Aaaahhh!!!! I'm freaking out over being on this blog tour for my most anticipated 2020 release, Star Daughter! If you want to check out the tour schedule here, you'll find a multitude of other amazing blog posts celebrating Star Daughter's release. Read on for my review, #OwnVoices reflection, and a recreation of the cover in a photoshoot featuring yours truly! The Book and its AuthorThe daughter of a star and a mortal, Sheetal is used to keeping secrets. Pretending to be "normal." But when an accidental flare of her starfire puts her human father in the hospital, Sheetal needs a full star's help to heal him. A star like her mother, who returned to the sky long ago. Sheetal's quest to save her father will take her to a celestial court of shining wonders and dark shadows, where she must take the stage as her family's champion in a competition to decide the next ruling house of the heavens--and win, or risk never returning to Earth at all. Brimming with celestial intrigue, this sparkling YA debut is perfect for fans of Roshani Chokshi and Laini Taylor. Shveta Thakrar is a part-time nagini and full-time believer in magic. Her work has appeared in a number of magazines and anthologies including Enchanted Living, Uncanny Magazine, A Thousand Beginnings and Endings, and Toil & Trouble. Her debut young adult fantasy novel, Star Daughter, is forthcoming from HarperTeen on August 11, 2020. When not spinning stories about spider silk and shadows, magic and marauders, and courageous girls illuminated by dancing rainbow flames, Shveta crafts, devours books, daydreams, travels, bakes, and occasionally even plays her harp. ReviewI put off writing this review for so long, because honestly I don’t know what to say. From the moment I started reading, I knew I would fall in love with Sheetal and her world. I was right, and now I don’t have words to express what Star Daughter made me feel. Even not having grown up with Hindu stories and mythology, I immediately connected to the story. Like with every other fantasy I read, I’ll start with the world building. The starry court is beautifully wrought, and I could absolutely live in the Night Market (I always love a good Night Market, and seeing what imaginative stalls and vendors authors choose to include). I felt like I was dreaming the entire time I was reading because of the lush imagery, and I don’t believe anything in the real world could compare to the wonders inside this story. So much of my enjoyment came from the writing. Thakrar’s prose is out-of-this-world wonderful, like a hybrid blend of poetry and prose. There are beautiful lines on every page, so you’ll just have to read it before I reproduce the entire book by listing favorite quotes! The comparisons to Roshani Chokshi and Laini Taylor are spot-on. If you were a fan of Thakrar’s story in the Toil & Trouble anthology of YA witchcraft (as I was), you will absolutely love Star Daughter. I also loved reading about Sheetal and her family. Her inner conflict stemmed from the loss of her mother, and the love she carries for her father (and consequent regret at harming him through her powers), which some have discounted as a “typical YA plot line,” but I found Thakrar’s approach to be wonderfully original. Dev, her love interest, is absolutely adorable! I’m of the mind that we need more soft/creative YA boys, and Dev fits perfectly. He’s so thoughtful towards Sheetal (and so clearly in love with her) but isn’t afraid to stand up for himself and his family. If I was pressed to choose a favorite character, though, I think I’d choose Minal. She’s possibly the best YA BFF I’ve ever read about (and honestly, can we have a second book featuring her own adventures please??) Minal supports Sheetal no matter what in the competition, accompanying her to the Celestial Palace and never backing down from a challenge. Like I mentioned above, I don’t think there’s anything derivative about Star Daughter. It is so different from all of its comps, and I think you need to read it. I really feel that this story has the potential to be so widely beloved, so please preorder, request from the library, or order the ebook! I’m giving Star Daughter 5/5 stars, and can’t wait to include it on my list of Favorite Books of 2020. #OwnVoices ReflectionI haven’t read nearly enough fantasy with Indian protagonists, but not one of the ones I have read have starred a Gujarati character. It meant so much to me to see that in my favorite genre. Everything about Sheetal’s family, from the food they ate to every time someone called her “dikri,” hit me hard. When I was a kid, there weren’t many stories centering characters who looked like me or shared my background. This was echoed in the community where I grew up (a mostly white New England suburb) and I never knew the effect it had on me until I started reading more widely in YA. I’m still discovering what that has changed about my self-image, about the unconscious ways in which I move about the world. I can’t speculate about what kind of person I’d be now if my culture and appearance had been represented in the “mainstream” when I was growing up. All I can do now is continue to support #OwnVoices authors and help create a welcoming space in the book community where everyone is allowed to tell their own story. I have to thank Shveta Thakrar for sharing this beautiful tale with the world—Star Daughter instantly became a favorite story of mine and I know I’ll be yelling about it for years to come. (starting now, of course! Go buy this book!) I can’t wait to see what comes next from her! Cover Recreation^ my recreation of Sheetal's pose on the Star Daughter cover! ^ me holding Star Daughter!
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The BaronessHey, I'm Shreya! I love to read, write, travel, and drink tea. Disclosure: I am an affiliate of bookshop.org and I will earn a small commission if you click the above link and make a purchase.
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