Body of Stars: Searing and thought-provoking - the most addictive novel you'll read all year

Body of Stars is a debut novel by Laura Maylene Walter that explores the dreams and nightmares of girlhood, featuring a bold and dazzling exploration of fate and female agency in a world where women own the future but not their own bodies. Celeste Morton holds a map of the future in her skin, and her brother, Miles, has always considered her his practice ground. When Celeste's marks change, she learns a devastating secret about her brother's future, and she must keep it to herself. Body of Stars is an urgent read about what happens when women are objectified and violently stripped of choice, and what happens when they fight back. It is part allegory, part warning, and part celebration of the female body.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 368 pages
Publication date: 14 July 2022
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton General Division

We have a new literary sensation on our hands! The Handmaid's Tale, an exciting new literary voice with a dazzling imagination, has captured the hearts of readers worldwide. EMMA KENNEDY, in her review, describes the book as "compelling, menacing, and ultimately uplifting." SARAH WARD praises it as "rapturously written and wildly original," while EMILYY SCHULTZ calls it "a gift." ANNE VALENTE praises the author's bold and dazzling exploration of fate and female agency in a world where women own the future but not their own bodies.

Like every woman, Celeste Morton holds a map of the future in her skin, every mole and freckle a clue to unlocking what will come to pass. With puberty comes the changeling period, when her final marks will appear and her future is decided. The possibilities are tantalizing enough for Celeste's excitement to outweigh her fear. Changelings are sought-after commodities, and abduction is rife as men seek to possess these futures for themselves. Celeste's marks have always been closely entwined with her brother, Miles. Her skin holds a future only he, as a gifted interpreter, can read, and he has always considered his sister his practice ground. But when Celeste's marks change, she learns a devastating secret about her brother's future that she must keep to herself—and Miles is keeping a secret of his own. When the lies of brother and sister collide, Celeste determines to create a future that is truly her own.

Body of Stars is an urgent read about what happens when women are objectified and violently stripped of choice—and what happens when they fight back. Part allegory, part warning, and part celebration of the female body, this is a thrilling and feminist exploration of power, identity, and the human spirit. Don't miss out on this must-read novel that is sure to leave you thinking and feeling inspired.

Weight: 260g
Dimension: 196 x 128 x 24 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781529349214