All of Grove's books focus on the problems teenagers face as they hit the critical, highly stressful years of middle and late adolescence. These problematic situations include strained parent-child relationships, tensionfraught sibling bonds, and troubled peer friendships. Also present in Grove's novels is a strong sense of fairness even when social ills can only be recognized and not changed. Her books feature young people taking steps—baby, tentative, and giant —towards maturity.