I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm

Mariama J Lockington

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Book cover for I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm
Image for variant 9781250806833
Book cover for I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm
Image for variant 9781250806833

I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm

I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm

Mariama J Lockington

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Description

A USA TODAY BESTSELLER

When snow falls, sparks fly in this irresistible queer romance from Schneider Family Book Award and Stonewall Honor winner Mariama J. Lockington--for fans of She Gets the Girl and Jennifer Dugan.

High school senior Lyric has always found Christmas to be the hardest season. While other kids got presents and family time by the fire, she was in and out of foster care. An up-and-coming make-up influencer and aspiring cosmetology student who loves a bold lip, Lyric definitely isn't looking for romance--not when opening up to someone feels a lot like asking to get hurt.

Christmas is Juniper's favorite time of year. At least, it was, until her moms' separation. They're back together now, and Juniper hopes they'll stay that way. Because if they're happy, that means Juniper can leave for her gap-year trip after graduation (the one she has yet to tell her parents about, and can't really afford without their help).

When a chance meeting brings these two opposite personalities together, they should clash . . . only they don't. Instead Lyric strikes a deal with Juniper: pose as her fake girlfriend in a series of holiday-themed social media posts and they can split the money from her beauty sponsorships. But soon the lines between what's real and what's not start to blur. Could it be that sparks are flying both in front of the camera and behind it?

Told from dual perspectives, one in prose and one in verse, I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm is a cozy and modern love story from acclaimed author Mariama J. Lockington that's perfect for the winter holidays or all year round.

About the Author

Mariama J. Lockington is an adoptee, author, and educator. She has been telling stories and making her own books since the second grade, when she wore shortalls and flower leggings every day to school. Mariama's middle grade debut, For Black Girls Like Me, earned five starred reviews and was a Today Show Best Kids' Book of the Year. Her sophomore middle grade novel, In the Key of Us, is a Stonewall Honor Book and was featured in the New York Times. Her young adult debut, Forever Is Now, won the Schneider Family Book Award. Mariama calls many places home but currently lives in Kentucky with her wife, her sausage dog Walter, and an abundance of plants.

Critical Reviews

A USA TODAY BESTSELLER
A Kirkus Reviews Best Books of the Year Selection
A Swooon 11 Best Holiday Romance Books of the Year Selection
A Screen Rant The 16 Best Christmas Books (By Trope) Releasing In 2025 To Read This Holiday Season Selection
A Junior Library Guild Selection

"Alternating between Lyric's prose chapters and Juniper's verse ones, the story moves at a steady, slow-burn pace that effectively keeps the pages turning. Lockington carefully and sensitively explores themes of dealing with anger, grief, and fear of abandonment. An emotional, engaging story of love and growth." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"Award-winning Lockington is back with this YA romance told in hybrid prose and verse, both of which sing with grace and power. In addition to the girls' chemistry, a stand-out feature of the story is the strong side character relationships, from Lyric's grandma to Juniper's moms. Lyric's passion for makeup and beauty as a means to escape poverty is beautifully rendered, while Juniper's love of nature and insecurity about the future will resonate with teen readers." --Booklist

"Via Juniper and Lyric's alternating POVs--respectively rendered in poetic verse and intimate prose--Lockington crafts a heartwarming love story enriched by the characters' well-rounded emotional depth." --Publishers Weekly

"Lockington delivers a cozy winter romance that's both heartwarming and emotionally layered . . . A great sapphic romance for readers who enjoy a good will-they-won't-they with depth and festive charm." --School Library Journal

Publishing Information

Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (Byr)
Pub date: 2026-10-13
Length: 352 pages

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