International bestselling author Anna Todd returns with a gripping novel about a young woman's journey towards love, and the obstacles life throws up at every turn. Karina knows the harsh realities of military life. And like anyone who has grown up around an army base, she knows the background noise that follows a soldier home from war. That's why she's forging her own quiet life in her own little house. But she hasn't turned her back on her family. She's the glue that holds them together-when her father is deployed, when her brother, Austin, has another brush with the law. Karina knows that she has to look after herself, that she can't always fix what's broken. But when Austin's behavior worsens and her father's reactions grow more extreme, Karina feels her own edges beginning to fray. That's when she meets him-a closed book she's desperate to open. At just twenty, Kael is a handsome, brooding soldier struggling with the aftermath of two tours in Afghanistan. He's emotionally damaged and closed off. Quiet doesn't begin to describe him. But as Karina gets used to his stable presence, she finds it hard to ignore the way he makes her feel. In their time together, she finds the stillness she has always wanted and never found. She lets down her guard. And she lets herself fill in the blanks about this mysterious man. But illusions quickly made are quickly shattered. That's when Karina has to find her own courage-to untangle the truth from the lies, and decide what she's going to do about it. A riveting story about love and lies, The Brightest Stars will stay with you long after the last page has been turned.

A bond this strong can’t stay broken. Life near the army base at Fort Benning, Georgia, might be small, but it’s safe. That suits Karina Fischer just fine. She knows letting anyone get close to her means she could get hurt, and she’s had enough of that in her almost twenty-one years to last a lifetime. The only man she’s ever let in, Kael Martin, betrayed her trust before they could find their way together. She can’t forgive him for what he’s done, but letting go still feels impossible. Kael Martin’s scars run deep, but the mark Karina left on him is deeper. He can’t get her out of his mind or his heart. He’s ready to start fresh, adjust to civilian life, and build a future outside of the Army―one he hopes could include Karina, because their spark, while it burned, was unforgettable. Now, just when it seems their world is crumbling and can’t be put back together, circumstances force them to confront what they can’t deny: the volatile, passionate, all-consuming love they can’t live without. Karina and Kael's unlikely love story, which began in THE FALLING, grows deeper and even more intense in THE BURNING, the second book in the Brightest Stars trilogy.

The heart-wrenching conclusion to the epic Brightest Stars trilogy from New York Times bestselling author Anna Todd Karina and Kael have been trying to make it work for as long as they’ve been together. The two broken souls have a lot of individual healing to do before they’ll be able to find happiness anywhere, never mind with each other. As the world around them starts to crumble, Kael is consumed by the darkness of his PTSD, and Karina struggles to overcome her anxiety, which is at an all time high. Then someone from their past returns to invade their lives and wreak havoc on the fragile peace they’ve created. If they’re going to have the future they dream of, they’ll have to commit to fighting this battle together.