This book follows the 2 characters Elsie and Augustus. Elsie is an aspiring singer/songwriter and Augustus is a trauma specialist. One fateful evening an unrecognisable Jane Doe is bought into the ER, only to turn out to be someone who Augustus knows.

I found this story quite an easy and quick read and the topics it discussed were very thought provoking. However, the last half an hour of the book seemed very rushed and came out of nowhere. The ending in particularly threw me off as it seemed to just end all of a sudden and I was surprised when there was not another chapter.

I would recommend this book, I thought it was cute and sweet and you really fall for the characters.

There are ups and downs in this book as every romance has but I loved the way the suspense was maintained throughout the book. Why and how things happened, were revealed slowly, keeping the reader hooked to the book.

I definitely recommend this book if you are looking for something different than a cheesy romance.

Dr. Augustus Owens is the trauma specialist working that pivotal night when a nearly unrecognizable woman is brought into the ER. As he works tirelessly to save her life, he notices a familiar jagged scar on the left side of her neck. He is overwhelmed by the gut-wrenching realization that the woman's life that balances in his hands is none other than his one and only lost love, Elsie McCormick.

When Stars Align is a riveting, heartwarming tale that explores love and destiny. E.K. McCoy ponders what role does destiny play in love? How much control do we really have in matters of the heart? Are second chances possible?

Overall 4 stars

Thanks to Netgalley for a copy of this book for an honest review.

If I could give more than 5 stars to this book, I would. I think this is my favourite book for this year. Loved Elsie so much and my heart broke for her. Auggie was so sweet with her (until he wasn't) and I kept asking him what he was doing!! I loved his explanation but Olive made me so mad. I didn't like the way the 2 main people in her life kept making such appalling decisions for her. I originally thought an epilogue might be a better way to finish but, having given it some thought, I think this ends perfectly. Highly highly recommend!

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.

When Stars Align
by E.K. McCoy
Pub Date: 04 Oct 2022

This story had a lot of potential, a cute romance with strong connection between Auggie and Elsie. The book is divided with flashback segments showing the past romance and then mixed with the current day where you need to figure out why the two are no longer together. Their "reunion" is due to Elsie ending up in the hospital with Auggie being her doctor. Yes, some of the plot was far-fetched and kind of like a Hallmark movie. I would have been okay with all of that...what I didn't enjoy was the weak reason Auggie left Elsie and the way he went about it. The action just didn't fit the character, it was cruel and definitely not something to do with your "true love..." That kind of put a damper on my feelings of the book. Everything comes full circle, but it was a little too late for me. I think Auggie needed to make more amends and Elsie should have made him work a little more to be in her good graces. An epilogue would have been nice, too.

Complimentary copy provided by the publisher and NetGalley for my honest opinion. This was a sweet romance that puts you in all the feels. This could be a young adult book.

When Dr. Augustus Owens, a trauma specialist, sees the patient in front of him, he recognises his one and only love, Elsie McCormick, who has been seriously injured in a horrific car accident.
This book follows Elsie and Auggie who after dating in college, lose contact, but reconnect after the accident. Elsie lacks confidence whilst Auggie is abounding in confidence. Their relationship brings out the best in the other, but time and maturity, play a part in their changing relationship. A sweet, engaging story that will capture the reader’s attention and hold it.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

2.5 stars (rounded up).

"When Stars Align" by E.K. McCoy is a Hallmark Channel lover's dream. It's sweet and clean. It involves country music, destiny, and a near-death accident. It's about falling hard and fast in love and giving second chances. It's competently written, save for its overuse of exclamation points.

My problem with this book is that the first 70% is top-heavy and contains most of the descriptive-but-repetitive parts of the story and romance. It moves super slowly as the relationship between Elsie and Auggie unfolds. Then, all of a sudden, there is an abrupt tonal shift, and the last 30% of the book moves lightning-fast, giving readers minimal time to collect their thoughts and rationale about what transpired between the two of them. There is no epilogue, and for the first time ever, I found myself wanting, nay, NEEDING one. The book just ends: BAM! Then, nothing. It's over. I hated that! The author is also suuuper obsessed with Elsie's 'teeny weeny pint-sized tiny body,' and that made me uncomfortable. I get describing your characters, but she seems to go overboard with driving in how small and frail she is. It gave me 'the ick.' We don't get to know any of the secondary characters too well apart from a surface-level understanding of how they came to be/why they choose to stay in Elsie's/Auggie's life. Luckily, it's a quick read, but don't go in expecting some grand love story that will stand the test of time. You're not going to get that here.

Thank you to NetGalley, E.K. McCoy, and Atmosphere Press for providing me with an ARC copy of this book! All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for my review.

When Stars Align by E.K. McCoy.
Dr. Augustus Owens is the trauma specialist working that pivotal night when a nearly unrecognizable woman is brought into the ER. As he works tirelessly to save her life, he notices a familiar jagged scar on the left side of her neck. He is overwhelmed by the gut-wrenching realization that the woman's life that balances in his hands is none other than his one and only lost love, Elsie McCormick.
A really enjoyable read. Great story and characters. 4*.

It was a rough start reading this book, for two reasons.
First, it was of technical nature, the ark I received had a lot of nonedited text (separations of words mostly) so it was a bit annoying and it was not letting me focus on the story.
The other one was the skipping of the POV, it was first person to third person, and there are two timelines of the story, it was a bit too much...

I didn't care much about the characters, and the two previous reasons just didn't do well for me.

Sound like such a sweet story and while it was, it didn't feel as full as I would have liked. It was a soft and lovely read but not my favorite.

You can say everything happens for a reason, or their love was meant to be, but the journey Elsie and Auggie take to get there is not easy. Your heart and emotions will take a beating, but this is a love story. The words drew me in, the story held my attention, and the characters stole my heart.

Thank you to NetGalley, and Atmosphere Press for the advanced copy; this is my voluntary review.

E.K. McCoy is a new-to-me author, and the Netgalley blurb about When Stars Align sounded interesting and so I requested and was granted an advance reader copy of this novel, which starts with the heroine, Elsie, getting hit by a car and as a result, near death, and mentally reviewing her life and experiences while lying out in the road on a dark, cold and rainy night. When she's finally spotted, she's taken by ambulance to the nearest emergency room. What was unexpected was that the trauma doctor, Augustus Owens, recognized her, even in her battered, broken, and bruised state, and did more than anyone else would have to save her life. So far so good, but that urgency and drama didn't last, which is the reason for my giving this novel a 3-star rating.

The novel then goes back in time 6 years, to when Elsie allows her lifelong best friend and roommate, Marie, to talk her into attending a frat party. Both are in their second year of college, and Elsie is majoring in music. It's there that medical intern, Augustus (Auggie) Owens spot her--she sitting alone on the back porch steps of the fat party, and something about her draws him in, so that he wanders next door, starts a conversation, and is attracted to her. From this point on, we have a slowly moving, slowly building relationship with occasional bounces back and forth in time. Elsie wants a career as a country singer/songwriter, and Auggie is working overtime during his second year of internship at the local hospital. This slow-build takes up 75% of this novel--much of it repetitive as the two fall in love.

After that, there's a bizarre series of events that lead to the shocking end of that relationship, and you couldn't possibly find a more angst-filled read than this one, most of the focus on Elsie. While I won't go into exactly what happens here since I don't do spoilers, I will state that there seems to be an HEA ending, but that's just a guess, because if ever a novel cried out for an epilogue, it's this one, because the ending was so abrupt and felt so unsatisfying that it left this reader wondering how these two former lovers would manage to get past their issues. It worked somewhat as a love and loss novel, but because it so needed an epilogue, I can't really call it a second chance at love story.

All in all, it wasn't a bad read, but as someone who has edited romance novels in the past, my blue pencil and I would have had a field day with this novel.

As stated at the outset, I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this novel. The opinions stated are my own.

3.25 out of 5 stars. This book was such a cute and cheesy second chance romance read. It gives off Hallmark movie vibes to me in many ways. What drew me to the book was that it was about a girl who loves all things music and pursues that as a career and a guy who is a doctor—being a huge music fan and listening to music whenever I can and a huge lover of Grey’s Anatomy I was so excited to read this book, all that and a sweet romance? Sign me up! Unfortunately though for me the book fell flat at some parts…it was a bit too corny/cheesy for me, their banter was cute but also cringy at times and an overuse of exclamation points drove me crazy (seems petty to say but true) and felt a bit too good to be true/believable at times when it came to their relationship. It’s a good story overall about romance, love/destiny/gravitational pull/“love at first sight”, second chances, loss, fate, life altering events, pain/suffering, near death experience, grief, regrets etc. I felt like some stuff could be cut. Sometimes it felt boring and hard to get into and took me way too long to read. I did like the back and forth from present to past to get their backstory and how things fell apart and how they found their way back to each other. I found the female main character really sweet and likeable/relatable and pretty complex with all she’s been through and to still be such a kindhearted, happy soul and the male main character was too good to be true, any girls dream guy with how sweet he was on her and how he loved her. Overall I liked it a lot I just didn’t love it but think the story will stick with me for a bit, it was a touching story all around. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC for an honest review.

Quick Summary: A love that was meant to be romance

My Review: My first thought after reading When Stars Align by E.K. MC Coy was that this book deserves a slow hand clap of applause. It was such a touching love story. The emotional arc was so moving. I was blown away by Auggie and Elsie.

What I Loved:
- I loved how flashbacks were weaved into Elsie's story. Particularly, I enjoyed reading about the times when her dad helped her to make a memory.

- I loved the special bond she shared with Marie. I'm glad she had her best friend in her life, so she wouldn't have to face her hardships alone.

- I loved how Auggie and Elsie were such a sweet opposites attract couple. Despite those differences, they fit together incredibly well.

- I loved the flowers and the letters, especially the final declaration.

- I loved that forgiveness and reconciliation were part of this couple's story.

My Final Say: True love can be hard to come by, but when it has been found, it's certainly worth fighting for.

* This book did have quite a few errors in it. It detracted from the reading experience.

Rating: 4/5
Recommend: Yes
Audience: NA/A
Noteworthy: The new cover featured on NetGalley is more fitting than the one associated with Goodreads. The NetGalley version is one of the things that appealed to me as I was perusing books.

Thanks for providing access to this title in exchange for an honest review.

You can't avoid fate. Every romance happens for a reason, and it is just meant to be no matter what crazy circumstances happen.

This book was heartbreaking in many parts, but I loved the character connections. It starts off in present day with a terrible accidentally that happens to Elsie and Auggie see her in his ER. Then we get their past connection and romance. I liked the occasional break to present day when the story goes into the flashback portion.

I found myself rooting for Auggie and Elsie's romance in the past and hopes of a second try in the future. The author does a great job at making the characters feel genuine.

The stars truly aligned to bring back that unexpected connection. Enjoyable and touching!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book for my honest review.

The big twist at the end of this book really hung me up. Th rest of it was pretty good. They started off with an adorable romance both deserving a great future but the way he left was so aggravating. I realize it probably does happen but it seemed just super absurd and made me not like the book nearly as much.

🌀Synopsis
Elsie is a self conscious college student who is determined to chase her dreams. One night at a party she meets Auggie, a doctor who changes her world.

They fall into an intense romance and both of them give endless support to each other. They both have troubled pasts and they’re able to help each other through some lingering grief.

When they near the end of the school year they start to plan their future - together - in Nashville. That is, until Elsie’s one remaining family member gives Auggie advice and he up and leaves Elsie without a trace.

Years later, Elsie is hit by a car and it’s up to Auggie to save her life. When he knows she’s going to make it he’s determined into explain everything that happened all those years ago.

When Stars Align by E.K. McCoy

Dr Auggie Owen is the trauma specialist called in to save an unrecognisable unknown woman. Whilst working on her he spots a jagged scar in her neck . He knows this woman! She is his lost love. The story follows their journey past and present.

Although it was a beautiful story I felt because of how it was split past/present it was a bit to disfunctional and not easy to follow.

Also the end could have been slightly more expanded on.

Ich konnte das Buch leider nicht lesen, da es sich um eine verschlüsselte epub datei handelt. Ich konnte es zwar herunterladen, aber mehr ist auch nicht geschehen.
sehr enttäuschend, habe mich nämlich echt auf dieses Buch gefreut.

I love that this book talked about the struggles with being a doctor and finding time for family as well as struggling with self image and self confidence. Both main characters were strong in their own ways, as was Marie, the FMC’s best friend. The author did a wonderful job of creating strong male and female characters that I quickly got attached to. Happy reading!