See All The Stars by Kit Frick | Review

Publisher: McElderry Books
Release Date: August 14, 2018
Source of my copy: Publisher
Series: None
My rating:

Synopsis
It’s hard to find the truth beneath the lies you tell yourself.

THEN They were four—Bex, Jenni, Ellory, Ret. Electric, headstrong young women; Ellory’s whole solar system. 

NOW Ellory is alone, her once inseparable group of friends torn apart by secrets, deception, and a shocking incident that changed their lives forever.

THEN Lazy summer days. A party. A beautiful boy. Ellory met Matthias and fell into the beginning of a spectacular, bright love.

NOW Ellory returns to Pine Brook to navigate senior year after a two-month suspension and summer away—no boyfriend, no friends. No going back. Tormented by some and sought out by others, troubled by a mysterious note-writer who won’t let Ellory forget, and consumed by guilt over her not entirely innocent role in everything and everyone she’s lost, Ellory finds that even in the present, the past is everywhere.

The path forward isn’t a straight line. And moving on will mean sorting the truth from the lies—the lies Ellory has been telling herself.

Curious by the cryptic synopsis and the newness of the author, I read See All The Stars by Kit Frick with no expectations. At the halfway point, I began believing that the book will not leave much of an impression, but then I am pondering over its message when I reach its end. Needless to say, See All The Stars was an unexpected gem.

Although the novel was written in the first-person of Ellory, the protagonist, all of the characters were well-developed and identifiable. As the synopsis hints, Ellory and her friends undergo major drama between their junior and senior year of high school that drives them apart and leaves Ellory heartbroken. With such a premise, the characters need to be realistic and dynamic, and Ms. Frick did well in bringing out each character's colors, good and bad, and having them be seen as the imperfect human beings they all were. The story was given through Ellory's eyes, but they were eyes that perceived honestly and thoughtfully, explaining not only her view but also the possible viewpoints of those around her. Not one side of the story was considered the ultimately right or wrong one, and I respected Ellory for such wisdom and humility.

I also admired Ms. Frick's writing style. It had an easy flow that moved the story along despite its uneventful exposition. Halfway into the novel, I was bored with the plot but surprised at how quickly I was reading. At some points, the repetitious descriptions of a few characters annoyed me but proved critical to the understanding of the climax and resolution of the novel. Overall, the writing was well done.

The plot of See All The Stars was positively unexpected. It did well not to reveal too much of the story, slowly telling what happened with Ellory and her friends "then" and "now" and how both times' events paralleled, or explained, each other. When I had already read half of the book, there were still many unanswered questions, and I nearly became frustrated with what little I knew until I reached the climax. My heart was beating so fast. Ellory and her friends were spiraling into a madness of secrets, deception, and mistrust, and I was shocked and pained by the startling complete truth. Admittedly, I would not describe the novel as a thriller. Besides its one or two major twists, it was fairly steady and predictable. However, it will live in my mind for its profound depiction of self-forgiveness, humility, and maturity.

See All The Stars impressed me with its fleshed-out characters, well-paced writing, and slightly unpredictable plot. I recommend it to young readers for the characters' high school age, but readers in the mood for some drama and excitement may also enjoy it. It can be read quickly, remedying any reading slump.

With this debut, Ms. Frick is an author I will keep an eye on.