A very moving account of date rape and the aftermath. Exploring the relationship of the twin brother/sister was so intriguing and sad... how do you move on after such a horrific event? The characters each dealt with the issue in a realistic manner and sought out comfort where they could.
A must read for any high school student. Important and relevant.

Actual rating: 4.5 stars: I cannot speak as to how accurate the representation in this book is...other than the anxiety/panic attack rep, but there is bisexual and gender fluid representation in this book. I liked how Blake touched on subjects and I feel approached them in a real world way. They felt authentic. There was negative and positive in the representation, just as there was with the sexual assault and rape in the story. Not that Blake did right and wrong, but rather, in the story, characters respond to these themes in both negative and positive ways and I feel that is what made it feel authentic. I think the story and characters were very complex and fleshed out and I connected with them very easily. I connected with Mara and how she was pulled in 8 million different directions. I connected with every emotion she was feeling, even if I don't have a first person perspective of what she was actually going through. I read this book 7 months prior to its publication but I cannot wait to hear everyone talk about it. I think it is a very important book to have out there and hope that everyone loves it as much as I do. I docked a half star because I wasn't largely a fan of the ending and I felt that there wasn't closure to some things I would have liked closure to as a reader. I do think that Blake did that purposefully and it is 100% her prerogative to do so. It didn't upset me by any means, but I wish there would have been a teensy bit more.

I will share this full review on Goodreads and on my blog, Rocky Top Real Talk, a week prior to publication.

Unfortunately I’ve been unable to read this book, the file type is not compatible with my devices and unable to download. So sorry.

Thank you to Netgalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Children's Book Group for providing me with an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Author: Ashley Herring Blake Release date: May 15th 2018 Genre:Young Adult Themes:Sexual assault, romance, rape, feminism,sexuality, contemporary, LGBTQ+, family.

<i> It's changed me forever but changed doesn't have to mean broken

Girl made of flesh and bone</i> *

Summary: When Mara McHale's brother,Owen is accused of raping his girlfriend,Hannah, Mara is torn between the truth and her family. As she struggles to define her relationship with ex-girlfriend Charlie, she must cope with her tormenting past and decide whether blood is truly thicker than water.

Wow. This book truly took me aback. At first, I was ready to dismiss it as some ultra-feminist essay-type thingy on rape culture and slut-shaming and boy, was I wrong. The story touches much more deeper issues about society that frankly, need addressing. The way the characters and the story are written feels like an extension of the author's soul and the issues she discusses throughout the book come across as a passion of hers. I would definitely recommend to everyone and would love to read more of Ms.Blake.

Girl Made Of Stars deals with rape culture and victim-shaming and to be honest, it truly touched my heart. By letting Owen go scot-free, Blake brings to light, the countless cases where the abusers do not face criminal charges and teaches us that this is indeed a reality.Honestly, I didn't and still don't agree with Mara's stance of defiance of choosing to violate the school dress code but I do agree with the ideas behind it. That nothing a girl does or doesn't do could affect or encourage a rapist.Hannah and Mara's experiences were eye-openers and doors into the affects sexual abuse has on girls, especially young ones. The feminist aspect,I loved,loved,loved. Hannah,Mara and Charlie are three strong,brave girls with issues but they don't let that get to them.They stick together even when times are tough and they are honestly squad goals.

THE WRITING: Ashley Herring Blake has a poetical,fluent and jarring writing style which fits neatly with the subject matter.Definitely, beautiful writing.

Blake weaves a beautiful and memorable story about loss,love and moving on; one that has both enlightened me and gave me an insight into the sufferings of the abused. 2018 look like a promising
year filled with emotional books.Look forward to reading them.

See my other reviews on my blog: https://bookalert101.WordPress.com

*The above quote(s) were taken from an ARC and are subject to change upon publication*

I had a hard time with this galley. It continually froze and then adobe digital would shut down. Unfortunately, I was not able to read the book.

While I'm of the opinion that any book that challenges society's attitude to rape culture is a worthy addition to the literary world, if you read a lot of them you'll soon see how they all start to look the same. The message they send is important, but it's always the same message from the same point of view. Girl Made of Stars stood out to me because it was from a perspective I don't think I've ever seen before. Mara's twin brother has been accused of raping one of her best friends. Mara's struggle of who to believe, how to come to terms with what you believe and what to do about it afterwards is one that had me asking "what on earth would I do in this situation?". Blake captures the nuances and conflicting emotions perfectly. Excellent read.

Mara and Owen are fraternal twins. They tell each other everything. Or so Mara thought. Owen may have committed sexual assault, inconceivable to Mara. But as pieces of information come out in the open, Mara questions her brother’s actions. Has she shared her life with a stranger?

Girl Made of Stars is not for the faint of heart. It deals with complex situations, and the conflicts that occur when someone you love is not who he appears to be. It’s easy to point fingers at strangers, and we judge celebrities and politicians whenever they’re accused of such acts — as they should be. But would you do it to someone you love? That’s what makes this novel so appealing — and uncomfortable. This is also a great LBGTQ book, for Mara is bisexual. The one downside is the lack of “blame the victim” backlash. Most girls and women don’t report sexual misconduct or assault. We must address this topic at all times — victim-blaming is alive and well, no two ways about it. Other than that, I enjoyed this book, and I give Girl Made of Stars four out of five mocha lattes. Café Girl Out. -- Café Girl Media

Found it difficult to read and abandoned after a number of chapters. Not for me, but it is perfect for other readers.

Owen and Mara are twins, and have always shared everything with each other. Until Owen is accused of rape by his girlfriend, Mara's friend Hannah. Girl Made of Stars deals with the aftermath of the accusation and how the community reacts (spoiler: most of them don't believe her!). What was most interesting was how Mara reconciles the image of someone she loves doing something so unspeakably awful (thankfully she at least believes Hannah) and I think this gives the book a very unique perspective. It was especially interesting in the wake of current events, where countless people I previously admired are being exposed as doing awful things - how do you separate the two, and should you?

Very similar to Asking For It by Louise O'Neill but from the perspective of a friend of the accused, for this reason it's a much easier read but I don't think that's necessarily a good thing - books on this subject *should* be difficult.

(I received a copy of this from the publisher in exchange for an honest review)

Hi there, sorry. I should never have asked for this book. I saw the cover and got excited thinking it was a graphic novel. Honestly, there is nothing about the subject matter that interests me beyond being totally creeped out. I read Speak and that was hard enough. This seems like it would be harder than that. I am glad the book is out there, but I am not going to put myself through it. Sorry. Please forgive me for requesting it. I should have paid closer attention.

I received an arc from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
TW: Sexual Assault

Girl Made of Stars deals primarily with the aftermath of a rape. Mara, our main character struggles throughout the story with coming to terms with the revelation that her twin brother, Owen has allegendy sexually assaulted one of her best friends.
Mara is also bisexual, and is dealing with the aftermath of her breakup with Charlie, who is her other best friend, as well as ex-girlfriend.
Mara’s parents have Owen’s ‘side’ in this story, at least in the beginning. This story is unique in that it doesn’t blame the female (Hannah) at all for what has happened. There’s no ‘she must have wanted it’ talk, which I think is fantastic. No one ever asks to be sexually assaulted and no one deserves to have it happen to them.

Mara is a strong main character. I really liked being in her head as she struggles to come to terms with what has happened.
She also runs a magazine at school where she shows off her feminist tendancies.
Her ex-girlfriend/best friend, Charlie is genderqueer. I’ve never read this in a story before and it was amazing to see the representation and how Charlie is struggling to come out to her parents, after already come out as gay previously.
There are romantic references in the story but they are fleeting at best. I really like how this story is a YA story, but it doesn’t focus primarily on a romance, but deals with heavier subject matter.

This story gets 4 out of 5 stars from me. I can’t wait to read more of the author’s work.

Thank you to Netgalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Children's Book Group
For providing me with an eGalley for review.

This was a beautiful and harrowing read. It deals with the aftermath of sexual assault, with consent and shame and keeping secrets and <i>not</i> keeping secrets, and of course, victim blaming. But the girls in this book aren't victims; they're survivors.

Told from Mara's point of view, we see family bonds and friendships tested as each person deals with the far-reaching effects of the crime. The subject matter is handled in a sensitive but frank manner, and as Mara deals with secrets she's been keeping about her own past, she realises her own voice and fierce independence.

I would definitely be interested in reading more from this author; the writing was lyrical and raw all at once.

<i>*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book.*</i>

Couldn’t download this book to my Kindle. I’d love to read this if it comes in Kindle format

This was my first experience with Ashley Herring Blake and I must say this made me want to read anything she writes. From the get-go, I was sucked into the book and each character. I did not want to put this book down even when I went into work but I had to. HAHA!

The book starts off with the bond between twins Mara and Owen. Which sets the tone for the rest of the book. Owen is then accused of raping his girlfriend, which is one of Mara’s friends at a party they attended. Then it all goes downhill from there. Mara is faced with could my brother actually do this or is my friend lying. RIGHT? How utterly heartbreaking is that?????!!! Though the story is about the tragic subject of sexual assault and what society makes of it, it also dives into love, friendship, and hope.

This story was beautifully tragic. I loved the writing style and how I felt I was right there with Mara feeling her pain. The author wrote this book with such care and consideration to a hard subject that sadly happens too often. Thanks for letting me read this!!!

This is SUCH an important book. I cannot wait to see it change the world.

Unable to download file to read, tried via adobe app on phone and ipad, and also tried on computer with no luck. Absolutely gutted as this did sound like a really good book.

If I can download in the future then I will read it as it did sound really good.

can't give it a star rating as I couldn't get the file to open, so don't look at the book as 1 star I honestly don't know what the book was like as I couldn't read.

So sorry but I cannot download the link in order to read, I'm not sure if there is a problem on my end, but I tried with my kindle, phone and desktop, all of which will not download. Still very interested in reading this book though, if the file works for me in the future I'll happily read so I may edit my review.