Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev (Act 1 of the Theatre Illuminata)

All her world’s a stage.

Bertie Shakespeare Smith is not an actress, yet she lives in a theater.

She’s not an orphan, but she has no parents.

She knows every part, but she has no lines of her own.

That is, until now.

Enter Stage Right

NATE. Dashing pirate. Will do anything to protect Bertie.

COBWEB, MOTH, MUSTARD SEED, and PEASEBLOSSOM. Four tiny and incredibly annoying fairies. BERTIE’S sidekicks.

ARIEL. Seductive air spirit and Bertie’s weakness. The symbol of impending doom.

BERTIE. Our heroine.

Welcome to the Théâtre Illuminata, where the actors of every play ever written can be found behind the curtain. They were born to play their parts, and are bound to the Théâtre by The Book—an ancient and magical tome of scripts. Bertie is not one of them, but they are her family—and she is about to lose them all and the only home she has ever known.

Lisa Mantchev has written a debut novel that is dramatic, romantic, and witty, with an irresistible and irreverent cast of characters who are sure to enchant the audience.

Open Curtain

I loved this book! In fact, I think I loved it that much that I have no complaints at all.

Usually I don't like reading hardback books because a) they are so dang expensive and b) they are just so hard to hold, You can't exactly curl up properly with a hardback. But this book converted me. First it was amazing and second it has such a gorgeous front cover and it just so pretty to look at.

This is the second time that I have read this as it was a re-read for this year because the third book will be coming out in September *happy fan dance*. One of the funny things about this book is that although I loved every page of it I can never explain the story line to someone when I try to tell them what it is about. On the surface it seems to simple but then when you get to the end you realise just how much has gone on.

Beatrice Shakespeare Smith (Bertie) is a fantastic heroine who comes into her own and doesn't need to be rescued. She gets herself into trouble and tries her best to get herself out of it again. She has such a colourful personality that jumped out at me and it came through reliantly in the way that she expresses herself. She is confident and witty, things I wish I had been as a teen.

Nate, a pirate from The Little Mermaid and Ariel, a spirit from The Tempest are great as corners to the obvious growing love triangle and their dislike for each other was fun to read. They also flesh out the story, giving another level to the story which made it that much more interesting to read as both of them clearly had their own feelings and issues.

The four fairies from A Midsummer Night's Dream - Peaseblossom, Cobweb, Moth and Mustard - had me laughing out loud more than once at their cheekiness, and they were great as Bertie's partners in crime and comic relief. Expect funny looks if you are reading this in a doctors waiting room.

The very idea of a theatre where every character from every play ever written is alive is such a fun concept but the twists and turns of the story line kept me reading from page to page and dying to know what was going to happen next and there was the added magic of the whole book being set within one building. A building that seems to be a character in itself.

5 out of 5!! And I can't wait to get my hands on the third book in September.

Oh, and on a side note I actually listened to about 75% of this book as an audio while driving. It was great. It isn't just one reader - oh no - it is a full cast of readers. With music to bridge scene changes and great readers for the parts. It brought a whole load of colour to thhis already fantastic book and I would love it if the other books in the series where recorded in the same way!