Name: Kate's review of Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett
Item: Starry Eyes
Rating: 4
Author: Kate

Jenn Bennett

From Jenn Bennett, author of Night Owls and Alex, Approximately comes a sizzling, starry romance, perfect for fans of Rainbow Rowell and John Green Ever since last year's homecoming dance, best-friends-turned-worst-enemies Zorie and Lennon have made an art of avoiding each other. It doesn't hurt that their families are the modern-day version of the Montagues and Capulets. But when a group camping trip goes south, Zorie and Lennon find themselves stranded in the wilderness. Alone. Together. Zorie and Lennon have no choice but to try to make their way to safety. But as the two travel deeper into the rugged Californian countryside, secrets and hidden feelings surface. Soon it's not simply a matter of enduring each other's company, but taming their growing feelings for each other. Praise for Night Owls: 'If you like Rainbow Rowell, Jandy Nelson and John Green, then you are going to want to check out Jenn Bennett's brand new book' - Sugarscape 'Night Owls is artsy, cool and everything you want a San Francisco adventure to be. Get ready to be swept away' - Maximum Pop 'A sweet, romantic read that will make your heart soar!' - The Bookette 'This is one of the best books I've read for a very long time' - Bookbag

Starry Eyes

In this romantic dramedy from the author of Alex, Approximately, a teen girl’s way-too-ordinary life is driven off the beaten path when she’s abandoned in the wilderness with her worst adversary—the boy who broke her heart. Ever since last year’s homecoming dance, best friends-turned-best enemies Zorie and Lennon have made an art of avoiding each other. It doesn’t hurt that their families are the modern day, Californian version of the Montagues and Capulets. But when a group camping trip goes south, Zorie and Lennon find themselves stranded in the wilderness. Alone. Together. What could go wrong? With no one but each other for company, Zorie and Lennon have no choice but to hash out their issues via witty jabs and insults as they try to make their way to safety. But fighting each other while also fighting off the forces of nature makes getting out of the woods in one piece less and less likely. And as the two travel deeper into Northern California’s rugged backcountry, secrets and hidden feelings surface. But can Zorie and Lennon’s rekindled connection survive out in the real world? Or was it just a result of the fresh forest air and the magic of the twinkling stars?

𝒫

“But there’s comfort in knowing that when your plans fall apart, you can survive. That the worst thing imaginable can happen, but you can get through it. That’s why I like to read horror fiction. It’s not about the monsters. It’s about the hero surviving them and living to tell the tale.”

Joan 

Kate

fun ya with camping/hiking vibes with a little drama mixed in there. but just didn’t love the reason why lennon and zorie ended up being “enemies” - the miscommunication of it all was frustrating.

i enjoyed lennon's dry humor. zorie is so relatable for being an anxious girlie who plans everything and anticipates every bad scenario

all the stars by kendrick lamar, sza
let it happen by gracie abrams
say don’t go by taylor swift

fun ya with camping/hiking vibes with a little drama mixed in there. but just didn’t love the reason why lennon and zorie ended up being “enemies” - the miscommunication of it all was frustrating.

i enjoyed lennon's dry humor. zorie is so relatable for being an anxious girlie who plans everything and anticipates every bad scenario

becky oh

“We’re under the same starry sky,” I say. 
“We always are.”
"Not together," I argue.
“I think we’ve always been together, even when we were apart,”


Zorie and Lennon had been best-friends that turned into best-enemies. So when they are stranded together, alone in the wilderness after a tragic camping trip, they try their hardest to stay away from each other. They poke and shove at each other with words to keep a clean distance, but how will they realize that it's only making them closer? 

I have to say, ‘Starry Eyes is super cute and adorable (it may not be the cutest book I’ve ever read but it’s still cute!). The characters are really nice, I especially like Zorie with her cute glasses and Lennon’s gothness. The author has really picked the words carefully to make the book seem light-hearted and full of emotions at the same time.

It also seems like I was grinning at the book while I was reading it. Some parts weren’t meant for most of the readers to grin (like I was) but I’m not "most readers". This book just made me happy, and fun. It just flows easily and it didn’t feel like the sentences were stoppable.

Even though this is a fiction book, it made it magical. Because stars and the universe were involved. Zorie, is really into Astronomy so this book mentions a lot about the stars in the night sky and all. It just felt, magical you know. It felt special, and I thought for a second the book might’ve been shining (or that was just my imagination . . .)

When teens Zorie and Lennon, a former couple, are stranded in the California wilderness together, they must put aside their differences, and come to terms with lingering romantic feelings, in order to survive.

Victoria

Okay, it's not as great as Serious Moonlight buuuuut, Jenn Bennett is such an awesome writer. Based on the two books of hers that I've read, I'd say that she has become one of my favorites. I always think about not wanting her books to end, and that's honestly a first for me.

The writing and dialogue was so bad, like Riverdale bad. It was easy to read and hard to finish. 

Sarah

Aishling

This was a really enjoyable read. I have nothing negative to say about it. The main antagonist of this story is miscommunication and for once it is some what understandable. The reason for my slightly low rating is not the book but more me. I think I’m just growing out of the YA genre, I’ve become a book adrenaline junkie and I’m not longer satisfied unless I feel like my heart will jump out of my chest while reading. 

I would still recommend this read, the MC and love interest are interesting characters and the story itself is very satisfying.

dija

[Read in an annoyingly high pitched voice used in commercials] 

Looking for a cute light read for summer?
Tired of all those cheesy plotless contemporaries? 
Want to read more books with diverse characters? 

Here you have Starry eyes, where the protagonist is into planning for every single little thing and has a Korean step mom who isn't evil. She has a lesbian couple as neighbours and they own a sex shop and they have an amazingly dark smart gorgeous son! 

Not only this but you'll also find : 
Friends to ennemis to friends to lovers trop! 
Camping in the wilderness with the friend who turned into enemy and soon-will-be lover. 
An overdose of cuteness. 
Feels!! 


[Cue]
NOW READ THE BOOK

I just love how i said RTC and wrote a pisspoor review now. Welcome to my world 

~~~~~
This was so so SO CUTE!!! Loved the story, the characters AND THE DIVERSITY IM DYING

aamna

this book got me out of my reading slump! so much happened all at once it was chaotic but man did i love lennon. it has LONG CHAPTERS.. i think 30 chapters and 400 pages, but surprisingly it was a quick read

Elisa Bieg

OMG I loved this so much. Fun, emotional, great characters, realistic plot and twists, beautiful visuals, and most excellent banter. I also love that different kinds of relationships are represented: good marriages, bad marriages, great friendships, toxic friendships, evolving friendships; as well as the stumbles you can have on each of them. 

I have some minor complaints but this still warrants 4 1/2 STARS

Kailey Rios

this was so cute! i loved the characters and the journey that they took. 

zorie and lennon (can we please talk about how cool their names are btw) didn’t feel like cookie cutter characters as can often happen in this genre; their personalities and voices felt pretty unique and i was actually invested in their relationship.

so many great moments throughout, i really enjoyed reading this one.

p.s. mac and sunny are my everything. diamond dan can choke.


  4.25 stars

Heather

3.5 ⭐️
This book was a journey! I buddy read it with one of my friends and it made it so much more fun. I really loved all the hiking and camping aspects of the book. My favorite character was definitely Lennon! He carried this book on his back. Overall, it was a fun read!

brooke

I LOVED THIS! if we’re gonna be specific it’s basically friends to secret lovers to enemies to lovers and i just love that for them <33

mevi

2.5 stars

This was definitely a cliche and forgettable book. Whenever authors incorporate current fads, and focus WAY too much on their clothes kind of makes the story go south. I’m not interested in any of that...

Then the second part of the book came along, and blew everything out of the park. I loved the hiking, nature, and the high emotions. But, it wasn’t enough.

My favorite character would have to be Joy. She is a very supportive mother, and the most realistic out of everyone LOL.

marilynn

This was way too good and way too cute. And not gonna lie, I may have a mild crush on Lennon.

I was so surprised to find out that the camping stuff Lennon kept talking about was interesting and as someone who hates going out, having now a huge desire to go camping is freaky. (Also probably not the best time to get that itch)

I found Zorrie to be such a relatable character even though I don't have that love for space as she does. 

Their relationship was one of the best things I have ever seen. They have history, chemistry, and so much love and respect for each other.

https://media1.giphy.com/media/3oEjI4...

Sophie

3.5/5 stars

the book starts off very slow (or maybe i'm just really impatient). Any who, I think I really loved this book. Sure both of the main characters are kind of annoying, and the first 150-ish pages made me want to sleep, but the overall story really was amazing. It's a cute story, with a cute setting. I really did enjoy this.

Julia Berhalter

*3.5 This was quite a fun and enjoyable read. I wish I saved it for summer though!

Kathryn 

This was so cute and I’m happy to have finally read a Jen Bennett book!

Naza

Goddd i should be studying for a test tomorrow but i have to finish this book. It was so freacking cuteee i love it

Maria

camping is totally NOT my thing but Jenn Bennett knows her YA romance stuff

Becky

Whenever I read a Jenn Bennett book I'm filled with utter joy. She writes such utterly fantastic books and I enjoyed every page.

I don't know why I waited to read this book. It's been on my shelf since the book was released and to my shame I did not read it sooner. It was an absolutely stunning journey. I was filled with some doubts at first, Zorie was so regimented and a little judgey and I questioned if I was going to like her. She grew on me, though, as I got to know her and everything that had happened in the past year.

She ends up camping with Reagan, a girl I hated from the first time I met her... although maybe hate is a strong word. I disliked Reagan because I knew she was shady. Anyway, Zorie gets roped into a camping trip with Reagan thinking it would be glamping and a girls trip. Turns out Reagan invited a few guys and it wasn't all going to be at the crazy expensive glamping compound, but they planned a trek to some secret falls. Zorie isn't happy about going off plan (and maybe missing out on a star party with her friends) but going off plan for a summer adventure can't be bad, right? And she has a plan to get from the camping to the star party so she doesn't miss the Perseid meteor shower. She has it all planned out... and then her enemy (and former best friend) Lennon ends up being on the trip too and everything goes to pot.

Lennon was a strange one. I knew I was going to like him, he had a wry sense of humour and he was a little hot-headed. And he seemed like a genuinely nice kid so I knew there was more to the great divide between former BFFs Lennon and Zorie. I was excited for him to be the surprise extra guest on this camping trip. And really everything got crazy from there. Secrets came out and arguments were had. Teens made bad decisions (although, bad decisions are not always exclusive to teenagers) and it led Zorie on the most unexpected adventures. Abandoned in the woods Zorie and Lennon have to figure out how to get back to civilisation... or the place where Zorie was meant to meet with her friend anyway. It's at this point the book got really good.

I won't reveal any more but it's safe to say they had quite an adventure and many secrets were revealed. And it's during their hiking/camping journey that I had the most fun. I actually really wanted to go camping after reading this and if you know me that is saying a lot, I hate the outdoors... a lot. And I loved seeing why Zorie and Lennon were friends in the first place. They had so much history and that's not easy to forget. And once everything was out in the open and they could be honest with each other? Well, they had a whole heap of chemistry that never truly got to be seen until then and damn it was good. 

I liked that there was a whole lot of other story going on in this book too. The biggest one being what makes someone a parent? Zorie's parents are going through some troubles and the things she's found out? Well, that's going to have a lot of fallout. But her mom? She calls her mom, anyway, and she is her parent for all intents and purposes but she is actually her dad's second wife as her bio mom died when she was young. And if anything happens, what happens to Zorie? It was very intense and I was nervous for her, I really was. 

Basically, this book was awesome. I loved it and am so glad I read it when I did.

Marie S

I can't decide between 2.5 or 3 but I'm feeling generous ! 3/5

Aleena Korell

Straight YA fiction isn't my favorite genre... but Jenn Bennett seems to do it in a way I enjoy. And this one was great. The characters are just so real, quirky without being cliche, and the scenario by which they're forced together never seems cheesy.

Frenemy books can be hard because the characters have to have a valid reason to hate each other, and usually that gives the audience reasons to dislike the characters, either for being petty or arrogant or rude and so on. This book... had a very valid reason without resorting to doing that to either of our two characters. They never lost any respect or love for each other-- that was my favorite thing about Lennon. He was always respectful, never belittling or cocky to Zorie when he could have been.

Maybe it's not perfect, and I do prefer less sexual content. But I certainly enjoyed this one :)

Caitlyn DeRouin

After reading Alex, Approximately, I knew that I would be excited about Jenn Bennett's next book and Starry Eyes met all of my expectations! I love Bennett's writing style and her books are fast-paced enough to keep you intrigued without leaving out any of the nuance that goes into making a great story. I always love books set in California, especially in the Bay Area, since that's why I'm from it's always a nice little piece of the story that I can connect to even if I don't really relate to any of the characters in the story so that was a nice little touch for me that made me like it even more.

I loved Lennon and Zorie and how they grew back together, but my favorite part of the story was probably the relationship between Zorie and Joy. What a beautiful story of a mother and daughter and their love and respect for one another. I loved all of their moments together and was so proud of both of them in the end.

This book also made me really want to go hiking or camping (though I've never gone camping so I don't know...) and gaze at the stars. Zorie's love and passion for astronomy was so wonderful and I love how it tied together so many things in the story. 

Overall I really really loved this book, it was humorous, and serious and some of the characters were frustrating but also relatable. With this book Jenn Bennett has been added to my short list of auto buy authors.

Euodias

5/5 STARS. I couldn't stop smiling when I read this. Everything from the writing style to the plot twists to the chemistry between the two main leads was absolutely stunning. The pacing was perfect as well. It was so realistic and there were multiple scenes that were just *chefs kiss*. The romance in this book isn't the classic "fairytale swoon" kind of love. But it was one of the best romance books I've read. There were lots of little things that the main male lead did that were just so loving and sincere, it warms my heart. Definitely a book I will pick up again in the future.

Kendra Jones

TWs: suicide, death of a parent, cheating
This story follows Zorie and Lennon, two best friends turned enemies who live next door to one another. One day Zorie finds out that her father is cheating on her mother, which Lennon finds out as well. Before she can confront her father, Zorie goes on a glamping trip with her friends, including Lennon. Whilst on their trip, they go out into the wild and Zorie and Lennon are left behind to fend for themselves. Zorie has a star gazing party to go to, so Lennon offers to take her. Thus begins a cute, and sometimes sexy, contemporary.
Zorie and Lennon are both flawed, which makes their characters more believable, it also makes their relationship so much better, because they accept each other's flaws and complement them. Zorie is an over-planning, anxious mess, and Lennon is the silent brooding type who has trouble expressing himself. So, it was fun watching them develop, especially Zorie.
Zorie's mother was an absolute gem, and her father, and ass-hole. But I think it made the whole cheating sub-plot easier to choose sides between them. (Zorie's mum, Joy, is her step-mother, just BTW.)
I like how Jenn added in small points to the lives of Zorie and her mum by having the grandfather only being able to speak Korean and have Zorie not understand, but have Joy be the link between them.
The miscommunication trope in here seemed to have a more believable reasoning behind it, so I wasn't too mad about it.
The writing was well done, not flowery at all, which I think for a contemporary is good.

This was utterly adorable and further proof that Jenn Bennett is the queen of getting me out of reading slumps. 

Jenn Bennett sure can write the kind of contemporaries I want and need. This book was filled with so many wonderful, complex and multidimensional character and relationships, each one with their own unique dynamic and reason to love them. It needn't matter whether those characters or relationships were positive or not, either way, they pulled you into their lives and have such a wonderfully human and imperfect reality to them. 

The wilderness/camping setting was inspired and something I hadn't realised I'd been missing up until starting this book. It gave the entire plot a constant, ever changing, dangerous yet somehow warm vibe I lapped up. 

I also loved the variety of subjects this book touched on, without them being the sole drive for the plot. Whether that be Zorie's anxiety, Lennon having queer parents, grief for dead parents etc. They were all naturally integrated into the story, whilst not being the 'whole' story. 

Overall, this was the perfect and adorable, YA rom-com Jenn Bennett does so well, with a diverse cast of characters, relationships that will make you want to yell for a hundred different reasons and a handful of wild animals with an impressive talent for causing panic. 

TW: Suicide, anxiety, homophobia

Kate &
Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett

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Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett