These Wicked Stars is the first book in a new series by Catelyn Wilson that follows Hazel Blackthorn, an illegitimate child who is outcast from society, as she finds herself on a quest for a mysterious old gentleman in a mythical Bazaar that only appears once every 30 years.

Overall, this books showed a lot of promise. The Bazaar is an impossible labyrinth of secrets and the action is non-stop from beginning to end. There is action, unrequited and forbidden love, a mystery, gods, and a lead whose origins need to be unraveled. That being said, everything about this book felt rushed.

Why was Hazel so enamored with Linus? Her absolute devotion to that man as more and more was revealed about that relationship seemed unearned or at least made her look like a bit of a fool.
Why was her entire family so cruel and yet her sister so devoted? Where did their bond stem from?
What actually happened to her mother following her birth?
Other than the purported villain of this story, what did Hazel do that led to others in the book to be so enamored with her?

While her ability to not succumb to the sins of the Bazaar was established as intriguing to many, there were characters in this book that expressed an interest in our heroine well before she ever entered the Bazaar and yet all that occurs in the first few chapters is Hazel acting like a love-sick puppy, getting thrown out of her home after being misused by the few people who supposedly cared for her. The "love at first sight" storyline simply wasn't earned. A lot of the characters in this book are one dimensional and act predictably.

That being said, I give this book a 3 star review. It's an easy, intriguing read. It feels like a combination of Caraval meets Kingdom of the Wicked and From Blood and Ash. Readers of any of the titles listed will likely enjoy this book for what it is. It's a whirlwind and fun ride that can be completed in the morning or evening before or after work. It's an enjoyable read for a new author who is releasing it independently.

I think this author will really shine as her career progresses. With a good editor and publisher, this book has extreme potential, and I would still recommend it despite its flaws so that the author has an opportunity to get this series where it deserves to be.

Thank you to NetGalley and Catelyn Wilson for an advanced readers copy of this book. This review will be posted to Goodreads and my blog The Millennial Fantasy Reader in the coming days.

These Wicked Stars had potential but sadly, it didn't met them for me.

I didn't like or connect with any of the characters. I found thebFMC, Hazel, frustrating and too naïve for my liking even when everything was laid out before her eyes. Cassian, MMC, was more tolerable but not by much.
Their relationship didn't make sense to me since she spent more than half of the book "hating" him and then suddenly se was in love with him(?)
The rhythm was off, slow towards the beginning, action out of nowhere in the middle( I did enjoy that a lot tho), slow again and then some more action at the end.

In top of that, the mystery about Hazel's identity was more annoying than anything, they gave you all this signs that say she's not human but nothing about what she could possibly be and at some point I was just rolling my eyes with how "special" she is. When her identity was finally revealed my reaction was flat and straight out skeptical.

What I did like was The Bazaar, this magical world with strange creatures and a mind of its own.


Thank you to Netgallery and the author for the eARC. These thoughts are my own.

I struggled so much to get through this one. The description intrigued me because I loved Caraval but this one falls short. It does have a similar feel with the night bazaar but to me that's where the similarities stop. I had a hard time connecting with the Hazel. She felt one dimensional to me. Her actions contradicted herself many times. I was bored throughout most of this book. I feel like the book got off track from the synopsis. The world building was at times confusing. It was just a mess.

I have received the eArc of this book from Netgalley and I am leaving the review voluntarily.

I was intrigued by the description of a new place laced with magic. Yes you could say like caraval but since I have mixed feeling about the series I thought a new series would be nice. But alas, here comes my disappointment as at some point we entered a new place, leaving the Bazaar behind and I lost interest. And I didn't really like that the love interest was similar as to Caraval (I mean the fact that the love interes is the right hand of the big boss). So yeah, great idea with not so great execution. But there is one thing that I can praise which I believe is also important, is that the writing was great it was so smooth and enjoyable.

I was going to at least skim through this book, so that I could say that I had, in fact, finished it. But the clunky writing, the meandering plot, the extraordinarily stupid main character, and the supporting cast of depressingly familiar cardboard cutouts made it impossible to slog past the 40% mark.

I actually started making notes every time our heroine Hazel did something breathtakingly, astronomically, mind-bogglingly stupid, including the two times someone gave her completely straightforward advice only for her to be confused by their ‘riddles’. Also can we talk about how she started off this book NOT believing in the Bazaar and then believing in it long enough to believe there’s some creepy guy stalking her and then not believing it long enough to disagree with some other weird dude that it exists and THEN being totally unfazed that it does actually exist? And THEN, despite being told her whole life that the Bazaar is filled with monsters that will eat her organs and that any sin can be bought there, she accepts without question the first glass of alcohol that some rando on the street hands her. Seriously, this girl has nothing going on between her ears, which makes it incredibly easy for everyone she stumbles across to get her to run all their most dangerous errands for them. I stopped just before she took a detour to *checks notes* the Underworld?? To fetch something or do something for yet another Rhysand wannabe that wasn’t even fully explained to her. Because the Underworld was definitely an established bit of mythology in this world, and the Bazaar was already boring anyway.

And of course the creepy guy stalking her with a naked blade and who refuses to answer her questions and who manhandles her without warning is the love interest because… of course.

There are plenty of readers who will enjoy this kind of book, as the wild popularity of Sarah J Maas and Jennifer Armentrout can attest to. But I am not one of those readers, and this book is absolutely not for me. If this weren’t an arc and I didn’t at least want to read enough to have something to review, I would have DNF’d after the first couple chapters.

The only reason this got an extra star was because of the writing and the ORIGINAL premise. I say “original” because the story got so off track from the original premise that it felt like a completely different book by the end. The worldbuilding was unnecessarily confusing in the sense that as soon as I thought I understood what was going on with it, it would drop something that felt completely out of place. The main character is so naive that it was almost painful to read. I would only recommend this if you are a fan of generic YA tropes with no subversion whatsoever.

I'm gonna be honest, I requested this book because I love the cover. Sadly, I didn't enjoy the story.

Hazel is not a very bright main character. When she is forced out, she randomly comes across this super nice guy and believes that he's going to help her. Like I said, not the brightest. I understand that the dude wasn't completely random, but Hazel is so unrealistic. She proceeds to drink something from a stranger and is shocked that there are consequences. Then, Hazel finds sanctuary and falls asleep. She wakes up and is told that she has slept for nine hours (aka a full night's rest) and needs to ask how many nights are left in the Bazaar, because apparently this fictional world doesn't have math.

On the plus side, I do like Hazel's bond with Adelaide, her sister.

The predictability of this book is off the charts. I feel like I was twelve steps ahead of Hazel at all times. When she's getting picked on, I knew immediately that the love interest was going to save her. Spoiler: he does. Other obvious plot points include the berries being poisonous and Niklaus being her dad.

Hazel also has a big dose of special snowflake-ness. It's ridiculous that she and the love interest fall in love after a week. ONE. WEEK.

Literally everything is explained by the Fates. If the author wants to tell the reader information but not give away the whole book, a character will tell Hazel something and be like "Oh oops I can't say any more because the Fates haha." And Hazel just like, buys that and doesn't try to question it. Please, at least try to come up with a better way to have Hazel figure out things.

Shoutout to the funniest moment in the whole book: Saskia tells Hazel that she needs to leave, and when Hazel turns to leave, Saskia goes "wait are you sure leaving is a good idea" (???)

So yeah. I'm really not interested in continuing this series.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC of These Wicked Stars!

-> CARAVAL VIBES, except DARK!
-> Great Worldbuilding
-> Fantasy Romance
-> Swoonworthy
-> Adventure
-> Mystery

This book is the first in a series! I am looking forward to the next book and can't wait to continue reading more about Hazel and the Bazaar. These Wicked Stars releases October 31st!

I felt like this story came across as a mix of other stories have read before. It didn’t feel like it had its own identity and it felt easy to see everything coming. The main character was the usual downtrodden girl but key to everything. The writing wasn’t bad I just wasn’t a fan of the story.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the ARC.

Definitely a 5 star for me! I loved everything in that book : the original story, the writing, the characters, the magical world,... I really appreciated every word of this incredible journey. Well done! Now... I truly hope there will be a sequel to this book as I want to know more about this bazaar and the amazing Hazel ❤

While I did not fully enjoy this book, I do think that others might. This book felt very "YA stereotypical". And it is not that I'm too old for YA books. I do happen to enjoy YA books blended into my usual adult or new adult reads. The problem is that where most YA books have started to veer away from the norm and even broaden into other categories as far as their writing goes, this book does not. It dumbs things down so much that it would be insulting even if I were reading this when I was younger.

The way the world-building is set up never gets better. Again, it almost seemed to be dumbed down or written for an audience who wouldn't think about the world building....but we do. The character development was much of the same. The main character is a "chosen one" which can be done very well and even may things exciting, but then it starts to become predictable. The other characters are similar in that they didn't really have a drive for doing anything. The motives were all just "meh" and it didn't make for any well-rounded characters that you just fall for or root for. To be fair, I'm harder on the book for lacking in this aspect because great character arcs are absolutely doable for YA books. I think overall this book may appeal more to a younger audience but I say that with skepticism for two reasons. One - most of the young folks I know now are actively looking for more mature and flushed-out books and no I do not mean to include sex, romance, etc... They are actually looking for well-written books. And two - because it's seemingly for a younger audience, you alienate a larger audience to include people like myself who may not rate the book as high as it could have been were the story written a tad differently.

Overall I would give it 3 stars because the potential is definitely there.

I had not heard of this book before finding it on Netgalley but the description definitely caught my interest and I'm glad I got a chance to read it. The concept surrounding the magic and the Bazaar in the story was well done and unique. Hazel was a good protagonist. There were times when she overreacted a bit, but overall I found her believable.. The friendship she had with the siren was endearing and even if it felt a bit rushed, the love story with Cassian was good too. I wish more time was spent out in the Bazaar and the characters who lived there would probably be my only complaint. Otherwise, looking forward to the next book to see what happens.

This was just blah to me. It felt rushed but also slow at the same time somehow? I didn't love Hazel and could not get behind the relationship between she and Cassian. It felt forced and just unbelievable to me. I did love the idea of the Bazaar though and would have loved more of a focus on that aspect of the book.

Huge thank you to Netgalley, Xpresso Book Tours and Catelyn Wilson for this ARC.
This was such a fun and quick read, it really put me in the mood for October! This book is the perfect blend of fairy tales and mythology elements, along with a unique and fun world. This book starts with Hazel, who is an outcast in her society due to the disgrace her mother left. She dreams of a better life, and sees a path out with her secret fiancé Linus. Hazel, soon finds out that Linus is going to marry her awful cousin and is disowned by her family when the engagement is announced. As if the heartbreak wasn’t enough, Hazel is outside on the most dangerous night in 30 years, the night of the alignment. While seeking refuge she is offered a way to change her life forever. She soon finds herself on a magical quest, chasing the hope of reuniting with her Linus and the life they dreamed of. This book is a fun fantasy full of mythical creatures, a strange new world and an unlikely heroine. I am really excited to see how this story will continue in book 2!

These Wicked Stars is a hidden gem! I had never heard of the novel or the author, so this book was a pleasant surprise! I couldn't put it down, which may or may not have impacted my schoolwork.
Hazel hasn't had the easiest life; an outcast in her small town, she feels everything will turn around when her betrothed, Linus, returns home. Unfortunately, Linus' return only sparks a downward spiral for Hazel as she becomes even more isolated. These unfortunate events lead Hazel to help a mysterious stranger, and she enters the Bazaar. This darkly marvellous place pops up every 30 years when the planets align. Hazel faces fantastic mythical creatures, heroes, villains and learns her true identity in this world.
I was immediately intrigued by the drama between Hazel and Linus and felt that the book's pacing was quite fast. It made me nervous that the heightened beginning would lead to a slow middle, but that wasn't the case. The novel has twists and turns and engaging, relevant plot points throughout.
Hazel viscerally enters the Bazaar, eliciting a physical reaction from the reader. Once in the Bazaar, my interest heightened further. We see both classical mythical beings and some new creatures of the dark as Hazel explores, trying to understand the strange new place. As she investigates, we meet a unique and varied cast of creative side characters that help Hazel learn through the Bazaar and aid in the character's immense personal growth. I wasn't sure of any of the characters' true intentions, other than Hazel which didn't feel gimmicky; it added the right amount of mystery and intrigue.
I disliked a few things about the story. In parts, I felt Hazel's clumsiness was repetitive, and I was afraid it would act as a bit of a plot device. While it didn't serve this purpose, it continued to stick out to me. A few grammatical errors jumped off the page to me, although I feel most people would oversee it. And the last thing I didn't like was the decision to skip over a few nights in the Bazaar. Because I was so enthralled with this world, I wanted all the content I could get.
Overall, this was a great read. It wraps up nicely, answering enough questions but leaving some unanswered for future novels in this series. I highly recommend it to fans of young-adult fantasy. These Wicked Stars is an exciting page-turner filled with love, loss and the perfect amount of mythical creatures.
Thank you to NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours for an ARC copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Occasionally you stumble upon a book that wasn’t even on your radar that you end up falling in love with. These Wicked Stars was that for me.

I found this book as part of an ARC website I’m on, and decided to give it a try. I knew virtually nothing about it, or its author, Catelyn Wilson. I went into it with no expectations aside from knowing it was a short read at only 320 pages and I needed to read it quickly. Honestly, I was enthralled from the first page and devoured it in 24 hours without ever feeling like it was some sort of chore. It is such a pleasant surprise when you find a gem of a book by chance.

The story centers around a young woman named Hazel who travels to a mysterious Bazaar to help a stranger. Throughout her journey she struggles with her past and the feeling that she is not enough or worthy of love. It’s a notion so many struggle with, and it made the romance that much sweeter. To hear someone who has captured your heart tell you that they will prove to you that you are enough can mean everything. There isn’t any real spice in this book, but that doesn’t take away from the romantic aspects of the story.

My overall thoughts on this book were that it is very well written, and the plot sucks you in right from the start. At no time does the plot drag. The characters are all well written, but I loved that the side characters didn’t feel ignored. You got to know them a bit and I can’t wait to see their stories develop in future installments.

This book is definitely a 5 out 5 for me and I hope the author will continue the series soon.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. (via Netgalley)

Actual review closer to 3.5 stars? The pacing was kind of off for me. The beginning was slow before it picked up in the middle. The end moved fast, maybe a bit rushed. I think the thing I struggled the most with was not liking the main character all that much lol.

I like this story and I am desperately waiting for book 2. I have got feelings of caraval but it is a totally new story. The worldbuilding is interesting and the characters fabulous. From page one to the last page it was fascinating.

Thank you #netgalley for the ARC!
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 STAR RATING

These Wicked ⭐️’s
The alignment enables the bazaar to open for seven days. Mortals can seek their desires for payment in the Bazaar.
Hazel a bastard turned orphan has lived a cruel life paying for her mothers sins. Once she enters the bazaar she uncovers the truth of her fiancé and finds herself trapped by Zaine.
I liked the twists and mysteries but there were some dull moments such as when she is wondering the bazaar

I also felt the shadowed man that followed her was missing details or an actual encounter. I like how the book started off fast paced but the introduction of the old man seemed to sudden and rushed.

❤️ This read had an interesting take on the underworld and there is still much to uncover. As with most Fantasy Books this is the build up and just a taste of what’s to come.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I am not the demographic for YA books so I think that's part of why this book wasn't for me. I like the concept and some parts were interesting, but the romance plot was really lacking for me. It sort of feels like two different books - the story really picked up near the end and I imagine the next book builds near that. There's interesting world building as we follow Hazel into the bazaar and she learns more about herself.