What a great read! It was very unique and interesting. I most loved the characters and their relationship/development.

Ariadne, Princess of the Cretan Empire, grapples with the fear of turning into a monster if she remains in her world. Fueled by the desire for freedom, she orchestrates an escape plan, choosing to save those marked as sacrifices. In her desperate flight, she encounters Dionysus, the God of Wine, Madness, and Revelry, who takes her under his wing. Dionysus, in need of a Cretan royal to join his cult and lift his banishment from Olympus, strikes a unique bargain with Ariadne—a marriage that ensures her protection from the Cretan Empire and his return to Olympus. As their arrangement unfolds, the sparks of genuine emotion begin to flicker between them.

“Crown of Starlight” by Cait Corrain is a Greek mythology intertwined with futuristic space vibes. I cannot express enough how good this book was! It is so different than the current trend of Persephone and Hades books, because of Dionysus. I have never fallen so in love with characters so fast before. The problem is now I have a book hangover because this book was so unique that there are no other books that could possibly give me the same vibe as this one. Dionysus is so sweet and devious at the same time; Ariadne is chaste but curious; perfect combo. It’s one of the best books I’ve read this year and now one of my favorites of all time. 5 out of 5 stars.

This is a gem, a beauty and everything in between. If you're looking for a book that will make you feel, think, and reflect on the enduring power of love, this is it.

ever since i first heard of cait corrain's debut novel CROWN OF STARLIGHT and listened to them speak on the let's talk about myths podcast, i knew they were going to write something lovely, but CROWN OF STARLIGHT is even more sublime than i could've anticipated. it is a book i love so ardently it feels like a physical ache. corrain has stunningly reimagined the story of ariadne and dionysus as a hilarious and heartfelt queer space opera teeming with thoughtful explorations of mental health and identity, and what sets CROWN OF STARLIGHT apart is the sheer care with which dionysus and ariadne are written. dionysus is the gorgeously multi-faceted god he is and is so rarely presented as, and ariadne is one of the most resilient characters i’ve read in a long time, fighting to find joy and love wherever she can. together, their relationship is a study in respect, consent, trust, self-love, healing, and emotional freedom that made me deliriously happy.

CROWN OF STARLIGHT has everything you could want—monstrosity both human and divine, a tyrannical regime of death cultists, a never-ending supply of wine and sex and revelry, messy family drama, interstellar war, and as many forms of love as you could imagine—but the sacred, beating heart of this story is its quiet and raw examination of love amidst unthinkable trauma. here, dionysus and ariadne are both victims of abusive and controlling parental figures and political systems, whose every anxiety, insecurity, and dysfunction come to light in the courage it takes to stand up to their oppressors and love one another—and themselves—openly and without fear. i’m wildly grateful for CROWN OF STARLIGHT, and it’s easily one of my all time favorite books (to no one's surprise). those of you looking to have the time of your life while simultaneously having your heart ripped out of your chest, look no further. corrain’s debut is a bewitching, sexy, vulnerable, and thrilling take on two of my favorite mythological figures, and i can’t help but feel that dionysus and ariadne would love to see themselves portrayed so beautifully.

CROWN OF STARLIGHT is out may 2024 and is available for pre-order wherever you find your books.

p.s. don't skip out on the author's note at the end—it's excellent.

crown of starlight hit a lot of really high, good notes for me, most notably:
-a morally great mmc
-political intrigue
-slow burn, spicy romance
-high stakes/high reward
-lgbtq+ representation

the dialogue is a little… informal? at times, given the setting and plot, and took me out of a story a bit, leading to my 4 star rating (in a big dialogue girlie!)

as much as i love greek mythology retellings, i was getting burnt out on hades/persephone. cait gives a fresh story about airadne and dionysus with a fun dynamic and good banter.

crown of starlight is set to release in may of 2024 (with a cover release in 2 days!) and i can’t wait to have a physical copy on my shelf! big thank you to cait, net galley, and del rey books for the arc!

First of all, theres going to be more of Ariadne and Dionysius right?! Cause I simply need more, I love them dearly.

This book was so heartbreaking, yet fun and sexy. I was truly on an emotional rollercoaster and that kept me hooked. Related a lot to Ariadne and whew the tears Cait got out of me, oh my lanta. After finishing the book I went back and looked at my highlights and… 543 total highlights and notes, I clearly had a time over here. There were just so many beautiful and vivid scenes, and wow the amount of lines in here that were just a straight shot to the heart.

I normally read Greek retellings about Hades and Persephone, so it was really fun to read about another duo, and even though I’m pretty in tune with Greek mythology I loved the way Corrain presented the mythology and how these characters existed in space. It created a really engaging story and world that I was throughly invested in.

🌶️🌶️.5/5
4.75/5⭐️ stars

Thanks to NetGalley/Random House Publishing for the arc.

Thank you NetGalley and Del Rey books for the arc. Crown of Starlight is set to publish on May 14, 2024. This is a retelling of the Greek story with Ariadne and Dionysus, but with a fun sci-fi twist. I wanted to love this book but it fell short for me. A solid 3.5/4 stars. I had a difficult time staying fully engaged with the story, which might have been more me. All in all, it was enjoyable but lacking for me. If you are interested in a fun, sci-fi Greek mythology retelling with some steamy scenes, then Crown of Starlight is your book.

Thank you to Del Rey and NetGalley for the advanced copy! Cait Corrain wrote one hell of a story! Every page in this book is a vivid reclamation of mythological stories–once sanitized to reductive, bland tales (read Cait’s note at the end). These are beautiful, messy characters.

You will feel each moment in the journey of Ariadne and Dionysus. Cait allows them to ugly cry during the lows and embrace their joy in the highs. It’s apparent to anyone reading how much she honors what they are going through and gives them the space in the story to process each step.

Ariadne’s defiance of a puritanical patriarchy runs parallel to Dionysus’s place on the fringes of a family who’ve never really accepted him. Their journey together (no spoilers here) helps them grow toward self-love and self-acceptance. They don’t need to be ashamed anymore. They are enough for themselves so they can be enough for each other. It’s an earned love and a beautiful story.

Pre-order this now!!

I was a bit skeptical at first with the mix of mythological and space age but the author cleverly mixed them. I enjoyed the characters and the growth they experienced. The villains were a bit one tone but all in all an enjoyable read.

I think not liking this was a me problem.... I just do not enjoy Greek mythology retellings especially Ariande.

This book was like nothing I have read before, it was such a strange take on Greek Mythology, but I am not mad about it.

I will say it took me a bit to get into the book, honestly until Dionysus shows up, but once that happens I was so into it!

crown of starlight is a sci-fi greek mythological retelling of ariadne and dionysus.

i myself am not familiar with greek mythology so i have nothing to base the accuracy on but overall corrain’s debut novel was alright. the first 20% of the story was difficult to push through, personally the story felt all too lackluster? the secondary characters did not seem to get much commentary, sometimes they were mentioned once and then never again. neither was i fully invested in the worldbuilding though i wish i was because a space opera is such a cool concept!

for those interested in binging some steamy greek mythological retellings, read crown of starlight.

many thanks to random house publishing group & netgalley for the arc.

Greek mythology in Space and is comp-ed to Kushiel's Dart? I have been waiting for this since it was announced and what a great debut. Since it was comp-ed to Kushiel's Dart, I knew that it would be a bit of a slow burn, so I was prepared for that. But if one comes into this expecting high heat instantly, I think they would be disappointed.

Despite me expecting the slow start, it did take a while for me to really ground myself in this world, even though I am quite familiar with the myths. While this book did eventually grab my interest and become unputdownable after act one, the slow start almost made me quit reading. I'm glad I persevered.

This wasn’t for me. I’m unsure if I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to read this but I got confused very early on with trying to meld my knowledge of Greek mythology into this sci-fi/fantasy world. It still seems like an interesting concept.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. I wasn’t really into this one. The premise of Greek mythology in space was really interesting, but it didn’t really feel natural. I love Sci-Fi and Fantasy so I thought this would be a good fit, but the writing was too slow and the characters failed to keep my attention.

Ended this book with the biggest smile on my face.

This is a Greek love story that I didn’t know I needed. I had never actually read a book based on Greek mythology before this one and I’m not mad at all that this was my intro.

What can I say about Dionysus and Ariadne?? While Ariadne took some time to win me over (the girl was going through some things and made MANY questionable decisions), Dionysus had me from the beginning. I just craved more of him every time I picked up the book. He and Ariadne together spawned the character growth that I love to see. When Ariadne finally got herself somewhat together these two were like fireworks.

Dionysus’s struggle with himself and his place in Olympus and Ariadne’s struggle with her entire existence really made these two great for one another. The author, to me, did a great job showing how important they both were to the growth the two of them needed to have.

I really loved this story overall. Now for a few complaints.

👎🏿 maybe it’s just my pure ignorance to Greek mythology…. But so many words in the story pulled me out of the story itself, caused me to look up the words, then come back to understand what the author was saying. At times it read as if words were just being thrown in for the sake of being there. It could just be me though.

👎🏿 I feel like the space elements really were not played up as essential parts of the story. Again… maybe I just didn’t understand but I was hoping for more here.

👎🏿 there are 2 pretty important characters that we just don’t ever get answers about and I don’t like that… I’ll be salty about that for awhile.

👎🏿 I need to know what happened between Hera and Zeus after all the drama!! The epilogue gave me nothing 😤

It took a minute (maybe 30-40% through the book) but I couldn’t put it down. All in all… 4 stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I definitely recommend and if there is supposed to be a follow up to this story I will for sure be reading it.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the ARC. All views are 100% mine and honest.

The good: the writing was so smooth and easy to follow. The characters were fleshed out and you can clearly seen the dynamics. Action scenes were clear and easy to follow.

The not for me: the slow burn was too slow for me. I was excited to see their love story unfold, but at 60% they weren't together. And I was no longer invested. I DNF at 61%

*I want to thank Net Galley, Del Ray, and the author for a chance to read this ARC.*

I cannot believe that this was a debut novel! I will start by noting the cover is absolutely beautiful, I cannot wait to have this on my shelf. I truly was hooked from the first page. I took advantage of the holiday weekend and flew through this in two days. Crown of Starlight truly has it all: a steamy romance, amazing characters, family drama, self-discovery, politics, and Mythology. I had so much fun reading Ariadne and Dionysus’ story. It does not hurt that I simply could not get enough Dionysus.

If you like Greek Mythology and steamy romance this is for you! I cannot wait to read whatever Cait Corrain publishes next!

What a great Debut! Crown of Starlight is a space opera adventure with deadly politics, family drama, betrayal, self-discovery, and steamy romance.

I really enjoyed this creative, funny, and sexy Ariadne and Dionysus story. After the first 3 worldbuilding chapters, I was completely hooked! There were so many twists throughout the storyline that I had no predictions of what would happen next. The world building, storyline, and character development were on point. Ariadne is such a resilient character, I loved how she evolved throughout the story. Dionysus has such a kind heart with everything he’s dealt with but deadly when pushed and is so unbelievably amazing with Ariadne. Swoon.

If you like Slow burn, Morally grey MMC, Intelligent FMC, Political intrigue, Marriage of convenience, Fake dating, Greek mythology, Bdsm, LGBTQ rep, then this is the book for you!

This Greek retelling set in space was very good. I have always enjoyed Greek myth retelling and enjoyed this book a lot. Would highly recommend!