3.5 out of 5 stars.

"Avicenna Crowe's mother is missing.

The police suspect foul play. Joanne is an astrologer, predicting strangers' futures from their star charts. Maybe one of her clients had a bad reading?"

I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would, to be honest. I loved the astrology aspect of it and enjoyed reading about the different readings Avicenna and her mother did for the various people in the book. Because Joanne disappeared without warning, it was thought that maybe one of the last readings she did could contain information that would help Avicenna and the police locate her. I liked that all the characters were completely different, with different attitudes and temperaments. No one person was anything like another, which kept it interesting. Avicenna had a huge chip on her shoulder, but I think it was understandable given the way she was treated (she was in a fire when she was younger and her face was quite scarred, and people can be very cruel). Simon started out as one thing and evolved into another, which kept him interesting.

The plot was interesting, and the pacing was pretty good, although it did drag a bit at times when information on all the side characters was given, but it wasn't too much of a hindrance. The ending was left open, which is a bit frustrating in a standalone book, but it wasn't really a cliff hanger. I just felt confused at the end.

All in all, I enjoyed more about this story than I didn't, so I'm giving this book 3.5 out of 5 stars.

*** I would like to thank NetGalley, Text Publishing Company, and Rebecca Lim for the opportunity to read and review this book. ( )

Complex YA crime set in Australia. Themes of racism, grief, mother/daughter relationship, astrology, poverty. ( )

The Astrologer's Daughter by Rebecca Lim was not the book I expected it to be. This is partly because I intentionally try to forget blurbs for ARCs after I decide to read them and partly because I didn't really have a clear idea of what to expect anyway, and also that purple cover.

Avicenna Crowe’s mother, Joanne, is an astrologer with uncanny predictive powers and a history of being stalked. Now she is missing.The police are called, but they’re not asking the right questions. Like why Joanne lied about her past, and what she saw in her stars that made her so afraid.
But Avicenna has inherited her mother’s gift. Finding an unlikely ally in the brooding Simon Thorn, she begins to piece together the mystery. And when she uncovers a link between Joanne’s disappearance and a cold-case murder, Avicenna is led deep into the city’s dark and seedy underbelly, unaware how far she is placing her own life in danger.

I probably would have been less surprised by the book if I'd read the blurb, but on the other hand, the blurb is not entirely accurate either. Avicenna's mother disappears and the story opens with her calling the police. Most of the book is about her dealing — emotionally and practically — with her mother's disappearance. A few other things happen along the way, albeit mostly as a consequence of being left motherless.

The police in this book were helpful and did all the right things. I liked that they weren't just another set of antagonists and that Avicenna set up a rapport with her main liaison and came to think of him as a bit of a father figure. While Avicenna makes a few poor decisions, they're mostly of the not wanting to answer her phone variety, which was understandable and much less frustrating to read about than some YA protagonists.

Interestingly this book did not exclusively contain YA issues. Avicenna does have to deal with losing her mum at a young age but she also gets caught up in her mother's unfinished business, including a twenty-year-old unsolved rape and murder. Her sort-of friend, Simon, also has to deal with some pretty heavy issues, which I won't elaborate on because spoilers. It was a book that sucked me in straight away and one that I didn't want to put down, but it wasn't a fun book. That's not to say I didn't enjoy reading it, but it's not a book I'd recommend for some light escapist reading. Just saying.

Also, it's set in Melbourne with Avicenna and friends in year 12 at a thinly-disguised well-known high school. She lives in Chinatown and the descriptions of the CBD were excellent. As someone who's spent most of their life living in Melbourne (albeit not in the CBD), I found it really easy to visualise exactly where she went, even when the precise place (like her home) was fictional. On a related note, it also brought up some racial issues in passing, which lent authenticity to the book from my perspective although I suspect some nuances might be lost on international readers not familiar with Australia's migrant history.

I really enjoyed The Astrologer's Daughter. It grabbed me even though I didn't realise I was in the mood for that sort of book. It's a nice mix of crime and contemporary fantasy and pretty light on the fantasy front (only the astrology, really). In many ways, I found myself thinking of it as a stealth crime novel. Avicenna doesn't set out to solve any crimes, only to deal with her own life problems, but the solutions find her anyway.

I highly recommend The Astrologer's Daughter to fans of YA of the contemporary, speculative and/or crime genres. It was a gripping book and certainly my favourite of Lim's that I've read.

4.5 / 5 stars

Read more reviews on my blog. ( )

The Astrologer’s Daughter by Rebecca Lim is a young adult mystery novel. Avicenna Crowe is eighteen and still in high school. Her mother, Joanne Nielsen Crowe has been missing for over twenty-eight hours. She left no note for Avicenna. Joanne had predicted something would happen to her, but she was never specific with her daughter. Joanne is an astrologer (she does charts for people) and she is always right. Joanne has never told Avicenna much about her past. Avicenna sets out to find her mother with the help of Simon Thorn (from school). Avicenna finds a connection to between her mother’s disappearance and a murder that was never solved. Avicenna will find out secrets about her mother and their family. Avicenna will also find out if she has inherited her mother’s abilities.

I, personally, did not enjoy reading this novel. It reminded me of (please excuse this imagery) verbal vomit from a teenager (book is written in the first person). She started talking and kept rambling (on and on and on). I could not wait for this book to end. I give The Astrologer’s Daughter 1 out of 5 stars. It was a confusing book (the missing mom, astrology, murder) with a lot of astrology terms regarding charts, rising moons, and planet alignments (and much, much more). The book also contained the normal teenage angst about school, looks, and romance. This book sounded so good, but I was very disappointed.

I received a complimentary copy of The Astrologer’s Daughter from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The review and opinions expressed are my own. ( )

Full review to come! ( )