A home run for baseball lovers and theater kids alike.
In Fairfield, North Carolina, a baseball stadium sparks an intergenerational rift between two local families: the wealthy Crowleys and the Fultons, who are struggling farmers.
Almost 30 years ago, the Fultons and Crowleys built and briefly co-owned the town stadium—until the Fultons accused the Crowleys of using their financial clout to take ownership after the Fultons poured hours of labor into keeping the place running. This disagreement sparked a decadeslong feud. In the present day, rising high school senior Eliza Crowley resents her family’s notoriety in town. Eliza is a theater kid who plans to oversee the lighting for the community theater production of Romeo and Juliet. Reed Fulton, her former childhood friend, left Fairfield four years ago, but his grandad made a bet with Eliza’s dad—his team against the Crowley Cardinals. Whoever wins takes ownership of the stadium. And Grandad needs ace pitcher Reed on the new team he pulled together. When the pair reunite, romance ignites between them, but like Romeo and Juliet, they’re caught between love and family duty. Unlike Shakespeare’s tragedy, Miller’s debut ends with the healing of rifts. Reed’s and Eliza’s alternating first-person chapters open with quotations from baseball and theater icons that provide deeper insights into the young lovers’ feelings. The white-presenting leads’ dual perspectives allow for a sensitive exploration of class differences while reinforcing the belief that family and community are what matter most.
A home run for baseball lovers and theater kids alike. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: March 3, 2026
ISBN: 9798217038923
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2026
Exactly what the title promises.
A grieving teen’s devotion to romance films might ruin her chances at actual romance.
Liz Buxbaum has always adored rom-coms, not least for helping her still feel close to her screenwriter mother, who died when she was little. Liz hopes that her senior year might turn into a real-life romantic fantasy, as an old crush has moved back to town, cuter and nicer than ever. Surely she can get Michael to ask her to prom. If only Wes, the annoying boy next door, would help her with her scheming! This charming, fluffy concoction manages to pack into one goofy plot every conceivable trope, from fake dating to the makeover to the big misunderstanding. Creative, quirky, daydreaming Liz is just shy of an annoying stereotype, saved by a dry wit and unresolved grief and anger. Wes makes for a delightful bad boy with a good heart, and supporting characters—including a sassy best friend, a perfect popular rival, even a (not really) evil stepmother—all get the opportunity to transcend their roles. The only villain here is Liz’s lovelorn imagination, provoking her into foolish lies that cause actual hurt feelings; but she is sufficiently self-aware to make amends just in time for the most important trope of all: a blissfully happy ending. All characters seem to be White by default.
Exactly what the title promises. (Romance. 12-18)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-5344-6762-0
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2021
BOOK TO SCREEN
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
