🌌✨Charting Stars is a cozy & whimsical adventure that's perfect for reading under the stars on summer nights!

✨Loveable Talia Benson's journey across the universe sparkles with hope & will have you laughing out loud as you watch her learn to navigate a world without coffee, all while making friends in the most unusual places during dark, dire circumstances.

✨This story is cozy, heartwarming & comforting, I simply couldn't put it down..then didn't want it to end, which to me are the earmarks of being something very special! From angels to cats, thieves, princes & gypsies, this
fantasy felt like a hug wrapped in a book!

✨Talia is like the best friend you never knew you had, watching her adapt to her newfound misadventures & all the perils within was inspiring, watching as she dug deep to find the brave heart she never knew she had. The ways she went above & beyond to comfort & encourage everyone she met showed that being a braveheart doesn't always mean great acts of heroism but is often shown in small acts of servanthood rooted in love. She would make a lovely role model for younger girls, teaching that you never know whose life you might change when you let your light shine in this dark world.

✨Talia has the soul of an artist, much like her creator; author & artist Micheline Ryckman! This was an adaptation from her graphic novel which Micheline breathed new life into when she gave Talia's story room to grow as a full length novel. So it's no surprise that there are artistic impressions & references sprinkled throughout the story like bright dappled sunlight on a forest path.

✨I loved the diversity in Talia's travelling party, their personalities are so sparkling with wit & heartfelt emotions that they practically come to life on the pages as fate throws them together to save a star and the kingdoms that rely on it's strength to protect them.

✨It was a joy getting to experience Talia & Jarrett's swoony exchanges from a dual point of view as they charted their unexpected romance from different worlds to finding their home in each other's hearts...

✨Lastly I just have to add that Drew the white cat was the perfectly cozy sidekick you never knew you needed! Maybe a cat doesn't sound like your obvious choice while journeying through an unknown realm galaxies away from home, but then again nothing is as it seems in the Nine Realms & Drew is no exception!

I loved this book & give it
🌟✨🌟✨🌟

this book was an arc but all opinions are my own

A cozy sweet fantasy with romance and funny characters. Kind of like a rom-com dress in a beautiful fantasy-world with intriging adventure and sidekick animals.
A great read and a geat story!

Defently reading the next one :D




Also I will do a reveiw on IG the 12.july (on Fantasy-Friday)

I DNF'd this one about 10%

The cover for this one is so pretty, but for some reason the story didn't keep my attention. I just didn't feel invested and curious about what would happen next. I've never watched the Wizard of oz and I felt like I was missing something with how often the female character referred to it and I got the feel this story should have a bit of a similar vibe to that. I just didn't look forward to keep reading, so decided to set it aside for now.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Charting Stars by Micheline Ryckman is a dual-POV first person portal fantasy. Talia Benson is a Canadian college student who lives alone with her mother. On the night that her ex-boyfriend asks to talk, most likely to get back together, and a strange star appears in the sky, Talia is transported to a new world and meets Jarrett, a Runner who promises to help her find her way back home, but affections are quick to form between them.

There’s some metafiction elements particularly in relation to The Wizard of Oz. Talia and her mother are fans, with Tali’s mother owning a Wicked Witch coffee mug and Talia making references to the ruby slippers and the yellow brick road throughout. Other metafiction elements include how Talia considers her feelings for Jarrett in relation to Insta-love and other romance genre tropes.

Charting Stars is a throwback to the Middle Grade fantasies I remember when I was a kid. Animal companions, a portal, found family, and a sense of wonder as Talia explores the new world she’s found herself in. Jarrett has a squirrel companion called QB that he can communicate with while Talia meets Drew, a seemingly ordinary cat that takes a liking to her. The sense of wonder is mostly extended to the different species in the world, from tree people to angel-like beings to witches.

Talia and Jarrett’s relationship is more on the romantic side rather than the sensual side. They are physically attracted to each other, but the tension is more emotional with less emphasis on body parts. Though both Jarrett and Talia accept their attraction very early on, their romance is more of a slowburn because Talia has to return to her world at some point.

I would recommend this to fans of portal fantasy, readers looking for a Middle Grade-ish fantasy with college-age main characters, and those looking for a portal fantasy that has more cozy vibes and less spice.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange of an honest review

Charting Stars is a sweet adventure fantasy book. The storyline is interesting and the characters are so easy to love. Talia, Jarret and the group they travelled with were so enjoyable! The story feels wholesome and the dual POV was a perfect addition to it. A cozy fantasy book that I highly recommend!

(Will add a link to my Goodreads review soon)

I hadn’t heard of this book prior to requesting but it was so wonderful! It was such a cozy yet adventurous book and the main characters were so likeable - plus who doesn’t love a he falls first. I love the duel POV from Talia and Jarrett as you really get to know both sides. Great world building as well. I will be recommending this to everyone and adding to our library!

Dieses Buch hat mich tief berührt. Die herzerwärmende und zauberhafte Atmosphäre sowie die ausgezeichnete Charakterentwicklung haben mich von Anfang an in ihren Bann gezogen. Jeder einzelne Charakter ist so lebendig und authentisch beschrieben, dass ich mich sofort mit ihnen verbunden fühlte.

Die Geschichte war einfach nur entzückend.

I loved the characters in this book! The friendship and the slow burn love. My favorite trope he falls first is so good in this book. Absolutely cozy fantasy/romantasy with great setting and worldbuildung and even better dialogues between the characters.

This book was so much fun! I enjoyed this wonderful adventure and could not put it down.

The story alternates between Talia and Jarrett's POVs. The plot developed very organically, and it realistically captured how Talia didn't know anything about the world she suddenly found herself in. The characters are fantastically written and they interact so well together. This will definitely be a book I pick up time and time again.

this was a super cute book! a quick and engaging read following talia who wakes up unexpectedly in a fantasy world and gets swept away on a quest to get back home. during this quest she meets a whole cast of different characters and while they aren’t there yet, they’re going to be a pretty great found family - i just know it.

i had lots of fun with this, i liked all the different personalities in the group and in particular the main two; talia was sweet and jarrett was dorky (in a good way). and while technically i guess it is high-stakes, they don’t feel that high on account of this being a cosy fantasy. which i’m a fan of.

i’m really excited to keep reading this series as it comes out and actually very sad i can’t continue immediately.

This was a sweet and cozy(ish) fantasy story about a girl named Talia, beginning at home in Canada where the extent of magic in her life is skirts with pockets. That all changes and somehow she ends up in another realm on an epic journey through a forest full of magical creatures. She starts out lost and alone but survives thanks to the kindness of many friends she meets along the way. Her internal monologue makes her lovable and easy to root for - she lacks confidence but becomes brave, she wants to be loved but would give that up to avoid hurting others, she’s inexperienced but her choices are mature.

Overall I enjoyed and recommend this story. I will say I was craving some more closure at the end, so I very much look forward to book 2 so I can see what happens!

Thank you to Whimsical Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

I just wish you got more world building. Like having the politics and why they run the nine realms like they do, and how. I wish you understood characters/races more. For example, Tae talking about rebelling cause of how they treat other races an how it got to be so. I just wanted more explanation for everything. It would've been better if it was longer than 217 pages. It all felt very surface level.

I found Charting Stars to feel like stepping into a cozy video game, with a delightful ensamble of characters and main characters who were fun to follow and easy to root for. The adventure that you take while reading this book, allow the reader to relax and travel to fun new world. I would recommend this to anyone looking for an easy read, who loves cozy things or something to get them out of a reading rut. Micheline Ryckman really did a great job here, and I look forward to reading more their works in the future.

Such a lovely read, I just adored this book and these characters so much! I am so glad I was able to read this book.

Charting Stars is a cozy fantasy where the female mc is transported from Canada to this strange magical world. What follows is her journey to find her way home, all while meeting people and creatures along the way. The book has a first person dual perspective of the female and male main characters. I’m not a fan of multiple pov’s when it’s in first person, since it’s easy to get confused who is who unless the characters have strong characteristics. The characters in this didn’t. There were also so many characters and plot points to keep track of, and despite being a fast paced book it felt slow. There’s some good anxiety rep in the fmc and a sweet budding romance, if you are a fan of insta-love you will love it. Also some wonderful animal sidekicks, which always gets bonus points from me.

Pleasant yet thrilling, this book left me eager for more. The characters were charming and distinct, with vivid personalities. The story is SO interesting, would be on the lookout for more!

I adored this book. It is just so wholesome and whimsical, and every character - and I mean every single one - is so well written! I quickly became obsessed with all of the characters.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free eARC in exchange for an honest review!
Rating: 3.75/5

A sweet, lighthearted read, Charting Stars has potential but unfortunately doesn't deliver what's promised in the blurb. While it's a fast paced and short read (perhaps at its detriment considering the plot felt incomplete), it felt like it dragged at times and I had trouble staying interested. I will say that the majority of the characters had interesting personalities that meshed together well, I just wish they had more depth to them. This didn't really feel like a cozy fantasy either - just a short portal fantasy with low stakes. I'd maybe be interested in reading a sequel, if the plot and characters were better developed.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book in advance! I will state upfront that I DNF this book at around 10%.

The book is EXCELLENTLY written, the pace is fantastic, and the main character is pretty likable.
I realized that I don’t think I’m really into the YA category as much as I used to be.

The world building is fantastic & the author did really well.

If you love cats & YA fantasy novels (heavy on the cat liking. Seriously. If you don’t like cats, I wouldn’t pick this up. They are referenced numerous times in the first 2 chapters) then I would check it out!

Again, the book seems wonderful - just not quite my thing at this point.

Title: Charting Stars
Author: Micheline Ryckman
Stars: ✨✨✨/5
Genre: YA & Fantasy

Synopsis: Talia, a stargazing Canadian college student, gets ripped from her world and lands in a whirlwind of talking animals, mythical creatures, and strange prophecies. Thrust into the heart of an ancient conflict (she gives background in the book), Talia discovers she's not just a visitor – she might be the key to stopping a war that threatens the Nine Realms.

But Talia's not alone. A messenger named Jarrett is drawn into her quest, along with a mischievous magic cat, a sassy squirrel, a warrior princess, a prince, and an outspoken outcast. Together, they must navigate treacherous landscapes and forge unlikely alliances to help bring peace to the land.

The Good:
The creatures in the story were fantastical, and the world itself was well-described. The author's descriptions were clear, and the different characters had distinct personalities. The animal companions, especially the squirrel and cat, provided moments of amusement. The other characters, including Jarrett and Tarkan, were also well-developed. I liked how she brought in new elements that I hadnt read about in other fantasy novels (and I read a lot of fantasy).


The Meh:
While the fantastical elements were engaging, I wanted to hear more of the Nine Realms. The story packed a lot of information into a small number of pages, leaving some questions unanswered. This created a sense of rushed pacing towards the end. Furthermore, we never even got to the final destination, which was anticlimactic. Developing the characters' backstories, how they arrived in this world, and their motivations could have significantly enriched the narrative. Providing more details about the world-building would have brought the story to a whole new level.

Furthermore, this read for younger readers (no swearing, the girl says things like dang it etc.) but there are a lot of adult topics such as sexual slavery, forced marriage, getting assaulted, nudity, etc. So, it left me a little confused as to what the audience is supposed to be.

All in all, this was a whimsical, sit by the campfire, kind of read and I give it three stars. I will definitely be reading the next book and hoping that it answers some of my questions.