Stars Descend
Kara Jaynes
Kindle edition | March 2019
Fantasy Fiction, Urban Fantasy, YA Fiction, Romance
The Elves have come down from the sky in their ships, their countenances full of light and their bodies, power. But they rule over us humans with iron fists, and without mercy.
Vampires stalk the streets, lurking in shadows and the cover of darkness. Their lust for blood is never sated, and the nights are filled with the screams of their victims.
I’m just a street rat, a trash picker. I didn’t expect him to choose me. The Prince of Elves could have anyone, so why me?
Even as my heart sings at the elf’s close proximity, I still love the boy who left me, disappearing into the city’s corrupt underworld. I don’t even know if he’s still alive.
Stars reign. Rebellion brews. And with my already uncertain future disintegrating into chaos, I don’t know who to turn to, or who to trust.
Stars Descend is book 1 of a series, and is not a standalone novel.
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WARNING: Possible Spoilers!
The Basics
Urban fantasy. CLEAN urban fantasy. <---Ya don't normally read that combo of words too often. But this book covers it! Such a wild ride! I honestly had no idea what to expect when I happened to pick it up on Amazon for free months ago. But I enjoyed it so much, I had to purchase the two sequels (if that tells you anything). ;D
Not knowing what to expect, I certainly didn't expect planetary sci-fi to work it's way into an urban fantasy. SPACE ELVES, guys. SPACE ELVESSSSS. This was suuuuuch an intriguing premise, and when we follow a character who makes a jump through the vastness of space to his home planet---I found it harder & harder to put the book down. Also, vampires. Not that big on those things, but I thought it was rather well done in this story, and certainly added another element to the plot.
Stella is your typical strong-minded teen (18, I think) charged with taking care of her mentally-challenged younger brother, & finding some way to provide their next meal. The prince of the Elves is a young man with the literal weight of a world on his shoulders, all while trying to succeed in his mission & hopefully make his father proud of him. Throw the two of them together with a dying world, blood-sucking vampires, & betrayal of the highest order with ALLL the plot twists, and we get THIS BOOK.
Violence
[this could be a SPOILER...] In an experiment gone wrong (with magic thrown into the mix), humans are turned into vampires. One of the said vampires, with an overwhelming lust for blood, turns onto one of the women & kills her by sinking his teeth into her neck & drinking her dry. *gags*
At some point, elves arrive into a scene covered in blood & gore (after hunting vampires who escaped).
To kill a vampire, an elf throws it over his shoulder in combat & breaks its neck, but when it doesn't die he thrusts his hand into its chest & crushes the heart. O_O Kinda gory, folks...
Sometime later, a vampire beheads at least three men.
Spiritual Content
Someone asks in regards to the elves, "Are they gods?" The reply, "Only if gods can be killed."
The elven race is immortal & naturally wields magic.
A Bible is on someone's bookshelf. They speak of human goodness, and eventually the conversation turns to talking about Christ.
Language // Alcohol & Drugs
An elvish curse word, "fyit" is used often, though we're not given the definition as to what it actually means. Other words like "shoot," "stars," and "cripes" are also in use. Other than that (and those don't really count as profanity, in my opinion), it's clean!
Addicts are referred to as "dream vagrants" thanks to the use of a foreign drug that comes in the form of a pale, red powder that brings euphoria & sweet oblivion. Alleyways are the home to many dream vagrants, and we seem used needles at some point.
A boy in his early-to-mid teens is given some kind of medicine to help with his seizures & mental meltdowns---it's implied that those are the result of trauma from years ago. There's a reference to a wasting disease that killed thousands (?) a long time ago.
Romantic Content
In her desperation to sell a couple items she acquired through dumpster diving, Stella gives an older man the wrong impression when she goes to his shop after midnight. With that in mind, the man admits her into his shop, but it's obvious Stella isn't selling what he thinks she is.
[SPOILER] Something the elves refer to as the Kenelky, sparks unexpectedly between Stella & the elven prince. They are almost uncontrollably drawn to each other by a kind of magical bond. At the moment it happens, the prince brings her to his bedchambers & they exchange seemingly out-of-the-blue passionate kisses & embraces until Stella comes to her senses wondering WHAT IN THE WORLD came over her... Nothing happens, y'all! I promise. :] But it definitely has some steamy moments. There's an obvious attraction between these two. It seems, however, that Stella's heart belongs to someone else.
And here we have the long, overused trope of the love triangle. I was rather disappointed in this fact, but I do believe it is handled extremely well. Stella obviously had a life & a love interest before the arrival of the elves, and when said love interest disappears from her life because (SPOILERS), well, she tries to discern whether she still loves him or not.
At some point, we see a shirtless man & his ripped abs, lean muscles, etc. etc.
Conclusion
All told, I REALLY enjoyed this book. And other than a good bit of graphic violence, this story is squeaky clean. That, unfortunately, is SOOOO hard to find in the Urban Fantasy genre. There's no need to say that a majority of those books cuss like sailors & worse (but apparently I said it anyway). Finding this gem, and it being a freebie from Amazon of all things! was such a refreshing adventure. I highly recommend this book! Be aware, however, that it is the first in a series, and there may or may not be a cliffhanger at the end. *le gasp!*
FIVE out of FIVE stars
Note: a teeny bit of steamy romance & gory violence
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Ages: 16+
Clean urban fantasy??? With SPACE ELVES?!?! Um excuse me but I MUST READ THIS. Man, I've been so wanting to find some clean urban fantasy. I always say I don't like it, but I think I COULD if it was actually, ya know, not GROSS. This sounds absolutely FABULOUS.
ReplyDeleteGirl, you're gonna make my TBR crush me. :P But, seriously, I ADORE hearing about all these gems you find! :D
YESSSSSSS!!! I do so hope you enjoy this one whenever that may be. I THINK it's one you'd like---even if only for the space elves. ;D Cuz ELDARENNNNNNNN *swoons* I thought the same! But this one certainly surprised me.
DeleteGAHHHHH. I KNOW---seriously. But haha! right back atcha, cuz you always tend to do the same to my TBR xDDD