The Stars We Share
From the time they meet as children, Alec and June share a special connection. Over the years their bond grows and intensifies until Alec proposes marriage, June accepts, and the course of their lives is set. But is it really?
World War II calls Alec to fight as a pilot. While he’s off serving his country (England), the super-intelligent, mathematically minded June gets the opportunity to do her part. Her work, decoding the enemy’s encrypted messages for the nation’s intelligence agency, is top secret, however, and she must never tell a soul about it – not even Alec. The penalty, if she does, is prison or worse. Since Alec is away, first in battle and then, after his capture, in prison camps, the ruse isn’t hard to pull off. But years later, as they’re bringing up a child, part of her secret comes out, and the marriage suffers.
The Stars We Share is a novel about marriage and what it means, including whether we can really ever know another person. (No, we cannot.) It’s well written, with many gorgeous turns of phrase, and the characters are well drawn and complex.
But this debut novel needs a stronger editing hand. The plot sags in the middle, and it’s repetitive – for instance, we read too many times of June’s worries over having to keep secrets from Alec. The conflict feels a bit contrived, as well: is Alec really so selfish that he would blame June for keeping her oath to her country?
These are minor flaws in a lovely love story – just like the flaws in June and Alec’s relationship. Their love is worth the work, and, for the reader, the joy of spending time with June alone makes The Stars We Share a more than worthy read.
