2.5 stars - Thank you Netgalley and Whimsical Publishing for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

I came here for the premise and the cover, but stayed for the squirrel and the cat.

When I found out this was a cosy fantasy, I was so excited!! The premise is so interesting - Talia Benson, just a normal girl living a normal life in Canada realises that somehow, an extra star has appeared on the right of Orion's Belt. Confused and yet, inspired by the enchanting star, she adds it to her painting. Suddenly, she blacks out and finds herself in 1 of the magical 9 realms. She then meets a "runner" named Jarrett, and together with a few others, they set off on a quest to find a magic flute and send Talia back home.

What I loved most about this book were the animals. Each person in the 9 realms has an assigned " allocated animal" to essentially, keep them company and be their best friend. ISN'T THAT THE CUTEST THING EVER??? I nearly died of cuteness every time Drew (Talia's cat) or QB (Jarrett's squirrel) popped up 🥺🥺

---------

Characters (+ relationships!):
I didn't enjoy that they all had character inconsistencies
~ Talia: She started as an outgoing, albeit confused painter (understandable, she was shoved into a new WORLD with no help) but suddenly spouts words of wisdom about morality at random times?? Her mood switches are also so out of place and never really delved into.
~ Jarrett: His tone either ranged from Talia's kind of upbeat and jovial, or he was completely emo.
~~ Talia & Jarrett: Now this, this was cute. They definitely do care for each other and think about each other a lot! It was a bit insta love-y. But if I was lost in a random world and a hot guy offered to help me out, you best believe me, I would be attracted to him too.
~ Maren: Your standard stoic, feisty redhead who's also a warrior and "doesn't like anyone". No other discerning character traits.
~ Bash: Why was he even here??? Somehow he made his way into the group mid-journey and everyone was like "ok"
~ Moses: Again, WHY WAS HE EVEN HERE???? He joined the group after "stalking them for a few days" and "couldn't resist showing himself after seeing Maren BATHING" like that is a CREEP don't make friends with him???
~ Calystra: For a villain, she didn't really... do anything? She popped in now and then to further the plot and add action scenes but besides that, she was hardly mentioned.

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All that aside, my main gripe with this novel is the writing style and a few plot holes. Usually, insignificant plot holes don't bother me, especially if the writing is immersive enough to distract me. Unfortunately, the rather childish, modern tone of this wasn't enough to hook me in and even made the plot holes more glaring. I also could not connect to any of the characters; they felt one-dimensional. Also, the pacing. Bc wdym the climax was done and over within 8 or so paragraphs???

Mad props to the author though, turning a graphic novel into a novel is HARD. I do think that this novel was just not for me, but I know many readers out there will love it and the whimsical tale that lies within.

This a cozy fantasy, wholesome and whimsical, kinda reminiscent of Narnia or the Wizard of Oz, which happens to be a favorite of our main lady Talia. She finds herself transported to a new world and has to figure out why, she collects friends along the way and is so quirky and relatable. Her love interest is Jarrett, a cutie with a frigging shoulder squirrell bestie. This is just a really light, joyful questing book.

What would you do if you were painting a picture, then something happened, and you found yourself in a different world with monsters? A handsome man saves you, and you go on an adventure of a lifetime that you were not prepared for. This story is great with a lot of different creatures and world building. Great for thoughts fantasy lovers who like a good adventure.

A tale of Chosen one thrown into a world on a journey to solve what sh has been chosen for and make it back home. And a chance at romance while on this journey you say?
This book was for sure a cute little tale that I finished all in on sitting.
It was engaging, charming and a solid start to a series.
I really enjoyed following Talia and company on her journey through this new world that was vivid and throughly realized.
I can’t wait to see where this series goes. Micheline knows how to craft a story.

Thanks to the folks at NetGalley for a copy of this book. My review is a honey reflection of my feelings towards this book.

It’s a fairy short, very sweet story. The magic system of this book (and I guess the ongoing series as the ending was left open) is super interesting and unique! The romance doesn’t take centre but I found to be cute to follow along!

This book was not what I expected at all, firstly because I believed it to be the first book in a series of interconnected standalones set in the same world, whereas it is the first installment in a proper fantasy series and therefore the ending of this novel is open and to know how the story is going to end I will need to read the sequel or sequels, but I probably could have expected it due to the fact that it has a little more than 200 pages. Nevertheless, I am not sure that I was intrigued enough to continue with the series, in fact, even though I didn't dislike my time reading this novel, I never felt attached to the story nor any of the characters and I often found myself wishing to finish it as soon as possible to move on to something else. I know this may sound harsh, but I want to be completely honest and, in my personal opinion, this book didn't have that spark that usually makes me eager to keep reading. Despite this, a three stars rating does not mean that the book has something wrong per se, but simply that it wasn't my cup of tea.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Whimsical Publishing for providing me this book in exchange for an honest review.*

Charting Stars is an amazingly whimsical fairytale of sweet romance. I was quickly immersed in the story, loving Talia more and more as I got to know her better. The plot was fast paced but not too fast paced as to not have character growth. The world building was beautiful and the magic system was really good. I can't wait to read another book like this one.

As soon as I saw the beautiful cover, I was drawn to this book. Once I read the description and saw that it had so many aspects that I absolutely love, I knew I needed to read it.

The book started off pretty slow for me, but it did get better later in the book. The plot and world were all really interesting. Talia and Jarret were both interesting, but I often felt the side characters were a bit more fun.

I did definitely expect more romance in the book. Even though it wasn’t exactly what I expected, it was a cute, cozy, and whimsical book. I will be looking forward to more books by this author!

I unfortunately was not able to read this book, and that was a mistake on my part. I was approved for it a few days before it archived and I just forgot to download it to read it. I am excited to go out and buy it, and read it for myself. <3

❀❀❀❀❀ 𝟱 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝟱 𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝘀!

''𝒀𝒐𝒖'𝒓𝒆 𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌.''
𝐈 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐃 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤!! 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐜𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 & 𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬! ⋆⭒˚.⋆

⋆⭒˚.⋆ Charting Stars follows Talia. She's an artist and loves everything related to the stars. She would consider herself fairly ordinary: diligent student, an only child to a single mother and owner of three cats. She's never really been interested in adventure, she likes her life stable as it is, but, one day, when she's swept into an unknown world called the Nine Realms where sentiment animals exist, monsters roam, and angelic beings sway fate, she has no other choice than to adjust to adventuring as she embarks on a quest to return to the life she has known. Along this quest, she meets foes and allies, new friends, and one particular someone who starts interesting her and making her heart flutter. With them all, alongside Talia's quest, the adventurers embark on another quest as well. A shift in the heavens of the Nine Realms has been seen. Something has changed, a prophecy unleashed. Together, the group will try to defeat the darkness coming their way. And maybe, just maybe. An ordinary girl thrown between worlds could be the key to saving it all. ⋆⭒˚.⋆

''𝐼'𝑣𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑐. 𝑁𝑜𝑡 𝑡𝘩𝑒 𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑟𝑘𝑙𝑦, 𝑎𝑏𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑑𝑎𝑏𝑟𝑎 𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑑, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑡𝘩𝑒 𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑟𝑦 𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑠𝑜𝑟𝑡; 𝑎 𝑏𝑟𝑢𝑠𝘩𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑘𝑒 𝑎𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 𝑎 𝑐𝑎𝑛𝑣𝑎𝑠, 𝑎 𝑡𝑤𝑖𝑛𝑘𝑙𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑎 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟, 𝑎 𝑑𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑤𝑖𝑡𝘩 𝑑𝑒𝑒𝑝 𝑝𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑒𝑡𝑠. 𝐼 𝑛𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝘩𝑎𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑔𝑜 𝑓𝑎𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑑 𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑐; 𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑟𝑖𝑔𝘩𝑡 𝘩𝑒𝑟𝑒.''

''𝑀𝑜𝑚 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑 𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑜𝑓𝑡𝑒𝑛 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡, 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑢𝑝 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑑𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚.''

⋆˚⟡˖ ࣪⋆⭒˚.⋆

I truly adored this book. It felt so cosy, whimsical, and wholesome and magical. It has fantasy, magic, self-discovery, cute animal sidekicks, a dash of friendships and romance and a strong and likeable female main character. What I liked the most about this book is its characters. They each have their different personalities, and I liked them all separately and together. We have Talia, who's always so kind and the mediator of the group. And a hopeless romantic. She felt just like an ordinary girl to relate to and I'm glad she stayed that way. She didn't become a great warrior, she just stayed Talia, brave and enough in her own way. She remained gentle and ordinary, just her and I loved that. Then we have Jarett. A protector. Both of the object he was protecting and of Talia. How he was protective of Talia was so sweet and his jealousy when someone was close with Talia was adorable. Ohh, then we have QB, the squirrel sidekick. He can kind of speak, loves food, and constantly teases Jarret, but is also very caring. For a squirrel, he has a lot of personality, always moving around chaotically with his tiny hands, sitting on Jarret's shoulder, and I loved that. Then there's also Maren, a blade woman angelic warrior not to be underestimated.

''𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑛'𝑠 𝑠𝑐𝑜𝑤𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑠𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑘. ''𝑀𝑦 𝑛𝑎𝑚𝑒 𝑖𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 '𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑓𝑢𝑙,' 𝑜𝑟 '𝑔𝑜𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑜𝑢𝑠', 𝑜𝑟 '𝑅𝑒𝑑 𝑅𝑜𝑠𝑒'. 𝐼𝑡'𝑠 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑛 𝐴𝑙 𝑇𝑢𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑠 𝑉𝑎𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑦𝑜𝑢'𝑑 𝑏𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑠𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡.''

There's Bash, a dashing Crown Prince who doesn't want to be tied to the crown, and Moses, a trader, who kind of felt like a rogue to me. I liked his addition the the group. He was pretty much straightforward about what he wanted (which was to win over Maren's heart) and he had great battle skills. And, there's also the white cat which Talia is protective of, but which isn't just a white cat, and, Tae! An adorable tree ent. So many different characters, and like I said earlier, I liked them all so much. I especially liked how all the characters were so caring for one another, that no one would leave another one behind. Their personalities both challenged and complimented each other. It was the perfect little group that felt like found family to me.

''𝐼 𝑙𝑜𝑜𝑘𝑒𝑑 𝑢𝑝 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑚𝑦 𝑠𝑘𝑒𝑡𝑐ℎ 𝑛𝑜𝑤, 𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑐ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑀𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐵𝑎𝑠ℎ 𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑟. 𝑇𝑎𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑀𝑜𝑠𝑒𝑠 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑜𝑑 𝑎𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑐ℎ. 𝐼𝑡 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒, 𝐼 𝑠𝑢𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒𝑑. 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑠 𝐼'𝑑 𝑚𝑎𝑑𝑒 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑤𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑚𝑦 ℎ𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑐𝑘𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠. 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑦'𝑑 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑑 𝑠𝑜 𝑚𝑢𝑐ℎ 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑚𝑒, 𝑛𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑦 𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑠 𝑎 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑢𝑙𝑡, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦'𝑑 𝑟𝑒𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑐𝑒𝑑 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑡 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑑𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑦 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑡.''

The story isn't heavily focused on the romance, which I liked, it was more focused on the feelings/status before that: friendship. But the little glimpses of romance were very cute. Talia's and Jarret's interactions and chemistry were adorable. It felt like they understood each other. And they were constantly swooning for one another!

''𝐻𝑒 𝑠𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑜𝑤𝑛 𝑗𝑜𝑘𝑒, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝐼 𝑜𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑎𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑢𝑟𝑔𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑏 ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑘𝑖𝑠𝑠 ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑑𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑠. 𝑈𝑔ℎ- 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑠 𝑤𝑎𝑠 ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑑.''

The Nine Realms felt alive, it was very much vividly described and it felt like a real fantasy world, a magical and cosy one. It felt like I was being immersed in the world, just like Talia was. There are earthen beings and celestial beings, I liked that concept.

''𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑢𝑝 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑡𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑐 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑤𝑖𝑒𝑙𝑑. 𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑦 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑛𝑜 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑎𝑠𝑠.''

The writing style is very engaging and the story flows very well and naturally. There was never a moment that I felt distracted or bored or anything else, I just wanted to continue reading. I also very much appreciate the author's story behind writing this book. And as the author also said that it's her goal to bring joy with this book, I can say, she fulfilled that goal, because I felt so much joy!! I was truly enchanted by reading this book.

⋆⭒˚.⋆ I think you'll like this if you like or would like a whimsy adventure that combines elements of fantasy, magic, and self-discovery, with a dash of romance and a strong heroine who embarks on a journey of a lifetime to save a mystical world and find her place in the stars. With a cosy romance, with allies and foes, found family, animal sidekicks, witches and angels, astrology, a fantasy world and realm traversing, and a lot of cute moments. ⋆⭒˚.⋆

''𝑇ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑠𝑎𝑦 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑔𝑔𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑚𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑢𝑠 𝑔𝑟𝑜𝑤-𝑤ℎ𝑜𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑦 𝑎𝑟𝑒.''

''𝐼 𝑘𝑖𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑑 𝑒𝑎𝑐ℎ 𝑜𝑓 ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑑𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑠.''

˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡˚ I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher, and author, for providing me with this arc in exchange for an honest review. ˚ ༘♡ ⋆｡

˗ˏˋ ★ ˎˊ˗

And aah, I can't wait to read the second book when it will be published!!

This book is the embodiment of cuteness.

The beginning is in the real world, during Christmas (don't worry, it's not a Christmas book), which is the coziest time of the year after all. Here we get a glimpse of the relationship between the main character and her mom. But soon, our girl Talia will be transported to another world, were she will have to face many things that make her uncomfortable, but she will learn many unexpected things, with a hint of romance.

My favorite part was when she said that she wants to learn how to fight with a sword and while many were against, a certain someone supported her and offered to teach. He's a sweetie.

This book was something I really needed and I don't find often enough, a book that keeps me hooked, while giving me a warm feeling.

Not even that long ago I promised myself to request fewer review copies. However, when I saw this cover and read this blurb I got a little too curious for my own well being. I therefore requested a copy and I was very happy when my request was granted. I have to admit that a Kindle copy not being available made it a little harder for me to read, but eventually I got the copy on my Kobo reader and could start reading.

I have to admit that the story wasn't as amazing as I had expected it to be. I think the main issue is that the romance is more a side plot than the main plot. Our heroine is mostly focussed on getting him and getting more familiar with the strange world she ended up in. Our hero has an important task and is mostly focussed on completing it. But, the book is most of all focussed on the world and showing all its fantastical wonders.

And I understand this world has a lot to offer, although the world building is the weakest part of the story. We meet a lot of creatures, we visit quite a few places and there are some fights and confrontations along the way, but somehow it doesn't feel like a whole. The foundation of the world feels a little wobbly. Maybe it's mostly because our heroine is overwhelmed and doesn't understand what's going on. Maybe it's just because the author focussed on scenes instead of the whole.

I also had some issues really connecting with the characters. Once more, since the focus is mostly on what is happening and what is going on, it feels there's less room for the characters to get some emotional depth. I don't really feel like I really know these characters and that means that it's also a little hard to truly care about them. I think it's also because of that that the romance didn't really work for me.

However, despite the fact that the book and I weren't a good match, if you love quests and adventures, I'm certain you'll love this book.

I. LOVED. THIS. The characterization, plot, detail, everything. Talia and Jarrett were actually the most adorable ever ("You taught me how to feel again." I died) and I loved that the book didn't just focus on their romance but also Talia's growth during their journey and her developing friendships with the rest of their crew.

I enjoyed the plot even if it may be a popular trope and it was very well planned out. The only "complaint" I have is that it did seem like a somewhat rushed ending compared to the meandering points of the first 75% of the book. It felt a little boring until I reached 60% and then it really picked up.

All in all I am super excited for book two and highly recommend this series!!

I have mixed feelings for the book and I can’t tell how much of that is because I was in a reading slump and that affected me reading this book.

The book has all the elements I love but it fell a little flat for me, I wanted a bit more of something that I couldn’t put my finger on. I really enjoyed the characters, love the animal side kicks and the cast of characters. I did want to know a bit more about the different world and the characters, I felt the book could have added a bit of depth, also what is happening with her mum and her world?

I know the book is a sequel but I feel like we needed a little bit more in this book. Overall I enjoyed the book, but it didn’t give me everything I wanted it to be. But as I said, that might be because I was in such a reading slump anyway. I think this might get a good re-read for me when in a different headspace.

Charting Stars is a fabulous adventure. We get to follow Talia is a happy where she is in life and not looking for an adventure but adventure found her. Her own painting seems to have sucked her into a new world where she is part of a unknown prophecy and is on a quest to try and get back home. She meet Jerrett a runner who turns into a budding slow romance, a Crown Prince who doesn't want to be tied to the crown, a warrior that has her own secrets, a trader and now a tree creature. Oh and a witch/cat and an adorable squirrel. All the making of a great fantasy adventure that I think many people will enjoy, just like I did. I'm ready for book two whenever you are Ryckman, bring it on!

The cover of this book and the beginning were adorable, but the writing style isn’t what I like. I tend to prefer more details where I feel like we’re skipping over some things here. DNF at 20%.

Loved this book, extremely enjoyable. The whole fantasy side of this book was fenomenal and I loved it a lot. The character we’re fun and interesting. I can wait to get more from this world

**Thank you to NetGalley and Publisher for the ARC of Charting Stars in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.**
☆This review was published on Goodreads 07/16/2024.☆

4.25⭐️

Firstly, this novel was such a cute, short, fantasy romance! The cover is adorable and the main characters, Talia and Jarrett, are so good together. This had many moments that were endearing and amusing, and I can't wait to read the next one!

This book might be for you if you like:
▪︎sentient animal companions
▪︎realm traversing
▪︎cute couples
▪︎found families
▪︎and magic!

Since book is already out I’m giving 5 stars. I have downloaded on KU and will read there and give an Amazon review when I’m done!

Lovely cozy fantasy read. I found the characters to be endearing and it was an easy read. Would recommend!!