Friends, I have come to the conclusion that when I want a light, fun young adult book with paranormal themes I should just pick up something written by Kiersten White. I know quite a few of my blogging friends aren’t gaga over her books and that is cool. For me, personally, I like what I have read so far. At this point, I know to pick up her books and not expect a masterpiece, but to expect something that’s not totally serious, but will be totally fun, if you get my drift. When I first heard of The Chaos Of Stars, White’s latest book, my very first thought was fuck yeah Egypt!
Isadora has got some family drama you guys. Only her family drama is WAY more intense than most. I mean, the fact that I have a cousin who was on Judge Judy does not even hold a candle to Isadora’s family history. Then again, I don’t have a bunch of incestous Egyptian gods in my family. You see, Isadora is the daughter of Isis and Osirus, who are like the ultimate Egyptian deities. Anyways, the book is told alternating dreams with reality. Isadora, unlike a few of her siblings and parents, is a mere mortal, a fact that she totally resents. Isis is about to have another kid and senses danger coming, so she sends Isadora to go live with her mortal brother in San Diego, instead of you staying at home in Egypt. While in San Diego, Isadora actually makes her first friend, Tyler and meets a boy — Ry. And well, you can see where this is going. Meanwhile, she’s still having these dark dreams that portend something evil to come. Just what is the significance of the dreams? What’s the deal with her family drama? You’ll have to read The Chaos Of Stars for the details, yo.
So, I think that if you read The Chaos Of Stars you might have a similar reaction to Isa. It took me awhile to warm up to her. At first, she starts the book off as a bit whiny, sort of distant and all woe-is-me and acts as though she should be the center of her parents universe — so she’s basically a typical teen. Also, she’s weird about certain things and clueless about modern practices and such. It comes off as bizarre and awkward. Also, she’s quite stubborn. Anyways, once the layers begin to be peeled back and we see that Isa deeply cares and is vulnerable, I actually ended up really liking her. I thought she seemed like a much better sort of person and character once she cracks out of her shell.
Now if you are all about Egyptian mythology, I am not sure how you will feel about this book as I am totally not at all an expert on Egyptian mythology. What I liked was how White incorporated stories at the beginning of each chapter with sort of an epigraph essay that had snarky comments from Isadora. I also liked how she wove it into the plot with Horus being a jackass, same with Hathor, but Thoth was super great. And Isis, I am kind of meh on her, but she does seem otherworldly which is neat.
To be frank with you, I thought the romance in The Chaos Of Stars was cute. It was very lite and kind of slow to start. Isadora goes from animosity to friendship to crushing to kissing. I don’t really mind that progression at all. AND OMG YOU GUYS THE KISSING IS SO CUTE! Also, her crush is a nice guy, which I had to YAY over. Because I am over bad boys. Also. Also. There is a big reveal about Ry, her love interest, that one can see coming from a mile away. It didn’t detract from MY enjoyment but if you are someone who is like, ugh, predictability, you might not care for it.
As for the writing, I knew what to expect going in. I knew to expect sarcastic and fun with a story light on mythology. I got exactly what I came for, and thus enjoyed reading The Chaos Of Stars, I knew it was not going to be a huge masterpiece. I also know that I’ve liked White’s previous books. I will say that if you didn’t care for the Paranormalcy books you might want to skip this one. Otherwise, if you were a fan and want a book that doesn’t take itself too seriously, pick The Chaos Of Stars up.
Disclosure: Review copy provided by publisher
Other reviews of The Chaos Of Stars by Kiersten White:
Nose Graze – “the book really fell flat for me”
The Nocturnal Library – “I thoroughly enjoyed it nevertheless”
Love Is Not A Triangle – “a perfect happy palate cleanser”
Books by Kiersten White:
Paranormalcy
Supernaturally
Endlessly
Mind Games (Allison’s review)
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I loved the way Egyptian mythology was briefly touched on at the beginning of each chapter and I didn’t even totally mind how annoying Isadora was but I did mind that nothing much seemed to be happening until it was all packed in together.
Haven’t read this book, but I feel the name Ry is a big, obvious clue… XD
I liked Paranormalcy, but I never read any of the other books in that series. I haven’t really paid much attention to The Chaos of Stars, but I’m really interested now. Sometimes I love simple, paranormal books that won’t put my emotions through the ringer.
Also, I don’t mind predictability 🙂
I quite enjoyed this one for it’s light-hearted snarky fun as well ;-). I have to admit that I didn’t like the big reveal with Ry since it just seemed to add an element that wasn’t necessary if you know what I mean? *tries to be vague enough but specific enough* I liked the Egyptian myths and wanted to just stick with those!
oh my goodness, THANK YOU for this review. I’ve read all sorts of reviews for this book and all I really got was “OMG SO GOOD” and “I didn’t like Isadora” and I kept scratching my head and shouting, “BUT WHAT IS IT ABOUT?”
Now I know it’s something I might really enjoy, but I already knew I was going to like it–I love Kiersten’s other books–but I was hesitant because I hadn’t read a real review of what it was about. so THANK YOU, April. This is why I read your blog on a daily basis.
I’m always down for something light and fun, especially when it comes to using mythology in the modern-day setting. I’m not super knowledgable on Egyptian mythology in particular, but I do find it fascinating nonetheless, so I’m definitely willing to give this one a try. Especially because it’s got a noticable lack of insta-love. Hooray for actually getting to know people before you fall head over heels for them!