A family curse and a missing mother is at the center of this atmospheric fantasy. Step through the door to a hidden world that holds magic, gods, and sacrifice. The fast-paced quest pushes an unconvincing romance and confidently skips over plot questions that may seed a sequel. For fans of Erin Morgenstern and "For the Wolf" by Hannah Whitten.

I would first like to thank NetGalley, Georgia Summers and Redhook Books for the advance reader’s copy of The City of Stardust.

Violet Everly, a curious child, dreamer, someone who carries a spark of something outside the realm of what we know as reality grows up with questions about everything. Where is her mother? She,who represents all things “magical” and “adventurous” and is forever etched as always leaving in Violet’s mind. Mystery and Magic seem to find Violet from her early years, especially when she comes across Aleksander, the mysterious teen who walks into her family hous and leaves her speechless and spellbound in more ways than one. Danger also seems to lurk right around the corner in the form the mysterious woman known as Penelope, who seems to hold the “key” to all of life’s questions that Violet carries.

As the story unfolds, we are seamlessly immersed in the various worlds of Violet and the Magic each world carries. A fallen star, a goddess and other magical entities are in constant search of their ultimate destination, and Violet Everly’s life seems to be the key to all of their plight. As our heroine attempts to understand the mysteries of her family and their “curse” in attempt at self-preservation, love, betrayal and agony fill her journey. Can she solve this crisis and get rid of her curse? Can she make it unscathed and without sacrifice? In the midst of life and death, can love and truth find a way?

Georgia Summers weaves the most spectacular world for her readers to immerse themselves in. This is for the readers who are passionate about great world building and fantastical realms and give us a main character whose emotions and vulnerability can be easily related to. 4.5 Stars for this astral work.

𝘈 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘣𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴. 𝘈 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘭𝘦𝘧𝘵 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘪𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘯, 𝘱𝘶𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘧𝘵, 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘤𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘹𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘦𝘯𝘷𝘺. 𝘖𝘳 𝘢 𝘱𝘰𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘦, 𝘢 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘷𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘱 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘥𝘰.

This book had everything going for it: aesthetic, on point. Title, magnificent. Premise, super cool! Everything about this book SCREAMED that I would love it.

And yet.

I’m disheartened to say this didn’t quote live up to my own high expectations. It wasn’t bad by any means, don’t get me wrong. Let’s take a peek inside.

The premise: a young girl’s mother vanishes. Runs away from home to solve a curse that’s been plaguing her family for generations. What is this curse you may ask? We don’t really know until over halfway through the book. Violet grows up with her uncles, mostly asked to remain inside their home and not able to make friends or go to school. For her safety. There is a woman you see, Penelope. She has her sights set on Violet. Wants her for information on her mother Marianne’s whereabouts. The problem is Violet hasn’t seen her mother in years and so has no answers to give this unnerving woman. Her uncles are given a deadline. Penelope will come for Violet in 10 years. If they don’t find Marianna by then, Violet goes to her.

Why is this, you ask? Again, it’s not fully explained till later. We just know it’s part of their “curse.” That the Everlys belong to Penelope. At least the ones with the Talent. The Talent to manipulate god metal.

The story really starts up with Violet in her early 20s, nearly 10 years passed. She reunites with Penelope’s assistant, Aleksander. They click, sparks fly. Little does she know, he’s here to spy for Penelope.

And so begins the long arduous journey on many conversations and lots of traveling and what feels like a lot of nothing really happening for half the book. Everytime I went to pick the book up, I found it too easy to put down after a chapter and difficult to want to pick back up. I am a fan of books like The Starless Sea, which I do think this emulates. There is a loose plot in Starless and where there is definitely MORE of a plot in City of Stardust, the prose doesn’t quite make up for the consistent slow pace.

I do think it picked up some in the background half. Once we started getting a few answers, I was a bit more invested. Even then, there were times where it felt like we were rehashing the same problems over and over and we kept getting the same betrayals over and over. By the time they finally got to the magical city that everyone was searching for their whole lives…I couldn’t help but wonder—what was so special about it? They spent all this trying to get to what was essentially en empty bubble.

The romance? Lackluster. Violet is your everyday innocent girl who wants adventure and Aleksander is a wannabe scholar who falls instantly for her despite her only interesting feature being that she can control the god metal. It felt very driven by the narrative and just there so we could say there is romance here.

I will say, the language, when it hits right is very pretty. There are occasions where they have a bouquet of feathers dipped in gold. There are magical keys you just stick into the air and turn, opening a door into another world. The aesthetics are good and sprinkled throughout. I just wish it all converged into a more enjoyable story. It definitely had potential, but maybe the next one will be a little more finessed!

“𝘈 𝘣𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘭. 𝘞𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘧𝘰𝘰𝘭𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩.”

I absolutely ADORED this book! IT made my heart so happy .The prose was amazing, and the setting was set so vividly and gah! I am a sucker for a naive character, and it is just a fantastic YA book all the way around!

Violet lives secluded. All she knows are her uncles, her home and the fact that her mom is missing. Someday, a strange woman and a boy visit them and send her uncles into a frantic quest to find Violet’s mother. Now a young woman, Violet learns the truth: her family is cursed and she has about a year to find her mother. Otherwise, she will be taken in her place by that strange woman who visited almost a decade ago. Can Violet find her mom, break the curse and finally be free?

I didn’t know much or wasn’t expecting anything from this book, but I have to say that I was impressed: the prose was beautiful, the world-building was nicely done and interesting, the plot as well.

This little gem is Summers first book and is pretty good. Just the fact that it was written in British English was so refreshing, it is also well balanced.

Do not expect any spice. There is a tiny hint of kissing, a very closed door scene and that is it.

There were a few things that bothered me though: the jumps in the different POVs without real distinction between them. There were no chapters change or anything. but just a line break. The ending was a little flat, a little underwhelming.

The ending was disappointing: all I thought was "Is that it? Nothing more?" It really was underwhelming.

Also, we don't know much about the FMC, so I wasn't as invested as I could have been, but I still liked Violet and I really wanted her antagonist to fail and be defeated.

Also, I was surprised by the lack a triggers list. Some subjects were hard and gore.

This book was simultaneously too slow and too fast. Way too much would happen at once and then nothing. I also had a very hard time even understanding what was going on. The premise was good

Thank you to NetGalley for giving this ARC, and this doesn't influence my review. This book's magic and worldbuilding was super confusing for me, NGL. The POVs were confusing as well. I had higher hopes.

The City of Stardust was a gorgeous story about magic, family, abandonment, and betrayal. Violet Everly's family has been cursed, and the curse goes back so long that no one really knows how it came about. Now the curse is coming for Violet, and she has to find a way to beat it.

Violet is an interesting character but I wanted her a little more fleshed out. She's both very sheltered and very adventurous and brave, facing both external and internal struggles. Aleksander is a young scholar-in-training who serves with Penelope, and his character arc was more clearly drawn.

The world building in The City of Stardust is incredible. The concept of the keys for travel and everything about the stardust was fascinating.

The first half of the book sucked me in. The pacing slowed a little bit in the third quarter of the book. Interestingly, while the story is seen from the alternating perspectives of Violet and Aleksander, they are told in 3rd person, and it definitely put a little distance between me and the characters.

But the writing! The writing was simply lush and descriptive, and it was one of the reasons I kept turning the pages. Even though my brain wanted more from the characters, my heart cried MORE and kept me glued to the book. I finished this book on a long flight with my 17yo reading over my shoulder - it sucked them in immediately, and they hadn't read the beginning, so that's a pretty good testament to how much we both enjoyed the book.

This one is so fascinating. Lots of secrets and threats, people with incredible powers and those with immense knowledge. But none of them know where or how to help Violet find her mother. Without her mother she's as good as gone by some crazy powerful person.
Though she's uncovering some interesting facts and trusting the wrong people. But I'm so curious to see what happens. The magic system is very interesting and the antagonists are kind of in a grey area for me. They just trying to free themselves and they are fed up.

A dark and magical novel that grabbed on tight and didn't let go until the climatic ending. I loved every dark moment of this fantasy tale that is reminiscent of the original Sabrina The Teenage Witch.

This was a beautiful fantasy. I generally enjoy novels with alternate worlds, and this was no exception. I loved how the narrative was as expansive as the universes contained within it, and how Violet’s aspirations for adventure and determination to save herself and her family were in keeping with this. This novel is a sweeping tale of family, ambition, adventure, legendary gods and monsters, finding meaning in your life, and discovering just how far you’ll go to get what you think you deserve.

Side note: I would have liked to learn more about all of the gods/astrals, as the legends and asteros cards were interesting devices in the novel. So if Georgia Summers ever returns to this universe, I honestly would love that.

Thanks to Netgalley and Orbit for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!

I’m really bummed about this one! I had a really hard time getting through it even though it had a lot of elements I love in fantasy books. I knew going into it that it may be a bit slower, but this was such a slog. The writing was beautiful, but not enough to keep my attention throughout. I kept putting it down and picking up something else.

*I received this book (Via eArc by Netgalley) for free from the Publisher ( Redhook Books) in exchange for an honest review*

I thoroughly enjoyed read this book and I was so excited to jump into it as soon as I got it. It is very reminiscent of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. This book left me gasping at points and it was interesting at times as well as stressful at times. trusting characters in this books was such a forefront in the genre and the race against the clock to find her mother was so intense and the results were satisfactory. I read this so quick that I didn't realize it was 5 am in the morning. It's also a book that I would have personally purchased even if I didn't read it in advanced.

Thank you so much to Redhook Books and NetGalley for the ARC and I am instantly gonna purchase this when it releases.

Final rating 2.75


Like many who made netgalley requests for this title I was immediately drawn in by the gorgeous cover and intriguing premise. As much as I wanted to enjoy this more, for me the overall story fell flat.

It feels like Summers is still really trying to find their voice when it comes to storytelling. You are given a fairly intensive complication to overcome but the journey leading up to and main event lose most of its steam from a variety of factors. Underdeveloped characters, disjointed themes being two major ones. This reads younger then its intended. (Felt more YA as opposed to NA/A Fantasy)

It makes me sad as you can easily see the promise here. The characters, the world building, the motivations are all there. If Summers can play around and develop that execution, I feel were gonna be in for a heck of a ride in future books. I can think of plenty of people that will enjoy this title. It was not one for me but I would love to see what Summers comes up with in future books.

“𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚕𝚍𝚜 𝚜𝚙𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚞𝚙 𝚋𝚎𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚎𝚢𝚎𝚕𝚒𝚍𝚜: 𝚌𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚐𝚘𝚕𝚍 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚜𝚒𝚕𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚏𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚎 𝚋𝚞𝚒𝚕𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜; 𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚠𝚒𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚠𝚊𝚢𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚋𝚘𝚊𝚝𝚜 𝚜𝚌𝚞𝚕𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛; 𝚊 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚜, 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚜𝚔𝚒𝚗 𝚜𝚑𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚎𝚐𝚐𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚕𝚕 𝚋𝚕𝚞𝚎 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚢 𝚝𝚘 𝚍𝚎𝚎𝚙𝚎𝚜𝚝 𝚝𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝, 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚝𝚠𝚒𝚗𝚔𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚌𝚛𝚘𝚜𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚜. 𝙰𝚕𝚕 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚜𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚗 𝚜𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚊𝚗’𝚝 𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚝𝚎 𝚜𝚑𝚊𝚔𝚎.”

THE CITY OF STARDUST is filled with mouth-watering lyrical writings, lush atmosphere, mystery and magic.

It’s about a family curse and the girl who must find the answer to its origins before time literally runs out for her.

Debut author Georgia Summers is definitely a new author to follow. The story builds around young Violet Everly who has ten years to find her mother, or break the curse that befalls the Everly family.

There are so many aspects to love in this story. The villain reminded me of the Snow Queen, ruthless and cunning one moment and sweet and compelling the next. She even smells like sweet vanilla! Violet is a great heroine filled with dreams and wonder. Stubborn and inquisitive, you can’t help but love her. This is a contemporary fantasy but it feels like an old fairytale at times.

There are overlapping worlds and magical doorways. Gods and monsters who vie for power while dark scholars hold the keys to secrets of alternate worlds. At its center, is the curse.

I will say that the pacing in the beginning was very leisurely and the structure felt a bit disjointed at times, but the story kept drawing me back.

If you enjoy Laini Taylor, Alix E. Harrow and Erin Morgenstern then you should definitely take a look at this exciting new author.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book was simply not for me. I was pretty confused most of the book. I am rating this neutral just because I think some people would really really like this. I just am not that person this time.

The City of Stardust is one of the most beautifully written stories I've read in a long time. The prose and style were very reminiscent of The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by VE Schwab, which allowed for an atmospheric and dreamy quality. The prose really carried this story, and Georgia Summers is without a doubt a wonderful writer. However, I would have liked to see more done with the overall plot. The atmospheric distance of the prose also kept me distanced from the characters. I wasn't especially compelled by any of them, and almost all of the secondary characters felt like plot devices. The climax was anticlimactic, and too many threads were left in the wind for my liking.

Overall, if you enjoy contemporary speculative fiction/fantasy, beautiful stories about belonging and place, or are looking for a debut author to read, this could be a good book for you. I would best describe this story as written like Addie Larue with worlds and gods like Daughter of Smoke and Bone, but lacking the worldbuilding or character depth of either.

This was a letdown for me. There was so much talking and little action. If this was rewritten, it would be perfect.

Thank you to NetGalley and Redhook Books for providing the ARC.

This book starts off with a very intriguing premise - a cursed family, a missing mother, a strange visitor and a child who is trying to break free from this fate.

Violet is the main character in this tale. She is highly inquisitive and very motivated to not only learn more about her family, but also about this curse that has afflicted her. She also presents as very naive, which makes for a hard read because there are moments where it feels like she should know more about what is happening than she does. She feels much to small a character for the heavy weight of this plot, and as as result, the story is very strained. Additionally the side characters are easily forgettable - there is nothing really noteworthy about them in my opinion and I did not form any strong attachments to them.

I will say that I absolutely love Summers' style of writing. Her prose takes on the almost ethereal quality. It feels like a perfect voice for the fantasy genre, and I think that with a bit more planning and parsing of this particular story and set of characters, she could have made this book into a very lush and memorable fantasy read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Redhook for the ARC!

I loved the beautiful prose of this book! It's quite an immersive, enthralling story. While I really enjoy fantasy standalones, I generally feel they are difficult to master as it's not an easy task to build a world in so few pages. Unfortunately I think that rang true with this one, and I wanted just a bit more from it. Considering the length, I think the character development and world building was sufficient and well-balanced, but I had a hard time connecting with the characters when the POV switched mid-chapter. Overall, I really enjoyed this contemporary fantasy!