Dark Sky Full of Stars

~~Reviewed by Toby Palevsky Smith of Toby's Nerd-Cave Library~~

Star-crossed lovers - Mischa, the adopted son of the head of the Russian Mafia, and Austen - English Rich boy and identical twin, running from his psycho biological father. I am very confused about why Mischa’s brothers are so adamant about him not liking Austen. I am also confused about the Twins’ relationship to each other. William repeatedly calls Austen ‘Baby’ and Austen calls William ‘Honey’ which is a bit weird for me, as an identical twin myself, I would never call my identical twin ‘baby’ or ‘honey’. Not sure how I feel about Mischa’s whole ‘not listening to Austen saying NO repeatedly” crap either, basically being a pushy stalker, but also show more somehow endearing once you get Austen's POV and see’s he is actually very confused about his own feelings, but something mysterious from his past keeps him continually rejecting him at first. I’d also like to know more about both guys’ backgrounds and the traumatic mysteries that keep getting hinted at in their pasts as I feel that would give me a lot more context for their interactions.
I am just so confused about what's going on with all their various relationships also. It’s not really very clear who is with whom, which relationships are platonic, sexual, or familial. More positively, I do like how all the men in this story aren’t homophobic in the least though and openly show both physical and emotional affection for one another. I also like how near the beginning Mischa’s brothers are all debating what percentage of gay they might be.
I am, in general, just very confused about the relationships in this book. Why is Austen not ‘allowed’ to be with Mischa? Why does Austen think he and Will are monsters? Why does Austen think Mischa will lose faith in humanity once he finds out whatever their secret is? Too much secret teasing, and not enough actual information. This is a big reason why I’m not a fan of mysteries. I need CONTEXT. I am still not understanding some of their actions, interactions with each other, and motivations. The ending did leave off on a cliffhanger, and I still don’t understand why they are described as “Star-crossed” lovers. There were a few hints, but nothing that made sense to me. Overall this is a nice MM Romance with kind of an ‘enemies to lovers’ trope, but not quite. I don’t know if I’d be interested in reading the next book of the series, but I would recommend it to readers who want a MM Romance with a heavy dose of spice/smut.
Thank you to the Librarything Early Reviewers Club, and the Author, Roman Schreiber, for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review. show less

This novel, the first in a planned series of four, is narrated in alternate chapters by the two main characters, Mischa and Austen. The two develop a sexual relationship, complicated by their traumatic backgrounds and involvement with other people. I mostly enjoyed reading it. But both characters spend a huge amount of time talking about their feelings, which gets repetitive and makes the novel much longer than it needed to be.

From the description, I was so excited for this book. Unfortunately, it just didn't work for me. I wasn't expecting "stalker to lovers" and the chemistry isn't there. It feels like one of the MCs gives in to the other rather than actually developing a relationship. The dialogue feels unnatural and the overuse of nicknames make some relationships feel WAY too intimate for what they are. Consent is iffy in a lot of the sexual scenes, which was the part I couldn't get over.

Dark Sky Full Of Stars by Roman Schreiber

My first M/M romance novel and let`s just say I wasn't disappointed at all, Although it`s way different than I imagined. Mischa the youngest of his Russian brothers , falls deeply in love with Austen who straddles the fence throughout the book on his sexuality and mental health (Trying to fit into what society has deemed the "Norm"). I like the fact that Mischa and Austen has so many similarities, but also indifferent, [Soulmates] which is not always romantic just being around someone who gets you without you having to utter one word is just as valid to the soulmate meaning. I have seen some of the situations play out in real time , Mischa who most readers will find that he was a bit to forceful show more when it came to Austen I simi agree because sometimes people hold on to things way longer than needed and I felt like Mischa was hard body when it came to everybody else but not with Austen when the time was crucial for him to be, like why are you taking all of the back and forth I truly understand when energies align it doesn't matter the outer appearance or gender but either respect his boundaries or get gone!!!!! ......But that`s where things take a turn because at first I`m like Mischa just needs to do his own thing and respect Austen wishes...... But as I keep reading Austen is actually loving the fact that this man is so obsessed with him so he flirts, give him all the signals that he is feeling the same way as Mischa then when things get a little steamy here goes off the deep end like he is disgusted confused and yet Mischa is still there trying to hold everything together while hurting himself in the process. Oh yea the only real complaint I have about the book is All the names! Whewww The characters have so many different names for one person I was a bit confused at the beginning but I got used to it (William was also Billy, Bee, and Baby) besides the names.......

I can see this book being a mini tv series, I love the boldness in this book, The ending was a small shock, What really stood out about this book was how RAW AND AUTHENTIC the writing is not all this perfectly polished novels it`s strictly for who it`s for. Adults only

I would say yes the book is worth reading , Much love and respect to Roman Schreiber for putting your work out for us to enjoy. May so much success find you on your Author Journey. -RO show less

2.5 stars
Dark Sky Full of Stars was a nice love story that took me out of my comfort zone when it comes to genres I usually read. The book follows Mischa, an adopted son of a Russian mobster, and his enduring pining for Austen, a wealthy recluse who wants nothing to do with him. The book is written in dual perspectives, featuring chapters from both the points of view of Mischa and Austen.
My favorite part of the book and the one I related most to was this yearning that Mischa had for Austen. One would say that Mischa is a hopeless romantic, far more than Austen, if you were to read the story. I can't say that I love to see characters suffer, but I think the writing and prose were excellent when it came to describing the way Mischa felt show more for Austen. Though some readers may characterize his actions as stalkerish, and I do agree up to a point, I feel as if he made his intentions known, and when it really came to the point when Austen became uncomfortable, he drew back. I loved it when Austen realized how much he had lost near the end and tried to go back to Mischa. I will say that I did dislike how annoying Austen was at times. He sent a lot of mixed signals to Mischa, so if I were Mischa, I'd be confused too. He definitely made the book a lot longer and more annoying than it could've been, but I guess part of that is the fun of reading romance, too.
What threw me off a bit was the type of relationship that Austen had with Will. In the first place, I always dislike it when authors throw in the twin trope to make the book more interesting, but it isn't completely irredeemable. What weirded me out was the way Will and Austen talked to each other, the pet names they gave, and the borderline incestuous relationship they had. I wouldn't go that far to say that they are in love with each other, and though I know that they went through a lot with just the two of them to support each other, it still is strange when they call each other "baby" and kiss each other a lot in front of friends. It was kind of like Austen had a dual yandere relationship with both Will and Mischa, being obsessed with him, Will in a very strange way that I hope is fixed by the end of the series.
Another thing that confused me was Isobelle and Sabrina. They are the fiancés of Will and Austen, but it seems like they have an open relationship while also being very deeply in love with each other to the point where the girls will look at no one else, but Will and Austen are allowed to mess around with anyone they'd like? The fact that Mischa brings up the possibility that Sabrina and Austen are siblings while also being each other's fiancés was not needed, as they kiss each other multiple times and make out in front of Mischa. Will also draws Sabrina naked, which feels wrong as they are not dating each other, and she is not a nude model. He also doesn't draw anyone else that way, even Kane, who is supposed to be his love interest in the second book of the series, which brings up a lot more questions about Isobelle and Sabrina and their role in the book. I think that they should've been completely scrapped, as they do nothing for the book but make it increasingly uncomfortable for me to read about them. They're also very annoying and do nothing to redeem themselves except show basic courtesy to Mischa. Mischa even says there's something about them that is scary. This is also the reason why Austen repeatedly refuses Mischa, but he doesn't seem to have a problem not being loyal to her either.
There is really no climax in the book, and only at the very end do we see any progress between Mischa and Austen's situationship. I know that this is meant to be a series, but I think it would've been better if we just wrapped it up in this book, or at least had a better conclusion and continued on to Will and Kane's romance without any questions needing to be asked. I don't believe that romance should go on for this long, and since there is nothing that keeps them from each other except Austen insisting so until the very end, where some information is revealed, I felt like I wanted to pull my hair out on that. It made me question the whole point of the story, if in the next book, they end up in the same place as they were here because of that new information. Though I do love Mischa, I don't love him enough to read another 400 pages of him trying to convince Austen to be together. I also kind of wanted Mischa to leave Austen in the dust multiple times in this book because Austen really does not deserve him.
There were a few spelling errors here and there with the main character's name, which should not happen as they are the main characters, so I would suggest to the author to proofread better for their next story.
I would not classify this book as dark romance, as though there are some darker themes like the mafia and trauma, neither of the main characters is even slightly morally gray. Their love, as depicted by Schreiber, is a very pure type of love, where neither wants more than the other reciprocating their feelings. It was a sweet story, but I'm not sure if I would want to continue to read the series and repeatedly be frustrated by some of the characters' actions. The author has so much potential, and I'd love to see their writing blossom and grow as they continue to improve. show less

There is a content warning in the beginning of the book:
This book series contains detailed and intense themes of survivorship and PTSD. Contains explicit language and on-page explicit content.
Depictions of violence, trauma and assault.
Absolutely not suitable for minors.

Then the author tells she hopes we will leave a good review, but a bad review is also fine. And if we decide not to read the book, we do not have to leave a review either.
This is important, because I, and some others, got the book in exchange for a review on LibraryThing.

The content warning is absolute right.
The first chapter is full of violence, assault and explicit language.
But if you read on, you will see amidst the violence and explicit language a story of troubled show more people.
You will see how people try to cope with what is done to them. And how other people react on that, with utter amazement and/or with tenderness.

I liked the book a lot. I did not always understand what happened. That is not my fault. Or the writer's fault either. It is the consequence of the fact that this is the first part of a series of five.
I have thought a lot about what might have happened, and when. To me this is a sign that I the book got me involved.

Nonetheless, I will not read the sequel: in the end the violence was too much for me.

O yes, and I hated the end of the book. show less

I initially was excited to read this, since while I don't love reading explicit content, I do really enjoy queer romance. What I didn't expect was just how "dark romance" this would be. I had to skip when the relations between the two main characters went a little too non-con for my tastes. After that, I couldn't really get into their relationship. I'm giving this three stars since otherwise the writing was pretty good and it was an interesting story. I'm sure this would be many people's "cup of tea" (especially with how obsessed booktok is with this kind of relationship. It just wasn't really for me.