- US Edition
Finding Jupiter
This stunning, uplifting YA romance debut has the dual POV and high stakes of The Sun Is Also a Star with gorgeous found poetry elements worthy of The Poet X.
Sparks fly when Orion and Ray meet for the first time at a roller rink in Memphis. But these star-crossed souls have a past filled with secrets that threaten to tear them apart before their love story even begins. Found poetry, grief, and fate collide in this powerful debut.
Ray
Just once I’d like my birthday to be about me, and not the day my father died. I want to be Ray, Jr., the tall girl from Memphis with the poetry journals and the braids that stay poppin’. And when I meet Orion at the skating rink, that’s exactly who I am. He pulls my hand, and instead of being defined by my past, he makes me believe in a future.
Orion
When I dive into the pool, it’s just me and my heartbeat. There’s no dad, no dead sister, and no distracting noises. But I can’t hold my breath forever. And since I met Ray, I don’t want to. The closer we get, though, the more I see I’m not the only one caught in her wake.
With a lyrical blend of found poetry and poignant prose, Kelis Rowe delivers her stunning debut about young Black love, and the decade’s old family secret that threatens to tear them apart.
Awards and Praise for Finding Jupiter:
Keystone to Reading 2023-2024 Award: High School Winner
“Self-affirming and deeply moving. Rowe tenderly reminds us that it takes courage to love and love to heal.” —J. Elle, New York Times bestselling author of Wings of Ebony
“A sparkling debut! This fun, page-turning summer romance is packed with tenderness, insight, and hope.” —Liara Tamani, author of All the Things We Never Knew
Rights details
US/Canada: Crown/Penguin Random House
UK/Commonwealth: Walker Books
Brazil: Globo
Audio: Listening Library
The Author
Kelis Rowe
Kelis Rowe (pronounced kuh-lēs) lives and writes out of her home in Austin, Texas and spends her summers traveling with her husband and two young kids. During her past life as a market research analyst, Kelis kept her creative juices flowing as a blogger and YouTuber, which included a two-year stint as one of twenty national Clinique Beauty Brand Insiders and a brief assignment as an Austin Honeybee for the ’90s urban women’s fashion and entertainment magazine Honey. Kelis grew up in Memphis, where she had her first big love. She did not see herself or her big love reflected in the pages of a YA novel at the time, so she now writes contemporary YA to give young readers a story about Black teens falling in love.
Visit her website at kelisrowe.com. Follow her at @TheeKelisRowe on Twitter and Instagram.
Kelis is represented by Chelsea Eberly.