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theoguinto 's review for:
Of Sunlight and Stardust
by Riley Hart, Christina Lee
The start was alright. I really enjoyed how Tanner and Cole bonded over having things in their past that they didn't want to talk about.
I was a little confused with some of the pacing though. Like Tanner seemed to be ok with falling in love with Cole in the scene where he talked to Emma, but then suddenly had reservations after he said "I love you"?
Also, I think I was more invested in Tom and Charlie's love story tbh. There was real conflict and pining there that seemed to be more interesting than Tanner and Cole's seemingly conflict-less romance. Even the bi-awakening wasn't really met with any sort of resistance or fighting. The only true sources of conflict between the two was when Tanner found out that Cole was a felon (which was resolved immediately when Tanner asked Cole to come back) and when Tanner briefly doubted Cole's innocence (which Cole seemed to immediately forgive even after he was offended at it)
I also wasn't a big fan of the supernatural part of the story. Tom and Charlie having the same initials as Tanner and Cole was cute (especially when Tanner found the T + C in his closet)
The parallels between Tom and Charlie were also interesting as a sort of foil towards Tanner and Cole's story.
Having Paige be a surrogate for Emma was a little too on the nose for me, so I legitimately rolled my eyes when her daughter reveals that Paige's full name was actually "Emma Paige".
Also, Tom and Charlie dying in a fire was super annoying (I get that I was just complaining about the lack of conflict, but this was not at all satisfying). It would've been a great ending to have the two come back as an older couple and see the remade barn.
Don't even get me started on Tanner and Cole dreaming about how Tom and Charlie died. If supernatural/fantasy elements exist in an otherwise contemporary story, I prefer if the stories went all in and explicitly introduce those elements as part of the universe. Otherwise, if they go and just sprinkle them in, it feels incredibly cheap because I can't suspend my disbelief.
If I see the world of the story as taking place in the real world, then I won't be able to accept that ghosts or visions of the past are natural things because it's incongruous with the setting. Ghosts and visions don't exist in modern contemporary settings in my mind, and the book doesn't really do anything to justify their existence in the story.
I was a little confused with some of the pacing though. Like Tanner seemed to be ok with falling in love with Cole in the scene where he talked to Emma, but then suddenly had reservations after he said "I love you"?
Also, I think I was more invested in Tom and Charlie's love story tbh. There was real conflict and pining there that seemed to be more interesting than Tanner and Cole's seemingly conflict-less romance. Even the bi-awakening wasn't really met with any sort of resistance or fighting. The only true sources of conflict between the two was when Tanner found out that Cole was a felon (which was resolved immediately when Tanner asked Cole to come back) and when Tanner briefly doubted Cole's innocence (which Cole seemed to immediately forgive even after he was offended at it)
I also wasn't a big fan of the supernatural part of the story. Tom and Charlie having the same initials as Tanner and Cole was cute (especially when Tanner found the T + C in his closet)
The parallels between Tom and Charlie were also interesting as a sort of foil towards Tanner and Cole's story.
Having Paige be a surrogate for Emma was a little too on the nose for me, so I legitimately rolled my eyes when her daughter reveals that Paige's full name was actually "Emma Paige".
Also, Tom and Charlie dying in a fire was super annoying (I get that I was just complaining about the lack of conflict, but this was not at all satisfying). It would've been a great ending to have the two come back as an older couple and see the remade barn.
Don't even get me started on Tanner and Cole dreaming about how Tom and Charlie died. If supernatural/fantasy elements exist in an otherwise contemporary story, I prefer if the stories went all in and explicitly introduce those elements as part of the universe. Otherwise, if they go and just sprinkle them in, it feels incredibly cheap because I can't suspend my disbelief.
If I see the world of the story as taking place in the real world, then I won't be able to accept that ghosts or visions of the past are natural things because it's incongruous with the setting. Ghosts and visions don't exist in modern contemporary settings in my mind, and the book doesn't really do anything to justify their existence in the story.