For readers of Girl in Pieces and The Way I Used to Be comes an emotionally gripping story about facing hard truths in the aftermath of sexual assault. Mara and Owen are as close as twins can get, so when Mara’s friend Hannah accuses Owen of rape, Mara doesn’t know what to think. Can her brother really be guilty of such a violent act? Torn between her family and her sense of right and wrong, … and her sense of right and wrong, Mara feels lost, and it doesn’t help that things are strained with her ex-girlfriend, Charlie. As Mara, Hannah, and Charlie come together in the aftermath of this terrible crime, Mara must face a trauma from her own past and decide where Charlie fits into her future. With sensitivity and openness, this timely novel confronts the difficult questions surrounding consent, victim blaming, and sexual assault.
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This is really an eye-opening story. In “Girl Made of Stars”, Ashley Herring Blake focuses on the issues people have today in our modern world. We have Mara and Owen who are twins, and Owen is accused of rape. Mara is bisexual, which means she likes both men and women. She has a SO named Charlie, who is keeping a secret from the world about how she is wanting to be transgender. We have Hannah, who accused Owen of rape. Even Mara has been hiding a secret for three years, and finally comes out with it at the end of the story. I do not want to give away what this secret is. However, let me just say that it is something that no matter what, you should say something about it right away.
A stunningly good, important book.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. I hadn’t read in a while and had to start again somewhere. I’m glad that this book was it. Not only does it touch on the topic of rape and sexual assault, but it also shows us the emotional vulnerability and struggle within Mara (the main character) and the accusations following her brother Owen and her friend Hannah.
However, I did feel like the book had a few repetitive situations to it. But I found that this repetition balanced the story out quite nicely and gave us just the right type of closure to Mara’s tale.
Highly recommend!
Good subject/plot
Girl Made of Stars by Ashley Herring Blake is about a girl whose twin brother rapes one of her best friends. This event spirals her into a entire journey about discovering herself, how we societally deal with crime, & how people personally handle trauma & the effects of psychological harm long after the initial incident has passed. It’s a really, really good book that everyone should read. Five stars. Highly recommend.
I am sitting here in front of my computer where I have just finished Girl Made of Stars by Ashely Herring Blake and I have to tell you that I have no clue how I am going to tell you about this book. This book is one of a kind and is one that will be sticking with me for a while. It was emotional, deep, and eye opening to our world that needs to change.
First off there are some trigger warnings that you should know about if you are going to read this one. Please make sure to check those out below in my list of Go into this one knowing. I myself am a survivor of being molested on more than one occasion when I was younger so I fully understand how these topics might be to much for someone who has survived it. So please be aware of those warnings.
This book broke me. That is about what I feel right now. It will open your eyes to a world that you will not be able to unsee.
This book follows Mara whom is bisexual. Who’s twin brother gets accused of raping his girlfriend. Mara is then stuck in the middle of this situation of deciding who to trust and who to call out. It was a no win place to be for her. I have to say that the author did a perfect job with this aspect of the book. You could feel Mara’s emotions about how much she wanted to trust her brother but knowing something wasn’t right. But also still not waiting to believe that he could do something like this. This felt like a story that could have been pulled from the headlines and I believe that it is one that needed to be told. This book was full of true emotional authenticity that I have EVER seen in a story.
Another aspect of this book is a small love triangle between Mara’s ex girlfriend Charlie whom is nonbinary. And another boy that she gets with for a short amount of time. You could really see how everyone was just trying to deal with the situation at hand and move on. And Mara and Adam were just trying to find comfort in any place they could.
A major part of this story dealt with Mara and her own secret trama. Early on in the story you learn that something happened to her three years ago. But you don’t find out until way later in the book where it is all set before you. I have to say that her entire experience of what happened to her was one that triggered me to no end. When I was 10 to 11 years old I had the same thing happen to me over the course of a year or so. But it was my mother’s boyfriend and not a teacher that abused me in that way.
The trauma of rape and having your freedom taken away, of having your trust violated, in a world where girl’s bodies are distractions, where society refuses to believe you is what this book is ultimate about. And I have to say that the author did a fantastic job with it.
This is the story that should be in the hands of every teen out there. That even if you believe that no one is going to believe you. Believe in yourself that you know what happened and that you said NO. Don’t let anyone take away your right to say that to have your voice heard!
Go Into This One Knowing: Rape Allegations, Rape, Abuse via a Teacher, Nonbinary, Bisexuality, Love Triangle
Great book for teen readers a little harsh for some though
For the most part I liked this book. I could feel Mara’s pain dealing with her twin. I also thought that the conc lusion of the case against Owen was sadly realistic as was what happened to Hannah. The thing that I didn’t like was not knowing if Mr. Knoll was prosecuted.
Owen and his twin sister, Mara, have been close for their entire life–bonded by their twinhood, joint storytelling, and love of the stars–particularly their “own” constellation. But that all changes when Mara’s good friend, Hannah, accuses Owen of rape. Suddenly Mara finds herself torn between her friendships and her family. Even worse, she has no one to talk to, after breaking up with her girlfriend/best friend, Charlie. Everything feels unknown and confusing. How will Mara navigate this new world–and what will she do about Owen and Hannah?
This novel. Oh my goodness. It will break your heart and yet leave you speechless with wonder. It’s so beautiful. It started off with a quote from Virginia Woolf (The Waves), so I knew it was going to be good. And it certainly was.
The book is so achingly gorgeous and real, with its realistic look at high school. It portrays how both amazing and awful kids can be at this age. Mara is such a lovely character. The Owen/Hannah situation leaves her conflicted and forces her to face something terrible in her own past. By placing Mara in such a difficult situation, Herring Blake also does a good job of showing how hard it is being the female in this situation and how so few people believe the girl. It’s such a timely commentary (albeit a sad one). It may not always be easy to read, as we see how hard things are for Hannah (and Mara), but it’s so well-done.
I mean, really, this book is just heartbreaking at times. And yet I was riveted. These kids, with their big problems, so many of them living other people’s dreams. It was so poignant, so true to so many of my own experiences. And the relationships here–well, wow. I mean, for one thing, we get a truly bisexual character in Mara, which is so refreshing. And then Charlie is genderqueer/nonbinary. It was so wonderful to have these characters in this novel, as a positive representation for teens–living real lives, with real problems, but in no way serving as the villain or maligned character. I was incredibly impressed. I wish this novel was on the shelf of every high school (well, on the shelves everywhere, honestly).
The girls in this book are in a group called Empower, which stands up for females–how they are portrayed, the double standards they face, and more. They are so strong, despite all the hurdles they face on a daily basis. Honestly, despite so much sadness in this novel, there is so much hope. So much strength. I adored Mara. She is wonderful — such a strong, amazing, and lovely character. I found myself rooting for her as if she was my own kid.
I loved this one. I don’t even remember how or why I stumbled across it and requested it, but I’m so glad I did. This is a beautiful, powerful book about the strength of human existence. The girls in this novel will make you cry, make you laugh, and make you both despair for and have faith in humanity. I will be tracking down the rest of Herring Blake’s books for sure. 4.5+ stars.
I received a copy of this novel from the publisher and Netgalley in return for an unbiased review.