Probably one of my favourite world builds in a while!

The world created is fantastic. The ending, especially, I did not see that layer of the world coming! Excited to see what happens next. The writing does follow a lot of romantasy cliches though, which slowed down my reading at the start, but once I got into it (probably from the 30% mark), I devoured it!

☀️🌙✨☀️🌙✨

Premise:
In a celestial world, ruled by Stars, Elara, the Princess of Darkness, is kidnapped by their neighbouring kingdom, Helios, the Kingdom of Light.

She is given the task of training and working with the Kingdom’s Prince, Enzo, to hone her powers and find a way to kill Ariete, a god to her world and ‘King of the Stars’. The same god she is fated to love and die beside, and who killed her parents.

But as she trains with Enzo, who she loathes at first, she finds herself falling for him, and going against the prophecy trying to tie her to Ariete.

☀️🌙✨☀️🌙✨

The initial enemies to lovers build up (despite being my favourite trope), was a bit overly cliche at the start, but once there was a good level of flirting and trauma sharing, I became quite invested in Enzo and Elara. There were still a few over the top moments later in the book, but overall, it became a rather addictive read.

What I loved:
☀️ Enzo is adorable and loveable and slightly unhinged and hot at times. He has puppy dog energy one moment, and then is threatening to burn everything to the ground for Elara the next. Plus he has a deliciously filthy mouth and flirty attitude that brings a lot of fun to the book. I really loved him!

🌙 The world! I love the celestial kingdoms and how all the gods follow an element of their namesake star signs. And the ending and revelations were just fantastic. Definitely a refreshing fantasy world to step into. And whilst the light and shadow magic is very much something we see a lot, I loved the dream walking and illusion powers that Elara possessed!

✨ Ariete… ok it may be the Aries in me… but hear me out… I get that he’s the villain. And I get that he was an absolute psychopath in the book. But… I… yeah I have no excuses. Ariete is 100% going to end up being my favorite character of the series. He’s unhinged and I feel there’s so much to discover there. I love a book that has me excited to see what the villain does next. Also very intrigued by Eli! He was quiet at the end, but curious where his alliances will fall!

All in all, I will definitely be reading the next book. Curious to see Elara go full vengeance, as I love a bit of feminine rage! Plus I want to see what my favourite Stars get up to next!!

I loved the magic and the world of this book, the writing was beautiful and I was engaged in the story the whole time. Also the pining and the tension between Elara and Enzo, give me more!!! I cannot wait to see where the series goes and this was a book that I thoroughly enjoyed.

As brilliant as the indie version- if not better!! I need the next books asap and I hope the publisher’s pick up the pace for those of us who have been waiting years for book three

Lately I have been a bit dissatisfied with my latest romantasy reads, so I went into Heavenly Bodies a bit wary, afraid that, despite the good reviews I read, this would be another disappointment for me, but I was delighted to find that it hooked me from the very first page. Right from the strong badass heroine, a princess without a kingdom who is taken prisoner from the enemy king to be used as a weapon against the cruel Stars who rule their world. Enter a charming and handsome prince tasked with helping her develop her power and the tension and the banter between these two kept me glued to the pages.

There is also a dooming prophecy, complex magic, a ruthless king and brutal gods, a fantastic cast of side characters, masked balls and sexy dances, and quite a few twists and turns that took me by surprise.

I genuinely liked the two protagonists and how their enemies-to-lovers story develops: smart, loyal, and determined, Elara can walk through dreams and is shadow, while adorable and fearless Lorenzo “Enzo” is light and he would do anything to protect Elara. Both are haunted by the ghosts of their pasts, by their losses and griefs, and I was completely invested in how they find each other and go through them.

I loved everything about this book: the brilliant writing, the incredible world-building, the addictive and riveting story, the wonderful and engaging characters, the slow-burn romance between the star-crossed lovers, and that unexpected ending that left me in absolute need of the sequel. Highly recommended!

Fun and exciting to read. I just wasn't a fan of the pacing which made it difficult to enjoy. So much packed into the story which left many scenes feeling like filler.

Many thanks to Penguin, Imani Erriu and Netgally for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Admittedly, this book did take a little while to warm up, but once it did I felt really invested in the narrative. I think that the world building, which is inspired by classical mythology is very clever and really immerses the reader in the experience of reading.

While the first half of the book was slower paced, it really picked up in the second half and I could not put it down!

I really loved all the characters and although I felt that a couple of them could have been further developed, this is only the first book so there may be more to come!

I think this would be the perfect read for people who are fans of Stephanie Garber - I felt the magic systems and the romance had echoes of this kind of writing which I really enjoyed.

I am really excited to see where the second book will take this story!

Ok I'm pretty sure this is a debut and if so then I commend the author on an interesting tale. It is sadly full of a lot of tropes that readers of romance and fantasy will recognise but honestly they are storylines that many adore so how can I fault that ? Forced proximity and fated Mates are just two that spring to mind and although I didn't particularly warm to Enzo I always found myself routing for Elara who is very much alone and yet just keeps pushing those buttons !
I found the overall world building very interesting and very much look forward to what will follow as the Gods or should I say Stars will clearly want to regain control and devotion following what Elara does here. Enemies to lovers yes but also a slow burn romance with the most arrogant and yet the sweetest hero I've read about in some time. Yes I enjoyed it although I would hesitate to say it's perfect with perhaps some pacing issues but I will certainly look out for the follow up book which clearly is a recommendation in itself.
This voluntary take is of an advanced copy and my thoughts and comments are honest and I believe fair

- Stars as gods
- Light vs dark magic
- Slowwww burn
- Hidden identity

Why aren't more people talking about this book?! It's criminally underrated!

If you're a fan of ACOTAR and from blood and ash this is that same vibe.

The writing style is descriptive and the world is beautiful, the characters had depth and you feel like your with the FMC on this emotional journey. The slow burn is 😚🤌🏻

I know this is part of a series and I can't wait to see what else is in store for us!

FMC: 23
MMC's: 26

So, this was not what I was expecting. I went into this anticipating more of a fantasy romance rather than a romantasy. For the first 85% of the book, it feels like a standard romantasy, with the interesting world building glossed over for the usual tropes.
However, by the end, I was pleasantly surprised. There were a couple of twists I didn't see coming, and the ending was satisfying.

Elara is... fine. But I am intrigued as to what she'll be like in the next book. Enzo is a classic misunderstood, broody book boyfriend with a traumatic past. Their banter is fun and builds their connection well. But it's not going to get me to kick my feet and curl my toes.

Overall, I want to see more of the interesting lore that seems to underpin what is a par-for-the-course romantasy. I have a feeling I might get what I want in the next installment. We shall see.

4/5 - needed more lore and plot, less pining.

I absolutely loved this book - it was the perfect amount of slow burn, with so many different twists and turns. And I am absolutely in love with Enzo!

Ohmygod - or i should say Oh My Stars, a Love vs prophecy, a slow burn where the God's are Stars and there is a hunt from the god of war for the FMC. It has angst, burn, a little spice and all the stars and celestial feels. I loved this book, the last 10 percent had me in an absolute chokehold, such a good read and I highly reccomend!

I loved this book, you can just tell that so much work went into this book, with not only the plot and characters but the world building as well.

i've had my eye on this one since it was an indie book, and couldn't be more happy to see it being traditionally published!

This one might not be for everyone. For one, it is on the longer side (at 512 pages) and for me it felt quite slow and monotonous at times. I think this was when they were explaining a lot of the world building and magic systems, introducing the characters and setting up different plots/what would happen at the end of the book.

This is definitely a Romantasy book though! It was full of slow burn romance right from the very beginning, and i absolutely loved how Elara and Enzo interacted with each other, it was one of the bes couple dynamics i've seen for a really long time!

I thought that there were a lot of really interesting points to this story, the most obvious being how Princess Elara's kingdom is taken from her by a star called Ariete, and how she has to navigate escaping what is happening around her and the prophecy that links the two of them together through death. I mean come on!! i can safely say that i've never heard of a book opening with that kind of premise before, and it was so refreshing and engaging to read.

The main selling point (other than how cool the magic systems and world building is as a fantasy book) is obviously the amount of romance!
It is 10000% an enemies to lovers slow burn wrapped up with a bit of forbidden love. A massive part of this was exploring a will they wont they kind of relationship, and i couldn't put it down, it had me hooked. I think that the two of them complimented each other so well, and i am really glad that this story evolved into something other than a romance. Yes they were fighting their feelings for one another and falling in love, but they were also training, plotting and trying to come up with strategies to save their world from the threat of the stars!!

For a debut novel this is seriously worth a read. I don't think there was a second i was disappointed by what was happening, and even though it is a little bit on the slow side and does take a while to get through, i think everything that was mentioned and included was absolutely vital to the story!

This book has been on my tbr for the longest time and I was excited to finally sit down with it.

To be honest, it was a bit of mixed experience for me.

I liked the plot, the magic system was great and unique. I liked the characters.

The pacing felt a bit all over the place and this threw me off when I started reading - I found it hard to get into. It grew on me but I definitely had to persevere to begin with.

The character’s really make this book. The main character is feisty, strong and I loved seeing her take on everything unflinchingly. She’s the sort of main character that I love to read about and her character really helped to drive the story. The supporting cast of characters complimented her and brought the story to life.

This was an enjoyable read but im hoping the pacing is better through the rest of the series.

This has really surprised mem as I was intrigued by this book's blurb. And it has completely wowed me. It's definitley a 5 star read. The author has such an interesting writing style which kept me glued to the book. Elara and Enzo were such interesting characers. They faced many twists and turns let alone challenges throughout the book which develiped as characters. With the ending of this book I was completely surprised as I hadn't expected it, I am definitely wanting to continue this series.

A complete curve ball that I was not expecting this year has arrived in this brilliant new fantasy adventure. Watch out 2025, there's about to be a new megastar Romantasy author!

The premise…

We join Princess Elara in the aftermath of her kingdom’s downfall at the hands of the Star of Wrath and War, her parents dead and her friends held captive in the castle. She is smuggled into the neighbouring Helios, where their king tasks his son, Prince Lorenzo, with training Elara into a weapon, one that can take on the might of the tyrannical ruling Stars.
With no other option but to comply, Elara must fight not only against the fate already laid out for her, but also against her growing pull towards Lorenzo...

My thoughts…

I loved the world and found the worldbuilding very natural and easy to follow throughout. It felt fresh, but never overwhelming, which isn’t easy to achieve!
Elara was a fun FMC and she had good chemistry with Lorenzo with some really enjoyable angst between them.
Though I liked the cast, I didn’t feel super attached to them and I think that’s because there are filter words (i.e. she heard, she saw, she felt, etc) absolutely everywhere.
Overall, whilst the prose aren’t my favourite in this book, the story was enough to suck me in anyway!

Perfect for fans of...
Star-crossed lovers with a healthy dose of angst!

5 stars - fantasy romance with magic and ruling stars.

In a world ruled by the 12 stars, based on the zodiac, a prophecy is made that immortal princess Elara will fall in love with the king of stars but it will be both of their ends. Star king Ariete hunts Elara down to stop this prophecy whilst Elara is kidnapped by the King of Helios - Elaras enemy kingdom - and a deal is made that his son, prince Enzo, train Elara to kill the Ariete saving her from the prophecy and enacting revenge on Ariete, who has just murdered her parents.

A fantastic start to the series and such a unique concept with the stars based on the zodiac. It took me a little while to understand the world and the different types of powers but it didn’t take long for me to be hooked!

I absolutely loved Elara and Enzo - from enemies to allies to lovers - slow burn at its finest. Lots of steamy tension and kicking my feet moments.

Special mentions to Sofia, Marissa, Isra and Leo - the death of one of these had me in tears as did Elaras strength and how she dealt with the situation.

I had a feeling a twist was coming and boy did it - I wasn’t expecting the reveal and the ending! I need book 2.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️

‘That little dream you just had? Only a shade of what I could do with you.’

‘I dare you. Tell me now that you just want to be friends. Allies. Tell me that this is nothing.’

‘I loved him more than the dark loves the night. And he loved me more than the day loves the light-‘

Tropes: Enemies To Lovers, Magic, Forced Proximity, Slow Burn, He Falls First, Touch Her You 💀, Protective MMC, Forbidden Love, Fated Mates

A cursed fate & haunting prophecies… Elara finds her parents killed, her kingdom left without rule & herself kidnapped by the opposing kingdom. They call her a weapon, but she’s way more than just a weapon..
High stakes enemies to lovers, with slow burn romance.

This book is what I consider a ‘perfect’ fantasy novel, it ticks all the boxes! And it doesn’t feel forced doing it either. I love the story, so many twists/ turns my jaw was on the floor multiple times.
I also really enjoyed the pacing of this book. Some books suffer from a midway slump, but not this one, I was just being traumatised 😅😂
And as for the last third of the book… Truly a rollercoaster, I was going through it with every page!! (My literal notes: chapter 62 - WTF this can’t be real. Chapter 65 - 🫨 I’m losing it.)

I feel like the enemies to lovers truly is amazing in this book. The banter, sass & venom that Elara & Enzo throw at each other is a riot! Providing laughs & sizzlingly hot moments as their romance blooms.
I also loved the magic system contrasting her shadows with his light *chefs kiss*

This is a must read fantasy for me & one of my favourite reads of the year! It’s one of the few books that has scratched that ‘ACOTAR itch’. I will be recommending it to literally every reader I know!

Thank you Imani Erriu, Penguin & NetGalley for the review copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really loved this book - the world building was unique and the plot kept me guessing! Can’t wait for the next in the series.