Let me start with my couple of gripes before I get into the good stuff!

1) There was reference to Tanner's loss of his v-card to AN ADULT WOMAN at the age of 15, I won't spoil it by saying who but the WHO makes it even worse. It is only mentioned a couple of times, briefly, so it's something you can skim over if that bothers you. But for me personally, I felt like this needed to be addressed more if it was going to be mentioned. As in, addressed by his MOTHER who should've definitely followed up on that nugget of information. You'll understand if you notice it in the book!

2) This book was pretty darn lengthy. I enjoyed it and it covers a lot of tough topics: religion, purity culture, coming out as gay, bullying, consent, etc. But around halfway through I found myself skimming more and more and struggling to reach the end. It is a quality book, but I think it could be a bit shorter.

***GOOD STUFF***

As I mentioned above, the tackling of the topics of: religion, purity culture, coming out as gay, bullying, consent, etc were wonderful and thoughtful additions to the work. That's the biggest positive about this novel. The conversation regarding religion and relationships was nicely done and I appreciate how Emma and Emma's parents had REAL reactions to that dilemma. As someone who grew up in the Bible Belt, I can say that the author's depiction of this issue is pretty spot on!

The characters are very human. Tanner is great most of the time, he's so conscious of Emma and respects her boundaries but also pushes her to step out of her comfort zone (in ways that aren't toxic), and he lets her go whenever she needs space to figure things out. I won't get too spoiler-y but he definitely proves that he truly cares. He also is so flawed, thanks to a multitude of things but the process of him working through those flaws and growing up and dealing with his parents (who I REALLY wanted to give a few good smacks to the noggin) is beautiful. Emma has to deal with conflict with her parents and her friends, as well as with HERSELF and her anxiety is wonderfully relatable.

Overall, this work is certainly worth reading if you can stick in there for the long haul! There's a lot to pull out of here and it is a very thoughtfully written work, which is one reason why I believe it is so long. There are a lot of beautiful moments in this book.

I originally requested this book because the description was quite intriguing. It revolves around two high school seniors, Emma and Tanner, at the end of their senior year leading up to their first year post-HS.

There were some moments in the book that I enjoyed such as the when Emma was with her friends as they kind of reminded me of me and my own friend group. I liked the discussions they had around faith as I feel I have gone through the same kinds of conversations with my family as well. Some moments were thought provoking and really made me think. However, maybe around the half way mark/when the MCs got together, I felt that things started to get repetitive and I started to get bored. I hadn’t deeply resonated with the characters so I wasn’t too invested in them and their stories so I felt as it dragged on in the end. This definitely made for an interesting story and I appreciate the conversations that took place in the book but I feel that after reading and a day of reflection, there was something missing to make it the best it could be.

Emma is about to graduate high school and she still has a lot of questions. She's been crushing on the school's nbad boy and her plan to kiss him and get over it never went the way she wanted it to. Her faith and religion make her feel wrong and like her feelings are bad, but she can't stay away from Tanner. He's more than the party boy everyone sees him as, and Emma is the only one who sees it that way. Tanner and his family have been destroyed and he's been trying to hold himself together for years, and he can't stop thinking about that kiss from Emma junior year.

As graduation approaches, they both decide to give their feelings a chance. What follows is a heartfelt slow burn relationship that is more than the average romace on the eve of college life. Both Emma and Tanner are well thought out characters who are more than even their friends seem to understand. They are both self-aware and totally lost which is a sweet spot eighteen year olds have cornered. It's been a while but I remember that feeling, and Walters accomplishes this story so well. While it's a slow burn romance I never felt like my feet were dragging or I was begging it to speed up, it was perfectly paced.

I cannot reccomend or love this book enough.

This book was nothing like the easy romance story i thought it was. It fels so real. It is very slow burn and had so many topics that we are talking about in real life. Some are still "taboo" and we don't talk much about them because we are ashamed but this book made feel so normal to talk about. It was a lovely romance story.

This is a beautiful, beautiful book. I loved Emma and Tanner and how they found each other and how they helped each other see the best in the other. I loved that Emma was empowered to do what she wanted with her body and questions everything along the way.
Such a great YA book!

Thank you NetGalley!

I wanted to like this story, especially since it sounded so interesting based on the description. Unfortunately, the characters bored me from the start and I could not get into the story. It felt like it was meandering instead of getting into the story.

** spoiler alert ** The Stories Stars Tell is an expertly told coming of age love story that deals with major themes of religion, bereavement, neglect, and sexual assault in a sensitive and ultimately uplifting way. Emma, Tanner et al are about to graduate High School but find themselves navigating long-repressed feelings for one another while also battling the weight of different - but no less suffocating -expectations that become all-consuming. Though some pages are genuinely heartbreaking to read, I found there to also be a cathartic element to many of the confrontations and an overwhelmingly optimistic ending, without dulling the realities the YA protagonists find themselves dealing with.

I was initially attracted to this book because of the beautiful cover (seriously, it's SO pretty), and the mention of John Hughes movies. I'm of the age that grew up with Pretty in Pink, The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, and Sixteen Candles, so I immediately felt connected to Emma and her friends. But I'm also from a strict Catholic background and Emma's struggle with religion and ideas of intimacy felt very real, and relatable to me. There wasn't anything I disliked about the book. Although yes, it is longer than many books in this genre, at no point did the pacing feel anything but perfect (besides, we were, in effect, reading two books at once! ;)

Highly recommended read. (Also, please read the afterword).

Favourite Quote(s):

* To all the good girls trying to be perfect: perfection is impossible, so be bad every once in a while. To all the good boys trying to be bad: it’s okay to be vulnerable. The world will be better for it.

* Fire claimed the fire in me and cooled me back into stone. But at night, when the stars came out, it became a beautiful storied sky. I drifted into that sea and got lost there remembering Rory and my star stories.

* "So, here’s my final thought. Don’t get stuck. Don’t get stuck looking backward. You might miss out on something ahead of you. Don’t get stuck looking forward. You might miss something beside you. Accept the present like the gift it is. Rip off that wrapping paper of the present and open the box to see what’s inside every single day. If we don’t, we might miss out on the opportunity to write a new story under the beauty of the stars. It’s only when we fully embrace the beauty of now that we’ll be able to truly live..."

Trigger Warnings: Sexual assault

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for the opportunity to give an honest review.

This beautiful story really had me thinking and reminiscing on my youth! It’s a very compelling, emotional story that as a parent has me wanting to hold our youth and tell them that “they got this”

Both characters go through some very “adult” situations that has them questioning their world and what the future holds!

I loved and adored these characters and was in awe at their growth! The ending really has me holding to hope and I loved the insight the author provided at the end. It really brought it all to life!

Thank you NetGalley, Mixed Plate Press and C.L. Walters for gifting me an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!
Emma is your typical good girl. She loves her friends and family, she follows the rules, gets good grades, avoids getting tangled up with boys and drama and she loves God. Tanner is your typical bad boy. He’s from the wrong side of the tracks, parties too hard, drinks too much, does too many drugs, sleeps with too many girls. Emma wants to shed her good girl image and experience being something other than perfect. Tanner wants to clean up his act and settle down, feel trapped in a life he created for himself. They’re no good for each other, but some things are just written in the stars.
This was a pretty typical YA romance. Things were a little immature at times and very cheesy at others. The cliches were just a little too prevalent throughout. I think this was a good, solid read with a gorgeous title/cover, but other than that, there was nothing to make it memorable.

When I say I really wanted to like this, I mean I really did. But everything about this book was so dull to me and I actually found it increasingly hard to finish. Maybe it’s one of those books I just didn’t read at the right time considering I’m on a bit of a dark mystery/thriller kick, but this book felt like I was reading a fourteen year old trying to write a book about her older peers.

The characters first of all were bland which is likely why I didn’t like this character driven story. I felt Emma was as boring as watching paint dry with not a lick of personality about her and Tanner was your stereotypical boy. I can’t name one redeeming personality trait from either of them.

I don’t want to bash this author because clearly she can write and if I was several years younger, I’d of lapped this book up. However, this was full of cliches and an uninspired plot and I couldn’t help roll my eyes at a few scenes especially towards the middle.

Sadly, this book just didn’t do it for me.
I received this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is one of the first books I've read that includes both Scripture quotes and fairly graphic sex scenes. Normally it is one or the other in romance novels, especially YA/NA. I actually felt it was more relatable; I remember having some of the same doubts and worries the main character Emma had when it came to aligning my choices with religious and societal expectations and ideals.

The bad boy hiding a vulnerable nice guy inside is very familiar; three different popular books/movies came to mind numerous times while reading. At one point I wondered if the market isn't getting over-saturated with this trope, then I decided I don't quite care yet, since I still enjoyed Tanner's character.

I didn't think that the excerpts from the fiction novel at the start of each chapter really added to the story or helped move it along or anything. I also felt like the side characters were a little one dimensional but still enjoyed their minor plotlines.


*rec'd a free digital ARC from netgalley

I requested this book on a whim, as I thought the synopsis sounded like something up my alley.
I really enjoyed the romance, it made me feel very single, which usually means its written well. I loved how they made each other better and they were so cute together. The friendships of both the main characters were really well developed, which I've seen several books neglect the side characters, I especially wanted more of Ginny and Josh. Also the conversations in the story, not only the fluffy contemporary romance bits, but also about how people need to first look at themselves and make themselves better, about religion and purity, etc, and I really loved that, I wish I had read this when I was 15/16 and insecure about everything.
My only complaints are the ending and the length of the book. Personally, I'm very particular about endings and I just wanted a little bit more into their life at the end, maybe them seeing each other again and ending there instead. And, overall, for a romance book, it is a little too long and at times I was growing a little tired of reading it, but overall enjoyable.

The premise of this book got me, the reason why I requested this in the first place. I liked reading this book until I hit the 50% mark; the scenes felt like repetitive and that's why the story fell flat. During the first part of the book when the mcs didn't get together yet, I liked their chemistry. But when they already got together It was just them kissing all the damn time that I just tend to skim over these scenes. I also think that this would have been better told by one POV, and that is with Emma's. Tanner's POV felt a copy paste of Emma's with some words thrown in because they're describing the exact same scene happening to both of them that wasn't necessary at all. I felt I would've been contended seeing this scene unfold in one POV only. The characters didn't also resonate with me that I would've been relate to them. They're the same age group as me so I would have been able to relate to them, but oddly, I didn't. Perhaps I liked Atticus, and he's the only nice person with a personality in there. I would have liked this better if it had something new to offer, but sadly it didn't, the feeling that I already read this book but with just different character names and setting is what made it dragging towards the end. I do liked C.L. Walters' writing though, and I look forward to reading more works by them in the future.

Thank you so much to Mixed Plate Press and Netgalley for providing me an e-book of this in exchange for an honest review of this book.

When I opened this book up, I expected a romance. I expected fluff, lighthearted banter, and laughter. I didn’t expect something thought provoking. I didn’t expect themes of religion, purity, and sexual abuse to be explored. Sometimes though, the unexpected turns out to be something you needed.

The Stories Stars Tell tells the tale of Emma and Tanner, both seniors set to graduate in eight days. After a single kiss junior year, they’ve orbited in different circles, coming close, but never interacting. When they finally collide, they begin rewriting their stories together, and charting a new path.

I absolutely love how much this surprised me. In most romances, everything turns out perfectly at the end. Sophomores are convinced they’ve found the one, and Seniors are ready to get married. I appreciate this book so much for staying away from that. Sure, Emma and Tanner believe they love each other, but that doesn’t magically solve their problems. They fight for each other, and build a life apart before beginning to building one together.

It’s rare in a book to love all of the side characters, as well as the main characters, but by the end of this, I was just as invested in them as Emma and Tanner. I was rooting for all of their relationships, and I loved how Walters even gave their relationships bumps in the road. Their friendships and traditions felt real, and I wouldn’t enjoyed even more of them.

Now, as for my one complaint, this did feel a bit long at points. Rarely do you see a 500 page contemporary, and there’s a reason for that. In fantasies, you have worlds to build, and magic to develop. Contemporaries don’t require this, and their page count is usually much slimmer due to that. Although I enjoyed this, I got a bit tired of it at the 70% mark. The story felt like it had gone where it should have, and not much was left to be said. Don’t get me wrong, the last bit was one of my favorites, but this was just too hefty of a book.

If you’re a fan of well developed characters, and a realistic romance, this is for you! I loved the part the stars played in this, and the title was like a little Easter egg. I’d definitely recommend this!

Thanks to Netgalley and C.L. Walters for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

This slow burn romance was beautifully done. Emma and Tanner were so adorable and I just couldn't stop grinning throughout reading this story. Although this is a whopping 500 page story I felt like it was over far too soon. I needed more.

This is one of those well rounded stories that doesn't shy away from the topics that need to be discussed. From sexuality to religion and more. I enjoyed every page and couldn't put it down.

This story about coming of age and self discovery is one that will blow you away. I loved every second I spend with each character and I can not wait for more.

Came for the lovely title and cover. Stayed for the compelling story.

This is a slow burn, for sure. A slow burn with the romance, a slow burn with the character development, a slow burn with the plot. But once it warmed up, it really caught fire. The strength of this story is definitely how it respectfully handles the many issues and worries that plague those who are coming-of-age.

The only thing preventing me from rating this higher is the characters seem to be clichés of what the author thinks teenagers are supposed to be like. The whole virgin, goody-two-shoes girl and angsty, player boy are a bit too caricature for me, personally. This is also a bit lengthy for a YA book.

But overall, this is a solid story that honestly explores many important topics.