Wonderfully engaging story of being lost, found and somewhere in between. Although I found the ending unsatisfying and ambiguous the journey of the characters was one of truth.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for allowing me this arc in exchange for an honest review

What a magical book! I laughed, cried and had so much fun. Glendy is a great writer and I'll be looking forward to her next book.

Many others have commented, making it hard to write a useful review. Suffice it to say, Joanna, Gabriel and Ursa are all well drawn. Suspend common sense and go with it for. good read. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC.

Heartwarming, hopeful, poignant, soul-stirring, emotional. I simply don't possess all the right words for everything I experienced while reading this. All of these characters, especially Ursa, have crawled inside of my heart and will live there for a long time. This isn't a romance, although it has romance elements. It isn't sci-fi or supernatural (although Ursa does claim to be an alien who has taken over the body of a little girl who died). Rather, it is a story full of life lessons, hope, healing, and overcoming grief while life is trying its best to knock us down. And please, do not get me started on Gabriel Nash. I love this man big time. I adore how he interacts with Ursa, and I think it may have made my ovaries explode a little. I also love how our heroine, Jo, related to Ursa. There was such honesty and openness. There are some heart-wrenching twists and turns - but then how can there not be when this is a story about a little girl sent down from the stars, only to return home once she has witnessed five miracles - and one of those miracles is the birth of a kitten. I'm gonna go sit in a corner now and self-soothe for a bit, while remembering all the feels this gave me!

Joanna moves to a remote cabin in the woods to do her field study in the nesting habits of birds. After dealing with the loss of her mother and her own cancer, she leads a solitary existence, immersed in her graduate studies.

Then Ursa, a young girl arrives on her doorstep, in need a food and a bath. Ursa claims to have recently arrived from the stars, she has to witness five miracles and then she can return back. Against Joanna's better judgement and usual reserve she is drawn to Ursa and with her neighbour Gabrie,l they throw caution and reserve aside and become attached to her.

Is Ursa from the stars, she appears to be a stranger to common things, yet displays wisdom beyond her 10 years.

I thought this was an unusual, quite haunting story. Joanna and Gabriel each have their own demons and and are fairly insular, yet at no time did I find them difficult to connect with. The story flirts with magical realism, you are never entirely sure the direction the story will take. I read it. It was a pleasure to read something different and I genuinely enjoyed it.

Many thanks to #Netgalley and #LakeUnionPublishing for the copy of #WheretheForestMeetstheStars in exchange for my honest revue.

Have you ever held something as precious as a tale about kindness and love? No? Well, then rush to your nearest bookstore or library and get your hands on this book. Everything in it, from start to finish—the characters full of life and deeply scarred, the humor, the healing through the power of friendship, the kindred spirits, the simplest things—is exactly why I still have faith in the human nature and people of Earth. Some bits may be a bit cheesy, but at this point who cares? Okay, I’m sure I’m still a bit overwhelmed, but, really, I don’t think five stars does this book any justice. You can’t quantify the ones out there in the sky, why should we even begin to try and measure those in this story. Did I mention I loved this book?—autocorrect typed “lived,” and for once I might not argue. And a debut novel, mind you. After sending this review, I’m getting a hard copy of this one.
Thank you NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the opportunity to read an early copy.

A pale faced girl with no shoes on has her arms wrapped around a tree in Jos yard. The girl appears to be around nine years old . the girl claims she can't go home because she came to earth from a constellation. The girl enjoys being at Jos house and had to witness 5 miracles in order to go home.

This book is a real page-turner with a captivating story.
I loved how the three key protagonists and the story evolved page after page and it was quite delightful to watch them build a strong triangular relationship. I absolutely adored all the characters of the story and felt like they were well-thought and not forced.
Ursa's enchanting story grabs the attention of the reader from the beginning and the magic that revolves around her pumps up imagination and helps you question the fundamentals of reality. I usually don't get absorbed into books like this that easily but the simplicity of the story makes it more elegant than mediocre. I especially loved the conversations and clever responses that go back and forth between the Ursa, Gabe and Jo. I think this natural and smooth tone is the backbone of the story and invigorates readers' enthusiasm.
A book is well-worth reading especially if it can create some kind of physical response in your body and I realized that for a couple of times I was actually smiling while reading it.
An overall great read for people of all ages.

(Special thanks to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for sending me an advance reader's copy in exchange for honest review.)

Review published on Booklover Book Reviews website >> http://bookloverbookreviews.com/2019/03/where-the-forest-meets-the-stars-by-glendy-vanderah-review-dramatic-storyline.html

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Oooh all the feels with this book! I mean my heart is still recovering from it. This was one of the best books I've read so far this year. Its a magical book filled with hope, despair, longing, love and fear. Heartbreaking and uplifting all at once. Five Stars from me!

Beautifully written I loved this magical book. I wish I had read it sooner so I could have voted because it deserves to a book read. I highly recommend.

I’m going to buy a few copies of this book right away to give as Mother’s Day gifts. I very rarely have such an immediate and strong positive reaction to a book. Jo’s directness and honesty draws you in, but Ursa’s magic takes root in your heart. The characters are so real and well written. The story it’s self was incredibly unique. I don’t think I’ve read anything like it.

I am obsessed with this book, it’s magic, it’s characters and the charm of it all. My heart is full and I could just float away. I highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone.

The development and depth of the characters and the connections they made with others was so beautiful. I could relate to them each on different levels, yet I was exposed to different perspectives that helped me open my eyes. I cannot say more about the beauty of these characters and their struggles. There is an extremely soft spot in my heart for Ursa that I don't think will ever go away!

SPOILER: I will say I wasn't a huge fan of the slight glorification of affairs. My personal opinion was challenged in this book because of how they viewed all the "positive" effects of the affair. I wish there had been more consequences because it didn't seem very realistic to me.

If you're looking for a heartfelt read with all the aspects of a romantic drama, you need to read this book.

A little girl who claims to be an alien and two broken souls. And we have riveting tale by a debut author.

First we have Jo, a brilliant Ornithologist and a cancer survivor who decided to have both her breasts removed, and now feels alienated by almost all men around her. Then we have Gabe, who has his own demons haunting him, skeletons in his family forcing him to isolate himself from everyone else. Then we have Ursa, who brings these two together in an unlikely friendship.

Let's talk about the suspense first. For most of the book, we are kept in the dark about Ursa's actual identity. She keeps claiming that she's from a galaxy from Ursa Major. But her smartness and brilliance at such a young age doesn't make her tales too unbelievable. What is actually her story? The author keeps you guessing until the very end. And she does a great job at it too.

The romance, now. It felt really organic. The connection between Jo and Gabe developed quite beautifully, through their growing attachment towards each other and to the little girl. There were parts where I felt frustrated with some of the decisions Jo and Gabe took. But I could understand that what compelled them to do these things. I was also not completely convinced by the whole legal dealings in the story. But I didn't even care. Because the writing had me completely captivated. All I cared about was these three characters to live together happily after, because if there was one thing I was convinced about, it was their love for each other.

Glendy Vanderah makes a compelling debut with a story about family, friendship and survival. I definitely look forward to her future works.

Where the Forest Meets the Stars is an emotional, beautiful story. Instantly I knew it was going to be a new favorite of mine. I finished reading the book yesterday and am still at a loss for words to really describe it adequately. I’d recommend this to anyone and cannot wait to (hopefully) read more from Glenda Vanderah.

An amazing, enthralling, heart wrenching book. I loved every moment of it and was sad when it was over.
I loved everything in this book and couldn't put it down.
I will surely look for other books by this author.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC. I voluntarily read and reviewed this book, all opinions are mine.