Name: Made of Stars
Rating: 3.4 (5 reviews)

Jenna Voris

Made of Stars

Joana

“All that and I don’t even get a kiss?” Ava’s hands stilled on her collar, and when she glanced up, Shane looked like he was fighting the urge to laugh. He thinks this is funny, Ava realized. Here he was, barely able to stand, and he still wanted to embarrass her. Unbelievable. 

If their positions were reversed, Shane would have taken the money and left Ava and Jared to rot on Chess. No, you wouldn’t. He would have left Jared, maybe, but not her. Never her. Shane realized he was still holding Ava’s arm and released it immediately. “Here.” He shoved a bag in her direction. “Tell your mother I miss her. She’s devastated by my absence, I’m sure.”

“How much do they want for me?” Jared squinted at his screen. “No reward yet. You’re wanted for questioning.” That was something. Shane exhaled and forced himself to mirror Ava’s easy expression. “That’s embarrassing, Castor. Try to keep up.”

thank you to penguin teen and viking books for young readers for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

you could call this bonnie and clyde set in space. but honestly, besides a few quotes at the beginning of each part, and the fact that shane and ava were star-crossed lovers who also happened to be fugitives, it wasn’t really all that comparable…

i hate to say this is just another book in a recent string of books that i just don’t particularly care for. another mediocre book that’ll be forgotten by the end of the month, if you will.

none of the three main characters particularly stood out to me with their personalities. it kind of felt like they were all going in circles with their characterizations. and a particular choice just made it feel like none of the story felt worth it, you know?? (which i guess is accurate to the real story, but still. a lot else has changed, why not that.) it felt like the author was trying to go for six of crows vibes but i just didn’t feel the connection with any of them. besides my personal neutrality towards shane and ava, jared said like literally nothing??? i was expecting for him to be more prominent in the story honestly, given he was with their “gang” before the events kicked off. but nope, he was just kind of there. clara’s main thing was not to trust anyone. ares was the dick. (i can’t even really remember the other two’s names oops). that was it for them. cyrus was honestly the only one i somewhat enjoyed reading from actually. (not great when you’re trying do to bonnie and clyde, and you prefer the third mc who is neither of those).

the world building was subpar to say the least. you mean to tell me that a 

goes radio silent for months and not another single other planet in a supposedly large system cares? like at all? nakara has not literally one other ally i guess??? but whatever. i don’t expect most ya sci-fi space operas to be particularly fleshed out, so i kind of knew i needed to suspend my belief for that one. but i guess, i just couldn’t really understand noth’s reasoning for doing literally anything she did. we never really learned her motivations for wanting to invade nakara other than the one time she mentioned to cordova she wants more money… i guess, lol. idk, i guess i found where i personally draw my line. like if you want to make her the villain, that’s fine. but give us more of a reason why she wants and needs this invasion to happen.

overall, i was just hoping for more cohesion. and the poor development was especially noticeable for the last 15%. i feel like a few things were thrown into there just because the author wanted to. shane and ava’s storyline in particular. cyrus and lark kissing, which i personally just didn’t get any of the feelings cyrus was saying he felt toward lark. the man barely thought about him. and now apparently they’ve had this strong chemistry the whole time? noth, as i mentioned.

and i personally think, the author wanted to set it up so that it could either be considered a standalone. but also, set up so that it could potentially get picked up for a second book to be published down the road. like a decent amount felt left open ended. and that’s an odd way to finish a (currently?) standalone book.

ash (smokedshelves)

thank you to penguin teen and viking books for young readers for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

i guess you could call this bonnie and clyde set in space. but honestly, besides a few quotes at the beginning of each part, and the fact that shane and ava were star-crossed lovers who also happened to be fugitives, it wasn’t really all that comparable…

i hate to say this is just another book in a recent string of books that i just don’t particularly care for. another mediocre book that’ll be forgotten by the end of the month, if you will.

none of the three main characters particularly stood out to me with their personalities. it kind of felt like they were all going in circles with their characterizations. and a particular choice just made it feel like none of the story felt worth it, you know?? (which i guess is accurate to the real story, but still. a lot else has changed, why not that.) it felt like the author was trying to go for six of crows vibes but i just didn’t feel the connection with any of them. besides my personal neutrality towards shane and ava, jared said like literally nothing??? i was expecting for him to be more prominent in the story honestly, given he was with their “gang” before the events kicked off. but nope, he was just kind of there. clara’s main thing was not to trust anyone. ares was the dick. (i can’t even really remember the other two’s names oops). that was it for them. cyrus was honestly the only one i somewhat enjoyed reading from actually. (not great when you’re trying do to bonnie and clyde, and you prefer the third mc who is neither of those).

the world building was subpar to say the least. you mean to tell me that a whole planet goes radio silent for months and not another single other planet in a supposedly large system cares? like at all? nakara has not literally one other ally i guess??? but whatever. i don’t expect most ya sci-fi space operas to be particularly fleshed out, so i kind of knew i needed to suspend my belief for that one. but i guess, i just couldn’t really understand noth’s reasoning for doing literally anything she did. we never really learned her motivations for wanting to invade nakara other than the one time she mentioned to cordova she wants more money… i guess, lol. idk, i guess i found where i personally draw my line. like if you want to make her the villain, that’s fine. but give us more of a reason why she wants and needs this invasion to happen.

overall, i was just hoping for more cohesion. and the poor development was especially noticeable for the last 15%. i feel like a few things were thrown into there just because the author wanted to. shane and ava’s storyline in particular. cyrus and lark kissing, which i personally just didn’t get any of the feelings cyrus was saying he felt toward lark. the man barely thought about him. and now apparently they’ve had this strong chemistry the whole time? noth, as i mentioned.

and i personally think, the author wanted to set it up so that it could either be considered a standalone. but also, set up so that it could potentially get picked up for a second book to be published down the road. like a decent amount felt left open ended. and that’s an odd way to finish a (currently?) standalone book.

This was a 3.5 stars most of the way through but I appreciate the absolute commitment to the bit.

Carissa 

A young adult science fiction modern day Bonnie and Clyde thriller is a great beach day grab! Jenna Voris did a great job with her personality and creativity shining through in this book. Shane and Ava are a talented team working hard to save their planet after they have uncovered a secret plan that was going to destroy their families ans home. Not only do they need to save what they love but have to deal with military leaders like Cyrus who has to deal with his own battle between right and wrong. 
This novel, with 3 point of views , keeps you on your seat to discover what can and should happen.

The premise had me hooked before I even cracked open this book, and the story inside did not disappoint. Made of Stars follows two outlaws (Ava and Shane), their shifting crew, and an officer of the law (Cyrus) who is meant to hunt them down-but the more Cyrus discovers, the more he questions which side is truly just and where his loyalties lie.

Although Made of Stars is set in an inter-planetary world, the mood is reminiscent of an old- western (I may have had "Raise a Little Hell" stuck in my head throughout my time reading). Each character's motivations are complex and come through both flawed and righteous, and at times I truly did not know what would be the "just" outcome, for what defines success for one character spells ruin for another. 

This story will captivate you to the very last page, and leave you with characters you won't soon forget. 

Minnie Mazuera

Space Bonnie and Clyde! 

The premise had me hooked before I even cracked open this book, and the story inside did not disappoint. Made of Stars follows two outlaws (Ava and Shane), their shifting crew, and an officer of the law (Cyrus) who is meant to hunt them down-but the more Cyrus discovers, the more he questions which side is truly just and where his loyalties lie.

Although Made of Stars is set in an inter-planetary world, the mood is reminiscent of an old- western (I may have had "Raise a Little Hell" stuck in my head throughout my time reading). Each character's motivations are complex and come through both flawed and righteous, and at times I truly did not know what would be the "just" outcome, for what defines success for one character spells ruin for another. 

This story will captivate you to the very last page, and leave you with characters you won't soon forget. 

        

Made of Stars

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