Catch the Light

Catch the Light is a tender and achingly beautiful young adult novel about Marigold, a young photographer grappling with the death of her father. Forced to leave sunny California for rural New York, she struggles to hold onto memories that are fading fast. Perfect for fans of Nina LaCour and Jandy Nelson, this coming-of-age story explores how love and art can help us heal—even when we feel like we're losing our grip on everything we once knew.

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Nine months after her father's death from cancer, Marigold - known to most as Mary - is uprooted from her life in Los Angeles and relocated to a sprawling old house in the woods of upstate New York. Her mother believes this fresh start is exactly what the family needs, but Mary aches for everything she left behind: her best friend, her older sister, her long-distance boyfriend, and the senior year that was supposed to bring back a sense of normalcy.

But Mary carries a secret that weighs heavier than any of these losses: she is slowly forgetting her father. The memories she once held so dear are slipping through her fingers like photographs left out in the rain. As she navigates her new life, she finds herself drawn to Jesse, a fellow photographer and kindred spirit who understands the language of light and shadow. Their connection deepens through hours spent in the darkroom, bonfires under starry skies, and house parties that feel like an escape from grief.

Yet Mary remains caught between two worlds - the life she left behind and the one she is slowly building. When these two versions of her existence finally collide, she must decide what she truly wants and come to terms with how profoundly her father's death has reshaped her identity. Catch the Light is a poignant meditation on memory, love, and the painful yet transformative inevitability of hope in the face of heartache. Kate Sweeney writes with fluid elegance, capturing the foggy disengagement of mourning while offering plenty of sweetness through an edgy, secret-laden romance.