I really enjoyed this book and thought the astrology aspect was a really cool touch. As someone who is pretty into astrology, I loved the way in which it was woven into the story line and the way it surrounded the main and side characters. I'm also someone who reads a lot of romance and Chick-lit style books and have never come across anything similar to this novel and it's use of both astrology and little mini stories on various characters. Therefore, I was constantly entertained and never bored while reading it. I'm looking forward to seeing this on bookshelves and talking about it with customers the next time they ask me for a recommendation.

I included this one in my Ravenclaw book recommendations for good reason. It’s a bit like Divination class without tests. This is a story about fate, love, and the choices that we make in the face of both. It is fun, mischievous, fun-loving, and very witty. I have given Star-Crossed by Minnie Darke 4 out of 5 stars.
I absolutely love astrology, and was so excited when I read the premise of this book. I absolutely had to read it, and I am so glad that I did. The story is set in Australia, which was a fun change of pace from the mostly American and British books that I typically find myself reading. The chapter titles are each zodiac sign, with the chapters in between titled “cusp”. It is the simple but fun details that add to what makes this book so good.

Our main characters are Justine (Sagittarius and serious skeptic) and Nick (Aquarius and true believer) who grew up together but fell out of touch. Justine uses her position at work to attempt to sway Nick to choosing to give her a call for a date, but it goes south rather quickly. It’s quite a smart book, and I picked up many little details peppered throughout each chapter that related to the chapter title. For example, in Taurus there were places, events or otherwise that related back to the bull or characteristics of the bull. Darke really made this an entertaining read on many levels. The main characters felt believable and relatable, if not a little predictable.

If you are a fan of movies like New Year’s Day and Love Actually, you will love this book as well. I could see this easily adapting to the big screen. There were many other stories told in Star-Crossed in a similar way of those movies. At the beginning it was hard to follow along to all of these interweaving characters and stories, but as the book progressed it became more obvious how they were all tied together. I really appreciated that Darke mostly kept these other stories within the “cusp” chapters so it was easier to keep things organized in my mind.

I absolutely loved this book. It did take me a little bit to get into the flow of, but once I was hooked, that was it! Although some of the side characters and storylines seem to not have much to do with the main storyline, it eventually all comes together and makes complete sense.

I'm not one to take horoscopes completely seriously or plan my life choices based on what they say, but I do find astrology interesting and it was an interesting and different theme for a novel like this.

I really identified/connected with the main character of Justine, and maybe that's what made me like the book so much,

Overall, I'd recommend this book to anyone who likes cute romantic comedies but is looking for something with a different setting and a different type of plot. I think this book will be very popular once it is released.

I received an advanced digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book! Slow at times, a little long, but overall I loved this story as well as Justine and Nick. I especially liked how the author connected all the ancillary stories. A great read. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read!

I think my 2o's something self would have enjoyed this more than I do in my 40's. I couldn't get quite swept away in the characters . I liked the premise I just didn't fall for it completely. I read contemporary romance these days when there isn't a good rom-com to watch. A movie takes a few hours to watch. So when I read romance I want it to be a quick read . This story was longer and more detailed. That isn't necessarily a bad thing just not what I look for when I read romance. However, I did end up enjoying the story when I was able to invest some time to it.

I LOVED LOVED LOVED LOVED this book!
Thank you so much for sharing this title with me.
I hope there are many more books from this wonderful author.
Thanks!
Lisa

While it wasn't the absolute best book I've read, I enjoyed this one as a fun romp outside my comfort zone. I have a lot of patrons who love anything to do with astrology, and I know it'll gain traction at my library. I've ordered copies already. Thank you

The beginning didn’t grab me but I stuck with it and I’m glad I did. A very sweet tale of people and their star signs. The little side stories and how they connect with the main characters was charming. I especially loved Justine’s running conversations with her brain! Read it!

I liked the summary and after reading it, I realized that was all that I liked. Justine and Nick were just plain boring. The story felt as forced as their chemistry. Honestly, I almost skipped to the end to find out what happens after the first few chapters.

This is closer to a 4.5 for me. It was a slow burn, but once I got halfway through, I tore through it. It was super romantic and had a One Day in December vibe. I loved the characters and the humor. There were times the third-party storylines confused me and at the beginning I wasn't in love with them. Eventually, the author tied them all together brilliantly and I do think they added something special to the book.

I'm not entirely sure how to fully explain how I feel about this book. It is a complicated twisting journey of not just a few people, but many. It's really about the consequences of your actions and how they affect a lot more people than you expect and how you really just cannot mess with fate. The author's writing style is pleasant and gives the book a fairytale like feel. It was an enjoyable read, one that I will definitely recommend.

I found this book to be interesting, and as unpredictable as our monthly horoscopes. The writing is detailed, descriptive, and includes the internal discussions we all have with our brains. This book weaves in how astrology comes into our life. Some choose to believe, others don’t, but we all have choices to make. Do you seek a little guidance from the stars? Pisces, with Sagittarius rising here! Justine tried to coax Nick along to disastrous results. I enjoyed it. I cringed a lot, but ultimately decided to keep reading.

It took a long while for the characters to endear themselves to me, but when they did I was all in. I struggled with Justine’s choices in the workplace. Does anyone behave this way? And she was lightly reprimanded for her bad behavior. This was a hard pill to swallow. Also, I didn’t understand the role of the minor characters, but it all comes together at the end. Lovely descriptions, and really lovely ending.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

I was ultimately not impressed with this book, despite having high hopes for it. Justine's horoscopes felt too manipulative and made me question her worthiness of Nick. The writing was also oddly dense and did not flow the way I would expect it to.

I have to agree with other reviewers about the astrology aspect of the book taking itself too seriously - because of this, it was hard to get into because I felt like I was being pandered to the entire time. It's a shame because the premise was very promising and sounded very cute and whimsical - however, it was just a bit more than I bargained for.

I am a big fan of romantic comedies and romance books but unfortunately I was left a little bit disappointed with this one! When childhood friends Justine and Nick bump into each other Justine is hopeful that a romance will spark. Nick loves to read horoscopes and his favourite ones just happen to be printed in the magazine that Justine works for! Justine tries to give Nick some hints about his love life and his professional choices by taking his horoscope into her own hands at the magazine. Justine’s meddling not only impacts Nick’s choices but also the choices of some other people who take their horoscopes very seriously.
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I thought it was interesting how Darke would write about Justine’s newly written/ altered horoscopes and then include information on other characters and how this also impacted their lives but I felt it was just too much for this book. There were too many characters introduced, and this was done too frequently, for me and I found that it really took away from the main plot and characters of the book. I was actually getting frustrated with all the brakes in the main story line.
I found all of the added characters and their story lines made it difficult for me to make a connection with the main characters individually, let alone root for them as a couple. There was a lot of ‘telling’ to progress relationships and not a whole lot of ‘showing’, and in my opinion, seeing relationships form and getting those warm fuzzy feelings are some of the best parts of reading this genre! I would read another book by Darke as there were parts of her writing that I did enjoy but the format of this book just wasn’t for me.
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Thank you to Crown Publishing and Netgalley for a copy of this novel!

I was sent an eARC of this novel from the publisher in exchange for my honest review. This does not change my view in any shape or form.

I wasn't sure what to expect of Star-Crossed beyond a potentially sugary sweet, or light read. All I knew was that I couldn't miss it because (a) the synopsis had a very cute feeling to it and (b) I am shallow and that cover is s-t-u-n-n-i-n-g.

It had me at astrology and childhood sweethearts reuniting. Plus, the concept of fate. I wanted to see how it all tied into one another. I wanted to see if the use of tropes would make the story predictable or if Darke had some tricks up her sleeves. The end result? The knowledge that there's just something about Star-Crossed and it's definitely one of the can't-miss reads of 2019.

Some might even say it's written in the stars, that you should be reading it.

Wow, who let me review this? Back to the book. Back on track.

First of all, it wasn't at all what I expected. Sure, it was soft and fun and interesting. It happened to be a different brand of it than I expected and that really pleased me. It's always fun to have something be different than expected and Darke really managed to do-so.

That being said, I really loved how Star-Crossed was written. It was easy to fall into. A lot of readers will, like me, find it impossible to put down. Minnie Darke pens something truly beautiful with Star-Crossed and that's undeniable to the highest degree. While so many authors stumble or fall victim to their plots or prose, Darke doesn't--and this is, perhaps, one of the biggest draws of Star-Crossed.

There were some qualities to it that I wasn't terribly keen on but that's more of a personal preference and less of a negative note about the story. If you're looking for something to give you the warm and fuzzies, Star-Crossed is absolutely the book for you--all the sparks of Justine and Nick's connection are enough to keep you focused and full of warmth.

A cute rom-com. Not perfect, a little confusing or cringe-worthy in parts. Confusing: the interspersed chapters that followed other characters affected by Justine's interfering with the stars--many of the stories came full circle but were still hard to follow in regards to names, etc. Cringe-worthy: any conversation between Justine and her "brain" felt juvenile at best. My fiance is an Aquarius though so I love anything centering around the sign. It made for a good Valentine's Day read!

The term star crossed details this story. But not as you’d think. It isn’t like Romeo and Juliet per se. You have two childhood friends, who loose touch and meet up again after a decade.

Nick the H, is a horoscope readier and the magazine who publishes these is where Justine our h works, she takes it upon herself to change those horoscopes to send signals to him. But Nick just thinks the stars are leading him down a different path. He doesn’t understand completely. But Justine didn’t think ahead to see that it wasn’t just changing his outlook but other peoples as well.

I’ve read my own horoscope a few times but never really looked much into it. But reading the book made me realize that a lot of people probably do. And use them as a way to form their decisions.

So the question is does Nick see
His stars over Justine or is her efforts gone to waste?

This was a great read and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a romance under the stars.

I received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest view. Thank you to them, the author and publisher.

I loved the idea of this plot — childhood sweethearts who reconnect as adults, influenced by horoscopes penned by the woman herself. But it ultimately fell short for me, and I did not finish the book.

This book really appealed to me because it seemed like a very unique idea for a romance novel. I enjoyed the astrology aspect because it is such a great reminder that we are all interconnected. I find the idea of how small choices we make can have huge consequences, both positive and negative, for other people to be completely fascinating and I loved the parts of this book that focused on that.

Some of this book got a little wacky and went off on little spurts which were distracting for me as a reader but overall it was a cute and quick read. A big thank you to NetGalley and Crown Books for a copy of this book.