Another book, another location, although this one is a bit more exotic than previous ones. The descriptions of the country of Sri Lanka and it's residents were very vivid but I am not tempted to visit. As usual with Isabelle Broom the characters are well rounded and the storyline believable if a bit predictable. That being said, this is very superior chick-lit and a great holiday read.

This is my first read by this author and thoroughly enjoyed. The story was very natural and the circumstances of travel were not unrealistic. It’s nice to read a book where the leads are not all over each other as soon as they meet and build up their relationship over time. I liked the character of Max and the hope that seemed to ooze from him with his stories and general personality. I would like to read Jamals story too

I would like to thank Penguin UK/Michael Joseph and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘One Thousand Stars And You’ written by Isabelle Broom in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
It’s Alice’s thirtieth birthday and together with her friends Steph and Maureen she’s going on a trip to Sri Lanka, away from her over-protective mother and boring but reliable boyfriend Richard. When they get to Sri Lanka they meet Max who was injured by a bomb in Afghanistan and struggles with a prosthetic leg, and his friend Kamal. Can the burgeoning relationship between Alice and Max persuade her to be brave and follow her dreams?
Isabelle Broom has written a beautiful novel with compassion and feeling. It’s unashamedly romantic and the deeper I got into the story the more involved I became with the characters who I found interesting and engaging. The descriptions of Sri Lanka were so vibrant that they made me want to be there experiencing the culture and traditions. I was so pleased with the way this delightful novel ended, it left me feeling warm and happy.

Absolutely loved this book. Having been to Sri Lanka, I was on the journey with them. The twists ad turns just added to it all, and the characters had you on their side right from the start.

Another wonderful novel by Isabelle Broom. Once again Isabelle brings the location to life as well as a good storyline. This book is set in Sri Lanka and both the serenity of some areas and the chaos of some are described wonderfully. Although the story is predictable it is still a joy to read and I am left wanting to read more of Isabelle's novels so I eagerly await her next one.

After reading A Year and a Day by Isabelle Broom I booked a long weekend break in Prague. This time the setting is Sri Lanka, a beautiful setting for a beautiful story. Immerse yourself in the local culture and colours as the scenery comes to life and the story unfolds. This is a very well written, well researched book about three friends who holiday in Sri Lanka to celebrate their 30th birthdays having all been born within three days of each other. On they first day they meet up with two other travellers Max and Jamal who change their travel plans so they can travel together.
This is a heartwarming story about friendship, finding yourself and living your life to the full and I highly recommend it!

Wonderfully romantic, @Isabelle_Broom's #OneThousandStarsandYou is a glorious journey of self discovery and a perfect #SummerReading treat. I LOVED it - vivid descriptions of the landscape, the sounds and the smells that really took me there, Max and his demons were handled with a sensitive touch, and it was wonderful to watch Alice bloom and grow. A triumph.

Review: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Isabelle Broom is my go-to girl for holiday romance. All her books have beautiful settings and intriguing stories. I'm totally hooked.

One thousand stars and you is a heart-warming story about love, life and loss. Alice has dated Richard for a long time. Their relationship and life have become predictable and safe. Alice had an accident when she was younger which left her with scars. Richard has always been dependable and a security net. He wants them to get married but for some reason, this idea doesn't fill Alice with the right kind of butterflies.

Alice and two of her friends are planning a trip for their 30th birthday. Sri Lanka is a beautiful place with adventure at the heart. It isn't a beach holiday it's mountains and site seeing. They meet two guys of similar age and the group make memories together.

Max is recovering from a loss in more than one way. When he meets Alice he knows she has a boyfriend but somehow she puts the spark back into his life. He wants to open her eyes to who she really is. A friendship forms and both find what they are looking for. Life isn't about settling. It's about living.

5 stars out of 5. This is a bittersweet story. It's happy but sad. To be true to yourself you need to let go. Probably my favorite Isabelle Broom, they just keep getting better and better! loved it.


*I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The one thing you can guarantee after reading an Isabelle Broom novel is that you’ll want to book a holiday – and this time you’ll be packing for Sri Lanka.
One Thousand Stars And You is a beautifully written tale of friendship and self-discovery with more than a touch of romance.
I was quickly swept into the story and was really quite surprised to find myself at the end – I even went and checked how many pages it was because I felt sure it couldn’t be over already, even though it clearly was.
It just flows perfectly and there’s never a good point to put it down – so I obviously didn’t!
I sigh happily when I think of Alice and Max but that’s because I’ve finished the book and know how things end (I’m pretty sure that’s not a spoiler).
At the start they are both pent up and unhappy – although I’m not sure Alice realises it yet - but Sri Lanka, with its endless beaches, exotic wildlife, rich culture and historic sites, quickly begins to work its magic.
Isabelle has a wonderful talent for making the location almost another character in her books.
I was lucky enough to travel there for work many moons ago but I know from her other novels that, even if you haven’t been, her colourful descriptions, seamlessly woven into the story, make you feel like you have.
Once again, Isabelle has crafted a wonderful novel with a cast who come alive on the page - and not just Alice and Max but their friends too.
While A Year And A Day will probably always be my favourite, this latest book is a very close second.

Alice isn't aware she needs to find herself until she goes on a trip to Sri Lanka with her two best friends for her and theirs thirtieth birthday. Alice learns to find her sense of adventure by exploring the landscape in a hike up Adam's peak and a sky dive. She has a connection with a fellow traveller Max which is beautifully written. There's tenderness, humour, hope and pain throughout the book. Max is an ex soldier who has suffered PTSD and he allows Alice to realise life is about adventures and taking risks. The characters are well written and the setting is captured perfectly so you can imagine you are in Sri Lanka. Isabelle Broom is my new favourite author. This book is heartfelt and full of understated romance. A must read. Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for letting me review this book.

Alice, Maureen and Steph are 3 friends who are soon to turn thirty so decide to go to Sri Lanka to celebrate. Not long after arriving they meet Jamal and Max. Alice as a child was adventurous until she had a serious accident and then became quiet and timid. Max had been in the army and was in a horrific incident which affected him greatly. Alice has a boyfriend Richard back home but she is seriously thinking that the relationship isn't going anywhere. Wonderful story set against the beautiful backdrop of Sri Lanka. The descriptions by the author took me right back to when I was there.

This author just gets better and better. I really loved a year and a day and it will always be my favourite but this will be a close second. I loved the characters, I loved the story line and I loved the setting. Fantastic read 😁

Another wonderful novel! Not just a gorgeous sweeping love story but a holiday inside a book. Broom takes your body, mind and breath away. I loved it.

This book was absolutely beautiful! I am kind of speechless.
The characters were great and the setting was really cool. I got really inspired while reading about their travelling through Sri Lanka. It also covered some really heavy themes like PTSD, and I feel like it was handled perfectly. I feel like I don't read enough books like this and I am SO HAPPY I got the opportunity to read this!
I definitely recommend this book to people who also liked books like Me Before You.

If I were to describe this story in one word it would be - Exhilarating.
A story whose soul is pure adventure.

Another beautifully written book from Isabelle Broom, once again the descriptions of the setting of the book,in this case Sri Lanka, are superb and make me want to visit all of the places the characters visit. On top of that the characters are so well drawn and real I felt I knew them by the end.

One Thousand Stars and You, Isabelle Broom

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: Women's fiction, Romance.

Usual moan, women's fiction – why? Why alienate half a potential readership?

So, my first read by this author and what a fabulous story it was. A solid romance, though more in the building stage, that first breathless does (s)he or doesn't (s)he....the gorgeous slow burn of attraction rather than full on sex fest. If you want that this isn't your book, but for me it was perfect, fitted the story so well.
I loved the characters, flawed and so very real I felt I was with them, experiencing what they did, the descriptions of the places, the food, the history were so vivid.

Alice, poor Alice. We can see just how she's subjugated herself to fit the mould that keeps everyone else happy, she's squashed Real Alice down until she's simply a pastiche of the girl she should be. That's so sad, happens so often though, when we want to please others and in this case Alice feels guilt for the accident when she was a child. It wasn't her fault though, she was a kid, and accidents do happen. Now her parents and her boyfriend want her safe, all day, every day, and she's reduced to sneaking out every now and then to dive off the highest board at the local pool, just to let some of the repression out. If they knew she knows they'd be horrified so it stays another guilty secret. I wanted to dislike Richard, but he wasn't dis-likable, just that he and Alice really weren't a compatible couple, what they wanted from life were different things.

Then on holiday Alice and her two friends meet a couple of men also out for fun and adventure, and the spark between Alice and Max is there right from day one.
It isn't a cheating book though, Alice is open about Richard but the attraction they both feel has them pulling together constantly and it does get noticed by their friends.

Max is an amputee, and as an amputee myself ( I have no left leg) it was a real treat to see Max's issues, and I so understood what he was feeling. The sores, the sweaty skin issues, the fitting of the prosthesis, how hard it is to actually walk, the stress it puts on the body, I've had all of those issues. Even the dreaded sex gets a mention – and why not? It is important, and we do wonder what its going to be like, how we'll manage.
I want to say a huge Hurrah to Isabelle for researching properly and making Max someone so real, too often disabled people in stories either are figures of sympathy – the Poor You, life is over type, or are portrayed in totally unrealistic ways. ( The horse whisperer – as a horse rider what happened there is not physically possible, I know, I tried ) You think its a matter of a missing leg, but in fact its so much more, the whole body becomes involved and for poor Max he had PTSD to contend with too.

It was a story that was a real treat, I adored the settings, the descriptions, the characters and the very real circumstances, From Alice' issues awith her parents, boyfriend and brother, to Max and his problems. I love a story where I feel events could have happened, where its fiction but could be true and this one was just perfect. One I will re-read.

 Stars: five, a real cracker of a story, so real, with great characters and settings.
ARC supplied for review purposes by Netgalley and Publishers

Made me want to visit Sri Lanka! Thank you for providing me with a copy of this book. It was a lovely story and I could identify with Alice and her relationship with Max was heartwarming. Great read and highly recommended.

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A really heartwarming book. I’d been struggling to read anything lately and this book with the tale of Alice, Steph and Maureen’s birthday trip to Sri Lanka where they meet fellow travellers Max and Jamal. The story unfolds and we learn more about the adventures and the childhood of Alice against the beautiful backdrop of Sri Lanka. What a great travel brochure!

5* I adored this book and savoured it whilst not wanting it to end. Another fine book from Isabelle Broom!

What a lovely story even if it did make me cry!

It’s going to make you do many things this book:
Crave to go to Sri Lanka almost immediately – the settings are evoked with style and there’s lots of atmospheric musings!
Spring clean your own life
Decide if your life is what you want and that its going where you want it to
How sometimes people come into your life at just the right time
How escaping a place can really help you see clearly

There’s a great character by the name of Max who has a disability he’s struggling with. Alice is struggling with her own problems – not physical but emotional and it’s this tug on the heart strings in the lives of both characters that really got me going!
Their stories intertwine of course and as they get to know each other, a story of hope, emotional turmoil and the chance to live again come to the fore.

And there is mention of a elephant dung notebook – I WANT ONE!
I think what Isabelle does really well is to weave the essence of a location into her books but really focus on the characters. Having a disabled man who talks about and shows how his injury affects his day to day is refreshing - he's braver than most with two legs and this shines through. We all have obstacles in life and it just goes to show it's how you tackle it that makes you conquer it or not.

Atmospheric, heart-warming and I really want to go to Sri Lanka now as it sounds wonderful!