A Sky Full of Stars by Dani Atkins | Book Review | Paperback Giveaway | #ASkyFullOfStars

He’d have done everything differently if he’d known she’d be gone so soon…

When Lisa married Alex, she gave his life meaning. She was a professional astronomer: a stargazer. And when she gazed at Alex, she saw that behind his tough exterior was a man she could love.

Alex, Lisa and their young son Connor made a happy little universe. But when Lisa dies suddenly, their universe is destroyed. Alex is shattered by loss, and overwhelmed by the difficulties of being a single father to a six-year-old boy.

Then Alex meets four strangers. Two men and two women, who never met Lisa, but whose lives changed profoundly because she died. As Alex hears their stories, he begins to realise the world may not be as cruel and senseless as it seems. Perhaps, after all, the future is written in the stars…

Publisher: Head of Zeus
Format: Ebook, Audio, Paperback (Feb / 5 August 2021)
Pages: 448
Source: Purchased copy

MY THOUGHTS

My thanks to Head of Zeus for the tour invitation to celebrate the paperback publication of A Sky Full of Stars and my apologies for being a day late with this review. I’m quite late to Dani’s books but after thoroughly enjoying previous ones, reviewed here Our Song and A Million Dreams, this was one that I didn’t want to miss. I also have a giveaway for a new paperback copy for one UK winner – entry details are below via Rafflecopter.

Told from the dual perspectives of Alex and Molly, A Sky Full of Stars is a heartbreaking story of a family ripped to pieces when the mother, Lisa, an astronomer, suddenly dies. Heartbroken husband Alex is left a single father to young son Connor, who can’t accept that his mother has gone forever and still believes that she is coming back for him. Lisa made him a promise that sadly she was never able to keep.

Molly is one of four people who come into Alex and Connor’s lives following Lisa’s death and each one has an impact on Alex and Connor and indeed, on each other. Four strangers who in normal circumstances wouldn’t have met have their lives changed and they must each learn to find a new way forward.

It is such a difficult and sad situation and against advice, Alex gets rather more involved than perhaps is wise. He was struggling himself and at a loss to know what to do to help Connor. His brother Todd and his wife did their best to help but Connor was inconsolable and however improbable it may be, Alex was drawn to these four people feeling that there was a connection to Lisa.

Any book by Dani Atkins is an emotional read and this was no exception. I couldn’t help but feel invested in these characters and I liked all of them, especially Molly, a primary school teacher. She was a fabulous character – engaging and funny. Aside from the emotional aspect, there are moments of drama – Atkins certainly puts her readers through the wringer!

A Sky Full of Stars will tug at the heartstrings. It is written with warmth and sensitivity, dealing with grief and showing how friendships can be forged in the most challenging of circumstances. The characters are wonderfully drawn and feel authentic. I loved the relationship between Alex and his brother Todd, there was real brotherly love although Todd wasn’t afraid to dish out some home truths to Alex. It wasn’t all sadness and there were plenty of humorous moments too which is why I love this author’s books – there is always light and shade.

I enjoyed this so much. Unusually I didn’t cry (I frequently do with Dani’s books!) and the story didn’t pan out the way I expected however I was sad to leave these characters behind at the end.

If my review has tempted you at all, the ebook is available from Amazon UK for 99p or you can enter my giveaway below to win a paperback copy 😊

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dani Atkins is an award-winning novelist. Her 2013 debut FRACTURED (published as THEN AND ALWAYS in North America) has been translated into seventeen languages and has sold more than half a million copies since first publication in the UK.

Dani is the author of five other bestselling novels (THE STORY OF US, OUR SONG, THIS LOVE, WHILE I WAS SLEEPING and A MILLION A DREAMS) and PERFECT STRANGERS, a standalone eBook novella. In 2018, THIS LOVE won the Romantic Novel of the Year Award at the RNA awards in London.

Dani lives in a small village in Hertfordshire with her husband, one Siamese cat and a very soppy Border Collie.

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** GIVEAWAY **

I was fortunate to be sent a new paperback copy to review by the publisher but being a numpty, I went on holiday and forgot to pack the book with the others so I bought my own ebook version to read for the tour. I therefore have an unread finished copy to give away – for postage costs, entry is restricted to UK only, sorry.

The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then I reserve the right to select an alternative winner. Open to entrants aged 18 or over in the UK.

Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties. After I have despatched the prize and receipt has been confirmed I will delete the data I hold. My Reading Corner is not responsible for delivery of the prize in the postal system. Good luck to anyone who enters the comp and I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did.