I had very high hopes and expectations set for this standalone Fantasy novel as it seemed to promise everything I've been looking for. A story about stars? A celestial setting? Hindu mythology? Romance? All checks. And it didn't hurt that the Charlie Bowater cover called my name. There was no way we would pass the chance to read this story, so we picked Shveta Thakrar's book as our September #booktalktwithwifey book on bookstagram.

Unfortunately, everything that sounded so enthrallingly beautiful only sounded so in theory. The book didn‘t make me feel anything. Except boredom.

The premise of the story was promising; however, the execution of the plot didn't excite me. More or less, we are accompaning characters from one place to another, one lesson to the next, and witness one dialogue after another that didn't seem to have any edge or relevance to it. The worldbuilding just seemed flat to me, and I couldn't understand in which way any of what was the main plotline was relevant to a world as this. Not even the characters were able to keep me happy or thrilled. The romance felt unnecessary, and like the example of how to miss opportunities to bring in some tension, the side characters were nice but felt more like fillers without a specific meaning or purpose.

What saved most of the book was the lyrical wirting. Shveta Thakrar has such a beautiful way with words that I adored the prose the most. That, and the fascinating Hindu mythology were the biggest highlight for me. However, after a certain point not even the writing was helping me stay on track.

I wished I would have been able to fully enjoy this book, especially due to its beautiful writing, but I just couldn't find myself to understand or enjoy the story and worldbuilding. I found myself more often than I want checking how many pages were left as all I wanted was to be done with it.