greattappertwo's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Would have DNF‘Ed if I didn’t have my reason.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/injury detail, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Blood, Bullying, Child death, and Death
sssssoup's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I really wanted to like this book, and I think it could’ve been interesting, but ultimately it just wasn’t for me. It had a lot of really pretty description, but the characters and plot fell flat for me. Sheetal’s internal conflict was intriguing and well written, but she often came across as whiny when she interacted with the other characters, though I did appreciate her complicated feelings about her family members. I was also confused by a lot of the terminology and I think the author should’ve included a glossary. Overall, it was pretty mid and I think the right person could really enjoy it, but I know that wasn’t me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment and Confinement
Moderate: Blood, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, and Physical abuse
Minor: Domestic abuse, Medical content, Alcohol, Death, Injury/injury detail, and Violence
brookey8888's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Sigh I really wish I enjoyed this more. I just felt like it was no big deal going to the star world and it was like normal? I don’t know how to explain it. I did find the myths interesting. I also loved the diversity! If this sounds interesting or you want to read a diverse fantasy I do recommend you try it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Violence, Injury/injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Blood
thenovelmaura's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
3.5 stars! We chose this book for our #ViolentQueensBookClub and it was a great read! Huge shout out to Thakrar for coming to our meeting and discussing this magical story with us. I loved the complexity of Sheetal's feelings toward her half-star, half-human heritage. And her loyalty to her father was so lovely to see, even though he wasn't super present in the book for plot reasons. This book was full of lavish descriptions of food, the star palace, and Hindu mythology.
While I liked the characters and setting, the pacing of this one left a bit to be desired. I couldn't believe how long each day was; it felt like I would read hundreds of pages before Sheetal actually got to go to bed. And maybe I'm just a stickler for rules, but Anyway, I love the representation here and that it's a standalone contemporary fantasy! If it sounds like it's up your alley than it probably is.
While I liked the characters and setting, the pacing of this one left a bit to be desired. I couldn't believe how long each day was; it felt like I would read hundreds of pages before Sheetal actually got to go to bed. And maybe I'm just a stickler for rules, but
Spoiler
I agreed with the others in the court that it was cheating to have Sheetal in the competition. I mean, it's a competition of humans and she's half star. So it was funny because I was kind of rooting against her, and I really wish the puppeteer had won the competition.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction
Moderate: Confinement, Kidnapping, and Blood
Minor: Torture
plumpaperbacks's review
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
[Buddy read with Shar 💛]
I kept getting this book from the library and then running out of time to read it, so a buddy read was exactly the incentive I needed to finally read it. And surprisingly, it was really good, and I quite enjoyed my time with the story.
Thakrar’s writing reminded me very much of Roshani Chokshi, specifically her book The Star-Touched Queen, and Anna-Marie McLemore—lovely descriptions seemingly infused with magic, making even the ordinary seem extraordinary. That and the three-dimensional characters were definitely her greatest strengths; I liked the protagonist Sheetal, and loved her best friend Minal and their relationship.
The story is undeniably slow, and more character-driven than plot-driven, but worth sticking with. While the majority of the book is a series of smaller-scale events that kept me intrigued, the last third was a whirlwind of music, discoveries and power plays. It was entertaining without pause, and led to a rather satisfying conclusion.
Though not a favorite, I’d definitely say Star Daughter is one of the most pleasantly surprising books I’ve read this year. I recommend it, and I certainly want to read more from Thakrar; if this is her debut, I look forward to seeing how she grows.
Representation
I kept getting this book from the library and then running out of time to read it, so a buddy read was exactly the incentive I needed to finally read it. And surprisingly, it was really good, and I quite enjoyed my time with the story.
Thakrar’s writing reminded me very much of Roshani Chokshi, specifically her book The Star-Touched Queen, and Anna-Marie McLemore—lovely descriptions seemingly infused with magic, making even the ordinary seem extraordinary. That and the three-dimensional characters were definitely her greatest strengths; I liked the protagonist Sheetal, and loved her best friend Minal and their relationship.
The story is undeniably slow, and more character-driven than plot-driven, but worth sticking with. While the majority of the book is a series of smaller-scale events that kept me intrigued, the last third was a whirlwind of music, discoveries and power plays. It was entertaining without pause, and led to a rather satisfying conclusion.
Though not a favorite, I’d definitely say Star Daughter is one of the most pleasantly surprising books I’ve read this year. I recommend it, and I certainly want to read more from Thakrar; if this is her debut, I look forward to seeing how she grows.
Representation
- almost entirely desi cast
- sapphic side couple
- minor achillean side couple
Content Warnings
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, and Injury/injury detail
Minor: Kidnapping, Confinement, and Torture
Those tagged minor refer to events prior to the story that are mentioned throughout, more so in the second half, but never in graphic detail.albon's review against another edition
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Body horror, Blood, Bullying, and Panic attacks/disorders
iffygeneia's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
So the premise sounded amazing: a modern day story laced with Hindu-themed fantasy. And that part of the story was by far the best part.
It did require a bit of foreknowledge about Hindu mythology. Mainly, the book assumes the reader will know several different kinds of mythological creatures from Hindu mythology - it doesn't explain much beyond the most basic visual descriptions.
It's with the characters and the plot that it starts to fall apart though.
This could have been an amazing coming-of-age story, but there was hardly any character growth. Sheetal herself was just very, very shallow. Her main worries are about , or panicking about the currently relevant plot point. As the plot moved around randomly, Sheetal also seemed all over the place. She has a clear goal , but constantly gets distraced by the currently relevant plot point. It made her seem fickle, like she didn't care about when the plot demanded her attention.
The plot did finally come together in the end, but in the most predictable way.
In the end, though a lot did change, Sheetal herself didn't seem much affected by all of it.
All in all: its fine for its Teen target audience, but as an adult I expected more depth.
(Note: I listened to the audiobook version read by Soneela Nankani. She was excellent.)
It did require a bit of foreknowledge about Hindu mythology. Mainly, the book assumes the reader will know several different kinds of mythological creatures from Hindu mythology - it doesn't explain much beyond the most basic visual descriptions.
It's with the characters and the plot that it starts to fall apart though.
This could have been an amazing coming-of-age story, but there was hardly any character growth. Sheetal herself was just very, very shallow. Her main worries are about
Spoiler
her boyfriendSpoiler
(saving her dad)Spoiler
her dadThe plot did finally come together in the end, but in the most predictable way.
In the end, though a lot did change, Sheetal herself didn't seem much affected by all of it.
All in all: its fine for its Teen target audience, but as an adult I expected more depth.
(Note: I listened to the audiobook version read by Soneela Nankani. She was excellent.)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment and Blood
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Injury/injury detail, Medical content, Racism, and Toxic relationship
luckykosmos's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Wanted to love this one but it was all over. The pacing needed work - there was a massive drought in the middle where it felt like nothing happened, that could easily have been used to better flesh out some of the plot threads (the star hunters! the missing marionettes!) . There were some lines that were gorgeous, but they were interspersed with very plain and uninformative - dedicating a single sentence to Sheetal's supposedly amazing dance was a big let down. At other times, it felt like thesaurus bait. If I had to read 'sidereal' one more time, I was going to scream. The ending was a mess, suddenly dealing with threads that were poorly seeded throughout the book. All in all, needed a big heap of editing, but the author definitely has wonderful ideas that need refinement in execution.
A note on the non-straight characters as well:
A note on the non-straight characters as well:
Spoiler
I have issues with the portrayal of so many of them as duplicitous in one way or another. Sachin sabotaging the other contestants is the big one of course, but even Sheetal spending so much time thinking about how Minal had betrayed her by blending in with the rest of the star kingdom (which we never see, we just know Minal isn't gone). Padmini's about-face on her attitude toward the mortals make sense in terms of caring for her brother, but the structure makes it feel incredibly selfish. Part of this could be just how many of the characters in the competition are fiercely defensive of themselves, but weak structure just makes me dislike most of them (really, anyone but Minal, who deserved better).
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood and Bullying
taleofabibliophile's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Kidnapping, Confinement, Physical abuse, Blood, Violence, and Torture
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders and Medical content
waffles's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Minor: Blood and Panic attacks/disorders