Cover Image: When Stars Come Out

When Stars Come Out

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Member Reviews

I will never not read and absolutely love anything SCS puts out. This YA novel is no exception. When it comes to fantasy, world building, character development and the like...Scarlett hits the mark and then some. Every. Single. Time.

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Scarlett St. Clair is brilliant. Love her writing style and her stories are always top notch. This one was no exception.

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Anora can see ghosts and is having trouble living with this strange new ability. She's also grieving the loss of her grandpa and dealing with a mom that struggles with her own mental illness and isn't always the best parent. Anora needed someone to be on her side and help her figure out the strange things going on. Luckily she makes several friends at her new school and starts to put together what is actually going on.

As a fan of Scarlett St. Clair's work, I found this book, slightly different to the usual style she writes in. The plot was easy to follow. If you like a slow burn, this book shows that. I had fun following Anora and learning about the Eurydice and Valryn. I found this an easy, fun and entertaining read.

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I’m not usually super into school settings or modern worlds, however I really enjoyed this book! The main characters struggles with her family and paranormal power were beautifully told. This book is a great escape! It took me back to that feeling when I used to stay up reading all night in high school.

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Hmm... I liked a lot of aspects about this, but ultimately, this wasn't for me.

The story itself was interesting (especially since I'm a huge fan of the Mediator series), but the worldbuilding felt a bit unevenly developed. Everything got there by the end, but I personally would have preferred a bit more explanation towards the beginning because I was just confused by the rules of the world for most of the book. In particular, I wish the reveal about what had happened with Chase had been done just a bit earlier.

My main issue was that it took a turn that I personally just don't enjoy reading about. Despite the fact that this caused the story to veer a bit towards instalove, the world was creative and the characters were engaging, so I think many readers will enjoy this series.

Thanks to NetGalley for this review copy!

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I have read this authors a touch of darkness series and was intrigued by this book seeing its YA. I liked the premise of this book but also felt very YA. The overall story was fine and I liked the characters enough to finish the book. If I were comparing this to her other series, I would say I prefer the other but this is also YA and I'm not the exact demographic this is for. Overall 3.75 /5stars.

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When Stars Come Out is Scarlett's baby book that she just revamped and I loved it! It is upper YA, and I say upper mainly because of the serious topics discussed, such as death/suicide. Please read her trigger warnings, she does list chapters.

I read the arc and while serious topics are talked about I really loved it! Anora is very genuine, strong MC with a huge secret and just wants to be a normal high school student. I don't want to spoil anything for you because not knowing was part of what I loved about this one. It is dual POV, contemporary setting, and a mythology retelling. I would say the romantic part of the story is there but it is not in the forefront of the story. Overall it was very wholesome and I am excited for people to dive into this!!!

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Good read. A little more YA than I expected and the Greek mythology re-telling wasn't super obvious.

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A YA Paranormal romance that will hit you right in the feels, When Stars Come Out is a loosely inspired Eurydice and Orpheus retelling that has darker elements to it.

It’s your classic, attractive high school guy meets the cute misunderstood girl who’s not all she seems, and they quickly become friends and work though their experiences/trauma together.

Overall it was an interesting read, not what I was expecting, but not bad!


TW: self harm, suicide, grief, loss of a loved one

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This book had such a unique premise and was a lot darker themed than I anticipated, especially for a YA novel. However, there was a few things that confused me about the plot that took away from my reading experience, and I would need to re-read to perhaps clarify.

But overall I enjoyed this book and look forward to seeing what happens next.

Thank you SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books and NetGalley for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

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Actual rating: 3.5/5 stars

An intriguing book about a main character who grows beyond her grief to regain control of her life, despite an order of powerful deadly warriors wanting to take her power from her.

Even though I found most of the characters tedious at first, they grew on me to the point where I was interested in where the whole thing would grow. I very much enjoyed Anora's character arc. especially with that ending, and look forward to seeing where the story goes next.

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This book gave me so much nostalgia. If you were reading YA in the height of the 2010s and have been missing that feeling/writing, you absolutely need to read this book. The writing and content does feel a bit more mature than books from that time though.

I devoured When Stars Come out and loved every second of it. Like I said it gave me that old school YA feel that I have been seriously missing. I love the authors writing in this one. I was completely engaged the whole way through and even on edge for a lot of the story.

This book is centered around Anora who can see the dead. This gift has gotten her into a lot of trouble, hence her arrival in a new town and school where things happen to get even more strange.

When Stars Come Out is a reimagining of the Greek Myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. I absolutely love Greek Myths and I’m happy to see a reimagining of characters other than the most popular, though I love those too.

This book is well written, captivating, and had just enough romance and bit a mystery mixed in to keep you turning the pages. I already wish that I had the next book. This book is absolutely Binge worthy.

Scarlett St. Claire has somehow managed to bring back that nostalgic feeling of reading paranormal YA in my teen years and if you’ve been missing that feeling like I have, you need to pick this one up.

**Thank you to the publisher for the Review copy through NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

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*This book does deal with heavy topics such as suicide on page as well as off page so please check the trigger warnings before reading*

4/5⭐️
Book 1 of ‘When Stars Come Out Series’
* YA Paranormal/Supernatural Romance
* FMC sees the dead
* Orpheus & Eurydice Reimagining
* Dual POV
* Shapeshifters, Reincarnation, Death Magic, Soulmates

Favorite Quotes/ Moments
'They say the night through human eyes is beautiful, peaceful even. But I'm not human, and when the stars come out, so do the dead and those who hunt them.'

"If I could give you anything in this life... it would be the happiness you feel when you look at the stars"


This is my first YA book by Scarlett St. Clair and I honestly really liked it, I was not disappointed at all! I hadn’t read it when it was first written so I am so happy I got to read the rewritten/ revamped version of this story!

Anora Silby lives a normal life, going to a new school, has a crush on a boy, and has a tough relationship with her mom, just like any other 16-year-old girl…

Did I mention she can see the dead?

Diving into the story we get brief insights into her strained relationship with her mom and a small backstory as to why they were forced to leave her old home which has to do with her uncontrolled power and ability to see the dead. Within a second of her arrival at her new school, she sees the soul of a student who died decades before. Sooo much for trying to be normal!

As Anora tries her best to be a normal high school girl with new classmates, tough teachers, her relationship with her mother, her new crush, Shy, and a mysterious guy, Thane, who knows more about her than she tries to hide, she struggles to control her power and her desire for normalcy.

I enjoyed this book so much, in my opinion, the magic was as detailed and was explained pretty well. The magic system, creatures, and world-building weren’t one whole drop on you, you learn as you go along in the story just as Anora does which I really liked because it makes you feel as if you are going through the world with her. At times it was a bit slow and quite repetitive but I also found myself not able to put this book down!

It was filled with the slight mystery of just how powerful Anora was and the monsters that were out there, those who want to use her, and those who hunt her. The Valryn was a cool species I hadn’t read about before, a Human-Crow hybrid, it was unique and I really liked that. I enjoyed the cute romance between Anora and Shy though at times I didn’t really feel the connection, I felt they had small interactions, in the beginning, to be thinking about each other constantly but as I read on, it was very evident they were soulmates in another life and every life they have after them. The story leaves room for them to know each other more and get closer in the next book.

I can’t wait for the second book and am excited to continue the journey throughout this series!

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Thank you NetGalley, Bloom Books, and Scarlett St. Clair for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! I’m a really big fan of A Touch of Darkness and was excited to read more from St. Clair and this one was fun! I agree with previous reviews saying that it gives off the vibes of 2010 YA books and I liked that. It follows a teenager who can see spirits and has complex world building. I didn’t really enjoy the characters too much, but that could just be a personal issue. I liked that it’s a retelling of the Eurydice myth and could appreciate the similarities. I think YA fans will enjoy this one!

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This reminded me so much of the YA from 2013-14, but unfortunately it wasn't for me. The characters were flat and the romance had zero development. I have to say that the plot was interesting at some points, but still very predictable. The bread crumbs were more like continuous neon-signs which said "[REDACTED] DID IT".
I generally have an aversion for Greek mythology retellings, but in this book was easy to forget it, because except for a few name-drops it didn't do much in that regard.


** Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review. **

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I got this book as an arc from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review. I liked this book it’s ya compared to her other books and follows a teen who can see spirts and talk to them after her papa had died. She meets shy not long after starting and they become friends but they can become as he isn’t human and there dna does not mix well. Shy is automatically drawn to her though and we shall see as the series progresses. I loved all the characters and how they were woven together for the story .
I loved the story , thought it was really well written

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Love love loved this book. Scarlett St. Clair never disappoints when it comes to world building and placing the best characters. I loved the twists and turns, the build up and the chemistry between the characters. I really hope this is the first of many in this series. Shy and Anora have so much more to their story and this book is the perfect foundation.

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Thank you Sourcebook Bloom Books and NetGalley for this eArc.

If you are a big fan of Scarelett St.Clair you will enjoy it, I'm certain. I also enjoyed this retelling, I hope I'd enjoy it much more, but still I did enjoy it.

Story was interesting, author has done a good job into making this retelling unique and the story different and similar enough to the original myth. I really did appreciate how it translated into a modern setting. What I struggled with was the characters, I simply didn't enjoy them, not one bit, didn't hate it either, don't get me wrong. They seemed juvenile (which can make since in a YA manner, school setting) but it wasn't my cup of tea this time,

So, a solid 3 stars, I'm glad I read it, but this wouldn't be something I reread.

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This book was…okay. I enjoyed the retelling of the Eurydice myth enough that I was able to overlook the fairly bland characters, mostly.

With so many other more gripping fantasy YA novels based on myths out there right now, I don’t think I will be adding this one to my library.

I read an advanced reader copy of this book.

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I really enjoyed this book! Such a fun read. The world building was great. The story line kept me wanting to know more.

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