This was a great book to read. The story was enjoyable and the characters were well written. I'm sorry I never got around to typing up my review sooner.

Ashley Herring Blake has a command on words. Her characters feel real, and raw, and despite the harrowing subject matter I found myself reading this book so quickly. I can't fully give it 5 stars because it was such a tough topic but I'll be thinking about it for a long time to come.

A harrowing and effective read. Truly brilliant. I adored this by Blake. Absolutely excellent book and a brilliant read. Recommend!

This is a hard and harrowing read. It explores the issues of someone in your family being accused of rape by a friend. Throughout the book the reader is forced to challenge the conflicting relationships of the characters and differing viewpoints. This is an important read for teens as it allows discussion to take place on consent and what consent is which a number of males do not fully understand.
A good but difficult read.

'Girl Made of Stars' was such a beautiful read. I loved this so much!! The writing was quite lovely—I definitely recommend this!

Unfortunately I no longer wish to review this book as the first few chapters did not reel me in. Thank you for the opportunity.

God, this scenario was so messed up and horrible and I felt SO BAD for her. This book was so hard to read, but I also think it was important. Sometimes the hardest books to read are the ones that stick with us the longest, and this one lingers.

Intricate plot and wonderful pacing. I adored the premise and how the story and characters develop. I highly recommend this book.

Oh my god. This book. THIS BOOK. What can I even say about it? It's brilliant. The prose is sparkling, the characters truly come to life off the page, and the messages are timely. It's about life, friendship, love, and all the many ties that bring us together and tear us apart.

Charlie and Mara's relationship felt so real to me. I am definitely obsessed with them. There is so much love there, and not simply the romantic kind. I've always thought that it is much harder to write realistic relationships that AREN'T romantic, and Girl Made of Stars does it beautifully.

This entire book centers around a very, VERY difficult question, how do you come to terms with something horrible that has happened to someone you care about, potentially at the hands of someone else you care about? It's something you never hope you'll have to go through, and it is handled masterfully here.

This book is vital. Blake does an extraordinary job weaving intense plot elements together, never making them feel like an "unrealistic" combination or "too much." She handles her subjects with grace and care and draws well-developed characters!

Thank you for providing a copy of this book for review however I was unable to open the file for this document unfortunately! Apologies.

I am sitting here in front of my computer where I have just finished Girl Made of Stars by Ashely Herring Blake and I have to tell you that I have no clue how I am going to tell you about this book. This book is one of a kind and is one that will be sticking with me for a while. It was emotional, deep, and eye opening to our world that needs to change.

First off there are some trigger warnings that you should know about if you are going to read this one. Please make sure to check those out below in my list of Go into this one knowing. I myself am a survivor of being molested on more than one occasion when I was younger so I fully understand how these topics might be to much for someone who has survived it. So please be aware of those warnings.

This book broke me. That is about what I feel right now. It will open your eyes to a world that you will not be able to unsee.

This book follows Mara whom is bisexual. Who's twin brother gets accused of raping his girlfriend. Mara is then stuck in the middle of this situation of deciding who to trust and who to call out. It was a no win place to be for her. I have to say that the author did a perfect job with this aspect of the book. You could feel Mara's emotions about how much she wanted to trust her brother but knowing something wasn't right. But also still not waiting to believe that he could do something like this. This felt like a story that could have been pulled from the headlines and I believe that it is one that needed to be told. This book was full of true emotional authenticity that I have EVER seen in a story.

Another aspect of this book is a small love triangle between Mara's ex girlfriend Charlie whom is nonbinary. And another boy that she gets with for a short amount of time. You could really see how everyone was just trying to deal with the situation at hand and move on. And Mara and Adam were just trying to find comfort in any place they could.

A major part of this story dealt with Mara and her own secret trama. Early on in the story you learn that something happened to her three years ago. But you don't find out until way later in the book where it is all set before you. I have to say that her entire experience of what happened to her was one that triggered me to no end. When I was 10 to 11 years old I had the same thing happen to me over the course of a year or so. But it was my mother's boyfriend and not a teacher that abused me in that way.

The trauma of rape and having your freedom taken away, of having your trust violated, in a world where girl's bodies are distractions, where society refuses to believe you is what this book is ultimate about. And I have to say that the author did a fantastic job with it.

This is the story that should be in the hands of every teen out there. That even if you believe that no one is going to believe you. Believe in yourself that you know what happened and that you said NO. Don't let anyone take away your right to say that to have your voice heard!

"In this must read story about sexual abuse and allegations of rape. Mara learns that nothing is harder than telling the truth and letting your voice be heard." ~Crossroad Reviews

Go Into This One Knowing: Rape Allegations, Rape, Abuse via a Teacher, Nonbinary, Bisexuality, Love Triangle

Compelling read. I finished this book in one day and was not disappointed at the end. Many important and difficult issues threaded throughout this book make it a must for many libraries to have on their shelves. Very real characters whose stories will stay with me for a long, long time. So many POVs and voices make this a very powerful statement on our society and culture.

What a wonderful, imaginative book! My son and I both connected with this one. We bought this for our library as soon as it was available.

This is instantly in my all-time favorite books. To say I loved it would be an understatement... I can't believe I didn't read this as soon as I got it. Shame on me!

This book is so important. Not just because of the topic it centers around or its amazing portrayal of what women go through in these cases of sexual assault, but for its specific perspective. It forces the reader to think about more aspects of cases like these. The fact that Mara's brother - her twin in fact - is the one who committed the crime, AND her best friend is the one who was raped? That is so... uncomfortable. What if it was your brother who did it?

I think that, given the situation, Mara acted understandably. This shook her whole world and forced her to think about her own traumatic experiences. She was understandably conflicted thinking the brother that she knows could never do something this terrible, but is a hardcore feminist herself and has been through a similar situation, so heartily believes in believing women all the way.

I was completely engrossed in reading about Mara's struggle. I was so sad for her and how shit just seemed to hit the fan for her. Her frustration with her family was palpable and her grief over losing her relationship with her brother was so sad on so many levels.

I also related to her struggle with her sexuality, and loved that this made it a coming of age story in some ways, and not just a commentary on today's society.

This book will make you angry and sad. I guarantee it. But it's just so well done and so damn timely... you NEED to read it. Please.

So hard to read, and yet so good. What do you do when it's your twin brother who is accused of rape? And you know he's lying about something.

Rating: 3/3.25. I have been putting off reading this book for months because I knew it was going to be a book that weighed on my heart and soul, This is by no means a feel good book. It deals with serious topics like rape, consent, victim blaming, slut shaming etc. However, these things need to be talked about more and I think books like this are important. While the book itself wasn't the best thing I have ever read, the message was, nonetheless, important. It was also a unique take on the he said- she said aspect, with our main character, Mara having to deal with her own understanding and beliefs concerning sexual assault and how this affects her relationships with her family and friends. Overall, I am glad I finally read this.

I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

"Mara and Owen are about as close as twins can get. So when Mara's friend Hannah accuses Owen of rape, Mara doesn't know what to think. Can the brother she loves really be guilty of such a violent crime? Torn between the family she loves and her own sense of right and wrong, Mara is feeling lost, and it doesn't help that things have been strained with her ex-girlfriend and best friend since childhood, Charlie.

As Mara, Hannah, and Charlie navigate this new terrain, Mara must face a trauma from her own past and decide where Charlie fits in her future. With sensitivity and openness, this timely novel confronts the difficult questions surrounding consent, victim blaming, and sexual assault." [Goodreads excerpt]

I am probably one of the few who people who struggled to get into the story and keep up with the pace which was too slow for my liking. I struggled to warm up to the characters and be invested in their lives even with such an important topic being discussed. I was expecting to feel a lot more, but unfortunately I haven't. The writing is very good and mesmerising so I will continue to pick up Ashley's books!

This is one of the most important books I’ve read in YEARS. It’s heartbreaking yet hopeful at the same time.

It’s more than a story about rape. It’s story about friendship, hope, and learning how to deal and overcome these situations.

I loved how strong Mara is. I loved how she’s a faithful friend, how she isn’t blinded by things, and even though she finds herself in a difficult situation, she deals with things in such an inspiring way. It’s not easy, specially if you’ve been in a similar situation, but wow... I just cannot recommend this book enough! It’s an amazing story and it will show people that victim blaming isn’t the solution to rape cases. We need to have empathy and be understanding and support victims... even when the perpetrator IS your family.

This book will somehow make you think “Maybe if Mara, Hanna, Charlie, and other girls out there can be brave, I can too.”

This is just fucking brave and necessary. This talks about gender – and really talks about it. This talks about rape, sexual assault and its survivors as well. This shows how a sexual assault or rape victim thinks and feels, how they were all changed forever. And calls out victim-blaming and other misogynistic bs.

Mara, the main character is a good storyteller. It just felt easy to put myself in her shoes. She loves astrology, she is a feminist, she is bisexual, she is a loving daughter and twin, and she is a sexual assault survivor. She struggled so much in this book but remained strong and standing despite the invisible wounds and scars. I really loved every second I spent accompanying her and the other girls – Hannah and Charlie – in this journey. I also loved the complex relationship between her and Charlie, their love story just tells how complicated friendship and love can be when combined. I also liked her story with Alex, though I didn’t exactly love it because I was actually shipping them and I personally loved Alex, and I don’t like how things ended. But with how their relationship started given the circumstances, maybe that’s just how things should be.

The conflicting feelings Mara felt between being a twin and a daughter, and being a friend, a girl and just Mara, they all felt raw and deeply felt. Describing Mara’s situation as hard and painful would be an understatement. It was more than that because it changed lives, it changed relationships forever. It caused damages that will never be undone. It was a situation no one wants to find themselves in. And I commend this book for being brave to talk about such a complicated story.

All of the characters, the setting, the plot, the feelings, the issues, basically everything in this book felt so real. So solid, like no one can break this book just like no one can break the girls made of bones and flesh in this book. I also love the fact that there was an organization founded by Mara and Charlie called Empowered. This is an organization the real world needs, and I hope young girls will be inspired and empowered by the idea and follow their lead. And what I love even more? I, myself, felt empowered after reading this book, and I know, I will continue to feel empowered.

Girl Made of Stars, because of this book the main thought I now have is this: For every girl out there who have been a victim of rape or sexual assault, you are a survivor. Even if you are silent or loud, you are fucking brave, you are a fucking survivor. And your story matters – you matter. Girl Made of Stars, this is the story of fucking brave girls that needs to be heard. I highly recommend this one. It would be a loss not to be able to read Girl Made of Stars by Ashley Herring Blake.