I recently fell head over heels for Malinda Lo's last book "Last Night at the Telegraph Club" for its' simplistic beauty and charm. This book is no different, full of captivating youth and the battles faced, along with a strong commentary on major social issues. Brilliant!

This novel is just sublime, a story of self-discovery, love, friends and family. We follow lead character Aria as she heads to stay with her grandmother in San Fran following a disastrous event at school where photos were shared online. The house and area her grandmother lives in holds strong memories and emotion for Aria. Upon arrival at the house and meeting her grandmother’s gardener Steph, Aria’s life immediately takes an unexpected turn with new friends, love and heartache.

This novel is beautifully written, full of wonderful and wistful depictions of all that Aria encounters in her summer away before heading to university. We often hear Aria’s voice though her thoughts and texts as well as dialogue, and throughout the novel emerges a character who is on a journey of discovery, developing and growing - sometimes making rash decisions, sometimes in control of her emotions, sometimes not.

‘I was exhausted, but I remember feeling a clear sense of clarity, as if a lens had just come into focus, and all at once I could see who I was becoming as opposed to who I once was. I was split in two: my future and my past. I wanted to remain here on the edge between my two selves, doubly exposed, all hunger and heart’.

Another wonderful addition is revisiting characters from the author’s previous novel who, some fifty years later, feature in Aria’s life reinforcing in her a connection and new sense of belonging, as well as the belief that love can endure.

The epilogue takes us on an emotive circle into the near future, and we gain a glimpse of the Aria yet to come. I’d love to follow her journey further, or perhaps revisit her in her later years too :)

Many thanks NetGalley, Malinda Lo and Coronet Books for the opportunity to read and review this novel. It has made for the most perfect summer reading.

Aria made a mistake at a party with a boy taking advantage and snapping a topless photo. The following day it was all over social media and Aria was punished, although the boy lauded by his peers.
So instead of going away with friends for the Summer Aria is sent to her Grandmother’s. There she meets Steph, her Grandmother’s gardener who introduces her to a whole new world. Aria discovers herself with the help of new friends and old as well as her Grandmother until the latter becomes unwell.
A LGBTQ+ romance and coming of age where Aria’s anguish is acutely portrayed.

Thank you to NetGalley, Malinda Lo and the publisher for sending me an E-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

A coming-of-age story about 18-year-old Aria, who is learning to come to terms with her sexuality. After moving in with her grandmother for the summer, she begins to question her sexuality after meeting the gardener, Steph. It’s set in California in 2013, the same time same-sex marriage was made legal, which adds to the sense of belonging she felt being a part of a queer friendship group.

I loved the incorporation of different types of art, and parts of it were written beautifully and poetically. I wasn’t a fan of some of the choices Aria made, but I think it adds to how complicated discovering your sexuality for the first time is, and only made her more human.

I adored her relationship with Joan, especially since she wasn’t so close to her parents.

Also, the end made me sob!

Amazing, marvellous, stunning, fascinating, incredible, masterpiece of a book!!!!

When a book hits all your emotions , good , bad , happy, sad, excited, curious and you can’t put it down…. Well you know it’s a great book.

If you haven’t read any of Lo’s books I encourage you to start. Your see a lot of comments referring back to ‘The Telephone Club’ which is an excellent book. I ask you don’t stop there. My first book of Lo’s was around 2009 when I read Ash. Before I knew it I read most of her books and have always been hooked.

Lo’s books are always beautiful written , she makes you escape reality or pushes your boundaries of emotions. It’s been a pleasure to see Lo maturing throughout the years. When I say maturing I mean it is the respect as in, she caught my emotions in 2009 and in 2022 her writing has took hold of my emotions. I’m the passenger and Lo is driving me on this rollercoaster journey.

Now , it probably seems I’m digressing (slightly) but this book has inspired me and quite frankly discombobulated my brain with all the emotions.

Our main characters Aria and Steph. Aria is spending summer with her artist Grandmother and Steph is the Grandmothers Gardner (she’s a musician as well). Both have undeniable chemistry , caring and so kind.

We can’t diminish any of the side character who equally bring this book to life.

It’s a colourful coming of age story, celebration, grief , romance and heartache. I don’t want to give to much away, all I will say is you won’t be dissatisfied.

P.S make she you have some tissues next to you.

Thank you Malinda Lo for this amazing book and thank you NetGalley for giving me this book for an honest review

I liked this book, although perhaps not as much Lo's previous 'Last Night at the Telegraph Club'

Once I started to read it I finished it very quickly, it hooked me enough that I wanted to find out what happened next, and I found the main character and her love interest likeable characters.

I think my three main criticisms of the book are that: 1) I was a little disappointed that Ari and Steph didn't end up together, but ultimately I understand that the two of them going their separate ways was certainly the most realistic ending, the one that made the most sense narratively, so i'm not too mad about it. And 2) its doesn't have quite the same sweeping historical feel that made me enjoy 'Last Night at the Telegraph Club' so much, but that's because that's not what this book is supposed to be, so obviously it doesn't;t feel that way. 3) this is more of a small personal plot annoyance, but i found it odd that Ari makes a point of saying that one of the lenses to her old microscope is missing, and then it never comes up again. I figured she'd find it somewhere in her grandfathers things and it'd be a whole thing, but apparently not!

Ultimately this is a good, entertaining book, just, for my taste, not as good as its predecessor. I would however definitely still recommend it.

A bittersweet story of first love and loss set in rural California in 2013. At first, I thought this slow-burning tale might turn out to be too languid to connect with, but, as it unfolded, I realised the pacing perfectly matched the atmosphere and the setting of a long summer filled with longing. It’s told from the perspective of a Chinese-American woman Aria, who’s looking back at her 18-year-old self, reliving the moment between leaving behind school and her childhood, and moving towards independence. A slut-shaming scandal at Aria’s school has led to a form of exile, now she’s spending the holidays alone with her widowed grandmother. Her grandmother Joan's a prominent painter/photographer, once part of the performance art scene in the 60s, whose work stimulates Aria’s imagination. And it’s at her grandmother’s house that Aria meets Steph, a genderqueer musician, who changes her idea of who she is and what she might become.

This has been billed as a companion novel to Last Night at the Telegraph Club although on the surface they’re vastly different in style and structure. But Aria’s growing connection to the local lesbian community gradually establishes a link. Through Aria’s experiences Lo’s able to explore the changes in California since the Telegraph Club era: the vibrant, public queer scene, and above all the landmark passing of a law enabling gay marriage. Aria still struggles with some of the issues that Lily faced in Lo’s earlier novel, casual racism, confusion over her identity. But she also has access to cultural spaces, ways of being, and networks that barely existed when Lily came of age in the 1950s. Through Aria’s family, Lo also gives us a glimpse of what happened to Lily and to Kath in the years since the end of their story.

Although I have to admit there were stretches of this novel that felt a little too drawn out, I loved the strong sense of place and so many of the small details: the exploration of women’s creativity; the recognition of the influence of Asian-American, lesbian artists like Bernice Bing; Aria’s fascination with astronomy, light and stars. As well as the many, unexpectedly-moving passages. Closer to Lo’s earlier work – it’s a book she’s been trying to write for over ten years – and perhaps not as instantly absorbing or as richly textured as her previous book, but still well worth the time.

Lo's Last Night at the Telegraph Club was one of my top reads last year and I was so excited to see that Lo had a new book out - and it was, if anything, even better than Telegraph Club.

Aria has to spend the summer with her grandmother after an incident at a party has gone viral, while there she meets new people, and discovers lots about herself and her friends.

This makes it sound like any other coming of age YA book and while in many ways this is true the book is far far more than this and I'm not ashamed to say that towards to the end I was a sobbing mess. I also liked the small, subtle link back to Telegraph Club.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

“I felt the weight of that moment all the way through my body, every nerve alive. I think she felt it, too. We could have made a lot of other choices that night, but we made the only one we wanted to make.”

Publisher: Dutton Books

Release date: 6th October 2022

Pages: 336

Representation: Bi-racial Chinese/Caucasian, Chinese, LGBTQIA+ (Queer, lesbian, bisexual, genderqueer, questioning), polyamorous side character.

Trigger warnings: Stroke, death, homophobia, grief, infidelity, cancer mention, sexual harassment (unconsenual publishing of lude photos)

Summary: Aria wasn’t planning on spending the summer at her Grandmother's house in California, but it’s where she is. She definitely wasn’t planning on falling for her grandmother's gardener, Steph. First of all, Aria is straight, and second, Steph has a girlfriend. Nothing seems to be going as she planned, and the summer before she goes to MIT is going to change everything she knows about herself, with no going back.

A scatter of light shows us that even in the darkest of nights there is a scattering of stars; each one of them unique and beautiful in their own way.

Aria was a realistically written character: freshly 18, I saw glimpses of my teenage self in how she felt at times. I can’t say I liked her, because she made decisions that I actively condemn. I knew everything she was doing was wrong, but there was a part of me that couldn’t help but root for her anyway. This is a testament to Lo’s writing. The prose is almost poetic, it lifts the story from the pages and prints the words right on the reader's heart.

The book was definitely character driven, and follows Aria’s emotions and coming to terms with some truths about herself more than the choices she makes. It follows her relationship with different family members, with friends, and with herself and her sexuality. I never wanted anything more than the book offered, and I gulped down everything it gave me with a thirst I haven’t known for a while.

My emotions are still a blur as I write this review; I’m stuck in an emotional Limbo after spending half a day being driven into the unknown by a teenage girl figuring out her life. I wouldn’t be able to turn back if I tried, and I wouldn’t want to. Full of character mistakes, queer love, heartbreak and the reality of being queer in the modern day. Steph, the love interest, wasn’t a nice character-she wasn’t someone I liked, but it was easy to understand Aria’s love for her. It was easy to understand her lust, and I loved watching the relationship evolve, as much as I hoped it wouldn’t-as much as I wanted them to remain friends and to not do anything they might regret.

The stark reality of being queer now versus being queer in the 60’s hits you like a punch in the good when reading it from the same author; the same style, the same words, but na million miles and worlds apart. I won’t give spoilers, but it gave a conclusion to Last Night at the Telegraph Club that made me tear up. It felt a fitting end to that story, that slotted perfectly into Arias. I would definitely recommend reading Last Night at the Telegraph Club before you read this; though it definitely can be read as a stand-alone it truly shines as a follow up to its predecessor.

Its shining glory: Beautifully written, with a story bound to resonate with so many queer youth, its ture glory comes from the emotional toll it takes and the mirror it holds up to so many aspects of queer experience.

Its fatal flaw: Although allowing the reader to feel a realistic process of emotions and flow of events, the plot occasionally seems disjointed at points as it jumps from one point to the next.

Read this if: You want an emotional read with imperfect characters. You want a true coming of age novel that shows just how messy and complicated life can be-one that doesn’t draw a line between who’s the hero and who’s the villain.

Skip this if: You don’t like books where the flaws of the main character are a focus. You like romance books to be 100% about the relationship, with less focus on the other parts of coming of age.

I absolutely loved this - beautifully written and such an accurate and insightful portrayal of queer awakenings and the obsession of first love/lust, with a really nice link to Lo's wonderful Last Night at the Telegraph Club.

This book is very different than Last Night at the Telegraph Club, but I still very much adored it, all the same. The writing is still eloquent and breath-taking, and Aria, while different than Lily, is still a very compelling character. Her struggles with coming to terms with her sexuality in a ill-fated relationship was really gut-punching but expected, considering the circumstances around her and Steph's romance. I especially loved the one to two page chapters; those were the ones that packed the most emotional punches.

I really loved how coming-of-age was the primary focus rather than the romance, because it took time to explore Aria's relationships with her family, from Joan to her distant mother, bodily autonomy and how easily it's ripped away from young women, the struggles of being biracial, a lot is touched upon but it's all done beautifully. I didn't cry, but I still got very emotional, especially towards the end.

I cannot wait for the hardbacks to come out so I can finally place this book next to her sister on my shelf.

*Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for an earc in exchange for an honest review. All quotes may be subject to change.*

"𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘸."

Aria has been unwillingly sent to spend her summer in California with her artist grandma. It's not where she thought she'd be- but after topless pictures of her are shared online she's been given no choice. Ostracized by her friends and scorned by her family, all Aria wants is to forget about the incident.

"𝘐 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨, '𝘐 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘰𝘺,' 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘮𝘺 𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘵 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨."

Only, her grandma's gardener threatens to upset all that. Steph is a few years older than Aria. A musician, independent, confident, and for Aria who thought she was straight, she becomes absolutely and completely enraptured by her.

Only Steph isn't single. And her grandma is ill. And her mother still ignores Aria most of the time.

But as spark between them grows, Aria will need to confront her family and friends, but most of all, herself.


It's the sapphic summer romance we've all been waiting for. Having gone into this with absolutely no knowledge about the plot, only that I really like the author and the cover was pretty.

A Scatter of Light is a deeply heartfelt YA coming of age story, perfect for people who watched The Summer I Turned Pretty and wished it was sapphic. (I'm using sapphic because although the MC was bisexual, her love interest is lesbian).

I've read both of Lo's previous books- they were enjoyable but I didn't really become emotionally attached.

A Scatter of Light is a whole other story. The characters resonated with me, for a ya novel they were surprisingly mature and acted their ages. There was so much about first love, figuring out sexuality and gender identity, and family relationships it was just really beautiful and is definitely going to be an inspiration for future LGBTQ teenagers.

Absolutely do not go into this expecting a romcom. There were some extremely heavy topics (I've included some main TWs I noticed at the bottom but they will be spoilers and are not an exhaustive list, just what I can remember) and I cried pretty hard at some sections.

Ok the only thing I absolutely HATED the cheating storyline. Made me feel nasty and was just in general unnecessary.

It's set in the same world as Last Night at the Telegraph Club, maybe 60 ish years later? And some of the characters do return for a cameo appearance...

Yeah I could have rated this lower. But the sheer beauty of the writing, representation and characters shone through so who cares?

TWS: FAMILY DEATH, CHEATING, ONLINE ABUSE

Firstly, thanks to the publisher for sending me a digital arc of this book.
I really felt this book was written well, I loved the authors writing style.
Initially, I liked the main character, and her relationship with her grandmother was really lovely, and how we found out things about her grandfather along the way was also a lovely touch.
I enjoyed the beginning of the book, but unfortunately after the introduction of the other characters, I did become a little less invested in the book, and a little bored, Roundabout the 65/70% mark things really did pick up for me, and I thought the last quarter of the book was really good, and I read this very quickly.
By the end of the book, I didn't really like Aria all that much.

I'm very on the fence with this book, I would recommend or buy this for the right person, and if someone read the back and asked for my opinion, I would say if you like the sound of it, go for it, as it is very well written, and I do feel a lot of people are going to enjoy this.

Malinda Lo has done it again! I absolutely loved it and could not put it down, no spoilers will be given but the relationship is fresh and real. This is the representation that young people need now.

This was beautifully written, and I enjoyed a lot of the book, but I struggled to engage fully with the story and the character's as it felt very slow, but once the plot started moving and Aria settled into her new life, I began to enjoy it a lot more.

The character's were written well, and had a lot of realism to them, but at times the way they communicated felt very strained and awkward to read, particularly conversations between Steph and Aria. I liked the closeness between Aria and her grandmother, and it was nice to see Aria's character development whilst she was away and learning about new experiences and lifestyles that she clearly hadn't been exposed to, growing up with her parents.

Overall, it was a beautiful book, with a very heartwarming and powerful tone, that was different from the books I usually read.

Thank you to the publisher (my favourite one) and NetGalley for this eARC of "A Scatter of Light" by Malinda Lo. This is a companion novel to Lo's previous novel, Last Night at the Telegraph Club.

I loved this book! The book was beautifully written and each characters were fleshed out and realistic. My only qualm was that this could have been a standalone novel and that Lo didn't need to make this a companion.