The Brightest Star in the Sky: A Novel [Hardcover]

Marian Keyes (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 21, 2010

A wry and life-affirming novel from the internationally bestselling author

Marian Keyes's inimitable blend of rollicking humor, effervescent prose, and stories that deal with real-life issues have captivated readers around the globe. She is one of the bestselling authors of women's fiction in the English-speaking world. Her new novel will delight fans of Candace Bushnell's darkly comic sensibility and Sophie Kinsella's fast-paced action. The Brightest Star in the Sky follows seven neighbors whose lives become entangled when a sassy and prescient spirit pays a visit to their Dublin townhouse with the intent of changing at least one of their lives.

But what will this metamorphosis be and who will the sprite choose? There's Matt and Maeve, the newlyweds struggling to overcome the first obstacle in their storybook romance; Lydia, the brassy but vulnerable cabbie; Katie, the just-turned-forty PR executive searching for a more gratifying life; and the eldest resident, Jemima, currently playing hostess to her son Fionn, who is in town to star as the hunky gardener in a hot new television show.

Keyes's universal themes and appealing characters have made her an international phenomenon, and are sure to conquer a wider American audience. With The Brightest Star in the Sky, she delivers another satisfying story charming in its wit and surprising in its depth.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Keyes delivers a dizzying vertical view of the mismatched, mixed-up tenants of Dublin's 66 Star Street, friends and lovers who grow up, grow old and give way to their heart currents with help from a puckish sprite. This multitiered saga of Dubliners searching for the brightest star in the sky... the planet of love straddles slapstick and sophistication in an engaging balancing act both giddy and grand. Here's Katie, publicist, freshly 40, and her workaholic, commitment-phobic fella, Conall; newlyweds Maeve and Matt, who hide a violent and crippling secret that binds them and drives them apart; madcap, sassy Lydia, a taxi driver who juggles worries about her aging mom and an over-the-top passion (mixed with equal parts lust and disdain) for her sexy flatmate; plucked from nowhere hunk Fionn, who hopes to begin a TV career, and his psychic foster mom and her mean-as-a-snake dog who improbably helps bring all the sweet mayhem to a satisfying close. Keyes (This Charming Man) is an expert at weaving dark threads into cozy material, and in this ambitious outing, she's in top form. (Jan.)
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From Booklist

A mysterious spirit is hovering over the building at 66 Star Street in Dublin, and this spirit is on a mission to change someone’s life. The spirit, however, is unclear on whom this someone will be. It could be Matt and Maeve, the newlyweds suffering with a terrible secret. Or Lydia the cabbie, who rooms with two sullen Polish nationals and spends most of her time worrying about her mother. Or maybe Katie, the newly 40 PR person with a flash job and a flashier boyfriend but who is still unfulfilled. Or Jemima, the elderly psychic, currently hosting her adopted son, Fionn, while he auditions for a TV show. The spirit slides back and forth between floors, hiding in shoes and peeking at photographs, learning all it can about the Star Street residents, and in doing so unknowingly interlocks each person’s life with his or her neighbors’, whether they like it or not. While the premise may sound silly, popular Keyes expertly develops it to create genuinely human and believable characters within a substantial and gratifying story. --Hilary Hatton

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Hardcover: 480 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult; 1 edition (January 21, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670021407
• ISBN-13: 978-0670021406
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.6 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (76 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #432,287 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Marian Keyes lived in London for ten years before returning to her native Dublin. After receiving a law degree and studying accounting, she began writing short stories in 1993. She is the author of three previous novels--Watermelon, Lucy Sullivan Is Getting Married, and Rachel's Holiday--all major bestsellers around the world.