Star-Crossed

A Novel

By: Minnie Darke

Narrated by: Arianwen Parkes-Lockwood

Why rely on fate when you can rewrite the stars? In this sparkling romantic comedy, one woman decides to tinker with the horoscopes of the man of her dreams.

“A bright, brilliant, joyful love story.”—Josie Silver, #1 New York Times bestselling author of One Day in December

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY REAL SIMPLE

When childhood sweethearts Justine (Sagittarius and serious skeptic) and Nick (Aquarius and true believer) bump into each other as adults, a life-changing love affair seems inevitable. To Justine, anyway. Especially when she learns Nick is an astrological devotee, whose decisions are guided by the stars, and more specifically, by the horoscopes in his favorite magazine. The same magazine Justine happens to write for. As Nick continues to not fall headlong in love with her, Justine decides to take Nick’s horoscope, and Fate itself, into her own hands. But, of course, Nick is not the only Aquarius making important life choices according to what is written in the stars.

Charting the ripple effects of Justine’s astrological meddling, Star-Crossed is a delicious, intelligent, and affecting love story about friendship, chance, and how we all navigate the kinds of choices that are hard to face alone.

Praise for Star-Crossed

“Swoon-worthy . . . a smart, sweet love story about friendship, destiny, and the power of choice.”―Bustle

“[A] juicy romance novel.”―Good Housekeeping

“Enchanting . . . this book will capture your attention and keep you entertained from the first page to the last.”—BuzzFeed

“This cleverly structured first outing from the pseudonymous Darke will appeal to fans of romantic comedy, astrology, and chaos. Utterly charming and ripe for development as a film.”―Booklist

“Winning . . . Unpretentious, well-drawn characters and the fresh twist on the childhood sweethearts reunited setup make this perfect for fans of romantic comedies.”―Publishers Weekly

“Darke creates a world of stargazers whose destinies eventually collide. . . . Funny and enticing.”―Library Journal

Critic reviews

“An escapist delight . . . Star-Crossed is a light, fun read, with a creative spin on a winning rom-com formula.”—Associated Press

“I loved this completely. Star-Crossed is all about the human impulse to look to others when we are lost, and so it’s wonderfully relatable not only in its lively characters who read as faraway-yet-familiar as neighbors but also in its navigation of the kinds of decisions we can’t face alone: the phone calls we make to our mothers, the friends we use as mirrors, the horoscope page at the back of the magazine. This is a bright, brilliant, joyful love story that spreads into the size of a small town with its chorus of voices and old homes and childhoods and gossips. A total triumph.”―Josie Silver, #1 New York Times bestselling author of One Day in December

“You don’t need to care a thing about astrology to find Star-Crossed a five-star delight. Minnie Darke has written a sharp, funny, and irresistible rom-com that melted my cold, skeptical (Gemini/moon in Sag) heart. I predict you’ll fall, too.”—Lisa Gabriele, bestselling author of The Winters

A beautiful, uplifting book full of humor and humanity, and sprinkled with enough magic that I finished it hoping that we are all, even if only a little bit, at the mercy of the stars.”—Cressida McLaughlin, author of The House of Birds and Butterflies

“Star-Crossed is the funny, clever, big-hearted romance of the year. Brilliant!”—Heather Rose, author of The Museum of Modern Love

Adorable RomCom

I loved the Interlude “Cusp” chapters so much that I listened to them again. It was so clever how the author connected everything together.

Not my cup of tea

The Storyline was interesting. However I wasn’t a fan of the convoluted writing/characters in this beach read.

Only 4 stars because…

Minnie Darke is my new favorite author; I come to this conclusion after reading just 2 novels. So why do I give 4 instead of 5 stars to Star-Crossed, especially when the 1st — the title escapes me at the moment; however, I do know it was performed by a different, most excellent actor — warranted all 5? A few reasons: (1) the story is more than improbable, ridiculous really, when we have a brilliant, albeit impulsive (see myriad Sagittarius characteristics), journalist as the female protagonist who does a majorly risky, idiotic, shortsighted thing that, of course (the reader can see this at the outset), comes back to bite her in the ass; (2) the very talented narrator mispronounces words (ironic, since said protagonist goes around correcting everyone’s spelling), like “mischievous,” for example (There’s NO i after the v, dammit! Now my utter frustration with multiple talented narrators’s identical mistake is showing…); and there is a (3) but I can’t recall it at the moment (which, admittedly, is a recurring problem; I should see a doctor but won’t just yet, because I have to wait till it’s too late…) By the way, notwithstanding her mistakes, said very talented narrator has been placed on my “Very Good” list, with no asterisk(s) for excellence, instead with a “mispr.” parenthetical proviso. All in all, Star-Crossed is a solid 4 stars. I do recommend reading what truly is a swell read. I end with a challenge: try to correct my spelling and/or grammatical mistakes; for the number of times I reread, added to, and deleted from my review, I’m sure I left errors.

Better Then Expected for a Random Choice

I bought this book on a whim and have had it in que for a while. It took a chapter or so to get into it and to understand what was going on but once the story develops it's an entertaining listen! For someone not into horoscopes I found it funny and enjoyed it more as the stories progressed. You do have to pay attention when the random characters are thrown in between the main ones. Overall I'm glad I finally listened and that I didn't give up on it in the first chapter!

Unusual tale

Although I enjoyed this tale, I found it somewhat confusing as it unraveled. However, by the end it comes full circle...just like the 12 signs of the zodiac.