A Blog of Books and Tea

(Rattle the Stars PR ARC Review)

Tropes:

• Hidden Identity
• Slow Burn
• Protective MMC
• Forced Proximity
• Sci-Fi Romance
• Human X Undercover Alien
• Accidental Chosen One Human
• Yearning
• Galactic Stakes

Stars – 🫖🫖🫖🫖🫖

Spice Level – 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

Synopsis –

He fell from the stars.

Now she’s falling for him.

Raven did not sign up for this saving-the-world crap.

But after unlocking a galactic map, surviving an attack from the deadly robotic Enil, and kissing her alien coworker, she’s officially on the run—with the fate of planets possibly lodged in her brain.

Now the Enil are hunting her. So is the government. And, because the universe has a sense of humor, Raven’s stuck in close quarters with the undercover alien who’s determined to keep things strictly professional.

Which would be fine…except, as Raven and Sky race to stay ahead of their enemies and track down his elusive partner, Bast, the unresolved tension between them crackles hotter than Sky’s spark powers.

She’s not sure what’s more dangerous at this point: evil robots from outer space, the star map and what it’s doing to her, or the feelings she’s developing for Sky.

The bad news? It’s definitely aliens.

The worse news? She’s falling for one of them.

Thoughts –

Starfalling picks up right from where the events of Stardusted left off. I have to admit, after reading Stardusted, I had high hopes for this book, and started it as soon as I’d finished the first book! DeYesso did not disappoint. I read the entirety of the book in one sitting, and because I started it straight away, the mementom of the story didn’t drop and it fitted together really well.

I’ve seen a couple of reviews that have mentioned that the storyline can be a little repetitive. However, I think that is completely intentional on DeYesso’s part. The repetitivity lets us as readers see and feel the monotony and constant fear that Raven and Sky are experiencing. This, in turn, makes the decisions made in the book by Raven make more sense. Yes, it’s a STUPID decision and she really shouldn’t have done it. BUT, it also heightens her panic and fear. Of course she’s scared, she’s being chased across America by the Men in Black and killer aliens… I think I’d make stupid decisions as well.

That being said, if she even DARES to betray Sky again, I’m going to have to jump into the book and kick her ass! How dare she make our boy sad! 😂

The relationship between Raven and Sky continues at a rate that doesn’t seem forced or rushed. They clearly have very strong feelings for one another, and even when trying to fight them, they still end up culminating to a couple of spicy scenes which were really well written. I like that they don’t just jump straight into bed with each other. The slow burn in the lead up really amped up the tension, so that when it finally happened, we were 100% ready for it!

Bast is a really good edition to the team. Although he seems a bit arrogant and unbearable to Raven to begin with, I really feel that they’re going to become best friends. The banter between them is perfect and he seems to understand her intentions as they get to know each other a bit more. He’s like an annoying brother to her. I’d absolutely love it if he fell for Raven’s best friend Amelia!

When I say that so much goes wrong in this book, I’m not lying. These characters cannot seem to catch a break. They run from one catastrophe to another like they’re trying to win a gold medal in f*ck ups! Even when the meet up with Bast, they only have a little time before they have to start running again.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book. The characters were consistent and continued to be lovable and believable. I also enjoyed the general pacing of the book. The only downside is the long wait I’ll have until book 3… I need it out like yesterday!!