title: Stars So Sweet
author: Tara Dairman

publication date: July 19, 2016
publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers

When Tara emailed to say her publisher was sending me a copy of Stars So Sweet to review, I must say, I had a major case of the bittersweets – on one hand, I was super excited to dive into another Gladys Gatsby adventure … but on the other hand, I knew it was the final book in this fun little trilogy, which meant that it was the LAST Gladys Gatsby adventure.

I had really enjoyed the first two books in the series (click on these links to read my reviews of All Four Stars here and The Stars of Summer) and was kind of hoping that this would become a long-running series. But, we can’t always have our cake and eat it too, so when my copy arrived, I grabbed a couple of cookies, made a cup of tea and settled in for a final visit with the gang in East Dumpsford.

In this last instalment, Gladys, our intrepid young food-lover and restaurant critic, decides that it’s time to admit to her parents and her editor that she’s the real ‘G. Gatsby’ behind the well-received restaurant reviews that have been published in the country’s biggest newsppaper, the New York Standard.

However, Gladys’ plans to come clean get sidetracked when her beloved aunt Lydia arrives from Paris with a crisis of her own. Gladys must now deal with confessing her parents, helping Aunt Lydia with her personal problems, holding off a face-to-face meeting with her editor, PLUS navigating the intimidating new world of middle school.

To make matters worse, her parents have limited her kitchen time to once a week AND her kind-of crush, Hamilton Herbertson (who just happens to be a best-selling author) hasn’t even bothered to email or call her since their date. What’s a girl to do?

Although it sounds like Gladys is dealing with A LOT, our little heroine plucks her way through with only a mis-step (or two). Don’t get me wrong, it’s not always smooth sailing (I was kind of glad to see she struggles with baking macarons in the kitchen too!) and it definitely reminds me of how confusing and intimidating middle school can be!

The usual cast of characters are all back for this last book – her reliable friends (Parm, Charissa and Sandy), her parents (who are finally trying out more than take-out and microwave dinners), her crush Herbert and the other adults in Gladys’ world (her editor Fiona, the gourmet grocer Mr. Eng and of course, her aunt Lydia).

Stars So Sweet author, Tara Dairman (photo credit: Tiffany Crowder @ Crowded Studios)

Book three wraps up most of the storylines – Will Gladys come clean as the Standard’s popular restaurant critic? Will Aunt Lydia stay in New York? – but also sets up some gentle open-ended questions to leave the reader imagining what the rest of Gladys’ school years will be like – Will Herbert become her boyfriend? Will her parents let her back into the kitchen regularly? Will Charissa’s unrequited crush ever find out?

Oh, by the way, that last question up there? About Charissa? That was a twist in the story that I didn’t really expect, but felt very natural and I thought it was a nice way to introduce children to a complicated issue. If you’re wondering what the heck I’m talking about… I guess you’ll just have to read the book to find out!

So, there it is – the final book in the All Four Stars trilogy. To say I’m sad about waving goodbye to Gladys Gatsby is a bit of an understatement. Even though these books are technically for the middle-school crowd, I definitely enjoyed them immensely and highly recommend them to all young foodies and young-at-heart foodies alike.

The author, Tara, was nice enough to sit down and answer some questions for me not once, but TWICE! You can check out her Author Q&A’s from 2014 and 2015.

Click here to purchase Stars So Sweet from The Book Depository (free worldwide shipping) or Amazon.

To celebrate the launch of Stars So Sweet, a group of bloggers (including yours truly!) are taking part in a Blog Tour – lots of Gladys Gatsby sweetness, including reviews, recipes, interviews and giveaways! Here are the other stops for the Blog Tour:

• Dahlia/The Daily Dahlia – Blog Tour: Stars So Sweet by Tara Dairman
• Lucy/The Reading Date – Blog Tour: Stars So Sweet by Tara Dairman | Review and Series Giveaway
• Michael/Middle Grade Mafioso – Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: Stars So Sweet by Tara Dairman
• Katie/Bookish Illuminations – Stars So Sweet Blog Tour & Giveaway: A Delicious Finale!
• Brenda/Log Cabin Library – Stars So Sweet by Tara Dairman Blog Tour
• Aeicha/Word Spelunking – Stars So Sweet Blog Tour {review & giveaway}
• Karen/For What It’s Worth – Stars So Sweet by Tara Dairman Blog Tour: Review & Series Giveaway!
• Sylvia/A Baked Creation – Blog Tour: Stars So Sweet by Tara Dairman
• Jen/Pop Goes the Reader – Child’s Play Review: Stars So Sweet by Tara Dairman
• Jenn/Creative Spaces – A Peek at the Creative Space of Tara Dairman

Disclosure: I received a copy of The Stars of Summer from the publisher for review purposes. I did not receive any financial compensation for writing this post and the post was not reviewed by the publisher prior to publication. All opinions expressed are my own. Please read my disclosure policy for more information.

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