This book hooked me in from the first chapter. I loved the character development and how the story progressed.

3.75 Stars

Back with Kael and Karina for a final time.
Book two ended with Elodie's husband suddenly showing up - on the day Karina found out that her brother is in love with Elodie. Whoops.
And of course Kael and Karina's happily ever after is still very far away too.

🥂

Well. I'm kinda glad that this series is over now.
I don't know. It was okay but nothing special.
I wanted a Karina and Kael love story with drama and excitement and all the things. And I got a little bit of that (and then it was way too immature and silly) - but I mostly got Elodie and Austin and Mendoza et cetera. Not that we hate them - but they should've gotten their own books.

I also almost stopped reading when Anna made Karina drive a car completely drunk. What is it with you (book and movie) Americans and your drunk driving?
That is NOT a thing that belongs in a book Anna! That's so dangerous. People will read this and think oh - Anna lets Karina do it, so it's totally okay if I get in the car drunk! Not okay!

Well. The book had a few interesting and moving and sad moments. But over half of it was not about Kael and Karina. So I didn't really care all that much.
I read it. But I pretty much only read the parts where people talked to each other - all the other stuff I raced through - if at all.

As I said before. One single book with a great love story and some drama and whatnot would've been great! But here we are - with three way too long books - with too long to wait between books and too much non-Kael and Karina fillers!
This could've been great but it just wasn't.
But don't get me wrong. It was okay. It was totally worth reading. But I just hoped for something better. Something just ... more!

Also? The title? What does that even mean? What kind of light does dust have? And why do we need it to have a light? Maybe it was mentioned in the book and I just overlooked it. So weird though!

The Infinite Light of Dust is the conclusion of The Brightest Stars trilogy. It follows the story of Kael Martin, a soldier just coming back from deployment and getting discharged, and Karina Fischer, the daughter of an Army officer and best friend to his best friend’s wife. This is NOT a standalone. I would suggest reading the first two books back-to-back before this one, so you don’t lose the details. This book picks up immediately after the major revelation at the end of book 2. Karina and Kael have worked past the problems that initially plagued their relationship and are trying desperately to make it work now. They have an undeniable longing for each other but the world around them keeps throwing new things in the way. Although they have worked hard to build this new foundation, stress comes to an all-time high in this book. Secrets, omissions, family/friend drama, struggles with anxiety and PTSD, all come barreling together for these two. I have loved Kael and Karina’s romance from the beginning and couldn’t wait to get my hands on the conclusion to their story. But beyond their romance, I have also grown to care about so many other characters in this series along the way. They have all formed this broken, found family that cares about each other and is just trying to make it through their own struggles. I was a military wife myself so I could absolutely relate to the closeness you form with the families on base around you because sometimes all you have is each other. I really loved most of this book. I have been a fan of Anna Todd’s for a while now. I devoured the After books and Landon’s two companion novels. And I have followed this series from the beginning. It was well written and kept me on the edge of my seat. I will say I was surprised by the ending and left a little confused by it. I wanted another chapter or an epilogue to really feel complete with their story. You can make some assumptions moving forward but I was hoping for something a little more concrete. Maybe that is just me. I still enjoyed it and loved this series as a whole. Thank you Wattpad WEBTOON Book Group, Netgalley, and Anna Todd for a chance to read this ARC!!

I absolutely love this author so much!! Not only did I enjoy the After series by Anna Todd, I love this series as well. Beautifully written, and perfect for contemporary romance fans. I love the development of characters as well as writing style throughout the story. I highly recommend this title along with the other books part of the saga. Looking forward to many more titles by this author to come.

I became an Anna Todd fan after reading the After series. When The Falling and The Burning (The first 2 books in the Brightest Star Trilogy) came out, I purchased them both but didn't read them until just a few days ago because I enjoy reading books back to back when I know they end with a continuation and was lucky enough to get an ARC of the final book, The Infinite Light of Dust.

I read the entire trilogy in 3 days and couldn't put any of them down. You have Kael who is a solider in the Army, back from deployment and waiting on his medical discharge and Karina who is the daughter of an officer in the Army. She has so much anxiety and trauma from her childhood and swears she will never date a solider. Kael is dealing with PTSD along with his battle buddies but is the rock of the group, always doing what he can to protect and help them.

The 2nd book, The Burning, is left off with Karina's twin brother Austin and her best friend Elodie having to face a very difficult situation and picks right back up in this last book. Kael withholds information from Karina multiple times and in her eyes that's as good as lying and she's already forgiven him once before and now feels like she can't continue to live like that, always having to question if he's not telling her everything or if she'll be the last one to find something out. Kael does everything, including withholding certain information, because he truly believes he's doing what's in Karina's best interest and protecting her. She ends the relationship with him because of this.

Even though the book is mainly about Karina and Kael, you really get multiple relationships that are all connected. It's about a family made from the men that served together and their lives after coming home from being deployed. There's a lot of PTSD, drinking, backyard cookouts, some fights, family drama and lots of love.

I really wish there was more to the ending because the way it was left off had me saying "THAT'S IT?!." It does wrap it up for all the other characters but as far as Kael and Karina it's more of a "Let's see what happens with us" but it looks like Kael is gonna get his second chance.


Thank you to Anna Todd, Wattpad WEBTOON Book Group and Netgalley

A compelling third book in the series. I was eager to see how Kael and Karina's story ended. Anna Todd has woven a plot of PTSD, military secrets, family drama, and relationship intrigue through themes of trust, love, and second chances. Karina continues to push her feelings aside and work through the pain while Kael does everything- and sometimes too much- to protect her from the things he knows will hurt. Meanwhile, Karina's brother Austin (who, at the end of book two was caught in an affair with Karina's pregnant best friend Elodie) prepares to leave for basic training and keep himself out of trouble. Near the end of the story, Karina wishes she could just "be a normal 21 year old" which made me internally cringe. Some of the big life questions Karina and Kael suddenly seemed a little too implausible. It was a satisfying conclusion nonetheless, and if their story continued into a fourth book, I would be eager to read that, too.