Julia and Romano

Written by Eric Walters
DCB Young Readers 

978-1-77086-823-6
Ages 13+
304 pp.
March 2026

 

When sixteen-year-old Julia Anderson's mom, Susan Eden, moves the two of them to Campbell River, BC, Julia a.k.a. Jules is not impressed. Not only is she leaving her boyfriend Paris, and friends like Jodi, Shannon, and Beth behind, she must leave the big city Toronto for a smaller community where the major industries are forestry and fishing. But, because Mom caught Jules's dad cheating and wanted a new start, she accepted a job as the executive director and lawyer for the environmental group Eco-Guardians at Campbell River.

 

So, while Mom is busy dealing with a logging company eager to cut a disputed tract of forest, as well as with associated businesses like the mill, Jules goes exploring. When she is accosted by dangerous Steller sea lions, she meets local teen Cody who takes her for fish and chips. She doesn't know much about him, as he goes to the other high school in town, but the two bump into each other a few times, and he shows her around town. Cody is smitten and becomes very protective of her. He warns her to be careful around some people, like the Devil Dogs, a local biker gang, and at her first bush party.

 

Even as the two teens are falling in love, they learn that Julia's mom has been fighting Cody's dad, Raphael Romano, who owns Royal Lumber Mill. The two teens had never realized that the conflict their parents had was with each other because Jules has her father's last name. And his dad and her mom are not pleased about Cody and Jules's relationship.

 

As in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet which inspired Julia and Cody's story, there is conflict between families, a secret relationship, and a love that cannot be broken. Even the teens see the similarities, they anticipate a happier ending.

“This isn’t Romeo and Juliet,” Cody said. “This is Julia and Romano. We’re free to write our own story and this one can have a happy ending.” (pg. 148)

I'm glad the Forest Kid Committee (Red Maple) put this novel on its summer reading list because that means teens (and late middle-grade readers) have already been enjoying the story of Jules and Cody. I'm also glad that I finally got to review this novel. Beyond its sweet Shakespearean inspiration, Julia and Romano is influenced by the unique location of Campbell River, focusing on the land, its people, and its industry. Campbell River becomes a character in itself, shaping the way people interact, the struggles they have, and how the environment dictates so much. Eric Walters, extraordinary storyteller and observant writer of the human condition, tells Jules and Cody's story as a function of their place: how they meet, how they date, and how they are conflicted. He gives them latitude to be themselves and to grow to be new people. This is how Julia and Romano differs from Shakespeare's play. Eric Walters's characters are not doomed by their circumstances. They can be more than the legal and environmental feud between their families. They can make change happen and continue to love.

 

Don't worry that Jules and Cody's story will end as Romeo and Juliet's did. Eric Walters has written a love story that will endure.