Stars Collide

A Novel

By: Rachel Lacey

Narrated by: Quinn Riley

Length: 10 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

From Rachel Lacey, award-winning author of Read Between the Lines, comes a sexy slow-burn romance about two dynamic divas who collide on the world’s biggest stage.

Eden Sands has been a star for twenty years, but it’s lonely at the top. Her mediocre marriage just ended, and her inner circle is smaller than ever. The stage is the only place she’s ever felt like she truly belonged, and yet, her last album flopped, and her upcoming tour hasn’t sold out. Eden’s desperate for her star to shine bright again, but when her team suggests a collaboration with an up-and-coming young star to give her a boost, she balks.

Anna Moss is pop music’s rising star. She’s idolized Eden Sands for most of her life—so it’s a dream come true when she’s invited to perform with her at the Grammys. Anna’s tired of being defined by her bubbly persona. She wants to be taken seriously as an artist, and a duet with Eden could be just what she needs.

As Anna and Eden rehearse, they soon realize they have more in common than their musical talents. Now they just have to decide if what is between them is a one-hit wonder or the making of a romance worthy of one of the greatest love songs of all time.

©2023 Rachel Bates. (P)2023 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“A romance of self-discovery and exploration…”—Library Journal

“Utterly captivating! Stars Collide is deeply romantic, and the chemistry between Eden and Anna positively crackles, burning up the page. Rachel Lacey is a master of crafting vibrant, fully-drawn characters readers can’t help but love.”—Alexandria Bellefleur, bestselling & Lambda Award-winning author of Written in the Stars

“The trademark wit, sweetness, and warmth of Rachel Lacey's writing, showcased in a sparkling age-gap, celebrity romance, featuring charming prose, endearing characters and sexy repartee. A decade-old crush, a Grammy performance, and a surprise attraction are tantalizing top notes of Rachel's latest gift to her readers. Stars Collide deserves a standing ovation.”—Milena McKay, Lambda Award-winning author of The Headmistress

Great story...well narrated.

Loved this story until the unnecessary breakup. Really wish writers would allow adult people to act like adults instead of reverting back to teenage behavior for no good reason.

Coming Out/Coming of Age

I’m a no spoiler gal but I want to be sure I say that this is one of those NSFW books. Not all the time, just when it finally hits peak, so to speak.

It’s a truly enjoyable book. A quick read/listen. I gave it only 3 stars as it’s the same ol’ lesbian love story that is around all corners.

Loved this, great listen, great story

Loved everything about this book. The narrator is wonderful, and the story is so brilliant. I can listen to this over and over again.

great representation

I really loved this book! I read the physical book and listened along with the audio as well. The narrator, Quinn Riley, did an amazing job voicing all of the different characters.

I related so much to Eden. My heart ached for her as she struggled so much with her identity. I just wanted to reach through the book and give her a hug. Anna did a wonderful job of supporting Eden through everything. Their chemistry was off the charts!

Beautiful

I like how it unfolded to becoming equals and the story was beautiful in getting there

Stars In Love

Pop stars falling in love but with amazingly subverted tropes in the best ways possible. Highly recommend this story for the romance but not just the lovey dovey but also how each character builds up the other.

Loved this story.

It was really nice to have a story with such a healthy take on sexuality. Once I started this book I couldn’t stop listening.

This was a good one

Loved the storyline and all the things the author brought out. Throughly enjoyed this.

One of the best celeb romances in the genre!

I effing LOVED this audiobook! Yes - it's one of those that's so good that only swearing will do. In fact - I'm just going to say it - it belongs in the same conversation as my favorite audiobook of all time, Breaking Character by Lee Winter. Yes - I've gone there and no, I'm not exaggerating.

There isn't anything I didn't love about it. Celeb tropes are my favorite and this is one of the best I've read. The story is strong, the characters are well fleshed out and engaging, the leads are wonderful and memorable, it's uber romantic and very, very sexy.

When it ended I was on such a high, not knowing what I could possibly listen to after this. I strongly considered revisiting Breaking Character yet again (I have to listen to that at least once a year) but ultimately decided to start this all over again. I never do that. That's how much I didn't want to leave that world!

And the narrator Quinn Riley? Wow. Where has she been all my life?? People who read my reviews know I have high standards for narrators and this terrific story deserved a great one. It got it. Quinn has a great voice and performs the work beautifully. I realized after I wrote this that she co-narrated Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner so I have heard her work once before. In this book she gets to shine all on her own. I'm really impressed. How I hope she does more sapphic romance!

This audiobook has earned a place on my all-time favorites list. It's that good. More than five stars. Bravo, Rachel Lacey! Bravo.

Fairly easy listen

I picked this because it intrigued me and quite honestly because it was a great deal. It took me a while to start it , but once I did I listened pretty nonstop. I learned some new terms, but the main takeaway was that regardless of what you call it, you are going to love who you love, not always who you think you should love. Again you can label someone, but unless they find that one person they truly love, it doesn’t matter. I kept waiting for the, “other shoe to drop,” moment and it never really came. There was that “romance tested “ moment you usually get in almost every story, but this one was different and made this story unique. I recommend it if you want a different love story with two sweet main characters and a HEA. Good narration that kept the voices unique enough to tell apart and didn’t resort to stereotypes.