Before the Broken Star- Emily R. King

“Yes. These years you were given are a gift. Don’t be so distracted with what keeps you alive that you neglect to live.”

jamison- before the broken star by emily r king

Publication Date: June 1, 2019
Publisher: Amazon Publishing 
Genre: YA Fantasy/Sci-Fi
Pages: 300
Dates Read: August 11-14, 2019
Format: Paperback

Buy on Amazon
My GoodReads Review

GOODREADS SYNOPSIS
”Everley Donovan is living on borrowed time. The lone survivor of her family’s unexplained assassination, she was saved by an ingeniously crafted clockwork heart. But the time she was given won’t last forever. Now, every tick-tock reminds her how fragile her existence is and hastens her quest to expose Killian Markham, the navy admiral who shattered her world and left her for dead. But Everley’s hunt for justice will be a long and hard-won voyage.

Her journey takes her to a penal colony on a cursed isle, where she will be married off and charged to build the new world. It is here, and beyond, that hidden realms hide, treasures are unearthed, her family secrets are buried, and young love will test the strength of her makeshift heart. When Everley discovers Markham may not be who he seems, her pursuit for truth is bound to his redemption, her tragic history, and her astonishing destiny.”

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
4 STARS

Before the Broken Star didn’t start off as strong as some other books, but I pushed through the slow beginning and I’m so glad that I did! At about the 25% mark, I devoured this book and couldn’t get enough of these characters.

I really loved this unique story. This book also includes a ton of strong female heroines, a love interest, bravery, sadness, pirates, fairies, lost islands and so many things I love in a good book. It reminded me a lot of Once Upon A Time with all the different “worlds” and the magic vibes.

“You are Everley Donovan, born into this world to do great things.
You are not broken.”

jamison- before the broken star by emily r king

[Characters]
Everley is quite a complex character. She’s living a lie and hiding her true identity. She comes off cold and brusk but is really loving and gentle inside, she is also completely dependant on the clockwork heart in her chest to keep her alive! On top of all of that, Everley is also driven by revenge. She wants nothing more than to kill the cruel man who slaughtered her family, and will go to extreme lengths to enact it–even going as far as letting herself be convicted of a crime she never committed in order to be close to him. All of these attributes make for a heroine who is fierce and brave, yet vulnerable to her weaknesses which make her an absolutely relatable and beautiful character.

Everley’s love interest Jamison is probably my favorite character in the book. I loved his gentle yet protective nature, and I fell in love with his character instantly. He is a constant figure in Everley’s journey through the book, and at times I was so disappointed and felt SO.BAD for him. I felt that he put up with a lot of crap from Everley, and did it with such patience and love and got almost nothing in return from her (definitely not enough, if any).

“Too much time is a curse…It’s the limited time we have that makes life precious.”

markham- before the broken star by emily r king

[Plot]
This plot is all about Time (capitalized because not only is it a major plot point, but also a character? You’d have to read to understand lol) which can be a little bit complicated at points, but the writing is strong enough that it was pretty easy to understand.

[Overall]
Like I said previously, it started a bit slow for me, (and there were a couple of confusing parts that I had to reread paragraphs to fully understand what was going on) but once the story picks up, it moves pretty quickly. I also didn’t feel too rushed or like it left any holes which I appreciate.

This book is the first book in the Evermore Chronicles. I already have an ARC generously provided by NetGalley and the Author- Emily R. King- for the second book in this series–Into the Hourglass, and I will be picking it up tonight because I can’t wait to find out what happens to our MC’s after that cliffhanger of an ending! I highly recommend this book if you like YA Fantasy/Sci-Fi!