Book Tour! Beneath a Starless Sky by Tessa Harris

Review

Firstly, thank you to HQ for having me on the tour and giving me access to this book early so I could give an honest review.

My honest review is that I really enjoyed this book. It isn’t my usual kind of book – I was honestly drawn in by the cover and then when I read about the protagonist being a dancer it cemented my need to read it.

Beneath a Starless Sky was not what I expected at all! It is written like a biography to begin with but quickly escalates into a romance before spiraling into a spy novel. Tessa Harris really turned a number on me even though I had read the synopsis (which I think gives a little too much away)!

I loved the character of Lilli and the journey she takes through the narrative. Harris obviously puts herself in her character’s shoes – she writes as if she knows exactly how Lilli would feel and react – it all seemed very natural and none of it forced. Lilli’s Jewish heritage plays a huge part in the story and, as you can imagine in Nazi Germany, it is a driving force for her actions throughout the story. My heart broke for her with her romances and I urged her on when she decided to take action – choices which gave her a very three dimensional feel.

I would have liked more detail from her relationships – focus was given to events rather than this which is why my rating dropped slightly. Every conversation seemed to happen for a reason – I craved a bit of gossip to give me more insight into Lilli’s thoughts and feelings. In terms of historical setting however, Harris has cleverly used events to spring her readers forward, keeping Lilli involved in recognisable events and with famous names was ingenious in my opinion – without that I don’t think the story would have worked as well as it did.

So overall an enjoyable read which I know I can recommend to a few people. It surprised me with its depth and the encompassing of several genres which only appeared the more I read. It gave me film noir vibes all the way through which I loved! Lilli has so many layers that I want to encourage people to read!