suddenly make someone happy and healthy again. We got to see how Cal's mother and Leon were affected by their depression and anxiety and their coping mechanisms.

I did struggle with reading this novel mostly because I couldn't relate to the main character but it did have a good narrative about mental health.

Thank you NetGalley and BloomsburyYA for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I am a big spaced nerd, kind of like Calvin Snr so I was immensely interested to see how much of the space centre stuff this book would cover.
To be honest it covered a lot and I was very happy that my nerd side got some gratification in that area.
One key thing that stood out in the book for me was the impacts of social media. How it can bring us closer but also how it can become fickle and fake. We all love drama, and are quick to judge people on the screen but this book did show the negative side. How it can be produced and skewed and can be detrimental to teens and important programs.
The media has always been a double edged sword but it was good that we saw this in the book.
Finally it was interesting to see the relationship between León and Cal. And mentions of mental health throughout the pages. They were small but depression and anxiety can impact people’s lives and relationships and I think the way it was handled was interesting.
Overall this was a good book. It was always on my 2020 TBR and I am glad I got to read it now to really get a sense of what it was all about

Such a cute read. When Cal’s dad unexpectedly becomes an astronaut, forcing his family to move across the country, it lives Cal’s life in turmoil. I loved hearing about life at NASA, and it’s great to see STEM in books more, and I thought especially there was good rep from female scientists. The move also sparks a narrative about family dynamics, and shows that no family is perfect. The m/m romance is sweet, if not a bit insta-love. But I can’t turn down a queer story with a happy ending. The influencer angle is an interesting one and I think the author gets it spot on. Yes it is fluffy and light-hearted but The Gravity of Us is intermingled with real-life scenario and issues that make the story come to life.

The Gravity of Us is a very good title of this book. Cal is a famous teen living in New York with his argumentative parents. When whoosh, his Dad gets accepted onto the NASA programme to go to Mars. The only catch is, the programme wants his whole family to live in Texas. The NASA programme is alongside StarWatch a reality TV show based on the NASA families, this prohibits Cal making his videos. It's also a good title because of the instant attraction of the two main love characters.

I liked the book, it was an easy read. Not sure on the main character though... yes he's yoinked out of his life, however he's not a great character - he's horrible to his friend he left behind in New York and he's quite a controlling person. However, he does grow as a character in Texas. I didn't like his relationship with his Dad too. It's not until the last few pages where he sees his Dad as an astronaut... ummm... the whole book has been about his Dad being an astronaut, how could he not see that his Dad is one?!

On the plus side I did like the fact the parents are constantly there throughout the book. There are lots of twists and turns in the NASA side of the story. I also appreciated that there was a love story between two boys but there weren't any labels it was just presented as a love story. Also lots of mental health talk especially for anxiety and depression.

I enjoyed this book, it wasn’t exactly everything I hoped it would be. I know its a young adult romance but everything seemed so convenient it felt like there wasn’t any actual conflict with the characters. I want to feel them go through things not be told they went through things.
I did enjoy the writing style and thought that Cals voice matched perfectly with the tone. I wasn’t overly impressed about how easy thing seemed to be even through the conflict. I did enjoy the romance though and would be interested in a contemporary romance plot based novel from this author.

Overall pretty good read, I enjoyed the characters and the writing although i wish the plot was a little more and went a little deeper. Glad I gave it a chance and I do absolutely adore the cover art!

I had really high expectations for this book but it did nothing for me.

Cal annoyed me from the very beginning and I got bored with the story very soon. The writting style was also not for me.

I did like the NASA aspect of it, though.

Initially a DNF at 55%, I have to admit that it did keep niggling at me and I had to pick it back up a fortnight later.

The latter part of the book was faster paced (I found the first 5o% is very slow) and I am definitely glad that I went back and finished it. I did enjoy the premise, I've always been pretty interested in space. The social media aspect wasn't the best part for me, and as it was a large part of the book, this is probably what pulled it down in stars.

The 'love' story was cute, I really enjoyed reading about Cal and Leon; and the addition of Kat was a nice touch too, she brought some much needed humour into the sadder parts of the book. Mental illness was a big factor throughout the book, for several characters and this was handled well I felt.

Overall 3.5*

I'm totally here for any LGBTQ+ YA romance. Throw in space too, and you know I'm going to read this. It's at the lower end for mature content for YA and is all the better for it. Too long have sweet younger YA romances been dominated by boy-girl combinations and a lighter read in the genre is always welcome - representation is always positive.

That being said, the pacing can be a little uneven and the emotional depth of certain plot points later on might not be fully explored, but it's a heartfelt, confident novel, and Stamper is an author to watch as he creates more books - and I for one will definitely be getting anything else he does.

Didn't expect to like this as much as I did because of all the astronaut stuff but honestly, it's not as overwhelming as I thought it would be. What's more, the drama around it has more to do with the media than anything else and I actually liked it very much because it makes sense and I can see it happening for real. (could be a real thing and I'm jsut oblivious as always)

Anyway, this was a very good book. At first I thought I want its target audience and while I don't fit it perfectly, I definitely was that audience. It's gay, it has good mental health rep (at least in my opinion) and it was CUTE
Also, K-pop was mentioned so ofc I'd like it.

Cal is a typical teenager which meant that he could be annoying at times but I lik d his portrayal. He has a big social media following and is also a citizen journalist who's building his portfolio through his channel in order to persue a career in journalism. As a journalism student, I wish this was more relatable to me but I realised that I'm simply not suited for it. Anyway, he did his job right and I liked that aspect because I feel like at this point I know enough about journalism to see if it's written right 😂😂

Anyway, Cal has his own problems and struggles with his mental health and his family has its own problems. I loved the way it was written bc I felt like it was relatable to an extent and it includes mentions of different kinds of therapy.

Leon likes Kpop and this is all I needed to start to like him. However, since the book is written in the first person, I wish I could've seen more of his personality than I actually did. He isn't necessarily a flat character but he isn't at all that developed and I would've loved it if he was more solid in my mind. However, his struggled with mental health was done well and I feel like it would be relatable but take that with a grain of salt.

Leon and Cal also learn to have a healthy relationship and Cal tries to be more considerate of others. I found some of his views relatable, especially when he said that he was a planner and likes it when people know what they want to do with their lives even if it's not set in stone.

I found his mother's depiction of anxiety and my own headcannon of her social anxiety to be relatable to me personally and that's why I liked it. I think a big part of why I enjoyed this book, besides Cal and Leon, was the mental health in it. Now, I don't read contemporaries often so don't fully trust me on that.

I enjoyed it overall and I'm ready for some fantasy.

Is there anything sadder when one of your most anticipated reads turns out to be a massive “it’s not you, it’s me” book? That is, unfortunately, what happened with The Gravity of Us.

The book follows Cal, who is uprooted from his life in New York City after his father is accepted into NASA’s Mars landing program. In Texas, he meets Leon, the son of another astronaut, and falls in love (very fast, if I may say, but hey. It’s in the blurb, I can’t really complain).

First things first: I really didn’t like Cal all that much. My initial impression of him was that he was kind of a brat, and that didn’t really change. Sure, after about a third, he became less selfish and all (or it was less obvious), but that first impression stuck. So, you can see why I might have had fun. But also, he’s 17, he’s kind of entitled to be a bit immature at times, and I think part of that is just me having a few years’ life experience on him, part of that is just that I wouldn’t react in the same way as he did. So yeah. Don’t let this point make you decide not to read the book.

Because it is a pretty cute book. I definitely liked the cast (barring Cal, as discussed) a whole lot, and it did keep me interested throughout. Even if Cal’s compulsive meddling sort of frustrated me (but you can see where that comes from, not-so-stable home life, arguing parents, you get it). Leon and Kat were probably my favourites, though I actually liked Cal’s dad a lot (somewhat perversely as well, given that he wasn’t the nicest guy). I definitely wanted to see more of Cal’s relationship with his dad – a lot of that development feels like it happens off the page, and I wanted more from it.

As for the rest of the book, sure everything feels a little, shall we say, unlikely, as in, you sort of have to suspend some disbelief at times (or I did, at least). But hey. It’s YA lit. I’m here for a good time not a serious time.

And also space! What’s not to like.

I adored the background and world-building of this book. It was so interesting I was immediately hooked on the searches for the twenty astronaut candidates, Orpheus launches and the discourse around Shooting Stars and its influence on the astronauts and their families. I was addicted to that plot, and probably as fascinated with the space launch as anyone living in that world (except maybe Cal). It did take me a little while to understand what exactly the role of Shooting Stars was, and how the Orpheus program had developed, but once I did I was sold on it. I loved Cal and Leon, but honestly? I was so drawn into the Orpheus stuff that I forgot for a second that this was a romance story. That is the kind of immersive world-building I like.

One of the themes that jumped out from every page was the idea of private life versus public life. The Shooting Stars program put the astronauts' lives on full view, commercialising every part of their time living in Houston. On the surface, it looks like Cal did that anyway. He was streaming on FlashFame, reporting news and New York city life online. So surely he was prepared for this? Well, no. There's a huge separation in our private selves and the public face we publicise for our social media profiles. When Shooting Stars are on the scene, Cal no longer gets to choose what's for himself what's his and what's for public consumption. When he decides to take on Shooting Stars head to head, I was screaming for the little guy, honestly.

He ended up starting a viral campaign to save NASA and it was empowering as hell, reminding me of dozens of similar social media campaigns I've seen where everyone throws their voices together to share a message. I got the same feeling with Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston when social media threw its weight behind Alex and Henry. Admittedly, in the real world, social media doesn't always scream the right message at the right people, but it's empowering to read in fiction anyway - and I sure like it better than most 'unbiased' media outlets.

The romance itself was lush. It was fast-paced, but I don't hate that. Cal and Leon are teenagers, and who didn't fall in love with everyone who smiled at them? I'm aro and I still spent half my teenage years obsessing over everyone who looked at me twice. Cal and Leon are so cute. They want to support each other, thrown together in this strange new situation but drawn to each other's company, and that's really beautiful. They're in a shiny new relationship and the way they act around each other felt endearingly authentic. I don't miss being an awkward teenager, honestly.

Cal's relationships and the way he approached them was something really beautiful and relatable to me. Cal is a fixer. He likes to fix everything. So am I. No matter how much I know I shouldn't, I always feel like I should try and fix things for people when I know what they really need from me is empathy. It made me feel seen in a way I wasn't expecting to see those traits in Cal, and it was kind of an awakening for me to see him work through how he can help the people he loves without being too much about it all. There's anxiety and depression rep in The Gravity of Us to go with the #ownvoices queer rep, and it was deftly and beautifully handled. Cal was learning that he couldn't 'fix' the people he loves, his mother's anxiety, Leon's depression or Deb's money troubles. They just need him to listen, and that has to be enough for him.

A captivating read, that draws you in with an original and engaging plot, and well fleshed out characters that you can really connect to and become drawn in with as the story progresses. It deals with modern themes like social media and how to come with suddenly being thrust in to the limelight as a celebrity and how to navigate it without becoming consumed by it and losing yourself and those you love to it.

A real must read.

When I read the summary of this book, I wasn't sure about it. It sounded like a very unique plot but I wasn't sure how the romance would be handled. Having now read it, I can say it definitely has a unique and compelling plot, and the romance is where it let's down slightly.

The story focuses on Cal (Jnr). He's being forced to go to Texas because his dad has been picked to be an astronaut on the latest space mission. I ended up learning a lot about space training and the history of space travel and it was all extremely interesting. Cal documenting everything, and the twists and turns that happened throughout, were the most interesting part of the book.

During all this, he falls for the son of another astronaut, Leon. My issue, as is my issue with most books YA novels these days, is how quickly, and how hard they fell for each other. I thought Leon could have done with a bit more development, but especially their relationship. I really dislike insta-love, and this felt like that.

I thought, overall, the book was well-written and I really liked Cal as a main character. Despite the issues I have with the book (issues that most YAs tend to suffer from these days and might just be a personal thing), I will be giving this book 4.5 stars, rounded up to 5.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Very cute! The romance is a bit fast though. But overall a solid debut with likable characters and fun plot.

While I enjoyed the writing style of this book, I found the plot to be rather uninteresting and didn’t often feel encouraged to continue reading. I think this book could work for others more than it did for me, as I do see its merits; it’s witty, it’s romantic and it discusses social media through its main character’s platform. I look forward to whatever this author writes next.

Doesn't this blurb just sound awesome, a little bit of geeky sciency stuff, a dollop of social media savvy, a great big romantic sky, two young men, completely different, NASA, astronauts and themes of loneliness and isolation, first love and space. Come on, this book appears that it has it all. But, and it's a big one, it is really hard to connect with these characters. I really wanted to but it just didn't happen. Now that I've been finished it for a week or so I find it hard to remember the characters names or to rekindle feelings for them. I wanted more. I wanted it to be a little bit more gritty, for people to get a bit more messed up by the bad things that happened in the story. People die in here, I'm not telling you who, but that is big, but the reactions of those affected just didn't seem to hit the mark.

I loved all the social media stuff, loved the villain of the piece, it is all totally unrealistic but I was in there hoping that this would carry me off and give me a great big case of the feels.

It is ok, I know of students who will love it, I'll buy it and promote it and encourage people to read it, but it could have had a heap more depth.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me access.

This is definitely a young teen read; whilst the central characters are seventeen the style of writing suggests that the author has written for a specific audience rather than writing a story that might be suitable for a given age. It is this, more than any other reason, that holds back the story. Written in the present tense from a first-person perspective it is already constrained in what can be done in terms of providing a broad base for the book.

The central character is unusual in that he exhibits naive enthusiasm and yet holds knowledge beyond his years. This is another difficulty with the plot as it expects the character to be uprooted to a new location and deal with a new set of characters and yet be able to succeed in reporting on a topic over which he has no knowledge and against hardened journalists. This lack of credibility is frequently reinforced throughout.

It is good to see young gay protagonists but somewhat frustrating to have no teenage angst or self-questioning and have the focus of introspection on how to deal with anxiety and depression in others. The romance is chaste and any suggestion of passion is passed over.

All of that aside, and that is quite a lot, this is a fun and variably paced story that should be of interest to anyone who likes the idea of journalism or the quest for space.

Cal wants to be a journalist, and he’s already well underway with almost half a million followers on his FlashFame app and an upcoming internship at Buzzfeed. But his plans are derailed when his pilot father is selected for a highly-publicized NASA mission to Mars. Within days, Cal and his parents leave Brooklyn for hot and humid Houston.



Once you begin this book, you really don't want to stop. I begun this book, put it down and then I picked it up again and you couldn't take it away from me. I feel like Cal and Leon draw you in so easily into their story that this book is perfect if you a little romance (and not busy on Valentine's Day). I appreciate the diverse and fantastically developed characters that make you root for them and want to be their friends, everyone needs a sister like Kat, I assure you.

I also appreciate the science and the politics, if it anything hits my interests its a tangle of politics and romance (it's a niche I realise I really like) and this book does it perfectly, talking about the science, the finance but also the people involved in everything that makes the big science happen - and Cal is used to bring all these topics together and do it perfectly and keep it understandable, I appreciate what the author does here.

I really enjoyed this, it's a nice soft read with lots of kissing and a perfect balance of nerdiness.

Go read it.

(I received an ARC from NetGalley for honest review).