BRIGHT OBJECTS is a hard book to review. I really enjoyed our main character, Sylvia, and loved being inside her head. I enjoyed aspects of the comet storyline and enjoyed the idea behind the mystery.

But this book just did not work for me.

I struggled with the pacing and I feel like it is too long. Maybe the author was trying to do too much. And the mystery reveal wasn’t one I was too fond of. I didn’t guess it, so I enjoyed the surprise reveal but I’m still not happy with that choice.

The writing was at times beautiful, though sometimes repetitive. And even though I have some cons with this story, I would happily read again from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing Company for this Advanced Readers Copy of Bright Objects by Ruby Todd!

I really wanted to love this one and took a fantastic photo of it. But I tried multiple times to read it and it just never clicked for me. I shared a photo of it on pub day to my Instagram story.

This book is hard to review for me. I loved how introspective our main character was as well as her disposition as a whole. It was right up my alley. Unfortunately I guess I have zero interest in the cosmos so maybe I should have known that this would not work the best for me. I wish I was able to set that aside but unfortunately it truly dimmed my experience, which is absolutely no fault to the book or the author.

I have been enjoying mysteries with a slow burn and this was a good one at that. It is quite the slow read but I really liked Todd's writing.

Sylvia longs to feel emotion again. Since the hit-and-run death of her husband, which remains unsolved, Sylvia has felt nothing. She has narrowed down the culprits, and the law is involved in the cover-up. She’s tightly wound, passing through each day, a ghost of her former self.
A comet is hurtling toward Earth and excites everyone except Sylvia. Even this pending disaster doesn’t change her focus from the murder of her husband. Until she meets the alluring astronomer who discovered the comet, Theo St. John, although he tries to play it down, the comet has been named in his honor.
This debut author has set a most unusual stage for us as we watch people do what they do best- make mistakes, feel inadequate, or on the other side of the spectrum- feel as if they are God and can lead the people. Each page is an unforeseen action, a microscope over an anthill, the erratic scattering increasing as the danger of extinction races across the sky.
I enjoyed this fresh voice, and hope Ms. Todd is working on another captivating read. Thanks so much to Simon & Schuster for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. The publishing date is July 16, 2024.

Unfortunately wasn’t for me so I didn’t really finish the book as it was material that didn’t interest me. To no fault of the author.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I actually liked this book quite a bit, it felt more poignant than a typical mystery type book, but it could definitely have been shorter. Even though the pace built slowly but steadily, at times I felt like I had to force myself to keep going. I am glad I did, the writing is really beautiful, and it was a compelling story.

Thank you to Simonbooksbuddy for this title! I devoured this novel. Incredibly amazing and unforgettable story! I loved every inch, every line, every word of this story. It really made me think and was quite emotional in its own way.

Recommend this to readers who enjoy introspective narration; reflection on cosmic events and the sway they have on people; and folks looking for an Australian read.

In Bright Objects, Sylvia Knight is adrift in the aftermath of her husband's unsolved hit-and-run death, her life clouded by grief and a growing sense of hopelessness. But when she meets Theo St. John, an astronomer who has discovered a rare comet, a faint glimmer of light pierces her darkness. The comet, soon to be visible to the naked eye, becomes a beacon of curiosity and intrigue, pulling Sylvia into its orbit.

As the comet brightens in the sky, it becomes a symbol of something larger—perhaps even divine. Local mystic Joseph Evans certainly believes so, viewing the celestial event as a sign from above, a divine message meant to guide or warn. Sylvia finds herself torn between Theo's scientific explanation and Joseph's spiritual interpretation. The small town where she lives begins to buzz with speculation, excitement, and fear as the comet's apex approaches.

Amid this cosmic spectacle, Sylvia remains haunted by her need for justice. The unresolved mystery of her husband's death gnaws at her, pushing her to the brink. The fervor surrounding the comet's arrival mirrors her growing desperation, and as the town becomes increasingly obsessed with the comet, Sylvia's quest for truth drives her to the very edges of sanity and safety.

With its masterful prose and intricately drawn characters, Bright Objects shines as a poignant exploration of the human condition, set against the backdrop of a celestial wonder that captivates and confounds in equal measure. This is a story that will stay with you long after you turn the final page, leaving you to ponder the mysteries of the cosmos and the complexities of the human heart.

I sat with book for a long time. After finishing it, I was very confused about how I felt. At the start of the book it seemed like a lit-fic, then eventually it was a romance, and then a mystery. Although when done right, this isn't an issue, I felt that it was difficult for me to connect with the characters and the plot because there were so many things happening at once. It seemed as if the author was confused where exactly she wanted it to go while writing it. However, the story if written beautifully. Todd's descriptions of each character and the setting, were the best part of the book for me. Specifically, her descriptions of grief and belief throughout the story. The sensitivity and rawness that Todd writes with when portraying the characters grief, immediately grips the reader and allows room for them to think deeply about these existential topics. For a debut novel, the story was really strong and I look forward to picking up more of Ruby Todd's books in the future!

I enjoyed this book and did not see the ending coming. It was a story of grief and new starts. I did enjoy the comet and the astronomy tie in. Give this a try, it is a different compelling read. Thank you NetGalley, and Simon & Schuster for the ARC.
3/5

Set in a small town in Australia, and loosely inspired by the Heaven’s Gate cult and Comet Hale-Bopp in 1997, this debut novel is about a young woman still reeling from the hit-and-run death of her beloved husband. Written as a literary thriller, with a slower pace and more reflection, it’s about obsession in many facets, including how it can overtake a psyche in the wake of searing grief. Main character Sylvia Knight does a lot of mind- and soul-searching via astronomy, art, music, literature, tarot, philosophy, geometry.
“My hope was that, if nothing else, the comet, like the celestial equivalent of a Rorschach inkblot, might cause me to face proof of a truth I had on some level long known, but been unable to see.”
The question, according to author Ruby Todd, becomes how to recover personal power, faith in life, and one’s place in the world.
I would recommend this to those who like slow-burn literary thrillers featuring astronomy, mystery, romance, and reflections on grief, humanity, and mortality.
[Thanks to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for an opportunity to read an advanced reader copy and share my opinion of this book.]

“We rarely guess the significance of crucial moments in life while they are happening. For so much of the time we are steering blind.”

I am not into astronomy 🔭 and so that may be why I didn’t love this one. I soldiered on and finished, but the story will not stay with me.

Thank you @SimonBooks #SimonBooksBuddy for the free book!

I thought the synopsis sounded really interesting but I am the wrong reader for this story. From the beginning I just didn’t connect with the writing style and ultimately decided to DNF.

It’s 1997 and the newly discovered Comet St. John is about the grace the skies of the Australian city of Jericho. While the town is abuzz with excitement and cosmic predictions, the young widow, Sylvia, has her own plans for St. John, plans to end her suffering.

However, when Sylvia befriends Theo St. John, the astronomer who discovered the comet, and the spiritual guru, Joseph Evans, her understanding of the comet’s purpose falters. Is the comet’s arrival on the anniversary of her husband’s death a sign for her, for the world, or simply an astronomical event?

This story is truly full of twists and turns: a hit and run accident with several suspects, an eccentric mourner with plans of a grand funeral, a doomed love story, a Heaven’s Gate-esq space cult, and plot twists to give you whiplash. It reads like a mystery, an Alex Michaelides style mystery. For some, I could see this being perfect, but for me personally, it just wasn’t my style. I think the cult element drew me in the most, and this ended up being a less developed part of the plot. While I felt it started off strong, by the end, I had tired of plot twists.

That being said, Bright Objects is still an ambitious novel for its depiction of grief, obsession and group think. It’s plot forward and a wild ride, so if that sounds like your type of book, I’d say check it out!

Real Rating: 4.25* of five

A debut novel from a very accomplished author, one whose best gift is the deft touch of characterization. I felt very connected to Sylvia from the get-go, her fuddled and bewildered survivor's guilt, her unostentatious revenge-seeking against the one responsible for her loss, and her deep but unwilling fascination with a charismatic local cult leader.

The lovely patterns Author Todd weaves among these strands, spinning her threads from the ever-renewed internal structures of loss, guilt, sadness, and outrage, don't sag or drop. They're sometimes not as harmoniously tinted as a veteran writer might choose...the mother-in-law in particular is rather paler than I'd expected, Theo the astronomer a bit too intense...but these are quibbles. Not a line out of place, not a word (even when a not-American word crops up) wasted or obscured.

The lack of a full fifth star on my rating isn't because of some sense of disappointment. I got what I wanted. The plot...revenge-driven widow struggles to cope with her loss and her survivor guilt will catch me in its web every time...is consistent, is finished with an appropriate, yet unexpected, ending. What bothered me, and this is really a very *me* thing to be tangled up in, was the comet. A comet, one on a path to get this close to Earth, is not going to go undetected for very long. We're motivated, since Shoemaker-Levy 9 smacked Jupiter so very hard in 1994, to go looking for these kinds of objects.

Okay, so that's a half-star lost. A tiny smidgeon of the tarnish on my shiny loving cup of pleasure also traces to Theo and his own warping loss. It's a trope I find painfully Writerly, is the Conjunction of Damaged Souls. Theo's issues were understandably similar to Sylvia's; his response to her darkness was believable. His discovery of her, in Australia, where he happens to be for the confirmation of a career-defining discovery, is what rings false to me. As always I want this kind of other-directed man to exist; I suspect he isn't to be found in a man about to ascend to the heights of his ambitions. I also see the facile characterization of Joseph Evans, and honestly, since he's such a bell-end of a grifter, I just don't care.

Quibbles and crotchets aside, everything Author Todd does in this story fits. The mystery plot, the way it's rooted in the ugliness of revenge, the focus of the two leads on their personal quests, all works as a whole. The manner in which the ending's made manifest felt satisfying to me. I'm struggling with myself not to spoiler it (though I really want to!) because experiencing the event blind is a pleasure enhancer.

Tyro author does a fine job, will most likely do better next time, and very much deserves your treasure and time.

Bright Objects follows Sylvia Knight, a young widow on a uniquely believable journey. Two years after her husband's unresolved hit-and-run death, Sylvia’s grief coincides with the arrival of a rare comet. Intrigued by the comet’s timing, she meets Theo St. John, its discoverer, and is drawn into the beliefs of local mystic Joseph Evans, who sees the comet as a divine message.

As the comet grows brighter, emotions heighten in her town, and Sylvia's quest to uncover her husband's killer deepens. Todd brings this chaos to life in a blend of mystery, romance, and a healthy dose of astronomy and science. The comet, a celestial object whose very existence throughout history inspires assignations of meaning, reflects the fleeting nature of life. In and out of our lives these bright objects — people, events, places — arrive, leaving behind lasting impressions or brief flashes before fading away.

The only downside for me, preventing a 5-star rating, was the overlay of real-life events from 1997, which I found distracting. I had a similar issue with Euphoria by Lily King ("too similar to Margaret Mead to be anyone else, yet too dissimilar to be a biography"), though Todd handled it better, so it didn't impact my reading quite as much.

Bright Objects is one of those gorgeous debuts that has you repeatedly reminding yourself it's a debut. Between the excellent writing, the beautifully paced, careful unfolding of the plot, and the characterizations that strikingly balance the benign and the extreme, Todd already has me on board with whatever she publishes next.

Sylvia became a young widow two years ago when a hit and run accident took the life of her husband. She despairs of ever receiving justice for her deceased husband since she believes the police chief was the perpetrator.

However, the approach of a once-in-a-lifetime comet disrupts the little life Sylvia has made for herself. She's concerned for her mother-in-law, who seems to have fallen under the spell of mysticism tied to the comet. And Sylvia is concerned for herself as she begins to fall for the brooding American astronomer who discovered the comet -- which she fears betrays the memory of her husband.

Unseen forces will converge and secrets will come to light as the sky brightens in the comet's trail.

This book is wonderful, but I do feel compelled to offer a few words of caution. First, the pace of the book is a very sure boil. The first half of this book is very heavy as it is laden with Sylvia's grief. I had to take a break from the book for a bit due to the weight. However, the final third of the book is a white-knuckle thriller that had me glued to the pages.

My second caution pertains to the themes and content of the novel. Please check trigger warnings and take care of yourself as you read this book. That it loosely echoes true events dues not make the gravity of the situation any easier to bear.

That said, this literary crime thriller will appeal to readers who enjoyed the balance that Bright Young Women brought to these genres. The book is a heavy read, but certainly a worthy one.

This review will be posted to Goodreads on July 28, 2024 and to Instagram on July 29, 2024.