Vika Hale has grown up poor with a mysterious benefactor that has provided for her and her sister's education and her medical care. She doesn't find out why until she is eighteen and the mysterious benefactor dies. She learns she is in his will and will receive a great deal of money if she marries his son. Now she's living among the elite but will she lose who she is.

There are a lot of ethical questions posed throughout this book regarding money and how it can change us. Is money intermittently evil? Is everyone greedy or can some people stay the same despite the way the upper class live? What makes a person good or bad?

I found this to be a fast easy read that kept my attention. I was able to put it down when needed and quickly get back into the story. I enjoyed the world building and the inner conflict for Vika. I also really enjoyed her relationship with her father. He might not be the perfect parent, but there is a lot to be said for the parent that tries. The book felt like a futuristic soap opera. Enjoyable but not really breaking new ground. I've heard good things about this author and am looking forward to reading their other books.

I'm giving feedback because I read over 50% of this book. After reading this much I just couldn't make myself read any more. I kept finding myself having to force myself to read a page of this book and there are too many books in this world to force yourself to read one that doesn't bring you joy. I think the things that bothered me about this book were that I couldn't connect to the characters for some reason. I found Vika to be completely entitled after she came into her fortune and she just just ground my nerves for some reason and I just didn't connect to the story. The fact that Mira and Hal didn't recognize Leo at all after basically raising him annoyed me and I found that to be really weird and there were just small things that I found that just bothered me in the book. I'm not posting this review to Goodreads or any other platforms because I think that this book will be great for some readers, it maybe just wasn't the book for me at the right time. Maybe it was just a timing issue, which was why I rated it a 3 star read because I do think the book has amazing potential, it was just a timing issue for me.

Good but predictable. It's hard when characters and the world(s) building is great but The plot is easy to see even from the beginning. Writing was great and so were the characters!

I was in love with the concept of this book even before it hit the shelf. I adored the idea of a Sci-Fi RomCom, being a huge fan of Ruby Dixon's Ice Planet Barbarians.

Upon hearing it was written to the Young Adult audience, I was so excited I was foaming at the mouth! This would be a great palate cleanser to all the more adult sci-fi romances I read. Those were my thoughts before diving into this novel.

The story was outright amazing and riveting at almost every turn. I can't think of an instance I wasn't absorbed in The Stars Between Us.

As for the world-building, it was perfect for the novel it was. There are times I'm not in the mood to jump into a multi-series Sci-Fi book with heavy lore. It gives enough worldbuilding to keep you satisfied. My initial thought jumping into this novel was right. It was a great palate cleanser in between heavy, lore-filled novels.

Even so, with all of these great points about The Stars Between Us, I disliked a major element of the story. That is the main character. I did not like Vika at all.

The most important thing for me is to have a likable main character. A likable lead may look different to everyone. For me, Vika is not likable at all! I had so many irks with her, although she does go through a bit of character development.

Final thoughts:

Everything else was remarkable about this story except for the main character. I have implored that having a main character I can really resonate with is an absolute must for me. With that being said, everything else in this book is phenomenal.

I cannot rate The Stars Between Us anything below four stars. If Vika was a tad more likable, this would be an easy 5 stars. I really enjoyed reading this.

**I received a copy by NetGalley in exchange for a review**

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

I try to never start a book with expectations too high but now I'm obsessed with it and I need more. I love that this was a standalone but at the same time I wish there was more. I do have to admit that the story was wrapped up really nicely by the end and nothing was left unsettled. All in all, The Stars Between Us is perfect for fans of sci-fi and mystery! I will defiantly be recommending this book to every person that I know!!

This is a story about luck lost & found.

What an incredibly enjoyable Sci Fi/Romance romp. The author never seems to judge the choices the character is making in her search to get out of poverty… and the world building is beautiful. If Jane Austen had ever written SciFi, I think it would’ve read something like this.

But I hate the cover 😩.

Thank you so much @netgalley & @wednesdaybooks

This was just the sparkling escape I was looking for. It has full chapters about decorating, a mysterious benefactor and hidden identities, an ongoing debate about whether marrying for money is worth it, and beautiful dresses all wrapped up in a page-turning mystery.

Actual Rating 3.5 Stars

This was such a weird book for me, because I almost DNFed it several times but then I did enjoy certain parts of it a lot. Vika annoyed me for most of the book because she became so spoiled and selfish, and it was literally so cringeworthy to read. I also felt that so much of the book was shallow. The main plot of the book didn't come into play until almost 65% in. And yet, I kept reading because I was curious. I did enjoy Sky's character, and I did like some of the twists. It was enjoyable enough that I raised my rating (because it was almost a very low rating when I almost DNFed). I also wish there was more world building - I like that the world was futuristic but there was basically no reason to put it on a different planet because literally, that wasn't explored at all. This could have been put in any city and wouldn't have changed the story in the slightest. Overall, I did still enjoy, but it was kind of a weird book in how my enjoyment fluctuated. I also liked the dual POV, and might have DNFed if not for that because at least the whole book was not in Vika's POV.

This wasn't terrible, but the ending left me feeling very put off. I wasn't really a fan of the ending. I did love the SF part of it, I'm such a sucker for science fiction, especially something that feels kind of dystopian. And with the juxtaposition between the two planets being so prevalent, I was interested. All that being said, I did feel like I'd read this book before, and overall was just kind of underwhelmed.

The Stars Between Us is appropriately described as "Dickensian." Multiple themes were immediately apparent as soon as I started reading, including those of poverty and urban squalor. I was also immediately reminded of Great Expectations. Unlike Pip, Vika is not very likeable. It was difficult for me to root for her because of her personality. Once she becomes rich, she forgets about her family and is immediately taken by this new upper class society that opens up to her. As the story progresses, thankfully she exhibits character growth. My opinion of her began to shift, but her indecisiveness over her potential romantic feelings remained frustrating.

The world was not particularly interesting to me. There was not much about it that grabbed my attention. Throughout the book, I kept feeling as though the story could have been set anywhere and at any time and nothing about the story would have been affected at all.

While the premise of the book is interesting, I did not like it as much as I hoped I would. There were different parts of the story I did enjoy, but they were overshadowed by an inability to connect with many of the characters and the setting. (3.5 stars rounded to 4 stars)

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review! All opinions contained within are my own.

We all know that I love SFF books, but I often neglect the ‘SF’ part of that acronym. Whenever I pick up science fiction, I tend to enjoy it, so I’m not sure why I don’t read it more. Another genre I’ve been attempting to read more of lately is romance. Though I am still very much a newbie, I’ve found myself enjoying the genre more and more. So, when I was sent an email promoting this novel as ‘Bridgerton meets Illuminae‘ with a pre-approved Netgalley link attached, I jumped all over it!

The Stars Between Us follows a young woman named Vika Hale. Vika has lived her entire life on the struggling planet of Philomenus. She barely gets by living in a cramped flat with her family and working at a job she hates. But Vika Hale also has a strange aspect to her life. She has a mysterious benefactor that has providing things that no ordinary citizen of Philomenus would ever be able to afford. Her life gets even stranger when that benefactor dies and Vika finds herself included in his will in the strangest of ways. Throw into the mix the mysterious Sky, a young man who appears in her life right around the same time, and Vika’s world is about to turn upside down.

I love when I find myself completely immersed in a story as soon as I open it up and that definitely happened here! The author does a great job of building this world and settling you into it. I loved learning about this interesting society and the juxtaposition of the poverty of Philomenus and the luxury of Plutos. This book brings up a lot of issues when it comes to money and what it can do to a person and I thought they were all handled rather well. I will say that the plot is pretty straightforward, to the point that I guessed pretty much all of the major plot points almost immediately. But the journey to get to those points was still a compelling ride!

Now, we gotta talk about our main character, Vika. Oh, Vika… I don’t think I’ve been this frustrated with a character in a long time! Vika is a hardworker who would do pretty much anything for the people she loves. She’s also vain, selfish, pushy, and generally kind of obnoxious. This isn’t why she frustrated me, though. In fact, I think we need more books where the main female lead isn’t likeable! No, the reason Vika was frustrating was because she was so dense! For someone who is constantly touted as clever throughout the novel, there were so many moments where I was genuinely flabbergasted by the decisions she makes with the information she has. Like… girl! What is you doin’?! Sigh… Still, to evoke so much emotion from me is a mark that I was truly invested in her character. So that’s a good thing!

I will say that the romance left me feeling a little ‘meh’, though, because the love interest was like the physical embodiment of a doormat.

Overall, though, this was a quick, easy, and fun sci-fi read that pulled me in very quickly. It’s like a popcorn book that is just fun to snack on! It has great worldbuilding that settles you firmly in this universe. I loved that it tackles some tougher issues as we follow the main plot of the book. And, though the main character made me want to shake her and the mystery was pretty easy to figure out, I ended up having a good time with this one.

Great book and enjoyed the characters . loved the slight romance and the how well the group worked together. Overall a great book . I would read this author again.

I enjoyed this book! The world was very cool and I really enjoyed how the author built the world. The writing was easy to read and easy to follow, and I thought the characters were also pretty well-written and distinct from each other. As a side note, I also absolutely love the cover!

I’d describe ‘The Stars Between Us’ by Cristin Terrill as sci-fi romp-meets-rom-com. It was full of action, so much fun, but so emotional, too. This book was engaging, entertaining, and full of unique world building. I really enjoyed it. Recommend!

I lone this take on Charles Dickens, talk about meshing past and future. I loved the world building in this and the contrary between planets. I loved how Vika is a flawed MC that annoys you but you have to love and root for her. I love that Vikas character growth was a long burn and really loved the subtle ways she came into her own. I love the glimpses into the villan and trying to figure out who that was. I mean overall this has been my favorite ARC in a while.

I loved the book and the world-building that went into this book. the characters were well-written and the plot flowed nicely. I can't wait to see what Terrill does next.

The beginning of the book has such an intense scene of Treasure Planet with the future setting with old vibes; then suddenly, it felt like we switched to just a victoria setting vibe as Vika entered society.

While this was a good strong start, I felt that the freedom fighter plot was introduced for nothing. That plot worked itself out and worked behind the scenes without us seeing. It was a love story, but I wanted so much more.
This book did a great job of showing how power and wealth corrupt with the shift in Vika and Hal in their values and personality, that was heartbreaking to watch as they changed.

I loved the author's previous book All Our Yesterdays so I jumped at the chance to read her newest book. I didn't even read the synopsis to be honest, the author's name and the cover alone were enough motivators for me to pick up The Stars Between Us. Unfortunately, I found myself disappointed. The plot was ok, a dark dystopian world with a mystery to solve and a hint of romance, sure I am here for that. I knew the answer to the mystery pretty early on, but that is normal for me to know how a plot will play out but never a deterrent to my enjoyment of the story.

What was a deterrent to my enjoyment was the main character, Vika. She was pretty awful, mean and selfish, using everyone in her path to get a better life. Sure, her previous life was pretty dismal, but she threw away everything and everyone when she had the opportunity to better herself. She went out of her way to be mean to people and I just could root for her in any way. The story had no personal growth of her as a character, where she redeemed herself or anything, it was basically "take me as I am cause I am awesome just like this" approach. Well, I did not take her and she ruined my book.

All that being said I am sure someone else will really enjoy this standalone story, so if you like dystopian romance mysteries here you go.

This one is a bit tricky for me to review, as there were things I liked, but it also had several things that just didn't work for me.

I really liked the overall setting and atmosphere of the book. I also thought the concept behind the story was very cool.

However, I just couldn't connect with any of the characters. I liked Sky a bit more than the rest, but I never liked nor connected with Vika as a character. I also never bought into the romance between Sky and Vika- it felt a bit forced to me.

Even though I liked the setting, the worldbuilding was not as great as it could have been, especially combined with the pacing. There's a lot of slang and lingo used that's not really explained, particularly towards the beginning, which I found a bit off-putting.

Great book for fans of Charles Dickens and The Expanse!

Vika Hale is a poor barmaid living on a struggling planet. They only thing she has going for her is that she’s been educated paid for by an unnamed benefactor.

Her benefactor turns out to be a billionaire magnate who died and included Vika in his will. Vika is brought into a lavish new lifestyle paid for by new benefactors that became their heir to the fortune once Vika was no longer eligible to receive her inheritance.

Vika is almost killed in an explosion and soon figures out that someone is targeting the heirs to the fortune. She teams up with Sky Foster, who works for her benefactors, to try to figure out who is behind the explosion. Of course, their relationship has its own complications.

Love story with a mystery and set in space….can’t get any better. I really enjoyed the characters and getting a glimpse into how the different classes of people lived.

I received this book in exchange for my honest opinion.