This book to me had the makings of a good book, but because of the brevity of the novel, I felt like the multiple unexplored elements stopped the book from being able to delve in deeper.
Character development was very weak and the relationships in the book were not well built or put together well so it all seemed very fake and not very in depth. Not only that but the main female protagonist to me was very annoying and didn’t really have any redeeming traits except for her entitled attitude.
Not only that but there wasn’t really a well built up conflict and it appeared and was resolved very quickly (and very cheesily) so I was left feeling quite unsatisfied with the novel. If the author had taken time to make sure to fully develop the story and the characters it would have gone a lot better for me.
I received this book on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Okay, so once I got over the fact that this book was basically the idea I had for my own science fiction novel after I finished writing The Sanctuary, I truly enjoyed this book. I think they did a fantastic job with a concept that I’ve been interested in for awhile now and honestly, by the end of the book, I felt MORE inspired to write my own idea later, instead of feeling discouraged.

I loved that it gave me so many vibes from other stories, all mixed together to make a great story. It felt like an episode of Firefly or like they were inspired by Melissa Landers (who is a HUGE inspiration for me, for sure). It had a great mix of fantasy and science fiction, friendship, action and romance. It was a great story from beginning to end and I’m actually really sad that there won’t be more. There’s so much that could happen in this galaxy and I think that was one of the best parts. Audrey and Krystal write just one book but their world building is so great that I want to know more and learn more.

I love the dynamic of Will and Talia. Part of them reminded me of Mal and Inara from Firefly but they also reminded me of a sort of Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy dynamic as well. Their relationship turned reluctant friendship turned romance was great, genuine and not forced, not rushed, not insta-love, which is a huge turn off for me. They had a very believable relationship and I was so glad that it went the way it did. I loved every member of the crew, especially Lux, who just seemed like she’d be an awesome person to be in a crew with.

This was my first book by both of these authors and I’m so glad that I downloaded the ARC. It was a fun read, with incredibly real characters and a well built sci-fi fantasy world and I wish there was more! That being said, I definitely can’t wait to read more from these two!

This book was soo good. It reminded me a bit of the serie These broken stars but it was unique on it´s own way.

Our Dark Stars sounded like the perfect space opera read. I was very excited to get the ARC copy. I really liked this read. It took me a while to get through but at no fault of the book just fault of my life. I enjoyed the main characters and the story. I feel this is not a stand alone but a series. At least I hope so. I really want to read more of this world and I feel like the story was just beginning.

Talia is a princess. She is doomed I mean betrothed to marry a prince that is just crap.Talia's best friend is her junior mock Ailat. Recent behavior of mocks due to a virus has caused some uprising and now people are scared of mocks. The prince, being a douche bag that he is orders Talia to kill Ailat. I know so wrong... Well Talia finds a way to get out of destroying her best friend and things happen a series of hailstorms and oh craps that lead to Talia being sent away from the ship in a pod.. A hundred years fast forward and things have totally changed in the world. This is where Will comes in. He is half human half mock. The mocks run the world and own the humans like slaves. How the humans allowed this to happen no clue but apparently the mocks are smart and fast and strong and are able to dominate the world and space. Will has a hard time fitting in because he is half human and that is just disgusting. He is the captain of a crazy crew of your basic scavengers and they happen upon a pod one day. The pod that sleeping beauty Princess Talia is in. She wakes up to a whole new world and of course the crew and Will has no idea who she is but it all plays out and there are battles and lies and secrets and rebellions and an evil queen and all that good stuff that makes an awesome space opera.


Well I very much liked this book. There were so many good things that were intertwined with this story. What is right what is wrong, abuse and racism among them. I really really enjoyed the story. I had a little bit of a hard time with the half human half mock thing. I had a bit of hard time believing mocks could take over but it all fit well into the story and made for some good times. So I enjoyed it very much.

I really liked the two main characters, Talia and Will. I also very much liked Will's crew. I felt all the characters were developed quite nicely and I just felt like I knew each and every one of them on a personal level. Talia was strong, independent, headstrong and a little naive. But she was growing into herself before everything went to hell in a hand basket. I mean she was about to marry the prince of cruel and conceited to save the world basically and when it came down to doing something she didn't want to do, she refused. Not in a way that I liked but in a way to stop something awful from happening. Of course in the end something awful still happened but that is what makes this a story.
Will was funny but he was also a bit emotional. Not to much. I did want to slap him at time because he thought being part human made him week and didn't see that it gave him humanity. When his humanity finally shown through I was totally team Will.

The romance was slow and really hardly there. There were just moments here and there where you could see things changing just a bit. At first the two had nothing in common. Will confused Talia and Talia was hated by Will. But slowly things change and it was sweet at the end. There was never any passion or heat or swoon moments. Just sweetness.

The book was action packed and I liked that. There was a lot going in and I wasn't surprised when the big was revealed but that was okay. I liked I figured it out and I was correct and it didn't take away from the story at all.

So the ending well wasn't much of an ending. It was good and definitely went somewhere but I need more. I need to see how it plays out and I need to see how the romance flourishes. There is no mention of a sequel but I am crossing my fingers for one.





Really really enjoyed it and I am begging for more. Really I need more. http://jennreneeread.blogspot.com/2018/03/review-our-dark-stars-by-audrey-grey.html

Our Dark Stars was a good science-fiction and fantasy book with romance and twists in the story but it was just good for me and it didn’t exceed my expectations. This book seemed to have so many high points and chances to really thrive but after the initial introduction in the world, I was more pushing myself alongside it than eagerly chasing the story. I didn’t think it was a bad story at all, honestly, it was a great YA book for eager readers and the only issue I had was that I wasn’t obsessed with it so I had to remind myself to read it and finish it especially in the middle when it lulled a little for me.

Occasionally, I’ll read a book and actually think, this would make a better movie, and I felt that way about this book. When the detail isn’t completely mindblowing and the action is fuller like it was in this book I can just imagine how fantastic it would look on the big screen. I feel like my mind didn’t do the descriptions of the events in this book justice with all the thrilling fights and mysteries. This book actually really reminded me of Guardians of the Galaxy, I, Robot and even a little of Jupiter Ascending but more so the look of that movie and not the questionable movie itself.

The thing that actually drew me to this book was the remarkable likeness of cover and similar likeness to the plot that Our Dark Stars had to Their Fractured Light from another writing duo and the whole Starbound series. Whoever was in charge of designing the cover thought they could get more people interested in having such a similar look to find people that would enjoy it the most so it worked because this cover definitely grabbed my interest when I might have just gone past it or just put it onto my neverending TBR.

This book reminded me of a lot of great science fiction and fantasy books but there was some good originality in the way this book discussed their form of racism (humans vs robotics/mock), the wealthy vs the poor and the mistakes a person can make. I really enjoyed reading about the differences between humans and mocks. Especially since we were able to see what the world looked like with both sides in power, therefore, giving you a look into each side of the story that wasn’t as biased as stories with only one side in an uprising. Overall, this was a solid, imaginative story with high stakes action and heart-stopping surprises that I would recommend to YA readers with a love for sci-fi!

I don't read a lot of ya anymore, but this book really captured my attention - in a good way!
Princess Talia has been asleep for a hundred years, until she's awakened by a rescuer in the form of not-quite-reluctant hero Will. But - this is all in space! The "magic sleep" is a cryo-locker designed to save her life, and our hero is the leader of a ragtag spaceship crew (who may or may not be honest folk).
The story itself wraps up within the book - hallelujah for stand-alone novels! Even if it is eventually part of a series, a book in a series should still stand alone and this one solidly does.
A really enjoyable and entertaining read - this is clearly a collaboration that's brought out the best in both writers.

SO SO SO GOOD. Top book of the year so far. I really really really hope there’s more. It’s totally Firefly-ish and Lunar Chronicles-ish. I loved all the characters and the whole story. Talia and Will were amazing together and the ending! I loved how everything wrapped up, it was so well done! LOVED Leo and Lux! Huge fan of this book!!! I would recommend it to everyone!

Happy Publication day to this awesome intergalactic read 🌚

I’m not a huge Sci Fi fan but I absolutely loved this captivating read! It was so refreshing from any book I’ve read before and I love the forbidden romance it started with. Perfect blend of romance, action and female heroism.

I liked that Will and Talia had different POVs during the book, it was lovely to read and know their thoughts especially about each other. This book was so good and had such an easy quick flow that I read it in just a few hours and didn’t want it to end. I look forward to reading more books from these authors.

Thank you NetGalley and Blaze publishing for approving me to read this ARC.

This book alternates between two protagonists. Will and Talia. Let me just day that the descriptive writing in this story is amazing. I read this book in one sitting because it was so good. From the start you are connected to these two characters. You can almost feel their emotions through the authors wonderful writing. With androids and space how can you go wrong? I don't want to spoil this book too much for anyone so I won't say much else about the story. Only that I hope we get to hear more about will and Talia' S lives after this first novel. I am curious to see what happens in this war between what's left of humanity and revenge obsessed droids.

On her eighteenth birthday, Princess Talia Starchaser’s freedom is finally coming to an end. She can no longer spend time with her best friend, Aliat, or fly spacecrafts. Instead, Talia is doomed to marry a man she does not love, and face the burden of ruling over the seven planets.
One hundred years later, Will Perrault finds a crypt floating in space. After searching through space for valuable treasure to buy back his freedom, Will believes he has finally hit the jackpot. But this crypt is not what it seems…
In Talia and Will’s universe, there is a long-raging war between humans and mocks. Mocks are life-like robots who are designed to serve humans. But, mocks are more intelligent than humans, as well as stronger and faster. In Talia’s era, mocks are merely servants who have started to rebel against their masters. In Will’s era (100 years later), mocks have taken over the galaxy and have forced humans into slavery. Humans are considered to be imperfect creatures whose emotions make them dangerous and in need of being subdued.
When I first began this novel, I was utterly confused about mocks. It was only until I was about a quarter into Our Dark Stars that I realized mocks are basically humanoid robots. As much as I love science fiction novels, I found this one very alienating. The story is told in third person with alternating perspectives between Will and Talia. The third-person perspective hindered my ability to fully grasp Talia and Will’s personality. It was as if I were trying to understand who they were by looking through a darkened screen.
Although I had an extremely difficult time getting into this novel, as I read on, I enjoyed the complexities in the relationships between humans and mocks. The political dynamic between the two groups was really intriguing (especially for a young adult novel). If there is one thing I love about the Our Dark Stars universe, it is highly imaginative along the lines of Star Wars with lots of action.

Sci fi at it's best. This sleeping beauty retelling really has it all. The description of Firefly meets sleeping beauty is completely accurate. The fast paced novel jets us into space and gives us an action packed story where love isn't the main focus. The evil queen is the most relatable character for me.
The only downside is the main characters kind of get on your nerves with how immature and obnoxious they base their decisions on. The back and forth to the two times and perspectives really gives you a good storyline to fall into. You may be able to guess what will happen but you will keep reading anyway just because it's a beautifully written story.

I love a good space opera that dances into the realm of a fairy-tale retelling. It's a very specific type of book but it is my aesthetic. This has its weaknesses - the beginning is a little hard to get into, but the story and romance and granularity of the world make up for it. I'm impressed and ready to read more :)

I loved this!

The story line was interesting with a princess waking up from her cryosleep a hundred years later in a ship with a crew of criminal mocks and a captain who was once a flesher (human) but is now all metal and wires. The world building is intriguing in itself and though humans vs machines has often been seen as an idea, this was different. Here, the story doesn’t get biased and doesn’t right tick humanity. There’s a well built plot to reach a time when things change and if it isn’t already evident, I’m trying really hard to apprise without giving away spoilers. Regardless of whatever turns the story brings, it doesn’t let you down, basically.

Let’s talks about something non-spoilery: the characters. I absolutely loved them! Will, the seems-to-be-a-jerk captain of the spaceship, and Talia, the princess who wakes up, are not only well developed but they also made it to my list of instantaneously-fell-in-love-with characters. I don’t recall trying too hard to care for them (or all the supporting ones, too) because I just found myself rooting for everyone at around one-fourth of the story.

Starting with Will who has been added to my list of book boyfriends too—I loved him from the first few pages of his introductory scene where the crew votes against his impending move as a pilot, to which he shrugs off and says, “I am reasonable […] And I don’t know why you believe this ship operates on democracy. Your votes mean nothing.” Contrary to which, he actually proves to be a great captain and friend and just an overall amazing person. Oh, and his specialities include flaunting a half-smirk at times and I don’t know about you but I can fall for those any day. Will kinda reminded me of Jack Sparrow but a little better version because he’s not a complete jerk and neither is he trying to be.

Then comes Talia who was a strong female protagonist and a feminine one at that. What I mean is, she has pretty auburn hair and loves jewelled colour tones and she is ‘technically’ only eighteen but her personality is that of someone who believes in herself and understands the role she can play in bettering this society and ugh, I loved her! Just like Will, I fell in love with her within a few pages itself when she calls the law senseless and stupid for deeming a prince higher than a princess. But she didn’t stop right there. She believed the mocks to be as important as humans are and tried to save her best friend who was a mock herself. Basically, she made a great main character.

The supporting characters were as good as the main ones. The crew, particularly, was exceptional with their diverse personalities. Everyone had a role to play and their lives at stake in this space but they stuck together and trusted their captain who had not only bailed them from jail (or their past, worse, life) but also gave them more than they ever expected. There’s even a hologram projected woman who made me smile so much by her programmed personality.

If you can’t already guess, a romance develops between Will and Talia and I shipped them right from the moment they met. It was the opposites attract trope but they eventually founded a lot of similarities and that made me happy! I even liked how their romance didn’t take a front seat anywhere and the plot was always given more importance than their relationship; it really kept me focused on the story itself, hehe. This would be hard to mention without giving away spoilers but I’ll try my best: toward the end, things get worse (duh!) and the climax doesn’t play out in a i’ll-save-this-person-because-i-love-them attitude. In fact, it’s more of a i-need-to-save-myself-you-and-the-world kinda manner and I loved it for that because truth be told, we have to think of ourselves too in the middle of life-threatening situations. Essentially, they were perfect together.

The pacing is yet another amazing aspect of the story. It’s fast, thrilling, and just the perfect speed that a sci-fi adventure should ride on. I feel the writing has to be given immense credit. The story is narrated by alternate POVs of Will and Talia, and the wonderful imagery, cut-short sentences during action sequences, and subtle revelations worked in favour. Also, a few twists and turns are guarding the end, and though I usually get a sense of what may be disclosed later in the book or what would finally happen, I couldn’t guess much of this. It was pleasantly surprising. In addition to all these amazing factors, there’s a bigger message across the book based on hope and humanity which definitely struck a chord.

I recommend this to all those who love a good science-fiction being played by characters they would love sooner or later, and a pacing that would throw you into a rollercoaster.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Where to begin? I don't even know! This book, ya'll this book was amazing! I will be the first to admit that I'm a sucker for ya sci-fi. I don't even need a synopsis, it's an instant buy, every.time. So I read alot of this genre; but this book still managed to keep me up half the night, needing to know what happened, loving all the twist and turns.

I really enjoyed the sleeping beauty element. As well as the unique language of the characters. The world is ruled by cyborgs but in this story they are called "mocks." Another unique element was the passage of time. The story begins with humans ruling/owning mocks and then in the span of a hundred years, (while Talia sleeps) the humans become the oppressed and enslaved. It made for a slightly traumatizing moment when Talia realizes this world is much different from one she left.

This book also has the sweetest, slow-burn, beautiful to watch romance. BEAUTIFUL.

I loved it! Go read it and enjoy it!

This was such fun! I kept away from heavy sci-fi after reading the disappointing (to me, don't jump at me here ) Carve the Mark, so this brought me right back into the genre with a bang. It put me in mind of The Lunar Chronicles quite a bit (which is a sci-fi masterpiece), but this stood on it's own in story. To be honest though, that gorgeous cover was enough to make me hammer that request button on NetGalley.

The world building was spot on. At no point did I feel lost or detached from the story with terms, history or events. The progression of their reveal was well-done, a considerable feat in my option when you consider this was written by two people. For this, the dual POV worked really, *really* well. Ship captain Will shows us what life is like as a mock a hundred years after the fall of the Starchaser family, and princess Talia shows us what life is like as a human at the height of her family's power. The clashing of the two as the timelines merge together was just so well done!

I really enjoyed the cast of characters. When they mock crew were first introduced, I admit I had difficulty telling them apart. It was too much at once without any real distinguishing qualities. That said, as the story unravelled, I came to know each character well and had soft-spots for several of them. From hard ass Lux to the conflicted captain Will, I came to really love each character. I really liked Talia as the female main character as well. I wish we could have gotten a bit more inside her head though. The snippets we got of her past made me want to know more.

The only thing that kept this from being a five star read was that there were some connections missing. By this, I mean I felt a lack of there being transitions between character feelings. The shift from Talia disregarding mocks as lesser in status, and in turn the Odysseus' mock crew from accepting Talia and agreeing to wholeheartedly help her and the cause she ultimately comes to represent was a little too easy. The emotions, the thoughts, and perhaps that real pivotal event were either missing, glossed over, or not given the power they should have had. I think if the book were fifty pages longer, this issue could have been fixed easily.

I'm not clear if this is a series, but I certainly hope so, and I look forward to reading more!

Our Dark Stars by Audrey Grey and Krystal Wade

I was given this title throught NetGalley, in behalf of the publisher - Blaze Publishing. In return for my Honest Review. 4/5 🌟

Talia Starchaser was the next in line to take the throne of the seven planets. Her plan was to marry, a fly a starship with Ailat (her mock droid). However she knew at least part of that would never happen. Princesses don't fight wars. Not to mention she wasn't a fan of the oil Prince. No, it was what she did not know would happen, that changed everything.

After being sent into cryo sleep, and shot into space, Will Perrult came into her life. He and his crew found her pod years after. A scavenger ship captain, trying to redeem himself to the queen. Will however had secrets of his own. His demoted due to his human ways, and savagery, he was part human after all. Will had been hoping her pod was his big break, and their lives intertwine in ways they would have never thought.

Title is due to Release March 6, 2018.

Fun book! The whole plot line was very unique and I really liked how the story built up. There is Talia who is a human princess with a kind heart even though a bit of a bratty princess. She's not exactly loved by her family and forced to marry a guy no one would really want...Then when have a jump in the time line and under certain conditions she meets Will Perrault. That is where the real fun begins! Some have compared it to Lunar Chronicles, but I would not.

Our Dark Stars by Audrey Grey and Krystal Wade is an interesting read. Don't do what I do and actually pay attention to the dates. It's important otherwise you'll be finding out from Will that something isn't quite what it seems. I'm normally not a huge fan of space novels but it changed my mind and reminded me of the Lunar Chronicles. I fell in love with Will instantly and it took me a while to warm up to Talia. Although I do have a soft spot for especially when it comes to her screw ups. I will admit some of the things were predictable but there were a few twists to have me holding my breath.
If you are a fan of The Lunar Chronicles, Star Wars, and other space movie/novels then you'll definitely love this book.

3.5 stars, solid fantasy tale that reminded me of Battlestar Galactica.

It's the future, humanity has taken to the stars after Earth was destroyed, robots and humans have been at war, and there is just one hope. The story is told from two points of view (one written by each author, I presume) and jumps between the past and present a bit. The writing is consistent, although it feels a bit disjointed at the start. There are little nuances that come through that probably would have been better told from first person rather than third since there are literally two different voices authoring the characters.

I thoroughly enjoyed the story, and while it reminded me of themes explored in sci-fi (particularly BSG) it brought its own creativity to the table of the genre. Unfortunately I found Talia's narrative point of view a bit more difficult to read, perhaps because of her inner monologue but I couldn't really place it. Will's POV seemed more fast paced and certainly less whiney, which considering this is YA I can forgive. What I had a difficult time with was some plot/continuity/logic holes that didn't seem to make sense: why Talia never thought to ask what a flesher was, why they didn't tell her what year it was, Talia's sudden distrustfulness/hate of mocks ("the last person she ever thought she'd received comfort from was a mock" which is disingenuous considering her best friend was one and earlier parts of her narrative indicate her struggling with reconciliation, if a brain was destroyed how are they the same person with their memories when made into a mock. It seemed that the only reason everyone was content to not clue the other in was for no other reason than to create conflict. I would be interested in seeing what is in store for Talia and Will moving forward and hope that this becomes a series.

This is one of those books you want to read due to the amazing cover but you never really think the story will be any good. I was wrong...each character has destinct traits & are well rounded . At times I did think I enjoyed some of the smaller background characters a little bit more then the stars of the story ...but all up, I loved this book !