Illusion of Stars started off a bit slow for me, but once I got into it, I was hooked. As I finished the novel, I realized that the detailed beginning served a purpose. The novel is character-driven, and I enjoyed the banter and relationships. I am committed to reading book two and am curious about how many books are planned for this series.

Isy, a royal physician, is awkward and relatable. She puts her trust in others but also has her own schemes (not always executed smoothly).

There is romantic tension and an enemies-to-lovers trope, but this book is not spicy. It offers a tame and sweet romance for those who don't want or need explicit scenes.

I enjoyed the fantasy elements in this story and found the magic of creating illusions similar to the magic in the Grishaverse.

The author did a great job addressing the issue of self-harm and the journey of realizing one's self-worth.

Thank you, NetGalley and Shadow Forge Publishing, for sending this book for review consideration.

This book was given to me as an arc copy from NetGalley and Victory Editing.
I’d say like 2.5 stars for me personally.
While I liked the idea of the book, it just fell flat for me. I felt like the world building took up a lot of the book, there were times it was truly boring and then it was rushed at the end. The romance was also a fade to black which isn’t my cup of tea. I think this book would have been better suited for me when I was younger, this is more of a young adult fantasy than it is for adults. I don’t know if I’d read the second one

I loved the marketing surrounding this book and was very excited to give this a read as I heard it was a new NA fantasy romance! In the end, I think this ended up being a case of this book wasn’t exactly for me (I DNF’d at 73%), but it most definitely has an audience. Sarah Marie Page has a unique, flowery writing style which definitely lends itself to creating captivating descriptors of scenery and settings which was a breath of fresh air. Unfortunately, this constant use of excessive descriptors kind of bogged down the story for me as I felt that there was a lot of describing and not a lot of doing/action that progressed the story forward. The first half of the story seemed very slow which made the pacing feel off and I wasn’t too engaged with the characters or plot. The main FMC had a LOT of internal dialogue which I enjoyed at first, but again it became a bit much for me to the point where the reader just became so inundated with the FMC’s thoughts that the momentum of the plot felt like it was dragging. Also for me, as the story was written through the FMC’s perspective, the constant use of internal dialogue made the writing feel like it was intended for younger audiences than expected. The romance which I was very excited about fell rather flat for me as well. That being said, I do like the lessons that the author puts forward and I did appreciate the depiction of panic attacks/representation of mental health.

**Thank you to NetGalley and Publisher for the ARC of Illusion of Stars in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.**
▪︎Review has been published as of 7/31/2024.▪︎

4.5⭐️
1🌶

☆grief and anxiety rep
☆enemies-to-lovers...kinda
☆REALLY BAD flirting 🤭

Illusion of Stars follows Isabel (aka Isy) as she does her best to become the next royal physician when her world is turned upside down by two events: the loss of a friend, and the immediate arrival of an enemy. She is forced to act as a guide to the newcomers and swiftly finds herself becoming friends with the group she has been tasked to spy on.

Erik is a man easily spooked, as his mind is almost always elsewhere. Erik and Isabel *see* each other for everything that the two of them are, and catch feelings. There are a lot of great bonding moments, and talk of grief and anxiety. I saw myself in Isy, and it was nice to see a character I could actually relate to. I cannot wait to follow their story as I just want them to be happy 🥲

I devoured this. Absolutely loved this plot, this story! I fell in love with Isy and Erik are such wonderful characters and I loved the world we were immersed in.

I think the tense was a little confusing at the beginning, as we find out the story is being told by Isy via a letter after the fact. But it was a small stumbling block in an overall wonderful novel.

The growth of the characters was beautifully done. The simple magic system was refreshing after reading an excess of fae stories.

It's unbelievable that this is a debut. I cannot express how much I loved this, and I'm excited to see what the author does next!

Such a beautiful book! A book about two people who wanted to be loved and to be seen. Of course it has all the simmering slow burn with all the banter and found family. I loved how Isy made herself believe that she was spying on Erik and in the guise, they both actually started to get to know each other, and the silliest things she made Erik do 😂. Poor Isy tried her best to be a spy but my baby was a terrible liar AND a terrible spy. Soo terrible, that even Signey developed a soft spot for her
🥹🤍
Aaaaand ERIK! A general's son with blonde hair, stormy gray eyes and DIMPLES. *swoooon*
I can officially say that Isy isn't the only one who is attracted to Erik's incredibly impressive abdominal. iykyk 🤭

Overall the magic system, the characters, the story, the writing, everything was so beautifully written. And, I'm still sobbing thinking about the ending of this book.
Had me hooked from the jaw dropping first chapter to the heart dropping final chapter.
Sarah, sweetheart I hope you won't make my PUFFINS suffer too much and give them the ending they deserve
🥹🤍

This book was just what I needed.
It's was an absolutely fantastic read.

The characters and their banter were the highlight for me, I was hanging on their every word.
I loved Isabel and Erik so much. Their determination and dedication were very relatable.

The authors writing was so beautiful. She made it hard not to fall in love with the world and setting she built. You could feel the passion that was put into these pages. And there was a very strong message of self-discovery and overcoming your fears throughout.
Which gave it a heartwarming touch.

I would definitely recommend adding this to your tbr.

3.5⭐️

This book was very interesting from the beginning. It begins by following Isabel, a palace healer, as she attempts to navigate hiding the Kings illness from the Volds, enemies to the crown who imposed on their shores. Sent on a scouting trip by the Minister, Isabel must determine for herself if the rumors are true surrounding Eric, the son of the general.

I liked the premise of this book a lot! It hooked my attention from the get-go. I mean you speak enemies to lovers and fantasy in the same sentence and I’m sold. This book really had it all with early on-set heartbreak, mystery, love, you name it.

At times I didn’t love the dialogue as it seemed out of place for a high fantasy story. They spoke too much like modern day teens for my liking using modern slang. I would’ve appreciated more build up in the MCs relationship before they ended up together. There wasn’t much of a progression, but instead one day she hated him for infiltrating her kingdom and the next she loved him for who he was.

However, I did really enjoy the ending and would love to see how the story continues!

I loved Isabel’s story. She was this awkward, naive girl who just wanted to matter (I feel this in my soul), who ended up on a journey she didn’t want to be on. Only to find her own way. I love the different facets of the story; love, betrayal, sacrifice and more. It made a very entertaining read and I will definitely read the sequel!

This was a very fun read, one in which I couldn’t predict the twists and turns that it would take. It’s a romantasy with a side of courtly intrigue and mystery. It centres around Isabel, who is one of two apprentices to the royal physician in a small realm called The Sanok Isles. Their position off the coast of larger neighbouring empires has led them to be caught in the middle of several conflicts, and now they find themselves embroiled in yet another. Isabel, normally one to keep her head down, suffers a devastating loss, and in her pain decides to take a stand against her perceived enemy (visitors from the neighbouring isle of Volgaard). She agrees to spy on the Volg and see if she can gain information on a potentially all-powerful weapon. Deciding that the best way to try to glean this information is to cozy up to the Volg general’s attractive, illusion-magic wielding son, Erik, she starts spending a lot of time with him. In their forced proximity, the lines between hate and love begin to blur.

I really enjoyed the story as told from Isabel’s perspective. The journey that she takes is very relatable, as she struggles with feelings of inadequacy, of feeling like she isn’t brave enough, isn’t the best at everything. Isabel just wants to be seen, but she feels incredibly insignificant. Despite this, she still perseveres and accomplishes things based on pure determination and hard work. In a way, her past and the mechanisms that she developed for protecting herself from her childhood traumas and to propel herself forward directly translated into a great way to survive when her young adulthood took a tragic turn. This book is on the cusp between YA and NA for me (the main character is 18 and the love interest is 20). I think that for the maximum enjoyment, it’s best to go in expecting more on the YA side. The book contains some steam but low spice. It’s still so so good!

I like this book a lot. It had good characters and a plot that kept developing as you read so there were definitely moments I was surprised or felt emotional with the characters. Closed door spice and some trigger warnings in the self harm department and the importance of mental health and being seen and heard. Loved this aspect. The words “I see you” are so powerful in this book. I look forward to the next book for sure!

Illusion of Stars was SUCH a fun and engaging book! Isabel is an apprentice royal physician of Sonak Island, competing for the permanent role. Something is suddenly very wrong with the king’s mental health, and some suspicious guests from the land of Volgaard are going to find out, putting the island’s independence in jeopardy.

This story started off slowly, though I was entertained by the friendships, banter, and unique magic system as it began to unfold. About halfway through the book, the plot picked up and then I couldn’t put it down. There is a sweet slow burn romance and outstanding character growth. Sarah Marie Page's writing style is unique and filled with beautiful metaphors. I really wish I could dive right into book 2 today!

Thank you to Shadow Forge Publishing and NetGalley for providing me this ARC.

Illusion of stars is a fast-paced read that has an entertaining plot. Unfortunately, I don’t think this was for me. I enjoyed the first hundred pages but after it felt way to obvious where the plot was going and the ending was predictable.

This was supposed to be an enemies to lovers plot but it wasn’t in my opinion. The characters felt a bit insta lovey. The entire plot felt rushed and super quick for how much was going on.

Illusion of stars follows Isabel, a court physician apprentice, who is working to become the royal physician. She takes care of the queen and pretty much everyone else in the keep, except the king. It seems like everyday half the keep is out ill with something, girl cannot catch a break.. One day she finds her friend murdered and is roped into becoming a “spy” in order to help solve who did it. She is sent as a guide to help the son of the commander, Erik, to scout locations.

I did not like MMC at all. His initial behavior was not something I could get past, especially since their relationship seemed to happen really quickly. I don’t think this was for me.. the buzz words got me interested but the execution didn’t work, for me at least.

Thank you NetGalley and Shadow Forge Publishing for an ARC of Illusion of Stars ✨

Rating: 3 stars ✨

Tropes:
LGBTQ+
Grief/ loss
Magic
Traveling/ Camping

𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘 "𝑰𝒍𝒍𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒔"✧ 𝒃𝒚 𝑺𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒉 𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒆 𝑷𝒂𝒈𝒆
4.5/5 stars

This was a truly unique book, with a story that kept me interested after reading so many popular BookTok books.
Often, I find aspects of those stories repeating themselves, causing me to lose interest, but this book has its own story, and I ended up reading it in just one day!

𝘈𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘰𝘺𝘢𝘭 𝘱𝘩𝘺𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘦 𝘪𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥, 𝘐𝘴𝘢𝘣𝘦𝘭 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘺 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘰𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘥𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘥 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥, 𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘢 𝘯𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘥𝘰𝘮'𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘦𝘢𝘱𝘰𝘯. 𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘮𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘌𝘳𝘪𝘬, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭'𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘯, 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴.

I absolutely loved the characters and the sense of found family among Erik's soldiers. Isabel's journey of self-discovery and acceptance is so relatable for anyone trying to prove themselves. The balance of betrayal and responsibility Isabel navigates is both thrilling and heart-wrenching.

The slow-burn romance was just right for me, with a perfect build-up and a steamy fade-to-black moment. The focus stayed on the beautiful tension, making the story even more engaging.

Thank you to Sarah Marie Page and NetGalley for the ARC!
I can’t wait for the sequel after that cliffhanger ending!💖

Wowow thank you NetGalley + The Publisher!
This was on my list since stumbling on my insta !

Enemies to lovers … need I say more !?

Isabel is royal physician who loves her friends dearly but as someone who didn’t look into what this story was about tooo much the early plot twist really had me GASPING! With the events that occur she takes in on herself to find out the truth of what happened + trying to seek revenge. She becomes a spy and has to WOOO the general Erik Lothgarson .. but as true enemies to lovers you know what happens !

I love love the word building and the magic system in this ! It is so different from what I’ve read , and the story was so captivating .
I found myself imagine the breeze and the smell of the sea in my living room .

I absolutely love Isy’s character and her dynamic with Erik .

This was such an easy and beautiful read , I’m going to get a physical copy !

Can’t wait for the next ! Pls read this , it’s so good !
10/10 !

I’ve never read a book by this author before but I absolutely loved it! Thank you so much for the ARC! I loved this story, it was extremely well written. Will definitely be on the lookout for more books by this author!

This book was a breath of fresh air in the new adult romantasy genre. I loved the plot and intrigue, there were those moments in the later chapters were you have those "aha" moments where the bread crumbs fall into place. As this this a new adult book, the main characters are younger and I think Sarah Marie Page does a good job of capturing those complexities - in some moments they are confident adults yet in others they are still unsure and young.
One of things that really resonated for me was how it was written in terms of narrative. Illusion of Stats was written using limited first-person pov - so we see and experience the entire story from Isabel eyes. The thing that really set this apart was that Sarah Marie Page used an intriguing mix of stream of thought and more standard narrative. When the reader was reading those stream of thought passages, they experienced how some emotions, like doubt, insecurity, and fear can seemingly randomly intrude into a person's mind and how one sometimes has to force themselves to push through or they can get buried in an avalanche of unwanted thoughts.
Caveats for this book: While there are some mildly steamy scenes. the book does fade to black for those pivotal moments. Also this is part of a duet, so it does end on a bit of an open ending and readers will need to read the next book to see resolution of the plot.

This book unfortunately became a DNF for me at 23%.

I really had high hopes for this one but found the writing style was not for me and made it difficult for me to power through.

Just finished reading my eARK copy.

I had so much fun reading this! The world building is soo good - I love Sarah’s descriptions, made my mind create some lovely images of this world!

Isabel - In this book, she seems naïve but by the few chapters of the book, you can see her becoming something fierce. I'm really looking forward to seeing her growth in the second book because I get the impression that she is a powerhouse! She's likeable, loyal to those she loves and resilient.

Erik - Great, now I have another book boyfriend to add to the list! He's broody, moody and closed off... BUT underneath all that, he's just scared, alone and thinks that no-one sees him for him. I really hope that in the second book we see him go completely feral.

4/5 ⭐️ - Overall, this was a really fun read and one that I completed in a day. I couldn't stop myself. The world building is amazing, the magic system is unique, and the author uses the prettiest language for descriptions. I would highly recommend you read this book!

I liked this book a lot! The main characters were amazing and I really cared about them. The book did start off a little slow and I got a bit confused in the politics, but overall it was great. Definitely recommend and look forward to the next one!