Anora has to start a new school after some "issues" at her old one... The issue is that she can see dead people. But her new school isn't quite what it seems and neither are her new classmates.

This is a unique take on mythology-adjacent YA fantasy. Even being YA it touches on some real and dark subjects, but still somehow manages to make me laugh. I was a bit surprised at first at the dual-POV, but I definitely loved getting two sides to the story while still having plenty left as a mystery.

Anora is trying to do better, so she can stay hidden. She wants to be a normal teenager and leave the past behind her. On the first day at a new school the souls are already making her it hard for her to stay on track, and from there life just gets more complicated. I like the mythology behind this story, but I didn’t really click with the characters. I have read other books by Scarlett St. Clair and really enjoyed them, but this particular story just wasn’t for me.

A young adult fantasy about Crow Shifters seemed quite unusual, so I was keen to give it a try. Unfortunately though, it fell a bit flat and didn't really keep my attention. The characters were boring, and the world building was pretty lacking. The plot was fine though, so I made it to the end of the book. Not sure I'll pick up the next one though.

Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book.

I've enjoyed past books by Scarlett St. Clair, and I am always a fan of Greek Mythology retellings/reimaginings, so I was excited to try this one!

3.5 stars.

Anora is able to see souls (ghosts? spirits? - she's not even sure of the correct term) and can collect them as coins when frightened or mad. She is struggling with this new ability and the fact that she has no one to talk to about it (her mom seems to think she is going mad). They move to a new state and she starts at a new school where she begins to learn that she is not alone with her ability to see the spirits. She makes a few friends, but also struggles with who to trust as she learns more about her ability and those around her.

Shy is a Valryn (human/crow type hybrid) who has been raised and trained to protect souls. He struggling with the rules in his society as he questions more and more. He feels a connection to Anora, as well, but doesn't know what to think of it since human/Valryn relationships are forbidden. He knows Anora is hiding something, but is struggling to get her to trust him.

This book was fast-paced, with a slow, light romance, and a bit of a dark, gothic feel. I do believe there could have been more background information and information about characters. For example (and this doesn't really give anything away), why does her mom have episodes? They were mentioned a bit, but not really explained. I know that this is a series, so hopefully more information will be filled in in the next book!

There were also a few minor things (errors?) that stood out to me. I believe early in the book it was mentioned that Shy was a senior, but later they mentioned him being 16. Unless some states are different, I believe most seniors in high school are 17 or 18 years old. There was another moment like this, but I can't pinpoint it at this moment.

Overall, enjoyable and I will be reading the 2nd book when that one arrives!

When Stars Come Out is a reimagining of Orpheus and Eurydice, two lovers destined to find eachother in each lifetime but here, it's more plot driven.
I loved that about it. Not only are we getting a plot but a sprinkle of romance.
Miss. St. Clair does a wonderful job in unraveling the story. Its fast paced and consuming, We get to see both sides, Anora and Shy. Thought I'd love to.read more about the past, the people.
Loved it, can't wait for the second book.

This is Scarlett St. Clair’s first YA book, with the intention of turning it into a NA series, and I thought it was great introduction into this new series. I’m sure this book will be great at transitioning readers from one reading group to another!

This book definitely gave me Ninth House and Daughter of Smoke and Bone vibes (both stories I loved), while still bringing unique elements to the pages.

Anora is a compelling FMC and struggling through normal high school experiences, while also starting at a new school, and can see dead people. Shy is immediately charming and wins you over within the first few pages. I immediately fell in love with the two MCs, and like a lot of other SSC books, you’re quickly invested in this plot

Definitely invested to see where this series goes!

I absolutely loved this book! I was a bit nervous because I normally don't read a synopsis for a book before I read it which means I went into this book blindly. I found myself squealing and screaming throughout the book. I loved Anora as a character and how we felt just as confused at her throughout the book about who to trust. Shy had me blushing and I was actually glad that there were moments were we could see him blush or have his ears turn red around Anora. I see alot of books make the guy seem totally cool and uninterested but having him react was one of my favorite things ever.

Anora is running from her past and trying to start fresh at a new school when things go from bad to worse. When Stars Come Out is a great new YA novel from Scarlett St. Clair. I loved the magic in this book and the mythology used. It was an interesting concept and kept me hooked the whole time. A great read and I’ll recommend it to everyone. 5 stars.

A reimagining of Orpheus & Eurydice? YES PLEASE!

I am a huge fan of Scarlet St Clairs so getting an early chance to read this book was such an honor.

I haven't read a YA romance in what feels like FOREVER but I thoroughly enjoyed this dark take on an old myth. While the romance aspect is lighter then I would have liked I found myself hanging on every world of this modern ghost story.

I did find myself rooting for Anora and Shay and when I found out that the author wants to turn this into an NA book I threw my fist in the air and screamed. I CANNOT WAIT TO SEE WHERE SHE TAKES THIS STORY!

I really enjoyed the premise of this book. Definitely not something I've ever seen before. No spoilers but I think it worked really well. Seeing as it's YA did understand no spicy stiff but darn did I want some lol.

I have to start this review by saying that Scarlett absolutely blew me away with this book!! I didn’t want it to end! Anora is trying to start over in a new town and live her life without anyone finding out her secret…she can see the dead but also turn spirits into gold coins. Her first day at school turns into a disaster when she claims the soul of a dead girl on campus and loses the coin. This quickly turns into a murder mystery and I found myself flying through this book to find out what happens! Anora makes some friends along the way including a gorgeous guy named Shy…The attraction is undeniable and they both find themselves drawn to each other. Shy is keeping secrets of his own though and once they are exposed, Anora realizes that she may not be able to escape her past and move on like she wanted to….and maybe there are monsters lurking in the woods just waiting to expose her for who she really is.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Scarlett St Clair for giving me this arc in exchange for my honest review!!

I think I will give this YA story a four because although its not my perfect read I do feel there's a lot of good stuff here that will appeal to those a lot younger than me.
A young girl who since losing her grandfather sees dead people and obviously that's quite problematic and scary at times. Her mother sends her to a new school but straight away Anora runs into a dead girl. Of course there's a hot young guy and yep pretty catty girls here too but the inclusion of a wee bit of Greek mythology and shifters all add up to give a new and hopefully interesting series.
This voluntary take is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts and comments are honest and I believe fair

I really enjoyed this book! I had heard a lot about Scarlett St. Clair on booktok, so when I saw this title up for review I was excited to read it. I was engaged with the characters and the plot right away, and I found the pacing to be excellent. The characters were well developed and relatable, and I liked how badass the female lead is. I will definitely be picking up other books by this author, and can't wait for the next one in this series to come out!

I loved this book! Such a unique take on Eurydice. Anora is my new favorite book character and I can’t wait for more!

Wow, I haven’t read a YA fantasy book that I’ve enjoyed this much in a while (usually into NA or adult fantasy these days). While When the Stars Come Out is meant to be a retelling of Orpheus and Eurydice, I didn’t get much of that from the story. Despite that, I thought the world-building was unique and I really liked the rivalry between the different beings in the story. The romance was sweet rather than annoying (my biggest complaint of true YA books). Though the book works as a standalone novel and the ending summed things up pretty well, I’ve heard Scarlett St. Clair MIGHT continue the series and I REALLY want more books!!

I received this book as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are my own.

This book got me hooked from the start.

Anora has the ability to see and communicate with the dead, something which her mother does not cope well with along with her mum having her own issues to deal with. We see Anora struggling with craving comfort from her mother but never getting it. I cannot imagine how I would feel if I was in Anora's place. I would want someone to believe me, especially my mum.

I really liked the concept of the book and I felt like we got a lot of explanations for certain things like the Valryn and how they operate. I would have liked more insight into Anora's abilities, but I'm sure that'll come in the sequel.

I liked the development of Shy and Anora's relationship. There was a bit of angst which I always love. It'll be interesting to see how their relationship develops, especially after the few big reveals throughout the book.

I would like to see more from the other characters too, but because the book is told from Anora and Shy's POV we don't see the others as much. I'd honestly love a Jacobi spin off. I can tell there's a good story there.

Overall, this was a quick, interesting read. I'll definitely be reading the sequel when it comes out.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This book was... Interesting. We begin the story by following Anora as she starts a new school, having clearly left the old one due to some as-yet unknown conflict. She sees dead people. There's definitely something spooky going on with her. At this point, I was very excited to see where things were going and ready to be surprised.

I'll start by saying St Clare's writing is definitely more suited to YA, in my opinion. This story feels like a classic YA paranormal fantasy and employs a lot of the tropes you'd expect to find in one. In fact, if you told me this was fanfiction for JLA's Covenant series (which reads like Vampire Academy fanfic) I'd believe you!

Main character who's not like other girls: Check.
Love interest who can't be with her because he's a dhampir/pure/valryn and they just CAN'T: Check.
Weird powers that they don't really understand/can't control: Check.

That's not to say this book doesn't have good moments or that it wasn't an enjoyable read, but it certainly wasn't anything new. Would still recommend for fans of this particular genre and authors.

I was really excited when I got approved. for this because I read A touch of darkness by this author and I really enjoyed it! I was intrigued to see one of her YA books. It did not disappoint!

Anora can see the dead and turn their spirits. into coins. She doesn't know why and doesn't really understand it but she knows that she has to keep it a secret to start her new life as a normal person and not as a freak. When she sees a dead girl on her first day of school, she starts to worry that keeping it a secret will not be as easy as planned. On the first day of school, she claims the soul of a dead girl and loses the coin. What she doesn't know is that the coin can give the ability to others to steal souls. After one of her classmates ends up dead, the murder weapon becomes quite clear. She must find the person who stole her coin before other people end up dead.

This book started off slow but once it picked up I couldn't put it down. I love the plot and the forbidden love story. Gave me Romeo and Juliette vibes. I liked that there was a whole anonymous gossiping aspect which added to the intrigue because we never knew who was destroying people's reputations. I did figure out who. was behind it. but I was still surprised by how it ended.

If you liked the sixth sense you will love this! Highly recommend if you love paranormal mysteries!

I really loved this exciting, YA fantasy by Scarlet St. Clair! This book definitely gives off more of a paranormal vibe at first but the world building quickly expands beyond just the paranormal! It was fast-paced and full of plot twists that I would think I figured out..until another twist happened! I really liked all the characters including Anora, Shy, Lilly, Natalie and Thane! I might not have been a fan of all of them by the end of the book..but they were all well written! I loved at the end of the book when Anora finally excepts her role and starts to make her own rules and expectations! I can’t wait to see what will happen in the next book!

Thank you netgalley for providing me with this book!!


I will start by saying there is a TW for this in the beginning of the book but I want to mention it here as well This book contains scenes that depict suicide.

The book had the vibes of early 2000 YA paranormal books and I really enjoyed that.

I’ve read all of scarlet’s books and I know she loves to write romance but what I love about her books is that all of the couple she writes about are interesting as individuals first. I think I see this in a lot of book couples where they are interesting as a couple but not as individuals.
Both POVs were interesting to read, I loved learning about shy and his friends and how they were trained. I loved learning about Anora‘s past and learning about the Eurydice and Valryn.

So the book was A little slow at first and I think that Anora and shy’s romance needed more. It took time for them to get together which is fine but I still think it needed more developing.
It was very intriguing and my curiosity kept me reading because I had so many questions
I still have questions but I think she’ll answer more in the next book which after the ending I’m actually really excited for.

A very important honorable mention of thane who stole the show in my opinion I really enjoyed his character!!

Finally I think this book is perfect for fallen and daughter of smoke and bone fans!!