"Mara and Owen are about as close as twins can get. So when Mara's friend Hannah accuses Owen of rape, Mara doesn't know what to think. Can the brother she loves really be guilty of such a violent crime? Torn between the family she loves and her own sense of right and wrong, Mara is feeling lost, and it doesn't help that things have been strained with her ex-girlfriend and best friend since childhood, Charlie.

As Mara, Hannah, and Charlie navigate this new terrain, Mara must face a trauma from her own past and decide where Charlie fits in her future. With sensitivity and openness, this timely novel confronts the difficult questions surrounding consent, victim blaming, and sexual assault." [Goodreads excerpt]

I am probably one of the few who people who struggled to get into the story and keep up with the pace which was too slow for my liking. I struggled to warm up to the characters and be invested in their lives even with such an important topic being discussed. I was expecting to feel a lot more, but unfortunately I haven't. The writing is very good and mesmerising so I will continue to pick up Ashley's books!

This is one of the most important books I’ve read in YEARS. It’s heartbreaking yet hopeful at the same time.

It’s more than a story about rape. It’s story about friendship, hope, and learning how to deal and overcome these situations.

I loved how strong Mara is. I loved how she’s a faithful friend, how she isn’t blinded by things, and even though she finds herself in a difficult situation, she deals with things in such an inspiring way. It’s not easy, specially if you’ve been in a similar situation, but wow... I just cannot recommend this book enough! It’s an amazing story and it will show people that victim blaming isn’t the solution to rape cases. We need to have empathy and be understanding and support victims... even when the perpetrator IS your family.

This book will somehow make you think “Maybe if Mara, Hanna, Charlie, and other girls out there can be brave, I can too.”

This is just fucking brave and necessary. This talks about gender – and really talks about it. This talks about rape, sexual assault and its survivors as well. This shows how a sexual assault or rape victim thinks and feels, how they were all changed forever. And calls out victim-blaming and other misogynistic bs.

Mara, the main character is a good storyteller. It just felt easy to put myself in her shoes. She loves astrology, she is a feminist, she is bisexual, she is a loving daughter and twin, and she is a sexual assault survivor. She struggled so much in this book but remained strong and standing despite the invisible wounds and scars. I really loved every second I spent accompanying her and the other girls – Hannah and Charlie – in this journey. I also loved the complex relationship between her and Charlie, their love story just tells how complicated friendship and love can be when combined. I also liked her story with Alex, though I didn’t exactly love it because I was actually shipping them and I personally loved Alex, and I don’t like how things ended. But with how their relationship started given the circumstances, maybe that’s just how things should be.

The conflicting feelings Mara felt between being a twin and a daughter, and being a friend, a girl and just Mara, they all felt raw and deeply felt. Describing Mara’s situation as hard and painful would be an understatement. It was more than that because it changed lives, it changed relationships forever. It caused damages that will never be undone. It was a situation no one wants to find themselves in. And I commend this book for being brave to talk about such a complicated story.

All of the characters, the setting, the plot, the feelings, the issues, basically everything in this book felt so real. So solid, like no one can break this book just like no one can break the girls made of bones and flesh in this book. I also love the fact that there was an organization founded by Mara and Charlie called Empowered. This is an organization the real world needs, and I hope young girls will be inspired and empowered by the idea and follow their lead. And what I love even more? I, myself, felt empowered after reading this book, and I know, I will continue to feel empowered.

Girl Made of Stars, because of this book the main thought I now have is this: For every girl out there who have been a victim of rape or sexual assault, you are a survivor. Even if you are silent or loud, you are fucking brave, you are a fucking survivor. And your story matters – you matter. Girl Made of Stars, this is the story of fucking brave girls that needs to be heard. I highly recommend this one. It would be a loss not to be able to read Girl Made of Stars by Ashley Herring Blake.

I have read many of the authors novels but this was not my favourite. I found it quite slow and hard to relate to the characters. This made me not emotionally interested in the characters and although it was a heartbreaking story, I was not heartbroken reading it.

Incredible YA story that enthralled and kept my interest. Will share this with my customers at the store and let them know.

A gut wrenching tale that explores a difficult topic with grace and sensitivity. Mara's emotional landscape was gorgeously and vividly portrayed, drawing me deep into her conflicted psyche and lingering trauma. This is an empowering read for sexual assault survivors that validates their struggles while giving them hope for healing.

"I can’t think about Owen. I can’t attach his name to Hannah on a hospital bed, bandages on her wrist, tears on her lovely face."

GIRLS MADE OF STARS follows Mara; one half of Mara and Owen, inseparable twins that have always been close. So when Hannah one of Mara's closest friends accuses Owen of rape, Mara is torn on who to believe out of two people she loves and has always trusted. Split between being loyal to her family and her own sense of truth she begins to feel overwhelmingly lost. Making the trauma from her own past come rolling back, she must face her the past and look to her future. She begins seeking comfort in her brother's best friend Alex and her ex-girlfriend Charlie hoping to make sense of her own feelings and everything that she has lost.

This book is truly fantastic and stunning. It's such an important, relevant and heart-breaking read, and the author wrote it in both a beautiful and shockingly real way. It just hit me so hard. Ashley Herring Blake is doing work that most YA authors aren't brave enough to carry out, and she is executing it flawlessly. I can't recommend this story enough.

I can't overstate how much I loved this book. It's one of my top pics for the book award list I'm on. Girl Made of Stars is timely and moving, and I feel that for many teen readers, it is to the #metoo movement what The Hate U Give is to the Black Lives Matter movement.

Sobbing. Just sobbing. I knew I was going to love this book before I even started, but the characters, the conversations and the reactions made me love it even more than I was expecting. I was first attracted to the title of Girl Made of Stars by Ashley Herring Blake, it sounded dreamy and weightless, but when I read the description, I realized this was going to be anything but weightless. The topic of rape is always heavy and always hits me hard and in our current climate, this book is so important and so loud. Blake offers an alternative take on the situation which is also really important; a situation that puts someone you are close to, someone you love, someone who is your twin, in the seat of the accused and turns the whole narrative around.

I was immediately struck by the relationship between Mara and Owen. I loved the strong twin bond, the easy banter and trust between them. They were quick to like and easy to get caught up with. Following them through their everyday life and to a typical high school party was kind of weightless and dreamy, which made it all the more difficult to deal with when things took a dark turn and Owen was accused of raping a girl at that typical high school party.

I also really admired the female friendships in this book. Part of me had a hard time believing that these girls were mature and aware enough to maintain their friendships through these various hardships, but that part of me must forget what it’s like to be a stubborn teenager. I loved how supportive Charlie was even though her and Mara had their own problems to sort out, I loved how Mara felt so much for Hannah, even though she was accusing her brother. There was a moment between Charlie, Mara and Hannah that was really heartbreaking and really sweet, it actually brought tears to my eyes. I don’t feel that emotional about books much anymore, so it was really surprising and touching.

I think what makes this book so great is that it doesn’t spend too much time on the details of the rape itself, but more on the aftermath and how the situation affects everyone around it; parents, siblings, best friends, friends at school. This book is full of complicated relationships and situations between many different characters and it tackles a lot of different issues like gender identity, consent, feminism, sexuality, loneliness etc. and does a really great job of describing how all these things swirl around chaotically in the head of a teenage girl. The reactions and thoughts and confusion were so real and so hauntingly familiar, it brought back a lot of that anxiety and confusion I remember feeling as a teenager, which was really powerful. I pretty much just sobbed through the last quarter of the book, I can’t even…

I’ll say it again, this is a loud and important book, screaming about the casualties that are left in the wake when we take sides and victim blame and shame and don’t listen. Blake does an incredible job of highlighting the aftermath of a situation like this and writing about the heartbreaking affects this takes on many different relationships. Still sobbing.

This is a beautiful story about Mara and how her life is so quickly turned on its head by her twin brother Owen. I was absorbed into the challenges she faces with the rift that is caused in her family and the relationship and friendships she struggles to keep together. I was quickly pulled in to her own story she struggles to tell and comes to the surface slowly throughout the book. Just as she does, I was tossed between sides of her twin brother or her best friend and what is right and wrong. It highlights really well the issues of consent, abuse and prejudice attitudes which are so important for young adults to know about and it does this in a really captivating way. I loved this tale and became connected with Mara and her complexed life. I would definitely recommend to anyone, paticularly young readers as it's a great read and discuss the really important issues of today.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Children’s Book Group for the advanced reading copy of Girl Made of Stars by Ashley Herring Blake. I can't wait to start this book.

After a high school party Mara finds out that her twin brother Owen is accused of raping her friend. Mara doesn’t know what to believe or who’s “side” to be on. On one hand Owen is Mara’s twin and she can’t imagine the brother she has known since before birth could be capable of something so cruel. On the other hand Mara has been raised a Feminist and to always believe a girl/woman’s story no matter what. As soon as I heard the concept of this novel I knew I needed to read it as soon as possible.

This book explores the topics of identity, consent, rape, and rape culture. This couldn’t have been an easy novel to write but Blake did it in such a wonderful, heartbreaking way. It was impossible not to love. Ashley Herring Blake’s writing style was so fast paced and easy to read, I will be reaching for her books in the future.

You know those books that just leave you feeling raw? Girl Made of Stars is absolutely one of those. From page one my entire body was just full of dread because you know what's going to happen. This book was so heart wrenching but god, it was so beautiful. I do want to caution readers - this is a book that deals heavily with rape and sexual assault so treat yourself with care. I cried and teared up many times throughout this book, but it's such an important one and I think everyone who can read it should.

Owen and his twin sister, Mara, have been close for their entire life--bonded by their twinhood, joint storytelling, and love of the stars--particularly their "own" constellation. But that all changes when Mara's good friend, Hannah, accuses Owen of rape. Suddenly Mara finds herself torn between her friendships and her family. Even worse, she has no one to talk to, after breaking up with her girlfriend/best friend, Charlie. Everything feels unknown and confusing. How will Mara navigate this new world--and what will she do about Owen and Hannah?

This novel. Oh my goodness. It will break your heart and yet leave you speechless with wonder. It's so beautiful. It started off with a quote from Virginia Woolf (The Waves), so I knew it was going to be good. And it certainly was.

The book is so achingly gorgeous and real, with its realistic look at high school. It portrays how both amazing and awful kids can be at this age. Mara is such a lovely character. The Owen/Hannah situation leaves her conflicted and forces her to face something terrible in her own past. By placing Mara in such a difficult situation, Herring Blake also does a good job of showing how hard it is being the female in this situation and how so few people believe the girl. It's such a timely commentary (albeit a sad one). It may not always be easy to read, as we see how hard things are for Hannah (and Mara), but it's so well-done.

I mean, really, this book is just heartbreaking at times. And yet I was riveted. These kids, with their big problems, so many of them living other people's dreams. It was so poignant, so true to so many of my own experiences. And the relationships here--well, wow. I mean, for one thing, we get a truly bisexual character in Mara, which is so refreshing. And then Charlie is genderqueer/nonbinary. It was so wonderful to have these characters in this novel, as a positive representation for teens--living real lives, with real problems, but in no way serving as the villain or maligned character. I was incredibly impressed. I wish this novel was on the shelf of every high school (well, on the shelves everywhere, honestly).

The girls in this book are in a group called Empower, which stands up for females--how they are portrayed, the double standards they face, and more. They are so strong, despite all the hurdles they face on a daily basis. Honestly, despite so much sadness in this novel, there is so much hope. So much strength. I adored Mara. She is wonderful -- such a strong, amazing, and lovely character. I found myself rooting for her as if she was my own kid.

I loved this one. I don't even remember how or why I stumbled across it and requested it, but I'm so glad I did. This is a beautiful, powerful book about the strength of human existence. The girls in this novel will make you cry, make you laugh, and make you both despair for and have faith in humanity. I will be tracking down the rest of Herring Blake's books for sure.

I ended up not being able to read the book because it was too triggering for me, but my friend ended up reading my copy and writing a guest-review for my blog. This is the review:

The lovely people over at HMH teen offered to send me a review copy of Girl Made of Stars. I immediately jumped at the opportunity because I read another book by Ashley Herring Blake in the past (How to Make a Wish) and I absolutely adored it, so I was certain I was going to love this one as well. I was aware of the trigger warnings for this book, but after I got it in the mail my mental health started doing not-so-great things so I knew I wouldn’t be able to read and review the book. But I didn’t want the ARC to go to waste either, so that’s where my friend Lia jumped in. She was kind enough to read the book, and write a guest review for it. And here are her thoughts on the book:

Girl Made of Stars is a book that just hits the right mark every time. The characters, the story, the message, it all just fits together perfectly and is weaved into a complicated, emotional, and engaging experience. It is about a girl, Mara, whose twin brother has done such a horrible thing: he has raped his girlfriend, who is also Mara’s friend. And now Mara has to deal with trying to merge that perfect picture of her beloved twin brother with an act of a horrible person.

It is not an easy book to read. Mara is incredibly conflicted, her emotions are all over the place and she doesn’t know whether she can still trust and love the people around her. Because those people all have their own story of who Owen is and who Hannah (Owen’s girlfriend) is. It also makes you question everything: good people can do bad things and people you care about can hurt others, and how do you move on from something like that? Is there a way to move on?

I loved the characters in this book. Mara is very relatable in the way she deals with things and I loved being able to see her develop throughout the story. She’s bisexual and is still in love with her ex-girlfriend and still best friend, Charlie who is genderqueer (nonbinary but uses she/her pronouns) and their relationship is amazing. All the characters are just so complex, with their own views and opinions and they are all a little messed up, but that’s how life is: it’s not perfect.

This book has such a great writing style. The writing style is simply wonderful to read. Sometimes I found myself just rereading paragraphs just to admire their beauty. It gives Mara such a strong and distinct voice, which I loved.

This book is messy but perfect, it hits all the right chords, it made me think and cry and laugh. It’s a book about a tough topic, and it’s not easy to read at all times, because it feels so real. I think that’s really the strength of this book, it’s not just a story, it dragged me in and made me feel all the things Mara is feeling. I cannot help but absolutely love this book and everything about it. I definitely recommend it but with a warning for rape and sexual abuse.

“I don’t look back at Owen, but I can’t help but picture us sitting on the roof, faces turned towards the stars. That’s how it would go if all of this weren’t happening. If there weren’t all these lies and a stranger wearing my brother’s face between us.”

“There’s this feeling inside me that I can’t explain. I’m either dying or being reborn, joints coming apart or melting together, all my blood leaving me or swelling my veins.”

“What happened is simple. It’s a tangled mess of simple facts, a kaleidoscope of right and wrong. The aftermath – that’s what complicated.”

Girl Made of Stars by Ashley Herring Blake is a magnificent book. A tough, heartbreaking read. I strongly recommend this – but please be aware of content warnings for rape, sexual assault, and victim blaming. I will be discussing these things in this review as well, so proceed with caution.

My rating: 4,5/5 stars.

This book does an incredible job at portraying issues surrounding consent and rape culture, trauma, and how to deal with finding out that someone close to you has done something horrible. It’s about truths that are hard, impossible even, to deal with, and about having to deal with them anyway.

I am impressed with how this book showed victim blaming, showed how prevalent it is and how ugly. How people will simply dismiss survivors of sexual assault because the perpetrator happens to be someone they like; how they will turn against the survivor; how bystanders do nothing about it. Though she hates it, Mara knows her brother is lying, but their parents refuse to see it. Kids at school turn against Hannah, and only a select few give her support. It’s exactly why Mara never told anyone about the time she was sexually assaulted: she didn’t think anyone would believe her.

Mara’s sexual assault is told in a flashback. The entire chapter is in italics so you can easily skip it if it’s too much; you’ll still understand the rest of the story. It’s already quite clear before and after the flashback that she was assaulted by a teacher three years ago. The lasting impact of the assault is clear throughout the novel. It’s also clear why Mara was never able to tell anyone, showing how hard it can be to speak up.

One of the lasting effects of the assault is that Mara has trouble in her relationship with Charlie – her genderqueer best friend and, by the beginning of the book, ex. Mara is scared she can’t be the girlfriend Charlie wants her to be, and so she breaks up with her. Their relationship was a beautiful thread in this book.

I also loved the portrayal of queerness. Mara is bi and Charlie is genderqueer and likes girls. I was thrilled to see a genderqueer love interest and it is amazing representation. It was casual, while still paying attention to the struggles they both face. Charlie is still figuring out her gender identity and while that’s not the focus of the story, it was portrayed so accurately. The questions she was asking herself about what it meant to be genderqueer, what pronouns to use, how to express your gender, when and how to tell your parents, all resonated with me.

This book is so sympathetic to all survivors of sexual assault and rape, no matter how they cope, whether they speak up or not, whether they press charges or not, no matter how complicated the situation is. I think Girl Made of Stars is a must-read for anyone who is able to read it. My heart is still aching thinking back on it. (And I mean that literally.) This is definitely one of the best YA contemporaries I’ve ever read.

Trigger warning: Rape, rape culture, sexual assault

"Girl Made of Stars" follows one of the twins, Mara, as she deals with the aftermath of her twin brother Owen assaulting her close friend Hannah. As you read through Mara's experience, you can see the difficult situation she is placed in when she is basically forced to choose a side: believe her twin brother and protect her family, or believe Hannah and protect her friend. (spoiler) It's only until the end of the novel where you realize Mara was a victim of sexual assault and has been keeping this secret from everyone for so long. When Mara begins to come to terms with what happened to her she is finally able to feel empowered.

This novel was tough to get through. Besides the central conflict with Mara, Owen, and Hannah, I couldn't tell at times if the novel was going to be a romance between Charlie and Mara or Mara and Alex. I felt like the romance piece took away from the central message of the novel

Girl Made of Stars is about twin brother Owen, and sister Mara who are super close. One night they went to a party but Mara wanted to go home. Later Owen was accused of raping his girlfriend and now the bond between the two has been broken.
Mara is best friends with her brother's girlfriend and she believes her over her own twin who has supported her being bisexual and dating her other best friend more than anyone else. Mara is torn and misses her twin and hopes they will be able to repair the rift between them.

There is a lot more going on in this story but I don't want to give it all away. Great story and well worth the read.

Trigger warnings for rape, sexual assault, victim blaming, & abuse.

This was the most powerful book I have ever read. Mara's character was incredibly written. She was real and raw, struggling with her twin brother being accused of raping her best friend and his girlfriend. Meanwhile, Mara has been keeping a secret in for three years. This novel shows the disbelief, anger, and sorrow that happens during a rape case. Where the girl isn't believed and she's dismissed however she doesn't move on like the others and the assaulter. Blake shows that this can happen to anyone, anywhere like a drunken boyfriend at a high school party.

Mara's character was fantastic. I really appreciated her and her character development throughout the novel. She goes through a lot of emotions and overcomes a lot toward the end. I also really respected the representation; Mara is bisexual and her best friend/ex-girlfriend Charlie is genderqueer & closeted.

This novel had me on a rollercoaster of emotions: anger, disgust, and sadness for Mara and Hannah and toward Mara's mother who made me so, so angry. I really enjoyed seeing all of the sides of Owen and Hannah's story, especially how the families reacted so differently to the case. You see how not everyone knows how to handle something so big as rape.

There is also the aspect of astrology and horoscopes. Owen and Mara are Gemini's and really have a special connection to the stars. It was a very, unique touch to the storyline and connected Owen and Mara's relationship.

Although, some flaws I found were that I didn't know Mara's age and that confused me. I felt myself still questioning how much I knew about Mara aside from her story. I was still super satisfied with this book. Highly, highly recommend this.

you can probably tell from the synopsis, this book is about sexual assault. But it is probably different from any other book about sexual assault you’ve read in the past, it sure was different for me

Girl Made of Stars is told from the point of view of a girl, Mara, whose twin brother is accused of sexually assaulting one of her best friends. Just try to imagine how that must feel like. I know I can’t. I tried to put myself in Mara’s shoes while reading this story but it was very hard. In my head things were either black or white and there was no in between. As soon as Owen’s girlfriend said he assaulted her, I hated him. Immediately. But from Mara’s perspective there are more shades than black and white because she loves both of the people involved and she wants to believe both sides of the story. Which led to me being frustrated and angry because I kept thinking, “Mara, why don’t you hate him?! Why don’t you tell your parents you think he is lying?!”, and at the same I had this thought, “of course she can’t hate him, he’s her freaking TWIN”. It was like a war inside my mind that drove me crazy and made enjoy the story a little less. That was all on me. And I felt like I had to share that with you because that’s the reason I can’t give five stars to this book. I think my empathy flew out the window.

Aside from my inability to connect with Mara, I loved everything in this book. I loved how honest and heart wrenching the story was. I loved how the author handled the topic of sexual assault. I loved that this was a story about overcoming the trauma of sexual assault and of people finally speaking up about it. And I sincerely believe most of you are going to love all of those things too so please, please, please give it a chance.

Girl Made of Stars is, by no means, an easy read. In this book tackling rape and rape culture, Mara's twin brother Owen is accused of raping Hannah, one of Mara's friends. This premise caught my eye because the accused is so close to the main character.

The way Blake portrays friendship in light of everything is something to admire. The way Hannah, Charlie, and Mara support each other is beautiful. It was a great way to show how strong these girls were, even when it seemed like the world turned against them. I wish there could have been a bit more with Mara's parents, especially her mother, who seemed to be the most supportive of Mara's feminism until things got mired because her own son was the accused.

A little to its detriment, this book has a lot. Not only was there the fall-out from Owen's crime, there is also Mara's past (content warning: child molestation), an exploration of Charlie's gender identity, and Mara navigating romantic relationships. The focus seemed to be a little lost, especially toward the middle. I understand the intention, but it just didn't work for me. Particularly from a narrative standpoint, where every thread had its own dedicated ending, which felt off for a book that did such a good job leaving questions unanswered and allowed the reader to confront the subject matter almost in their own time. From a craft perspective, the amount of hand holding jarred me from Blake's otherwise surreal and gorgeous writing.

Books like this are important and, perhaps, this book just wasn't for me.