Genre: YA Fantasy
Release Date: July 26th, 2022
(This is a reprinting, originally published in 2018.)
Pages: 416
Publisher: Bloom Books
My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Synopsis:
After a series of tragic events, Anora Silby and her mother are starting fresh, including new identities, in a new town. Anora can see the dead and turn their spirits into gold coins, a confession that had her mother threatening to send her to an asylum.
Anora wants nothing more than to hide her abilities and lead a normal life. But on her first day at her new school, Nacoma Knight, she not only claims the soul of a dead girl, but loses the coin too. And she soon finds out that whoever now possess that coin is using it to steal other souls and murder her classmates.
Speaking of classmates, Anora has managed to capture the attention of two of them, both equally as intriguing as they are opposing. Shy – the quarterback golden-boy, who takes it upon himself to help her acclimate to her new school. Thane – broody and mysterious, but the only one willing to be honest with her about the strange happenings around town.
She must find her lost coin and stop the murders, all while trying not to make her the target of the people who are hunting her, wanting to claim her powers for themselves.
When Stars Come Out is a unique twist on the classic tales of Orpheus and Eurydice.
Review:
The magic system in the story is so compelling. I enjoyed slowly learning more about the world. The complex hierarchies and social structures built into the magic world of the story are also super engaging.
I love the blend of paranormal and mythology woven into the story world.
There is an element of creeping tension, dark undertones, and a permeating sense of foreboding that hooked me in from the start. We know something bad happened to Anora in the past but not what exactly. The trickling of reveals to the mysteries leaves you guessing and wanting more.
This story is expertly-crafted intrigue and slowly-thickening tension, all bound into a plot full of truly unexpected twists and turns. It’s a masterful piece of building layers that makes this story so amazing.
There is a significant part of the plot and story that is not mentioned in the description so I won’t give it away here. I think sometimes book descriptions can give away too much so I was pleasantly surprised with this unexpected layer to the story.
Love that we are getting answers to all the mysteries as a slow trickle of things being revealed and we are learning about the character at the same time as she is discovering herself.
I felt an immediate emotional connection to Anora and her desire to feel “normal” and just fit it. I loved learning about her at the same time as she is discovering herself. Anora has a relatable personality in general and I was immediately engaged in her experience, seeing her adjust to being the new girl at a small-town school.
I loved the names of the characters in this story. Perhaps a seemingly small detail, but one I find important, especially in fantasy, where names can sometimes pull me out of the story rather than flowing well within it.
The side characters actually take an important part in the plot of the story and I felt that they were well-developed. There is an intricate relationship between them all.
The forbidden love that slowly develops is heated, intense, and delicious. I soaked up every minute of their connection.
There is humor in the dialogue and the writing style in general has a wonderful flow.
I genuinely couldn’t put this book down and I cannot wait to read the next book in this series.
Huge thank you to Netgalley and Bloom Books for gifting me an early copy of this amazing story in exchange for my honest feedback!
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