WRITTEN IN THE STARS is a fake dating sapphic romance. It packs some heat, plenty of swoony moments, and is frankly hilarious. I adored Bellefleur's sense of humor. This novel also features a kind of average meet that you don't see a lot in romances, a family member/friend set up. Mind you, the blind date goes horrifically wrong, but it's still wonderful to see a mostly average meet-cute.
I have a hard time coming up with criticisms for this novel. I feel the characters acted appropriately, Bellefleu's writing style was wonderful and I look forward to reading more of her work.

Darcy, an actuary with a bruised heart is about to leave the restaurant when Elle, an astrologist who believes in true love, arrives late. Wine is spilled. Darcy vents in the bathroom. Elle overhears and leaves. Once everyone's home, Brenden, Darcy's younger brother and Elle future business partner, tries to stong arm Darcy into speed dating. Darcy lies and tells her brother things went wonderful, that she has feelings for Elle. She swears him to secrecy but Brenden can't keep his trap shut. He runs into Elle and her mother at brunch and spills the beans, forcing Elle to go along with this little lie.
Of course, there's a confrontation and they begin fake dating through the holidays to dodge the familial pressure that both of them feel.

I received an ARC of this novel through NetGalley, but I plan on pre-ordering this novel. Five stars, I adored it.

4.5 out of 5 stars to “Written in the Stars” by Alexendria Bellefleur

This is a swoon-worthy queer romcom that I am so happy I read—despite the fact that romcoms are generally not my thing! The premise is a fake relationship, so that both Darcy and Elle can get their families to leave them alone for a few months—Darcy’s brother, who keeps pushing Darcy to date people when she’s not ready after a bad breakup, and Elle, who’s family thinks she doesn’t have her life together.

As you’d expect from a romcom, the two soon develop feelings for each other and the relationship soon becomes real. I really enjoyed seeing these two slowly falling for each other, and being even more slow about realizing it. There were some absolutely beautiful moments, and such tender cute ones that I had to pause for a moment to let myself take it in.

The two main characters were so unique, and were very well-written. Both Darcy and Elle are extremely complex, layered, and quirky, and it was so much fun to learn about them bit by bit over the course of the book, until they became truly fleshed out and came to life on the page.

I almost, /almost/ put this book down in the second chapter though, because of Darcy’s brother. I understand that he is a caring person, but the extent to which he was pushing Darcy to date people and talking about what she went through with her breakup bothered me. Even if Darcy and Brendan are very close, it was extremely meddlesome and, felt like it was crossing some lines. While there are another couple moments closer to the end of the story where he gets a bit annoying again, the rest of the book was completely enjoyable and I’m glad I kept reading.

It’s so refreshing to see classic tropes like this one told in a queer narrative, and I’m always a fan of queer happily ever afters.

I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it. I was thrilled that there was a happy ending. I am glad that the characters discovered they were interested in one another early in the book, so we could have more romance. I felt it was easy to identify with both of the characters. I really like that Darcy was clumsy while she was in love. It was charming to see a nerdy character in a romance. I think it was great to see Darcy`s brother be so supportive of the relationship.

This was a fun read. I really enjoyed both of the main characters and the way the author wove in their family backstories to their current feelings about romance and life partnerships. It was super timely to tie in Elle's love of astrology with all the AstroPoet devotees out there and I enjoyed reading all the meme lists Elle created. I wish the book has included more of Darcy's work life, too. But overall love this f/f romance, which is so necessary and needed! A sweet story many rom-com fans will love.

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

Opposites attract.

Opposites form an unlikely alliance to manage family interference and judgement of their lives.

Opposites fall in love, but Darcy is so afraid of being hurt, it cripples her blossoming relationship with Elle.

The book takes you through how family drama and judgement affects your adult relationships.

A good story for a lazy weekend read.

Thank you to NetGalley for this free ebook copy of Written in the Stars! I was given this book in exchange for an honest review.

Written in the Stars is a lovely book about two women, Darcy and Elle, who pretend to date one another in order to please their families. I have been looking to read more LBGTQ romances so I was excited to read this one. This book was extremely entertaining and I read it within 24 hours. I did take a few breaks here and there, but overall it was a pretty good read.

I felt that Bellefleur did a spectacular job with character development. Sometimes, characters will just be added loosely to a book but Bellefleur only added characters with purpose with I appreciated. Elle happened to be my favorite character because she was goofy, whimsical, and full of uniqueness. Both Elle and Dacy's families' backstories were full of logic and tastefully added to the plot of the story. There was lovely character development for Elle's family especially which was enlightening to read.

The plot itself was great as well; I gave it only four stars because I felt like it was a typical love story with no surprising twists or turns. The book definitely kept me entertained though and had a great pace which is why it earned four stars. Overall, I would highly recommend to any romance lovers; this book will definitely make you smile (and blush at times). Thank you for the great read Alexandria!

As for feedback about the cover page, I love it! It perfectly highlights the love of Elle and Darcy. I would not change a thing.

After a series of unsatisfactory dates, Elle (Elizabeth) is looking for someone special, and her friend Brendan thinks she needs to meet his sister, Darcy. (Elizabeth and Darcy--that sounds familiar.) Their first date is a disaster, with astrologer Elle showing up late, annoying the punctual actuary Darcy, and spilling wine all over Darcy's dress. Brendan will keep setting up dates until his sister meets someone, so the two very different women who don't like each other very much decide to pretend to be in a relationship. If you have ever read a romance, you can guess how that will end. A cute, if predictable story. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This is a super strong opposites-attract meets fake-it-til-you-make-it love story. I was most enthused by the acceptance of bisexuality - there was no bi-erasure to be seen in this same-sex romance! I also have to congratulate the author for identifying the most difficult physical reminder of another person - glitter will be with us forever!

This book is an amazing romance and hooks you in right from the beginning. With the point of view switching between the two main protagonists, Elle and Darcy, you are immediately pulled into their world and get to see how they each view the other. These two perspectives are amazing because they are such different and interesting people (Elle being a messy, creative astrologer and Darcy a more organized actuary who doesn’t believe in astrology). The structure of the story itself is perfectly crafted. There is the disastrous first date, which is even better being able to know Darcy and Elle’s distinct impressions from it. The seed of tension and romance is planted right from that first meeting, and you find yourself reading page after page in an urge to watch it grow. And it is BEAUTIFUL.

Perhaps the best part of the story are the small details that enhance characterization while carrying on the theme of stars/space and the “opposites attract” trope. The outfits Darcy and Elle wear, where they live, EVERYTHING is written painstakingly with their personality and the aforementioned themes in mind. The other characters in the story such as Darcy’s brother and Elle’s best friend are not simply side characters, they play an essential part in the story without taking away from the main romance story being told. I found myself getting excited when these other characters appeared, and wanting to know more about them and what their future holds. I also love how the relationships in this story are not perfect. Family, friends, etc, they have their issues and everyone in the book has flaws, but it never reached the point of no return as some relationships do in stories, where they become so toxic you wonder what the point is. No, these struggles the characters face in various relationships are extremely relatable and believable and add to the magnificent characterization seen in this story.

I’d also like to add that the humor in this story is genuinely funny. I am not one to laugh easily while reading, but the dialogue in this was so good that I laughed out loud several times. The dialogue not only flows well, but is a joy to read. This is simultaneously a light-hearted and deeply loving book, and I recommend to anyone and especially those looking for a beautiful and entertaining sapphic romance. I am looking forward to more from Alexandria Bellefleur, as I know from this book that she is a great and intelligent author.

I tried to read this and I couldn't finish it. The characters were annoying and stereotypical. I was hoping to enjoy this book but it was a disappointment.

Written in the Stars creates a loose f/f romance connection to Pride and Prejudice via the names and personalities of its protagonists. Elle is an astronomer turned successful social media astrologer looking for "the one;". Darcy is a buttoned up actuary who has been burned by love. What starts as a "fake date" turns into a complicated relationship between two believable modern characters. Will they make it? It might be written in the stars.

I absolutely LOVED this book.

I really don't read contemporary books often, and romances even less. But there was something about this cover that drew me in. And I'm so glad I picked it up because I absolutely LOVED this book.

This was a fresh-and-fabulous take on Pride and Prejudice. I loved the two girls (Darcy and Elle) and they took the dynamic of Darcy and Elizabeth and transformed it in their own way that totally got me.

Darcy was a fabulously prickly main character and Elle was wonderfully starry-eyed. The way their lives intertwined was perfect.

There were so many fabulous quotes and cute moments. ("Astrology and magic and soul mates"; "She looks at you like you hung the moon." and "This was it. Boom. End game. A lifetime of butterflies.")

I also loved that this story wasn't centered on overcoming societal expectations (aka coming out/homophobia/internalized trauma), it's just a couple of girls who fall in love and it really stood out to me.

All in all, this is one of my top recommendations of the year!

Elle Jones is free-spirited social media astrologer looking for her soul mate. Darcy Lowell is a serious actuary for who's more than a little skeptical when it comes to love. Even though the two had a completely terrible blind date, Darcy lies to her brother, Brendon (the matchmaker & Elle's business partner), and tells him that she and Elle hit it off, hoping that will buy her break from his persistent efforts to help her find love. Seeing this as an opportunity to have a buffer against her own judgmental family at Thanksgiving, Elle agrees to a fake relationship.
***
This was such a smart, sexy, sweet rom-com, and I absolutely loved the shoutouts to Pride & Prejudice and Bridget Jones. The character Elle was so charming, and anyone who has ever felt like the odd-woman out (amongst family or friends) will completely relate. Darcy is very much like her namesake, a little stuck-up and pretentious on the surface, but affectionate, loyal, and caring at her core. I also ADORED Elle's best friend, Margot - she's feisty and a fierce friend.
***
Written in the Stars is a delightful, I-can't-put-it-down-and-it's-now-3am-and-I-have-to-work-tomorrow-but-it-was-totally-worth-it read! :] Looking forward to Brendon's story next!

This book was so cute!!! A little bit Bridget Jones‘s Diary and a little bit Pride and Prejudice, this book was the cute romance I needed to read right now. There was just enough drama that it kept my interest but I still knew it was going to end well. I thought the characters were really well written. I was in it with them, their worries and hang ups. It also didn’t seem overly contrived that they’d end up together at the end. It was a very cute book and I really enjoyed reading it!

Rep: wlw, bi, lesbian, pan & gay side characters
CW: it’s an adult romance so there’s definitely graphic sex scenes, cheating

I read this book as a free digital eARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a perfect summer read! A light-hearted romance with quirky characters, it checked all the boxes for a fun beach read.

Even though Elle and Darcy's relationship was fake to begin with, it quickly becomes obvious that there's more between them. The author gives us a good look inside both of their lives, as we learn about their jobs (I learned so much about astrology!) and meet their families. They were both well-rounded, complex characters.

This was a 3-star read for me because the fake-turned-real relationship storyline was quite predictable. However, it was still a good read with a lot of details that took you right into their lives in Seattle.

The author has a story about Brendan (Darcy's brother, whom we get to know a bit in this novel) coming out in 2021 and I'll definitely be picking up that one as well!

4.5 stars. WRITTEN IN THE STARS is such a lovely, #ownvoices F/F romance that manages to pull off charming, funny, and realistic so well. Darcy is an actuary who has gone through the ringer with an ex and is lasered focused on being rational, while Elle is a romantic at heart with a passion for astrology.

Their romance has a slow burn, founded on a mutual physical attraction that turns into a full-fledged love story. It has plenty of steam, and overall the book feels modern and fresh.

I enjoyed seeing Elle and Darcy weather the storm supporting each other in individual struggles, especially the pain points of dealing with overbearing family members and where to go next in one's career.

I'm mostly sad that I can't encourage friends to pick this up sooner, since it won't be out until November! I do think this would make a fantastic cozy, autumn romance read.

Fans of Jasmine Guillory and Mhairi McFarlane looking for a F/F romance should definitely add this one to their list.

This charming, F/F fake relationship story takes its inspiration very loosely from Pride and Prejudice. Free-spirited astrology blogger Elle agrees to meet her new business partner's sister, Darcy, who turns out to be an uptight, humorless, beige-wearing accountant. Elle writes off their disastrous first date, but is surprised when Darcy's brother tells her how much his sister enjoyed their meeting. She confronts Darcy, who confesses that she lied to get her brother to stop setting her up, and proposes a fake relationship to get them both through various holiday commitments.

This didn't have much in common with the original P&P, other than Darcy's name and the characters' quick judgments of each other. A light holiday read with a satisfying and emotional resolution.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC to review.

Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur | Sapphic Pride & Prejudice Retelling That is All the Cuteness & Swoon

This review will be posted on the blog, One Way Or An Author, on November 2, 2020!

Told from the perspectives of Elle and Darcy, WRITTEN IN THE STARS is all heart and swoon. It’s also the first contemporary adult f/f romance I’ve ever read (usually the ones I read are in the Young Adult or Fantasy genre), and I am HERE for it. Who else can see Elle and Darcy in a romantic comedy? WRITTEN IN THE STARS takes us back to the beloved tale of Pride & Prejudice with some extra additions: our outwardly cold Darcy is an actuary who gives off hot librarian energy and our quick-to-speak Elle is an energetic astrologer who’s looking for her soulmate. They both end up disliking their blind date (with each other), but continue with a fake relationship to appease friends and family. What can I say? Sparks fly from the very beginning, and the chemistry is THERE. Now, the characters just need to get their feelings to that spot as well.

“Not that Elle cared about Darcy’s eyes or that the color she wore complemented them. It was a passing observation, that was all. The sky was blue. The grass was green. Darcy was beautiful. Universally acknowledged truths.”

I requested this book because I LOVE the opposites attract dynamic, and Bellefleur writes it really well in WRITTEN IN THE STARS! Despite Darcy’s initial coldness/emotionless energy, we get to see her open up around Elle’s bubbly personality. I’m absolutely weak for a grumpy/happy-go-lucky pairing and seeing each heroine appreciate the other’s personality despite it being so different makes me squeal. (And of course the chemistry is there!) When Darcy accidentally fibs to her younger brother Brendon, about the blind date going well, her and Elle enter a fake relationship to show the people around them that they have their lives on track.

“‘Life would be a lot better if we all spent a little more time staring at the stars.’ Loose strands of blond hair caught the moonlight, creating a haloed glow around her when she turned her face up to the sky. ‘It’s beautiful, isn’t it?’
‘Yes.’ Darcy wasn’t looking at the sky.”

I loved learning about each character as well. Darcy’s negligent mother led her to become a maternal figure to Brendon, which is why she’s so responsible, hard-working, and straight-laced now. Elle is seen as the “black sheep” of her large family, leading to some potential insecurities and anxieties around them. While Darcy brings pancakes and soap opera facts to the table (as soaps are her guilty pleasure), Elle’s fun-spirited ways and chart-based explanations create the perfect foil Darcy. Through conquering escape rooms, after-morning breakfasts, and shared vulnerabilities, each woman finds themself appreciating the other and falling more and more in love.

“Elle was technicolor chaos and the feelings she inspired in Darcy were a hazard straight out of Pandora’s box. Treacherous and CONFUSING and better kept under lock and key.”

My heart went out to both heroines for different reasons. Darcy because of a bad break-up in her past that halted her from growing as a person, and Elle because of her rude family that never appreciated her for her passions. Both women were down-to-earth and had big hearts. The pages definitely flew by while I was reading WRITTEN IN THE STARS, as the narrative was easy to follow and I couldn’t wait for Elle and Darcy to recognize their feelings! At the end of the day, I would recommend this Pride & Prejudice retelling for contemporary romance lovers that enjoy fake dating and opposites-attract energy. It’s light-hearted, but also adds warm emotions through loving friendships and family (as well as character growth). I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for Bellefleur’s next work!

Trigger/Content Warnings: negligent parenting

Thank you Harper Collins and Netgalley for the review copy!

Elle and Darcy are set up on date by Darcy’s brother, there is instant attraction but they are looking for different things. Elle is determined to follow her passions, while Darcy just wants to focus on her work and not think about her past. Suddenly they are thrown together in a plot to pretend they are dating to get their loved ones of their backs. What happens they spend more time together and face their differences? With nods to Pride and Prejudice and Bridget Jones Diary this was a fun read that I highly recommend. Thank you to #NetGalley and #HarperCollinsPublishers for this #ARC, which will be available November 10, 2020. #writteninthestars #pridebooks #yabookstagram #bookworm

Overview: I’d like to start by saying the art in this cover is super cute. I’m so down for more illustrated covers on romance books. I think I would have enjoyed this much more if the pop culture references weren’t so heavy through out the book. I get it, Elle is “nerdy”. This book isn’t going to age well years down the line when none of these things are relevant and honestly all the Harry Potter references made me physically cringe with all the current drama from the author. This book uses HP references more than once and when JKR is hurting people in the LGBTQ+ community so viciously and without lack of sympathy it just leaves a bad taste in my mouth that this book is supporting that series.

That being said the couple was pretty cute. I thought the dialogue flowed nicely between everyone and all the characters in the book were well defined. Personalities were well developed and I was rooting for Elle and Darcy the whole way through. The astrology parts got a little info dumpy in some parts and there was some repetitive writing, but nothing that took me out of the story. I also really enjoyed that the book immediately opened with humor. It was a light and enjoyable read. Excited to see what else this writer comes out with.