Nowhere Stars: Vol. 1

by Anemone, Bapho.s (illustrator)

Liadain never dreamed of being a hero.

Trapped in a failing body, she's learned to expect nothing from life except pain and disappointment. She knows better than to hope for a miracle.

When an unexpected savior offers her the power to become a Keeper, she's torn between the allure of survival and the fear that she’s just trading one pain-filled existence for another.

To Liadain’s horror, becoming a Keeper doesn’t cure her illness—it turns it into a weapon, one that will inevitably end her. Only by hunting fearsome Harbingers that feed on dreams, desires, and souls can she outpace her own deadly magic.

The Harbingers feed on pain… but her hunger may be even greater.

Nowhere Stars is a top 10 best-rated serialized light novel on Royal Road with thousands of followers and over half a million views. Now illustrated and professionally edited on Amazon and Audible!

Buy a copy or read free with Kindle Unlimited!

Genres: Horror, Light Novel, Fantasy

291 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 2, 2024

Reviews

[Patch · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an art project, this is basically 5 star material. It's essentially an alternate universe Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica fic. Has boys and girls instead of just girls. They're still incredibly young and given no direction, they go to fight beings that create pocket worlds with unknown and wacky rules, and they finish things off by absorbing the heart for power. It's nearly a 1:1 replica. Which is fine, everything ever written is some derivative of something somehow.


The problem I have is the story's logic and execution. Our protagonist is the most timidly passive person I've ever read as a main character. Her power is essentially an amalgamation of all four horsemen of the apocalypse. So of course she's actually the worst hunter of Harbingers right next to the kid with no real soul expression in her power in shining armor because they cheated somehow and got half a power. How can someone with no nuance, no versatility, no flexibility, just raw death-fated plague magic somehow be awful at killing things?

Until the very last fight she basically waits until she takes some form of injury of her own before even striking out with her power. Harbingers are apparently too intelligent to kill for a girl with raw death magic. So she goes to find the more mindless ones and after one bad experience swears off them forever. Her grand solution is to sacrifice people to Harbingers so she can cradle-rob them before they get strong enough to actually win against her.

All logic points to her being the very best most efficient Harbinger slayer, yet she does no research on them, looks up no tactics, develops no strategies, and when asking her Messenger for knowledge it somehow has never gleaned anything useful over the centuries of existence. That's insane. Even if the Messengers can't go inside Wounds surely they've talked to their Keepers to understand how Harbingers work.

We could blame most of this on our protagonist being 13 years old, however surely there's been enough time for a system to be worked out so that literal 13 year olds with godlike power aren't running around causing havoc, yet apparently not. Since when are 13 year olds with power and no supervision so well behaved?


And so, everything that's designed to be confusing (Harbinger Wound logic) actually kinda makes sense. While all the things designed to make sense (the characters and narrative) are entirely confusing in their logic. It scrapes together 3 stars for me on uniqueness alone, but I'd never deign to reread this when I have to suffer the lapse of narrative logic to enjoy the artistic side.

[Akshay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nowhere Stars: Vol. 1 - By Anemone

Anemone's Nowhere Stars: Vol. 1 is a captivating and haunting tale that delves into the depths of human suffering and the lengths one will go to escape it. This dark fantasy novel introduces us to Liadain, a young girl with a terminal illness who is offered a chance at survival, albeit at a terrible cost.

The world of Nowhere Stars is a bleak and unforgiving one, where the only way to survive is to become a Keeper, a warrior tasked with hunting down and defeating terrifying creatures known as Harbingers. Liadain's journey is a harrowing exploration of the consequences of power, the nature of evil, and the fragile line between sanity and madness.

What I Loved

Unique Worldbuilding: Anemone's creation of a world where hope is scarce and despair is the norm is both chilling and compelling. The Harbingers, in particular, are truly terrifying creatures that leave a lasting impression.
Compelling Protagonist: Liadain is a complex and relatable character. Her struggles with illness, fear, and the moral implications of her choices make her a compelling protagonist.
Dark and Twisted Themes: The novel tackles heavy themes such as death, suffering, and the nature of evil without shying away from their darker aspects.
Intense Action: The battles between Keepers and Harbingers are both thrilling and horrifying, showcasing Anemone's skill at crafting intense and visceral scenes.



Slow Pacing: While the world-building and character development are well-executed, the pacing can be slow at times, particularly in the early chapters.

Overall, Nowhere Stars: Vol. 1 is a highly recommended read for fans of dark fantasy and psychological thrillers. Its haunting atmosphere, compelling characters, and thought-provoking themes make it a truly unforgettable experience.

[Aaron Nagy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nowhere Stars is in that "dark" magical girl genre that got popularized somewhat recently, but where this one diverges a bit is I would argue in the multilayered discussion that the author does in a lot of the writing especially later on.

It has a good bit of the standard kinda tropes of the genre with gets more evil power, characters will die, monsters are way more horrible, complete with the monsters are a reflection of some bad aspect or spooky thing in society kind of deal. I'm probably not selling it very well, and the main character can be a bit of a downer for good reason.

But as the story and books go on you start realizing the double language the discussion within the discussion as the character learns more about the world they start asking questions they shouldn't and start piecing together things they have overheard and putting them in new context.

This webnovel updates extremely slowly probably in part because of the care the author puts into exactly what is being said in everyline and it really shows especially when things get more complicated later.

[Jeff R Hawkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Um. Just - wow.

Reading this book got me so excited about reading books and thinking about writing one for real.
I don't know if I can explain the concept I want to tell you about this book, but here goes.
Have you read any high fiction? Classic stories by the greats of 50 to 100 years ago? Kafka? How about Vonnegut? Bohumil Hrabel? Beatnik fiction? Burroughs? Well this has some of the same feel at times that those authors create. At least to me. But it is very much a modern fantasy story at the same time.
I'm not saying it's in the same league. It's not. But it does have a bit of that feeling. I am envious. I want to write a story like that. Maybe someday. Meanwhile, I'll just find and read the next volume.

[James Riley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good, but not for everyone

I liked this book. I actually wanted to really like this book, but I just couldn't. About 70% is really good. Well crafted and with (mostly) likable characters. About 20% is good, but it is not as good as the majority of the book. The final 10% is where the problem arises. There are a few parts that the perspective or time frame changes and can be a bit jarring. So, this book might not be for everyone.

Recommended, but only if you are into light novels.

[Tristan Severs · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is Madoka plus Graceful Wicked Masques.

[D · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cruel visceral raw disgusting self-loathing misery alienation ostracization and so on. Everything I wanted in my mahou shoujo.

I love it and I am grateful that the author exists.