A hypnotic novel about love, guilt and forgiveness. If you loved Everything is Beautiful and Everything Hurts by Josie Shapiro, you will adore The Stars Are a Million Glittering Worlds.

Thea, a young woman crushed by guilt, flees to Central America to escape her life in New Zealand.

In Guatemala, she meets the charismatic Chris and his partner, Sarah, and the three of them form a tight bond. While the rest of the world is caught in the grip of the global financial crisis, the three friends find a false reality in the backpacker party town of San Pedro. Surrounded by the dark volcanic beauty of the Guatemalan highlands, Thea starts to come to terms with her past. But everything changes when a tragedy occurs.

Knowing she has to leave Central America, but not ready to return home, Thea settles in Tasmania and into a new relationship. Bonded by grief, she and her partner make a life for themselves in Hobart. But years later, when tragedy strikes again, all Thea's old grief and guilt - together with unanswered questions - come to the surface. Against the backdrop of the pandemic and lockdowns, Thea begins to question the trust she has in her partner. She realises that if she wants to know the truth, she will need to come clean about her past.

'An engrossing plot, fully imagined characters, and beautifully observed settings. Butson gently guides the reader on a journey marked by pain, secrets and guilt to a place of forgiveness, acceptance and peace. A stunning debut.' - Laurence Fearnley

Details

ISBN13: 9781991142320
Format: Paperback / softback
Number of Pages: 320
Edition:
Publication Date: 15 Jul 2025
Publisher: Allen & Unwin Aotearoa New Zealand
Publication City, Country: New Zealand
Dimensions (cm): 23.4(H)x15.3(L)392
Weight (gm): 392

Author Biography

Gina Butson has worked as a lawyer and as an advisor in the public sector. She completed her MA in Creative Writing at the International Institute of Modern Letters (IIML) in 2023, and her short fiction has been published in Newsroom, Salient and Turbine / Kapohau. Gina won the Salient Creative Writing competition and was Highly Commended in the Sargeson Prize in 2024. She has been awarded a 2026 residency at the Robert Lord Writers Cottage.

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