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The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes by Xio Axelrod

Contemporary fiction

The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes

by Xio Axelrod

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Quick take

Like the best concerts, this tale of rock and romance will have your head bopping, feet tapping, hoping it never ends.

Good to know

  • Illustrated icon, Romance

    Romance

  • Illustrated icon, 400

    400+ pages

  • Illustrated icon, Feminist

    Feminist

  • Illustrated icon, First_in_Series

    First in series

Synopsis

They say the road to stardom is paved with broken dreams.

Growing up, Antonia "Toni" Bennette's guitar was her only companion...until she met Sebastian Quick. Seb was a little older, a lot wiser, and he became Toni's way out, promising they'd escape their small town together. Then Seb turned eighteen and split without looking back.

Now, Toni B is all grown up and making a name for herself in Philadelphia's indie rock scene. When a friend suggests she try out for the hottest new band in the country, she decides to take a chance. She's in for a surprise when one of the decision-makers turns out to be none other than Seb. Toni can handle it. No problem. Or it wouldn't be if Seb didn't still hold a piece of her heart, not to mention the key to her future.

Free sample

The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes

PROLOGUE.

ANTONIA: 12 YEARS OLD

ANTONIA BENNETTE WOKE FROM HER after-school nap to the sound of a guitar. It was coming from somewhere inside the small dressing room in the back of Ginny’s Jazz House where her mother was gigging tonight. She listened for a while, searching for something familiar amid the improvised notes, giddy with anticipation.

The tenor of Mary Bennette’s prized old Gibson was unmistakable. Softer than the Fender or even her other, newer Gibson. Antonia loved the way its tone could change note to note—from the sound of water dripping from the roof when it rained to the crunch of loose pavement under her shoes. And the way her mother could make it sing, make it harmonize along with her own voice, gave Antonia goose bumps. Audiences loved Mary Bennette too. They packed small clubs in Chester, Baltimore, and even Philadelphia to hear her. Antonia’s mother was a star.

After another few bars, Antonia was able to pick out the melody to Stevie Wonder’s “Happy Birthday.” Her mom had remembered and must have something special in store for her. Maybe she’d even let Antonia stay for the show and not send her off to stay with one of her play-aunts across town.

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Why I love it

Though she may not have been graced with the advantages of some and has had more than her fair share of hard knocks, the moment Antonia “Toni” Bennette makes her debut in The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes, you know she’s meant to be a rock star.

Toni is the type of fictional heroine that a reader can root for from the very first page: smart, full of pure heart, incredible drive, and amazing talent. And then when Toni meets Sebastian Quick, another poor kid from the wrong side of, well, everything, sparks fly and it’s musical magic. Sebastian is strong, talented and as driven as Toni, but he’s also in a tragically desperate situation and it’s because of that desperation that he and Toni’s magical destiny is in question.

I adored every moment of reading The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes. Axelrod brings a haunting humanity to the sexy rock and roll spotlight and readers will be singing along with Toni, Sebastian, and the Lillys as they follow them on their road to stardom. This book reads like an impeccable performance that you don’t want to end and will have you shouting, “Encore! Encore!” by the time you reach the last page.

Member ratings (1,290)

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View all
The Stone Witch of Florence
The Seventh Veil of Salome
Hera
The Lion Women of Tehran
The Return of Ellie Black
Annie Bot
More
Bright Young Women
The First Ladies
Lady Tan’s Circle of Women
Weyward
Queen of Thieves
Hester
Love on the Brain
Bronze Drum
The Bodyguard
The Change
Lessons in Chemistry
Kaikeyi
My Body
Half Sick of Shadows
The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes
Outlawed
More Myself
Practical Magic
A Rogue of One's Own
True Story
Fleishman Is in Trouble
The Book of Longings
Untamed
The Kingdom of Back
The Girl with the Louding Voice
Throw Like a Girl
Trick Mirror
Bringing Down the Duke
Three Women
Shout
Thick
Still Lives
The Rules of Magic
The Nightingale