Cover Image: Oxford Star

Oxford Star

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Member Reviews

I received this book from Grape Books through NetGalley and this review is based on my own opinion.

Oxford Star was an adorable romance set in college. I love boyband/rockstar/celeb romances and this one had such an original take on the life of a boyband member struggling with anxiety and a girl who went to college to support her mom and little sister but who doesn't really belong in the law department.
While the summary of the book may suggest this will be a rockstar romance, the majority of the book is set in Oxford College which made it fall more into the college romance category for me but I still loved this book.

All characters were so lovely and I loved how Jack and Lucy immediatly became friends with Alfie and Cedar and their group of friends.
I also really adored nerdy Jack with his NASA outfits.

This book is perfect if you're into; enemies to lovers, fake dating, rockstar/boyband, second chance, college romance.

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Lucy and Jack are THE cutest! A rock star wanting a break from stardom goes to college for 8 weeks, realizing his lost love is also in the same program!
Cue make ups, make outs and a couple you will root for from page one!
With twists (like crazy fans, paparazzi, a stiff manager) this book was So fun!

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I eat the fake dating plot up everytime, unapologetically. I also do adore second-chance romances so this book combined both in a really engaging way. I also think the representation in this book was really well done (plus-size and mental health representation). Overall, a really enjoyable read.

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Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book! The title and this beautiful cover drew me in and i was excited to read this book! I will be recommending this book to others for readers advisory.

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I love the premise of this story and it is such an intriguing plot line!

Due to time I will not be giving a full review here.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

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.5 stars

Jack and Lucy haven’t been in each other’s lives since the day he betrayed her, shooting him to stardom and smashing her dreams to pieces. Now, they’re both attending Oxford University. He wants a break from being in the spotlight, especially for his mental health. Lucy isn’t happy that he managed to so easily get into Oxford, and she’s cold toward him. But she needs help, and he offers to help her if she helps him by fake dating him.

I loved the plus-size representation. But more than that, I loved that Lucy didn’t hate her body; she accepted and loved herself the way she was. It was also nice seeing Jack’s struggles with anxiety and panic attacks because he was famous, yet he still struggled with mental health “problems.” It just showed that he was human.

It was great seeing the passion reignite between these two as they fake dated. They had so much chemistry and such a great connection.

This was a great second chance romance between two lovers turned enemies (well, it was mostly a one-sided dislike) to lovers again. And there’s just something about this being set in the UK that makes it seem more charming.

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This book did struggle to to start flowing in the beginning.
i did struggle with sides stories because i did not read previous books :(
Nice back story but some parts unbelievable (astronomy course without maths and phisics pre studies)
some parts too slow some rushed
Nice dual POV
Thank you netgalley and Laura Bradbury for allowing me to read this book.
3 stars

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What a strange book. I wanted to love it, especially give the plus size FMC but it was just not good. The plot and choices the MCs made was confusing. I didn’t believe in their love at all and the MMC was weirdly horny too often.

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Definitely a slower paced romance. Was hard to get into. I really felt the betrayal that Lucy felt from Jack and the anxiety Jack faced.

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Such a cute romance, appreciated the plus-size, mental health (anxiety) and LGBTQ+ representation in this book.

Jack and Lucy had such a great connection and it really showed through in Laura Bradbury’s writing.
Would definitely recommend this book and read again.

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This was such a cute romance but still with so much emotion and depth. This is a very well written romance with such a charming backdrop and characters

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This was the first time I've ever read anything by this author. I enjoyed the story. I did like the connection between Jack and Lucy. There were a few things that I didn't like, like Lucy's mother leaving everything up to her after her dad's death. Also the way Jack's parents were towards him. In the end the book was a bit slow moving at times I wish they would've talked sooner about their feelings earlier on in the book. I felt like that ending with the manger's assistant wasn't needed, but the epilogue was a cute one. I'm glad that they both got their happy ending in their lives and with each other.

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Literally all the reviews I saw on this book were 5 stars and for good reason! This story was adorable, charming and addicting. I truly couldn't put it down. Thank you so much for the copy!

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This book? Chef’s kiss. The chemistry, the tension, the plot, Oxford Star has it all. And when you realise the implications of the title? It hits you right in the feels. Jack and Lucy feel like they’re made for each other. The way they support each other through everything, whether on purpose or because that’s where their hearts lead them, it’s so wholesome. In fact, all the side characters are so sweet too, and I cannot wait to read Oxford Wild either. The way the author is able to convey Lucy’s emotions is out of this world. Lucy’s POV is my favorite part of the book. The author is able to flawlessly capture Lucy’s feelings and writes them in a way that makes your heart ache for the little girl. The first book I read by Laura Bradbury was Unlikely Match, and I remember how that book completely changed me forever. This book was set on a high pedestal even before I started reading it, but it came through as one fine book. I appreciate the author’s representation of Lucy and plus size characters, but I feel like she not able to capture Jack’s responses as well as she did for Lucy. That is not to say she did not emphasise on the importance of panic attacks, but it just feels like the author could not capture all his feelings into one. As much as Jack’s strong emotions for Lucy and his compassion for her or clearly visible through the pages of the book, his struggle is somehow underrated and repressed as compare to how much importance it should actually warrant.

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Such a cute romcom! Good representation of curvy girls and those with an anxiety condition. As someone who is both, I appreciated seeing myself in this cute, sweet story.

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Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. Oxford Stars is an enemies to lovers, second chance at love, rockstar and fake dating plot that deals with real issues of anxiety/panic attacks. Lucy and Jack reconnect at college after 4 years. Lucy is trying to get a law degree in two years to support her family and Jack is a famous rockstar dealing with anxiety trying to follow his true passion of astronomy. They’re forced into a fake dating scheme and they fall in love. Although, I found the book engaging at times I didn’t fully connect with the plot.

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I absolutely love this book! So much that I'm going to buy the authors backlist!!
This is a wonderful rock star romance, where both main characters are going to Oxford.

Many thanks to Net Galley for an e-book in exchange for an honest review.

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A truly enjoyable take on one of our favorite tropes, we love a fake-dating conundrum! I really loved the amount of inclusion in the story, it was easy to relate to the story as they worked towards the second chance at romance.

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This book was everything I hoped it would be -- a great romance with complex characters, amazing tropes and with many, many important topics discussed!

The romance between Lucy and Jack was a delight to read about and, while the author used a lot of tropes here, it didn't feel convoluted at all. It's a mixture of enemies to lovers (kind of second chance as well), rockstar/one-of-us-is-famous, forced proximity and fake dating. That's a lot and I was scared it would quickly become too much and an example of a book written around tropes, not with them. But the author has written them so well that all of them felt natural to the storyline and kept me wanting more. I loved both main characters a lot -- Lucy, a plus sized, incredibly strong meant-to-be singer, and Jack, an adorable nerd with eyes only for his star.

Jack deals with anxiety and panic attacks, and Lucy deals with grief. These topics were handled with utmost care, making the reader feel what the characters do. On top of all of that, both of the main characters are trudging through life while complicated familial relationships hold them back. The romance is sweet, spicy and made me giggle, but these topics are what made it a definitive five star read for me! Add in an academic setting and it's truly a whole package. I cannot recommend it enough!

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Oxford Star is an enemies-to-lovers, fake dating, second chance, celebrity / rock star romance with a plus sized heroine and panic / anxiety rep. Brace yourself for a SLOW-BURN (but steamy!) romance that explores the complexity of love, dreams, and redemption under the dreaming spires of Oxford University.

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