Story time: I started "The Name of the Star" three times before finally getting through it from beginning to end. Originally I just figured I wasn't committed/patient enough, but now that I'm finished I can FINALLY confirm that nope, it wasn't me, the book just isn't that good. 
 It's easier for me to point out what I DIDN'T like rather than what I did, so I'll start with that. 
 1) It's boring. 
 I'm sorry, I thought this was supposed to be a ghost story, so WHY THE HELL does nothing happen until more than a third of the way into the book?? For the longest time I felt like I was reading a contemporary fiction about a girl's experience at a boarding school in England... and trust me, it really isn't that exciting. I'm talking long-ass descriptions about high school "mean girls," PE class, and a flat/useless love interest. Sure, there's the occasional talk about the Ripper murders and the "suspicious" lack of evidence at the crime scenes, but this is stale news to the reader. We know from the book description that the murderer is a ghost, so to us it takes an eternity for Rory to catch on. It reminded me of "Hush Hush" and its cover that SHOUTS "fallen angel," and how it takes Nora half the book to put the pieces together. Ugh. I don't know if I should blame the writer or the book designers, but pleaseeee never do this to your readers. 
 Even after Rory finds out the murderer is a ghost, the action STILL doesn't pick up. The first time I ever did a double take while reading was on page 220-something, and after that the action slumped YET AGAIN. The last 50 pages? Yes, I'll admit that they were pretty damn entertaining, but a 370 page book should NEVER take that long to get there. By page 270-ish, I just wanted to be done already. 
 2) The writing isn't immersive at all. 
 Cassandra Clare, author of my favorite book series, is quoted on the cover of "The Name of the Star" calling it "a gorgeously written, chilling, atmospheric thriller." I'm disappointed to say this couldn't be farther from the truth. I didn't fall in love with the English setting or dream to be whisked away to Rory's world of pubs and underground tunnels. If anything, the English setting was frustrating because it felt like an excuse for piles and piles of more useless information. It would be one thing if I could FEEL the environment and the magic and beauty of England (*coughcough* like in Cassandra Clare's Infernal Devices series), but instead I felt like the writing was trying too hard to constantly remind us of the setting. 
 3) The characters fall flat. 
 Jerome, Rory's supposed "love interest," is possibly the most useless character ever. He's flat (what do we really know about him aside from the fact that he likes journalism/mystery and Rory?) and has no real contribution to the plot other than occasionally distracting Rory from her "shitty" life by making out with her. That's it. 
 Rory is also extremely flat; if you asked me to describe her personality, I would start with, "Well... she's from Louisiana?" Seriously. That's all we know about Rory. Oh, that and the fact that she has a bunch of weird relatives, and you'll remember this tidbit because you're "treated" to countless anecdotes about these useless relatives and their completely unrelated stories. Was this an attempt to make Rory appear more charming and fleshed out? Who knows. 
 The only people I remotely liked in this book were the squad members (the people who hunt the ghosts). I feel like Callum, Boo, and Stephen were on the cusp of greatness, but they still fell short. Stephen is without a doubt the most intriguing and fleshed out of them all, and his attitude and backstory would be the ONLY reason I go on to read the sequels. 
 (view spoiler)[ And of course freaking Jo dies. Or disappears/goes boom or whatever you want to call it. Of COURSE. UGH. (hide spoiler)] 
 4) There's so much wasted potential. 
 The following con involves specific parts of the plot (including the ending), so avoid reading if you want to stay spoiler-free. 
 (view spoiler)[I kept feeling disappointed again and again by each "big" reveal in this book. When Callum pulled out a cell phone and hit two buttons to eliminate the ghost, I was thinking, "You've got to be kidding me." The terminus idea is interesting, I guess, but it was kind of disappointing after all the build up about fighting ghosts. The backstory of the murderer is also SUPER rushed. The dynamics of a murder-suicide are very delicate/complex with multiple layers and details, so I was disappointed that this bombshell of a reveal occurred so late in the book and all at once. Apparently that was the one piece of information that they needed to solve the whole damn mystery. Also, of all the ways that Rory could have her brush with death, the author chose choking??? Really??? (hide spoiler)] 
 Overall, I was largely disappointed with this book and I'm relieved to be done with it. I gave it two stars because the premise was promising, the last 50 pages were entertaining, and one word: Stephen. Everything else? Blah.