Stars in Your Eyes is the story of Logan and Mattie- two queer Hollywood stars that couldn’t be more different. Mattie is the golden boy of Hollywood, while Logan is barely hanging on with a terrible reputation. When they are both cast in a popular queer romance movie, the two are forced into each other's orbit. Logan slips up in an interview and says Mattie isn’t a talented actor. To avoid sinking the film before it begins, Mattie and Logan are talked into a fake-dating scheme. As they spend more time together, the relationship starts to feel more and more real. What will Logan and Mattie do when the film is completed? 

The scenes between Mattie and Logan were delightfully steamy, but underscored by serious themes of grief and pain. This is a book where one should carefully read the thoughtful trigger warnings provided at the front of the book, especially in terms of mental health and abuse. However, Stars in Your Eyes is filled with plenty of queer joy and healing. Logan and Mattie are the epitome of grump/sunshine and both have plenty of personal growth to go through. The fake-dating trope is one of my favorites and Callender pulls it off beautifully! This book felt impossible to put down, as I had to see what happened next with Mattie and Logan. Readers who enjoy emotional journeys of healing, queer romance, and compelling characters will love this book. I can’t wait to read what Kacen Callender writes next! 

Thank you so much to Kacen Callender, Forever, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.  

Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands is the next installment in the delightful Emily Wilde series. Emily Wilde is back in Cambridge and searching for her friend Bambleby’s door. Bambleby is a challenging scholar and also an exiled faerie king. While she helps him, Emily is working on her next book- a map book. When assassins start to hunt Bambleby, they decide to take a research expedition to the Alps to search for the door to his home. Adventures, new friendships, and new fae/Folk are in store for Emily and Bambleby in this outstanding sequel. 

Emily is such a great heroine and unique in that she can be coldly brilliant, yet still very lovable. Scholarship is everything to her and matters of the heart take a little more work. Emily must decide whether she will accept Bambleby’s proposal and what that might mean for her. The pacing is excellent; I did not want to put this book down! This series is cozy fantasy and filled with an awe-inspiring level of beautiful details. In this book, classic fae/Folk stories are seamlessly woven in and tiny fae with fascinating stories fill the pages. I enjoyed seeing characters from book one (like Poe!). I know that I’ll be rereading this book/series many times. 

Readers who enjoy cozy fantasy such as Legends & Lattes (Travis Baldree) will love this book. I hope to read more stories in this world and see what happens next to Emily and Bambleby! 

Thank you so much to Heather Fawcett, Del Rey, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

Everyone in town knows to stay away from the Starling House. Rumored to be haunted and with only reclusive Arthur Starling living there, Opal knows to stay far away. Yet strange dreams draw her to the house and soon she is working for Arthur. If Opal can earn enough money, she can afford to send her younger brother to a better school. Yet as strange people from the power company start sniffing around Starling House, it soon becomes clear that they want something from it. Opal and Arthur must uncover the secrets below Starling House before the vultures close in. 

Alix E. Harrow has the gift of telling a story in a sentence and somehow also making it hilarious. She excels at witty banter between Opal and Arthur as they struggle to understand the intricacies of Starling House. The House itself felt like a character to me! Opal and Arthur are one of my favorite duos and I really enjoyed how their relationship developed. I enjoyed that Arthur wasn’t the stereotypical love interest and instead described as a gargoyle! Amazing. I loved the sibling relationship between Opal and Jasper. Opal will do absolutely anything for her little brother and their bond was very strong. 

Starling House is another excellent example of Harrow’s immersive and witty writing style. Along with the fantasy elements, Harrow raises real issues of a power-hungry company, pollution, cancer, asthma etc. Yet even when dealing with serious issues, Harrow’s humor and wit shine through. Opal is such an incredible heroine. She is strong, loyal, and willing to do anything for her brother. Most of all, whether she knows it or not, Opal wants a home. In Starling House, Harrow muses on what home means and what the cost of one is. I can already tell that this is a book I’ll be rereading over and over again. I’m excited to see what Alix E. Harrow writes next! 

I would highly recommend Starling House to anyone! I think readers who enjoyed Roshani Chokshi’s Last Tale of the Flower Bride will especially enjoy this one. I listened to the audiobook, which was beautifully narrated by Natalie Naudus. Readers who seek haunted houses with dark secrets, fantastic characters, and hilarious writing will love Starling House. 

Thank you so much to Alix E. Harrow, Macmillan Audio, Tor Books, and Netgalley for a free ALC in exchange for an honest review.