Thank you so much Chloe C. Penaranda for sending me this ARC!
Synopsis:
In a world abandoned by the celestial guardians and left to suffer a tyrant king’s reign, all Astraea knows is safety in seclusion. With fragmented memories of only five years of her life, she’s determined to discover more about her past, even if that means fleeing the cruel arms that hold her safe from the wicked vampires rumored to roam the land.
But when Astraea stumbles upon the mysterious Nyte, she soon realizes determination alone isn’t enough to guard her heart. He lingers like the darkness that expands between the stars, and soon she discovers her captor’s wicked means of control weren’t based on a lie to keep her under locks after all. In her desperation, Astraea accepts Nyte’s help before she can decide if she might have sold her allegiance to one of the bloodthirsty beings the people of her world fear.
Once their bargain is struck, Astraea’s chance to escape comes in the form of accompanying her best friend Cassia to the King’s Central. There on royal territory it’s the centenary of the Libertatem, a succession of trials hosted by the king in which five human lands compete for a cycle of safety from the vampires seeking blood, claiming souls, and savaging after dark. So when tragedy strikes, Astraea must decide if taking the place of a murdered participant for the safety of her kingdom is a ruse is worth dying for, or if protection—and the answers to her past—really are her strongest desires.
Review & thoughts:
The Stars Are Dying is the first book in Chloe’s new NA Fantasy Romance series and while it can easily be read as a standalone, if you’ve read the author’s other series, you might notice some fun Easter eggs.
Where do I even begin… This book is so unique and often reminded me of a fairytale, I was fully invested in it since the first page and read the whole book in one sitting at night because I couldn’t put it down. I loved our main characters, Astraea and Nyte. Astraea had some difficult past and can only remember the last 5 years of her life, she was perhaps a bit naive at times, but I loved how she grew through the story and how despite her mental struggles, she was fighting for what she wanted. Nyte is the book boyfriend I knew I would love since the first time I met him: mysterious, morally grey with all the 'touch her and die’ and 'who did this to you’ vibes, I absolutely loved him. Astraea’s and Nyte’s relationship and eventual romance is a slow burn, but there was so much tension and amazing banter between them I loved all of it, their story is so beautiful and heartbreaking, I can’t wait to read even more of it in the next book, they are easily one of my favorite bookish couples and I already miss them.
I spent quite some time having no idea what was going on but I loved slowly discovering everything alongside Astraea. I must say I had some predictions as to what happened in the past and could still happen, but every time I thought I figured it out, the author proved how amazing writer she is, the foreshadowing was perfect and when some things became clear in the end, OMG I was speechless. The plot was perfectly paced and I had so much fun reading this book, it was really interesting, the characters and romance were just incredible and there were so many of my favorite tropes (morally grey characters, villain gets the girl, hidden identity, lost memories and many more).
The Stars Are Dying is an absolutely incredible book that I really loved and already can’t wait for the book 2 because OMG that ending! I was shocked, I was crying and smiling through my tears while reading, this book was a real rollercoaster of emotions and the sequel can’t come soon enough.
Rating:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
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