The new Star Wars Young Adult novel, Eyes Like Stars, brings pure romance to the galaxy far, far away in a heartwarming story that still feels uniquely Star Wars.
Eyes Like Stars: A Star Wars Romance Novel
Written By: Ashley Poston
Published By: Random House Books
Release Date: July 21, 2026
Purchase [Affiliate]: https://amzn.to/45bvY3f
One of the more exciting things about the current era of Star Wars books, is how they’re expanding into other genres. Not just dabbling here and there, but going whole hog into new story territory whilst keeping the Star Wars setting. This month brings the first of this newest experiment (with a middle-grade horror book coming in September) with Eyes Like Stars.
This marks the first full-on romance novel in the franchise. Yes, we’ve had books like Lost Stars (excellent) and The Princess and the Scoundrel (also excellent) that one could reasonably make the case for being close to the romance genre. In fact, that was my first thought when they announced this book during last year’s NYCC.
Having read the book, there’s no doubt that this is definitely different. Eyes Like Stars is, top to bottom, a full-on romance novel. It’s the driving factor in the plot and character motivations, even as it brings together some classic Star Wars action and vibes. Let’s dive into it a little more!
Set just a year and a half (or so) before The Force Awakens, the story puts the focus on Ardent Quay. The 18-year-old is the daughter of a successful starship tour captain and has largely grown up entirely on board the Starfarer.
Told entirely in first-person from her perspective, we follow her as they embark on their latest excursion; a trip that will take them to various, historically important planets (Tatooine, Naboo, Geonosis, etc). Part cruise/vacation and part expedition, the tour is about capturing the history of the war between the Empire and Rebellion to eager passengers. Something that seems more important than ever as rumors of the First Order’s expansion beyond the outer rim is quickly growing.
Ardent’s quick trip to an antique shop on Coruscant finds her mixed up with the rougish Sian, who’s on the run from the First Order. They want the object he’s carrying and will stop at nothing to get it. Ardent’s quick thinking saves them on the planet, but leaves her with a stowaway aboard the Starfarer and a bounty on her head. It gets even more complicated as her brother, Val, who took on years ago mysteriously returns.
Between dealing with Val’s sudden re-appearance—and suspicious reticence about his past—along with keeping Sian hidden out of the way, keeping up with her normal duties with the Starfarer guests, and questioning her future aboard the ship…Ardent has a lot going on. That’s not to mention the growing romantic feelings she has for Sian that can’t be denied.
When she finds herself stranded and on the run (again) from the First Order, she’ll have to work alongside the mysterious Sian in order to make it back home, and possibly save her family/ship in the process.
There’s much more that goes on in the book (which comes in around 400 pages), but I’m keeping things vague to avoid spoilers. Suffice it to say it works like a galaxy-trotting adventure. It keeps the stakes relatively low, but enough to keep you curious and turning the pages. The original characters do a great job of standing out, but the story finds a way to loop in some unexpected cameos that end up being a lot of fun.
Ultimately, Eyes Like Stars feels like those Hallmark romance flicks (of which I have seen many). This may sound like a dig, but I actually mean it in a positive way. The story may be fairly straightforward and isn’t interested in throwing you curve balls, but the character interactions/chemistry and lighthearted nature are endearing in their own ways. It may not dramatically shake up the Star Wars galaxy, but will leave you with a warm heart and big smile on your face.
I don’t see this as a bad thing. Even though I admit it’s not a book I would normally pick up if not for the Star Wars connection, there’s no denying the enjoyment I had reading it. Again, much like when I get inexplicably sucked into watching a Hallmark movie.
Poston’s writing style has a lot to do with this. Despite coming in with a fairly hefty page count, I flew through this book. She brings a breeziness to her prose that allows for plenty of information—and emotion—to be conveyed in a quick, flowing manner. It doesn’t bog things down with a bunch of exposition, which means I always ended up reading way more than I thought, every time I picked it up.
As for the romance element it itself, I’m gonna stick with the Hallmark movie analogy. This is both good and bad. Good in that it feels legitimately heartwarming and when the big smooching moment(s) happen they feel well earned and worth cheering for. There are, of course, some typical tropes thrown in—stranded with only one bed?!—but come with fun twists due to the Star Wars setting.
The down side in this Hallmark analogy is that Eyes Like Stars feels relatively…safe. I’m not saying it needed to be “spicy” or anything, but it felt like it took a while before it got fully into the swing of things. We’re well past the halfway point before these characters finally acknowledge feelings for one another. By the time they’re actually accepting/doing something about it, they’re wrapped up in the other aspects of the story as things hurtle to the end.
Ultimately, it doesn’t feel like you get the actual relationship side of things from the romance. The moments of them simply enjoying one another’s company are fleeting. That’s not to say they don’t share a lot of great scenes together, but there’s a lot of build-up/pining without as much payoff…if that makes sense. I’m not the biggest romance reader, so I could be way off here, but “safe” feels like the best descriptor here.
Safe isn’t necessarily bad, but I was hoping they’d push a little bit more. Especially since I found the “genre first, Star Wars second” approach to the story works really well. Much better than I think most fans would have imagined, and it has me even more excited to see what they conceive of down the line with this new line of books.
Namely, it makes the characters for more relatable than ever before. I was surprised at how much I really enjoyed seeing references to normal, every day, human stuff. Witnessing Ardent think on such mundane things as her appearance in the mirror, the reality of puberty, and even just what she plans on eating was refreshing in a way I didn’t know I needed.
It makes these characters feel like people we’d meet/interact with in our own world, despite the fact they’re traveling through space with aliens. And even though we visit multiple planets in the book, this approach gave the story a more grounded feel to it without sacrificing those elements that make Star Wars, Star Wars.
All in all, Eyes Like Stars is a delightful story. It has heart and humor in spades, while leaving you wistful and with a smile on your face. While I wish the romance stuff had been a little more in depth, it feels like a solid entry in this new storytelling approach. It’s not going to be for everyone, and that’s okay. That’s the exciting part of this new genre endeavor.
