I received this book for free on Net Galley while browsing the New Adult Section.

Although this is an entirely original tale (as far as I know), the author does an excellent job mimicking that fairy tale feel. The MC, Hazel Blackthorn, makes for a compelling heroine. Hazel's desire for love and to rise above the shame of her illegitimate birth make the reader root for her success.

This tale involves a magic Bazar that only appears once every 30 years, where everything one desires is on sale, but the only currency accepted is a part of your soul. It was like the opening scene of Stardust, and I dug it. (Honestly, I wished we spent a little more time pursuing what was on offer at the Bazar.) And the book was never explicit or original in detailing what losing a part of one's soul would mean.

The two main characters other than Hazel (Zaire and Capsian) were ciphers, though part of that is the difficulty in portraying 1000-year-old quasi-immortals.

I enjoyed the lush, lyrical prose and Hazel's POV, but I am unsure if I will pick up the follow-up books

Many thanks to the publisher and netgalley for sending me this e-arc in exchange for a honest review! All opinions are my own.
I wanna start with that I find the cover to be so pretty and was one of the factors of me requesting this book. I also found the synopsis interesting almost reminding me of Caraval. Unfortunately I could not connect to the characters at all. In a hero’s journey it starts with character leaving home, often being foolish making horrible decisions and most often have a big flaw (that they get tested later and learn from their mistakes), for our main character, Hazel, her flaw happened to be too trusting and needing to be desired. Hazel gets constantly tested throughout the book and she keeps failing, every person she meets she trusts, the only reason that she wasn’t betrayed was because the other person didn’t do it but Hazel herself never questions herself. I honestly think that if we would’ve seen some growth from this it would’ve improved but it just makes her character flat, and boring, I did not sympathise with her I did not care if she got hurt or what would happen to her.
The other thing that first seemed interesting was the idea of the bazaar to be open for 7 days but unfortunately there was some days (literally the first day) that felt sooo long there was just too many descriptions that it made me put the book down and take a break. I think if the introduction was shorten it would make the story flow better. I understand we need the information to understand but it was too much for just one scene.
This book also contains insta love which is why I say that Hazel didn’t learn of her mistakes because she just wanted to be loved and honestly just stayed with the first person who showed some interest in her which is literally the same problem she had with the other guy.
Overall this book had potential it just needs a shorter introduction and add growth to characters. Would I read a (the?) sequel? Probably not as I couldn’t connect to the characters to actually be invested to see what happens to them.

Hazel Blackthorne is despised on her island. The bastard daughter of her mother and an unknown sailor, Hazel dreams of marrying her secret fiancé, Linus, to escape the cruelty of her aunt's home. However, her plans are dashed when during the Alignment festival, the engagement of her cousin and Linus is announced! Turns out Linus's father is bankrupt and the only way to recoup the loss is to marry rich.

Desperate for a chance to save Linus Hazel does the unthinkable, she accepts a mysterious offer and enters the Bazaar. The mystical marketplace where anyone can find what they desire but, of course, for a price. Now, time is running out and Hazel must find the one thing she came for or risk the Bazaar keeping her soul. Is love worth the price? She's about to find out.

In the vein of Stephanie Garber and Sarah J. Maas with a hint of Stardust thrown in for good measure, I enjoyed this book. It was a quick but very entertaining read. There are a lot of twists and turns and I'm not just talking about Hazel trying to navigate the Bazaar (Some you don't see coming and some you do because that's the way reading goes). Packed full of romance, self-discovery, betrayal, myth, and of course a cloaked in black figure...I think you should pick up THESE WICKED STARS when it hit shelves.

Thank you to Net Galley and Independent for a copy of this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Hazel Blackthorn is an outcast, the bastard daughter of a nameless sailor and a disgraced mother. In the Bazaar, anything is possible — for a price.
This book had everything I needed to fall completely into the Bazaar myself - action, trickery, mystery, romance, and high stakes I wish we got to explore the Bazaar more, as Hazel fairly quickly gains guidance within the Bazaar, so she is able to navigate it fairly well.

Witchful Thinking is a second-chance contemporary romance by Celestine Martin and a fun read to begin the fall season with! It's a small town romance with a witch heroine that takes place in Freya’s Grove, a typical small town with a paranormal twist - supernatural beings like witches, gnomes, and mermen are common. There’s no secrecy or power struggles, and it doesn’t define the characters of the book.With the cute romance, involving spells gone wrong, and whimsical tone this was just a sweet treat of a read!

Remember, if you know what you want, you'll never find it.
Hazel Blackthorn is an outcast, the bastard daughter of a nameless sailor and a disgraced mother. She will do anything to marry her secret fiancé and escape her oppressive life. When her fiancé announces he must marry her cousin in order to save his family’s crumbling business, Hazel is heartbroken and her hope for the future crushed. But a kind old man offers her salvation: Travel to the mythical Bazaar that visits the island once every thirty years and return before the end of the festival with medicine he needs, and she will have all the riches in the world. Gripped by hope, Hazel accepts.
But in the Bazaar, a place where the gods themselves used to dwell, Hazel can trust nothing. In a world where you can buy time and purchase power, wicked merchants wield cruel magic. As she travels further into the Bazaar, searching for the medicine her benefactor desires, she becomes enmeshed in a game of cat and mouse with the all-powerful King of the Bazaar, a man with a silver-tongue and shadowy past.
As time runs out and the Bazaar threatens to trap Hazel forever, she begins to unravel the mystery of the Bazaar and why the King wants her for himself. But Hazel must decide if her desire for her freedom is worth the cost the Bazaar demands--and if the love she thought she needed is the one she truly deserves.
Really enjoyed this book totally recommend
Thank You NetGalley and Independent
I just reviewed These Wicked Stars by Catelyn Wilson. #TheseWickedStars #NetGalley

Our main character Hazel Blackthorn lives with her aunt and cousin who treats her very poorly. Luckily for Hazel she gets sent on an adventure to “The Bazaar”, a place that only appears once every thirty years. At the Bazaar she’s to finish a task for a stranger before “the Alignment” happens. So, yeah, it’s a very basic story. Didn’t really enjoy It much. It felt very much like this type of story has been done before and there wasn’t really anything new brought to the table.

Also! Can we please stop using ø/ö as "cool" letters? They have a sound and a meaning, you know, and "Nederhølm" (or in my Swedish eyes, Nederhölm) just looks plain silly.

It was fun, fast paced, whimsical read! If you enjoy Caraval, I think you will love this one.
I enjoyed the whimsical, mysterious vibes of the bazaar!
Hazel is a nice lead, although she kind of frustrated me a bit by her stubbornness at Linus "loving" her because, Hazel, love, it was obvious from the very very start that Linus is red flag! But I love how she is strong and persevering. Cassian is a dear and must be protected at all cost.
Need book 2 ASAP!

(For some reason Netgalley stated that they couldn't find same ISBN on Goodreads. So I posted it directly to Goodreads and put the link below.)

This book was incredibly enjoyable. I really like the bastard main characters who often find themselves betrayed by people they love. I especially enjoyed the magical Bazaar and the way that it entices the character.

4.5

I have been given a free ARC of this book in turn for an honest review.

Few people are looking for somewhere in particular when they come to the Bazaar. Just something. There's a difference.

NO because like this book had no right to be THAT freaking good!!!

This book follows Hazel's journey through the Bazaar. As this is the first installment of the Bazaar series, I am extremely excited to see where everything goes.

Hazel is a shy, timid, disgraced girl from the a small island that many come to visit during the time of the alignment. Many travel far and wide in order to celebrate a place that from a young age Hazel has been told does not exist.

After being thrown out by her Aunt for disgracing her ex-fiance and cousin she turns to the lonely streets of her island during the dangerous time of the Alignment for some sort of comfort.

She soon stumbles upon an old man in need of something from the land she once believed was a myth. After agreeing to retrieve what the man desires she is brought into the Bazaar.

Soon the world she once knew fades away to black and she is left with the understanding that even though this land is beautiful and magical, something is not right.

And in order to retrieve what she needs and return home she will be faced with many questions, but one you will be asking throughout the entire book is this: <I>Who the hell is Hazel Blackthorn?

This book is filled with romance, mystery, and thrills most of which you won't see coming until it is right in your face. If you are interested in reading something that will for sure have you wanting to know what happens next, pick up this book and read it. I promise you won't want to put it down.

This was such a fun read!
I really liked the beginning of this book. Hazel’s hopeless situation, and the feel of what kind of world she was living in was very interesting. I definitely got pulled in.
I think once she got to the bazaar, the book slowed a little. That might just be me not liking the idea of being lost in a bazaar unable to find my way.
Either way, it took me only a few days to finish, and the last part of the book really pulled me in as we get closer to discovering who Hazel’s Father is, and why the King of the Bazaar is obsessed with her.
I also REALLY liked the development of the relationship between Hazel and Cassian. I definitely felt like the kiss at the end was enough. There didn’t need to be a love confession said because YES, Hazel realizes she THOUGHT she was in love once, and has since realized it wasn’t real. I was very comfortable with where Hazel and Cassian’s relationship was by the end of the book.
I’m really looking forward to the cover reveal now, and owning a hardcover copy. I’ll definitely be waiting for book two because I really want to find out what Hazel’s power is. We know she’s half-god at this point, but we don’t really know what that means as far as what she’s capable of, so I’m really excited to find out!

Honestly, I liked this WAY more than I thought I would. It was exactly what it said on the tin but that's totally fine.

Hazel Blackthorn, infamous on her small island of Veara for being a bastard, the daughter of a mysterious sailor who disappeared and her mother, a disgraced noblewoman. Hazel anticipates her fiancé, Linus, announcing their engagement at her aunt's ball; however, at said ball, Linus announces his engagement... to Hazel's evil cousin. After an argument, Hazel is thrown out of her aunt's home and is forced to wander on the first night of the Alignment, a time when seven planets align and a mysterious bazaar opens to mortals. Hazel meets a mysterious old man who offers Hazel a fortune if she enters the Bazaar on his behalf and retrieves some medicine. But the Bazaar isn't quite what it seems, and Hazel has caught the eye of the King of the Bazaar. Hazel has to piece together what's going on, or risk being trapped in the Bazaar forever.

This definitely has Caraval vibes. I did my best not to compare the two, but there are some definite similarities: a rare event that only comes around at a certain time, the idea of Fates having power, and nothing being as it seems. That being said, I think there's enough difference between the two that These Wicked Stars stands on its own. Now onto my thoughts on the book itself.

Hazel has it rough. She is in a Cinderella-esque story, except she has no fairy godmother or magical transformation. She is paying for the sins of her mother's infidelity--leaving Hazel unwanted, scorned, and judged by her community. She works as seamstress for her spoiled cousin, making meager wages and putting up with abuse, but her one bright light is her fiancé, Linus.
Linus was giving red flags left and right. I mean, Linus? Hazel, sweetie, you can do better than a Peanuts comic character. He does nothing to tell Hazel of his "real" engagement with her cousin despite having ample time to do so, and he only associates with her in secret. Red. Flags. All. Around.
In the Bazaar, we have Cassian, a hot, mysterious stranger who is following Hazel under the orders of Zaire. The relationship between Hazel and Cassian seemed to develop jaggedly, rather than a building of chemistry, which I found a little off, but overall fine.

The whole Gods versus Fates was confusing, especially because the Fates are never explained and only the surface is scratched in regards to the Gods themselves. I wish we got to explore the Bazaar more, as Hazel fairly quickly gains guidance within the Bazaar, so she is able to navigate it fairly well.
I highly enjoyed this book, and would recommend it to anyone who enjoyed Caraval!
Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for sending me this e-arc in exchange for my honest review!:)

The premise of this book was very appealing and I was quite excited to read it, but I was a bit let down overall. I did not love the characters as much as I wanted to and I wasn't enchanted by the mystery of the Bazaar. It reminded me a lot of the Caraval series, which I did not particularly enjoy either, so it could be that these sorts of whimsical settings aren't my thing. Overall, if you liked Caraval then you'll probably enjoy this book as well.

I wanted to enjoy this as the premise sounded super promising, but ultimately I was left wanting more from both the characters and the plot itself.

I had the pleasure of reading this as an ARC. The very beginning begins a bit abruptly. I would have loved a little more world building and a better glimpse into Hazels life before the bazaar, but despite this by the third chapter I was hooked. I Enjoyed getting to know Hazel as she progresses through the bazaar.. There are friends and foe at every corner making the world lush and full. I felt like Hazels character had very relatable reactions to all the trouble she was thrown into. This made her a likable character in my opinion. I too would fight for love fiercely even if l was confused and scared all while being thrown into a strange and deadly world. I enjoyed watching details being revealed and the mystery of the Bazaar unravel! I look forward to seeing where the story goes! The only critique I had of the book was sometimes the dialogue fell flat and didn’t flow as well. And sometimes reading felt a bit choppy, but besides those small hiccups the story and plot are fantastic and I enjoyed reading it! I can’t wait to see more of Hazel and her comrades !

Hazel is an outcast because she is the daughter of a nameless sailor and a disgraced mother. She wants to marry her secret fiance Linus but he needs to marry someone with money to save his family's business. She travels to the mythical Bazaar to get medicine an old man need and he will pay her with riches. She meets the King there and she must decide what she truly wants.

An amazing and addictive story. It's a compelling plot. I love this magical world. I love Hazel too. She is such a romantic and she has to go through so many trials... An exciting and fresh story.

Thanks to the publisher for the arc.