Counting Stars is a tragic love story between two teenagers with a focus on mental health, grief, the importance of companionship and the true power of love.
The outcome of this book was somewhat inevitable, but still as you read it you wish for a different ending. Told entirely from the perspective of Brantley Thornton, this is a story of young love, heartbreak, and tragic loss with trigger warnings of depression, physical abuse, and suicide. It follows Brantley Thornton as she grieves her late mother whilst preparing to take her own life to be with her amongst the stars. Her plan is set in motion as she counts down the days, until new-to-town Caspian Marks walks into her life, and chips away at her carefully constructed walls one “howdy neighbour” at a time.
I could go into great detail about the nuances of these characters, and the skill in which author Braelyn Wilson portrays them, but I knew very little going into this book, and I think that made all the difference. I was able to connect with the characters in my own way and with a book of this gravitas, I think that’s important.
The writing style takes some getting used to, it’s very formal, almost like an academic essay, and feels a little jumbled at first, but then you realise it is representative of the workings of narrator Brantley’s mind. It unified the narrator and the character Brantley, it’s so clearly her voice and her, she just takes some warming up to. It’s so consistent throughout and so immensely feeling at points, it’s completely immersive, and emotionally triggering. I have said it before and will say it again, any literature that can draw a physical response is worth praising.
I would like to commend the author Braelyn Wilson highly. For such a young writer, she has immense talent in the way she sees the world and can read people. Similar to the character Caspian Marks, her wisdom is well beyond her years, and she has an incredible and sensitive understanding the nuances of mental health, in particular depression, not succumbing to stereotypes or even glorifying/romanticising it. She also has a very clear and distinct voice that shines through the page, a real talent & certainly one to watch.
This book is at times painful, but also beautiful, and it will most definitely leave its mark.
Read Counting Stars if you love:
Soul Mates/True Love
Small Town Romance
Friends to Lovers
Mental Health Themes
Young Adult romance
Star Rating: 4/5
Fav Quotes:
‘Caspian Marks, you are already a somebody. You are designed to mean something, to be a somebody…you are a somebody. At least a somebody to me.’ – Brantley Thornton
‘I think fate sent me to save you.’ – Caspian Marks
‘I live in every word you say.’ – Caspian Marks
‘But you are the epitome of my perfect girl, and in my world, what I would consider perfect.’ – Caspian Marks
‘The odds are not in our favor? … The odds have always been in our favor, Brantley Thornton. Since the beginning. Do you know the chance of being born?... It’s one in four-hundred-trillion. Trillion! And yet, here we are, in the same tiny town in the middle of fucking nowhere…at the same time. In the same lifetime. And we’re the same age, for God’s sake, Brantley. We were always supposed to meet. We were always supposed to be. Can you not see that? Can you not see that the odds have always been in our favor.’ – Caspian Marks
‘Do you know how it feels to love someone you know you will lose, no matter what you do and no matter how hard you try to keep them…forever?’ – Caspian Marks
‘I will do anything to show you that you are loved.’ – Caspian Marks
‘I realized it was never about being remembered by all. It was always about being remembered and making a significant impact on those who you have loved, and those who loved you.’ – Caspian Marks
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