This was not the original post I had planned for today, I'll be honest. I was going to give you a nice comparison of Geisha, A Life and Memoirs of a Geisha, but that's just going to have to wait until later this week because I have to tell you about the Stardust Series by Autumn Reed and Julia Clarke.
The Stardust series is five books and a novella, and just finished up last week. I was late on my reread, so I just finished the fifth book today. I'm really glad that I did reread, though, because there are a lot of really beautiful moments in the book, and a lot of moments that make you laugh. The series centers around Haley Jones and Team Jaguar of Zenith. There's even a pretty awesome Golden Retriever who is named after a James Bond character! There's one thing you have to know, however: these books are a slow burn reverse harem. that means, in the end, Haley is going to end up with more than one guy. Don't let that turn you away from giving the books a try!
In the first book, Phoenix, Haley has just turned eighteen and learns that she and her father are in hiding from a pretty terrible man. Just after Haley learns this revelation, her home, a secluded cabin in Coleville, blows up. Haley is saved, and her dad, Brian, gets away, don't worry! Haley is rescued by Ethan, Chase and Knox, who end up taking her to Santa Cruz to keep her safe (I won't tell you how, but it's pretty funny). Once in Santa Cruz, Hayley meets Theo, Liam, and Jackson. These six guys, Team Jaguar, become Haley's closest friends. They help her find a job, and keep her busy while she tries to find her father. The case that spins out over the five books is not the search for Haley's dad, but for evidence against the man who sent the Jones' into hiding in the first place. During the course of the books, Haley also develops feelings for the guys in the group. When one of them leaves, she blames herself and runs from the team, and the events of those months are chronicled in Chamaeleon, the novella that falls between books three and four.In the fifth book, Polaris, everything finally comes together, and not quite in the way that I imagined. A character that we meet a few times in the other books turs out to do something rather misguided, but with his heart in a decent place. It definitely causes some friction, and made me second guess a few of the other characters, not going to like!
It's really hard, sometimes, to write these posts about series. I don't want to give too much away about the plotline or the character development, because I do want you to go and read the books. I want you to experience things for the first time, not expecting them. There's nothing worst than being excited for a book and having it ruined because you know ever bit of what's going to happen. 
What I really love about these books are the characters themselves. Haley has doubts and fears, and her life is not normal, but she rolls with the punches. She spends some time wishing she had a normal life, but accepts that it just isnt' to be. She's strong and fearless, but vulnerable when she needs to be. Each of the guys also has their own stories, their own foibles, that make them see so real. If you hadn't guessed, I like characters that aren't perfect. When your character has a flaw, they become real. Haley's relationship with each of the members of Team Jaguar is also very believable. They don't have the same relationship, it's not cookie cutter, and each of the guys takes their situation very differently. Some are okay with it right off starting line, but it takes some of the others time to adjust. It actually takes Haley the longest time to come to grips with it
I also love that there's a happy ending, even if the ending is unconventional. It comes with it's difficulties, and there are issues that need to be worked out, but the characters take the tiem to do that. It's not a happy ever after to be a happy ever after, it's earned. Anyway. I really suggest that you go read the Stardust series! Autumn and Julia have done an amazing job, and I can't wait to read more from them! (The Raising the Stakes series is next on my list!)
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