Set the Stars Alight
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Average rating4
Lucy Claremont's family treasured the magic of the past, and her childhood fascination with stories of the high seas led her to become a marine archaeologist. But when tragedy strikes, it's Dashel, an American forensic astronomer, and his knowledge of the stars that may help her unearth the truth behind the puzzle she's discovered in her family home. Two hundred years earlier, the seeds of love are sown between a boy and a girl who spend their days playing in a secret sea cave, while the privileged young son of the estate looks on, wishing to join. As the children grow and war leads to unthinkable heartbreak, a story of love, betrayal, sacrifice, and redemption unfolds, held secret by the passage of time. As Lucy and Dash journey to a mysterious old estate on the East Sussex coast, their search leads them to a community of souls and a long-hidden tale that may hold the answers--and the healing--they so desperately seek.
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An atmospheric and absorbing story of two sets of characters and the threads that tie their stories together.
I tried several times to get into the story and each time the 2020 timeline totally threw me off because of the book being written beforehand and completely being unaware of the whole covid mess. England with meetings and people hopping from town to town to visit each other was just a bit much. Pet peeve anyway, because authors setting stories gently in the future can't drop little realistic hints about the current times, and the story feels more generic than realistic. I had to keep pretending it was 2019 to get through the story. This continual “check the facts at the door” every time we flipped back to modern day kept snapping me out of the story and is part of the reason I didn't add a fifth star.
I love the cover...it's the sort of cover you buy a book for, and it's even prettier in person.
I identified most with Lucy and Dash. The historic timeline was occasionally vivid but incomplete, and having to infer certain things happened was a bit of a letdown at the end.
The writing style is beautiful and carries much of Dykes's trademark poetic touch in the prose. I'm eager to read her next book and already preordered a copy at the bookstore.
Thanks to the publisher for a free reading copy. A favorable review was not required.
