I read about half of this book before I saw all of the controversy surrounding the author and how they'd been manipulating reviews for their book/books of other offers. This book is no longer being published because of the authors actions - while I enjoyed the part of this book that I did read, I won't be finishing it as I don't support the authors actions and their work.

I read about 75% of this book before it came out that the author had been manipulating reviews for their book and the books of other authors. The book is no longer being published. While I enjoyed this book, I will not be finishing it and writing a final review, as I cannot support this author's work.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me this opportunity!

This cover is so beautiful. But the story was disappointing. I hate this type of cliche typical writing where the fmc is so pure and innocent, a damsel in distress and has to be with a fboy. We constantly read about how big her tits and hips are.. i hate it. Where are the broader explanations? Where is the story? Where are the emotions or chemistry?
And i do not support this author’s actions at all. Completely disappointing and terrible.

Props to the cover artist for this beauty though, i just wish what is inside of it was as good as this.

Full disclosure: in the interest of not engaging in my own review bombing, I decided to read and rate Crown of Starlight based on its merits. I do not agree with the author's ugly behavior, and I will be reading and supporting every single one of the debuts unfairly targeted by her. I wholeheartedly support the agent and publisher's decision to drop Corrain's work.

Now onto the book itself:

I liked the futuristic Greek myth thing going on. It was compelling and really cool! The worldbuilding could have definitely been better--it was incredibly clunky in the beginning, and I am not sure why we didn't meet Dionysus until 22% into the book. Ariadne frustrated me in these early parts, but once part 2 started, I really liked her. She was strong and held her own, and the banter between her and Dionysus was top-notch. And speaking of, I really liked Dionysus. He's sexy, he's compelling, he's genderqueer and bisexual and amazing. He is a consent king, and I loved all of the spice. Very rarely does f/m spice in romantasy get me, but you know what? This was great.

And I think that's why I am extra disappointed in Corrain. Girl, you had a good thing going.

I got an ARC of this book (thanks NetGalley & Del Rey) before the whole sock-puppet-accounts-to-racistly-review-bomb-fellow-debuts debacle.

I decided to read the book anyway, after the debacle, out of morbid curiosity.

Damn you, Cait Corrain, for being a racist idiot, bc this was truly a 5 star book (but I don’t feel like I can put a rating on it anymore).

It had fun sci-fi (very much star wars vibes) world-building, action-adventure, Adult Romance (very very horny by the end! And multiple chapters of sex throughout the book!) greek gods in space, angst, great narration, characters to root for, satisfying ending, room for a sequel, etc. I even barely could read chapters 41-43 I was reading through tears dripping down my face.

All for what? A book that will rightfully never see daylight because the author was a racist idiot to other debut authors.

Ugh.

I breezed through this book in almost no time. Ot sure what the Goodreads drama is about but I definitely enjoyed this story and character. I like Greek retellings and stories. I think this tale was an excellent choice for the book. This is one of the few Greek deities that has been written as faithful and loving a spouse. Happy endings are the best!

This could have been so good. I was so excited about the premise of the story. I DNF'd because of the events surrounding the release of this book. I'm not interested in supporting the author at this time.

I was particularly personally excited for this story based on the premise - a fantasy/sci-fi Greek mythology retelling? Yes, please! Sadly this was 20% fantasy, 60% hard to believe smut supposed live story, 15% space battle sci-fi, 5% fantasy.

Now, this is only based on my unmet expectations to read an epic high stake tale, from seeing the cover and reading the blurb. I still think this story was interesting enough to read and definitely will be a good match for fans of spicy retellings.

I think a dual POV with Dionysus perspective might have helped with the believability of the live story as he seemed like a more interesting character but the best parts of the books were unfortunately setups framing the spicy in the middle.

Going to submit a review for this, even though it is extremely Not Being Released Ever now. If the author hadn't gone out of her way to use sock puppets to sabotage people also on her release slate from her publisher (yiiiiiiiikes) and then lie about it, this probably would've been recommended for the spring. It's a fairly solid queer flavored retelling of Ariadne and Dionysis, but with sci-fi space opera trappings, and while there are a few cringe moments for the naming of various things (Theoi, H4dr4 virus) it's an overall fairly solid story that negotiates the original story well and brings its own flair to it. However, because she decided to self sabotage and be a racist while she was at it, this only gets two stars.

Unfortunately an exciting new fantasy world that helps explore very true to life traumas has been marred by the recent actions of it's author.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey for this advance reader copy.

I'm sharing feedback here because I did not get to submit prior to the incident with the author in late 2023. It is not clear to me if this book is still being released at this time. The situation with the author is unfortunate, because this was a really intriguing and exciting new fantasy book. I was excited to read it, and it did not disappoint. The characters were great, the plot was exciting, and the romance was well done. Unfortunately, given the author's actions, I cannot support this book and will not be sharing my review on any social sites. I appreciate the eARC provided by NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey.

I was really looking forward to this one, but given the circumstances regarding disguised review bombing of fellow BIPOC authors and peers… I don’t feel right reading & reviewing Cait’s book.

I think there were really strong concepts and writing at play, so I’m not sure why there was a need to discriminate fellow peers’ works. I’m so grateful I was selected and reached out to regarding this book, but I will not be publicly reviewing or promoting it unfortunately.

This is really disappointing.

I was at about 20% and vibing with it as this is my first Greek Mythology retelling, AND Sci-fi at that. I went to the Goodreads page to see if it had debuted yet, since I had this Netgally/ARC version, only to find the drama the author has created.

Big Yikes.

I truthfully thought the book was good. It was not outstanding, but in terms of general Sci-Fi writing style, descriptions, world building, etc. it felt right on the money. The characters felt bland, but nothing too terrible for "romantasy" as this is what I've come to expect from the genre. My genuine feedback is, you had a solid debut novel here. Very eye catching cover art. Good title, good description, etc. but obviously with the recent events, it's all gone to waste.

If it's good, it's good. You shouldn't have to put comrades down just to make yourself stand out -- you were already standing out. You had all the pieces to the puzzle for success, expect patience. There is an infinite amount of room in the heart of readers, especially in a niche genre such as Romantasy/Mythology-Sci-fi. It's just sad it all happened this way.

At this point, I prefer to not finish reading it before I get more invested/spend more time on it. I will check out Cait's work in the future if I see a genuine apology/any personal growth where it is needed. I'm glad I decided to look into this today, because if I had committed the time to finish the book I would have been devastated to learn this news.

I wish you luck, Cait, & hope to see a great change in the future.

We removed this from our review list due to the authors actions and removal from publishing and controversy

This debut novel, promising a sci-fi reimagining of the Greek mythological tale of Ariadne and Dionysus, immediately piqued my interest when I first heard of it. Plus, the cover is gorgeous.

However, the book's potential is overshadowed by the controversy surrounding its author, Cait Corrain. The scandal involving review bombing on Goodreads and the ethical breach it represents casts a dark cloud over the novel regardless of the actual story or anything. It's a good reminder of the impact an author's actions can have on their work and their audience's reception.

This entire situation highlights the importance of integrity and accountability in the literary world, especially in an age where social media and online platforms hold significant sway over public opinion. The controversy has led to the book's publication being cancelled.

Like many others, I am not willing to read this book after everything that went down. I apologize for the inconvenience but, she lost all credibility for me.

Having secured an eARC from Netgalley before everything went down, I do think that this book would've done well for itself. It's light on plot and heavy on the romance and character growth for the heroine. And it's just a little bit (or maybe very) fruity. It does an interesting thing in dissecting religious trauma, repression, and some exceptionally bad parenting. Ariadne's character arc is one that I can see resonating a lot with readers.

Without a good foundational understanding of Greek mythology, this book could definitely be confusing as it doesn't slow down to explain the structure of the world or certain characters.

I'm glad that I was able to satisfy my curiosity about this book, at least. Thank you very much, Netgalley, for providing me with this eARC!

I am so grateful to the publisher for granting me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review, but it will surprise no one that I cannnot read/review this book after everything that has occurred. Thank you again to the publisher and to Netgalley, however, for their generosity.

I was very excited when I got chosen for this book as it seemed right at my alley. After all the controversy with the author and the book no longer being published I will not be finishing this book.

I was intrigued by the plot of this book and began reading it. However, author issues that came to light are very disappointing an stop me from supporting this author/ this work. Very disappointing.