Emily is a rising star in the country music industry. At ten years of age, she’s already made a name for herself. But whose dream is she following: hers or her mother’s. Her mother is quite controlling and there are times when Emily just has to escape. It is on one of these occasions, while visiting her Aunt Trish at Crystal Rock, that Emily decides to slip out and just go for a walk. It’s what she does when she has to think. Her walk leads her to Dragonfly Pointe where, since it’s winter, she notices a hockey game in progress on the frozen bay. She stays to watch and time runs away with her, but even though she knows her mother will be furious, Emily stays on and actually meets one of the players, Tim.

Even at the young age of ten, Emily has a sense that this Tim will play an important role in her life. But time and circumstances interfere for many years as Emily is pushed by her mother to pursue her performing career and Tim, after graduating from high school, joins the military and learns how to train service dogs. It’s not until Tim leaves the military and sets up his own dog training facility to train abandoned dogs to assist emotionally and physically injured war vets, and Emily is on one of her latest escape tactics to get away from her mother, that the two meet up for what will become an interesting beginning.

Tamara Ferguson is well-known for her gentle romances. This latest one, A Kiss Upon a Star, leads the reader on a simple plot that involves two very uniquely different individuals, until they finally find their place and their purpose, as well as each other. The story is a romance, pure and simple, with a somewhat predictable plot and very likeable characters. It makes for an easy, gentle read, one that will soothe the soul.

A Kiss Upon a Star: A Daydreams & Dragonflies Sweet Romance, Book 1 is a contemporary military romance written by Tamara Ferguson. Emily Richardson was a country music star by the age of ten, but her Aunt Trish worried about her niece, who seemed to only relax and have fun on her visits with her in Crystal Rock. Emily’s mom was determined that her daughter’s triumph as The Next American Star would not be a one-off. Hearing her mom and aunt quarrel over Emily’s childhood made her sad -- it meant her mom wouldn’t be letting her vacation with Aunt Trish anytime soon, and they’d probably cut this Christmas visit short as well. She decided to take a walk rather than listen to them debate about her life. She headed to Dragonfly Pointe where her aunt had taken her before and found a hockey game going on atop the iced-over Dragonfly Pointe Bay. She had never seen a game before and settled in to watch. When it was over, she began to worry, realizing it had gotten dark, and fearing that her aunt and mom would be worrying. Seeing her by herself in the stands, one of the players approached and offered to help. She couldn’t help but be astonished at this teenage boy talking to her -- he was so good-looking, and he introduced himself to her as though they were peers. Then he called her aunt for her, and he and his dad drove her home. This chance meeting made such an impact on the sheltered young girl, whose life had been so strictly supervised by her mom. Years later, they would meet again, and she still felt that same sense of wonder upon seeing him.

Tamara Ferguson’s sweet contemporary romance, A Kiss Upon a Star: A Daydreams & Dragonflies Sweet Romance, Book 1, is a lovely and warm story about a romance that was destined to be, even if it did take more than a few years to happen. I couldn’t help but feel for Emily whose youth is so strictly controlled by her domineering mother, especially as she attempts to halt time by making her daughter appear to be younger than she is. While I never did feel a lessening in my antipathy toward the controlling parent, I found Ferguson’s other characters to be authentic and caring individuals who I enjoyed getting to know. I’m familiar with Dragonfly Pointe from Ferguson’s other novels based in that locale, and, as with those other tales, found myself happily involved in the goings on in that most magical of places. Emily and Tim’s romance has plenty of obstacles in its way, but love this powerful has its way of getting around the largest stumbling points, especially in Crystal Rock. A Kiss Upon a Star: A Daydreams & Dragonflies Sweet Romance, Book 1 is a marvelous read and it’s most highly recommended.