Eyes Like Stars - Star Wars Book Review

[00:00:00]Eyes Like Stars by romance author Ashley Poston is out today. This has been touted as the first Star Wars romance novel, which caused some fans to immediately point at Lost Stars because it is also definitely a romantic Star Wars novel. Having read both now, I do think there are some differences.

[00:00:16]Mainly, I found Lost Stars to be more accessible as someone who generally doesn't read anything in the romance genre. I think Eyes Like Stars was written first and foremost for fans of YA romance. I am not within that target audience and that is okay. I'm always a big supporter of variety in Star Wars, even if that means some stories aren't going to be what I'm personally looking for. So, I thought Eyes Like Stars was fine. I enjoyed the two main characters well enough. The opening chapters about the lead character Arden searching for a holo in a kind of pawn shop was very charming. Shean, the love interest, was pretty stereotypical, kind of a bad boy, but not really, a little antagonistic in a flirty way. Also, he has an ability that doesn't work on Arden, which reminded me of Bill and Sookie in True Blood or Edward and Bella in Twilight. I mostly bought their relationship, even though things often felt way over the top and cheesy. But, I talked to my friend who is very well versed in romance literature, Becca's Next Chapter on Instagram, and she said she loved it and that it checked the boxes she was expecting for a romance novel. So, if you're someone who reads a lot of romance and you've been longing for a Star Wars book written in that style, I think that would be a good sign. I definitely think Eyes Like Stars is written to lean more into the romance than into the Star Wars setting of it all. I mean, the book is firmly set in the Star Wars galaxy, taking place on a Star Cruiser that travels to various famous planets from the movies, Naboo, Tatooine, Geonosis, Endor, and more.

[00:01:43]There are droids and aliens and everything is set during the rise of the First Order before the events of The Force Awakens. So, the Star Wars is all there, but the writing was different from what I normally expect somehow.

[00:01:55]It's hard to explain, but there were some swears or some words used that I feel like we don't normally hear or read in Star Wars. That's not necessarily a criticism because I actually liked Poston's writing style quite a bit. This was a fast and easy read. I blew through the book. It's hard to explain the point I'm trying to make, but it seemed like she was given more freedom to relate her story to the real world than usual. For example, the word fascist or fascism showed up quite a bit and I loved how directly Poston was able to address that. But, I don't even think Andor ever said the word fascism and even Tony Gilroy said during the Andor season 2 press tour that he was asked not to say fascism for a while. My point is, I think Eyes Like Stars was meant to be a gateway to welcome in fans who love to read, but maybe haven't read Star Wars before. As long as someone is even vaguely aware of the movies, they're not going to be overwhelmed or thrown into the Star Wars deep end. But, as someone who lives in the Star Wars deep end and doesn't read romance outside of the occasional book like Lost Stars, this one didn't do a ton for me. Again, I am not the target audience, so that's okay.

[00:03:02]I went in with an open mind and had a decent time reading it because it was so quick and snappy and didn't take me long. There were absolutely story elements I enjoyed like exploring the feelings surrounding someone close to you all of a sudden deciding to go down the alt-right pipeline. There were some great lines that I highlighted, but I found myself wanting the story to go deeper into the Star Wars of it all. It basically made me want to read Lost Stars again, which might have been the point. Like I said, Eyes Like Stars feels like a gateway, a good first Star Wars book for fans of romance. So, if you're like my friend Becca and you already read a lot of the romance genre, I feel comfortable recommending Eyes Like Stars to you. And if you dig it, dive into Lost Stars or Leia Princess of Alderaan. But, if you're someone who's been reading Star Wars books for a long time, I I think Eyes Like Stars will work as well the other way. But those are my thoughts. If you're interested in reading Eyes Like Stars, it's out right now, and the audiobook is available, too. If you're interested in getting the audiobook for free, you can by clicking on the link in the description or by visiting audibletrial.com/starwarsexplained.

[00:04:07]There you can sign up for a free trial that will give you a credit for a free audiobook you can use on Eyes Like Stars or just about any Star Wars book you can think of, or get any book you want. The point is, you get a free book and you'll be supporting the channel when you do.

[00:04:20]But that's it for today. If you haven't already, please like this video, subscribe to the channel, follow us on our socials, and consider checking out our Patreon page, where we're going to have a book club meeting on Eyes Like Stars in August. As always, thanks for watching, and may the force be with you.