Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev [Review]

3 out of 5 Robots!

  

Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev

Series: Theatre Illuminata #1
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Release: March 22, 2011

Hardcover: 322 Pages

Publisher: Philomel Books

My Copy: Purchased

Reviewer: Shannon

Buy the Book: Amazon

Book Summary:
All her world's a stage.

Bertie Shakespeare Smith is not an actress, yet she lives in a theater.

She's not an orphan, but she has no parents.

She knows every part, but she has no lines of her own.

That is, until now.

Enter Stage Right

NATE. Dashing pirate. Will do anything to protect Bertie.

COBWEB, MOTH, MUSTARD SEED, and PEASEBLOSSOM. Four tiny and incredibly annoying fairies. BERTIE'S sidekicks.

ARIEL. Seductive air spirit and Bertie's weakness. The symbol of impending doom.

BERTIE. Our heroine.

Welcome to the Theatre Illuminata, where the actors of every play ever written can be found behind the curtain. They were born to play their parts, and are bound to the Theatre by The Book--an ancient and magical tome of scripts. Bertie is not one of them, but they are her family--and she is about to lose them all and the only home she has ever known.

Lisa Mantchev has written a debut novel that is dramatic, romantic, and witty, with an irresistible and irreverent cast of characters who are sure to enchant the audience.

Open Curtain. (Courtesy of the Publisher)

 
Shannon's Thoughts:

I wanted to like this book.  The premise sounded fun.  And it didn’t turn out to be a BAD book per se. But ultimately, I found myself being a little bored with it.  The main problem was I couldn’t really connect with any of the characters.  Bertie, the main character, just didn’t click with me.  She seemed a little immature and selfish and her rudeness to Ophelia seems unwarranted. It's a thin line between being witty and being bratty. And Bertie was usually over the line.  I also had a hard time with the frantic pace.  Everyone seemed to be on full speed all the time.  It was just too manic for me.  I desperately wanted some quiet moments.  Some introspective moments.  But instead it felt like a verbal sparring quip-fest the entire time.  I also had a hard time following what was going on exactly with the theater.  Did people actually visit the theater to watch the plays?  Where is the theater exactly?  I don’t get it.  So, I give points for the premise but I think the story was too all over the place to really do the premise justice.


Books in the series in the order they should be read:
1. Eyes Like Stars
2. Perchance to Dream
3. So Silver Bright