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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This is an emotional journey for the emo kids who have grown into emo adults. Our wardrobes may have changed, but our love for the music remains.
Through a magical CD player and a genuinely epic playlist, our FMC, Sam, is allowed a glimpse into what her life would have been like if she had just let her best friend, Damon, kiss her. What follows is a heartfelt, emo-music-drenched second chance for love and family that’ll make you want to call your loved ones and dig out your skinny jeans.
I loved this new, unique take on time travel and how it allowed Sam to explore how her life unfolded and her feelings towards her childhood friend Damon. The flashbacks could be a bit cringe because I related to some of her questionable clothing choices a little too hard. Still, ultimately, they were well-paced and allowed the story to play out alongside her reconnecting with adult Damon. My one complaint is the use of emotional cheating and the fact that Damon had a girlfriend when Sam came back into town. I questioned whether I could finish the book once this premise was revealed, and its eventual resolution felt anti-climactic.
The Backtrack is a nostalgic love letter to a time that feels both distant and yet as if it was only yesterday. If you were anything like me, rocking studded belts, dying of dehydration and sun exposure at Warped Tour, and emulating Avril Lavigne, you’ll love this second-chance romance for friends to strangers to lovers, Sam and Damon.
The Backtrack includes time travel, flashbacks, magical realism, second chances, childhood friends to lovers, one bed, family troubles, a small town, and a grand gesture.
Through a magical CD player and a genuinely epic playlist, our FMC, Sam, is allowed a glimpse into what her life would have been like if she had just let her best friend, Damon, kiss her. What follows is a heartfelt, emo-music-drenched second chance for love and family that’ll make you want to call your loved ones and dig out your skinny jeans.
I loved this new, unique take on time travel and how it allowed Sam to explore how her life unfolded and her feelings towards her childhood friend Damon. The flashbacks could be a bit cringe because I related to some of her questionable clothing choices a little too hard. Still, ultimately, they were well-paced and allowed the story to play out alongside her reconnecting with adult Damon. My one complaint is the use of emotional cheating and the fact that Damon had a girlfriend when Sam came back into town. I questioned whether I could finish the book once this premise was revealed, and its eventual resolution felt anti-climactic.
The Backtrack is a nostalgic love letter to a time that feels both distant and yet as if it was only yesterday. If you were anything like me, rocking studded belts, dying of dehydration and sun exposure at Warped Tour, and emulating Avril Lavigne, you’ll love this second-chance romance for friends to strangers to lovers, Sam and Damon.
The Backtrack includes time travel, flashbacks, magical realism, second chances, childhood friends to lovers, one bed, family troubles, a small town, and a grand gesture.
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
all the stars possible
This is not my first or second Erin La Rosa book, but it's for sure my favorite. it's so nostalgic and I think Erin wrote Sam with me in mind because I was also a very emo band geek who's best friend was a guy who we lost contact after high school (except my phase was in the '90s and not the '00s haha). I've often played the what if game, but there's not one moment that I can go back to change our present.
HOWEVER, this book! Ugh! Part reverse 13 Going on 30 part summer A Christmas Carol. The freaking songs, the fashion, the feelings, all was just a warm hug and walk down memory lane. I gobbled this book up in less than 24 hours and now I'm so sad I'm done and it's over.
What I loved most about this book is that it's so much more than a second chance romance. It's about finding yourself and loving who you are before you can love someone else, it's about families and the tough decisions we make to protect the ones we love (or are we hurting them), it's about mental health, it's about trusting your instincts and being strong. The family dynamic part along with the flashbacks really, really hit me in the feels. I really can't say enough about this book (even the acknowledgements in the back written in a playlist form was genius), but I think Grandma Pearl deserves her own shout out.
- Second Chance Romance
- Family Drama
- Past Trauma
- It's Always Been You
- Finding Yourself
- Time Travel/Haunted CD Player
- Small Town
- Slow Burn
Thank you, NetGalley, Erin La Rosa, and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this ARC.
This is not my first or second Erin La Rosa book, but it's for sure my favorite. it's so nostalgic and I think Erin wrote Sam with me in mind because I was also a very emo band geek who's best friend was a guy who we lost contact after high school (except my phase was in the '90s and not the '00s haha). I've often played the what if game, but there's not one moment that I can go back to change our present.
HOWEVER, this book! Ugh! Part reverse 13 Going on 30 part summer A Christmas Carol. The freaking songs, the fashion, the feelings, all was just a warm hug and walk down memory lane. I gobbled this book up in less than 24 hours and now I'm so sad I'm done and it's over.
What I loved most about this book is that it's so much more than a second chance romance. It's about finding yourself and loving who you are before you can love someone else, it's about families and the tough decisions we make to protect the ones we love (or are we hurting them), it's about mental health, it's about trusting your instincts and being strong. The family dynamic part along with the flashbacks really, really hit me in the feels. I really can't say enough about this book (even the acknowledgements in the back written in a playlist form was genius), but I think Grandma Pearl deserves her own shout out.
- Second Chance Romance
- Family Drama
- Past Trauma
- It's Always Been You
- Finding Yourself
- Time Travel/Haunted CD Player
- Small Town
- Slow Burn
Thank you, NetGalley, Erin La Rosa, and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this ARC.
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Backtrack is the perfect novel for those who love second chances, “what ifs”, best friends, healing, finding yourself and all the 90s nostalgia.
Sam and her best friend, Damon, do everything together. They’re a bit in the “emo” group in high school but at least they have each other until… that moment comes when there is the opportunity to shift from the friend zone to more than friends. Sam is terrified of being stuck in small town Georgia. As soon as she has the opportunity to leave for flight school she does and never looks back.
Ten years later she has to return to her hometown to help her grandma who raised her. The “what ifs” linger in Sam’s head as she arrives. Should she reach out to Damon? What if he wants nothing to do with her after she broke his heart.
As if hurt grandmas and awkward old friendships wasn’t enough Sam now finds herself listening to her CD player and somehow back at her high school and reliving the past but only for a few minutes at a time. Is this alternate reality showing her she made the right choice or showing her what she missed out on?
Don’t walk but run to add this to novel to the top of your To Be Read pile. I flew through the pages and didn’t want the book to end. It was light hearted with a bit of time travel. Great read to show the impact that each decision has on your life. I will definitely be recommending this to all my book loving babes whether you’re a romance reader or not. July 16 can’t come fast enough. I’ll be on the lookout for more books by Erin. This will definitely be in my re-read pile! I also loved the QR code at the back for you to play the tracks that correlate with the story. Thank you NetGalley and Erin La Rosa for allowing me this read in exchange for an honest review.
Sam and her best friend, Damon, do everything together. They’re a bit in the “emo” group in high school but at least they have each other until… that moment comes when there is the opportunity to shift from the friend zone to more than friends. Sam is terrified of being stuck in small town Georgia. As soon as she has the opportunity to leave for flight school she does and never looks back.
Ten years later she has to return to her hometown to help her grandma who raised her. The “what ifs” linger in Sam’s head as she arrives. Should she reach out to Damon? What if he wants nothing to do with her after she broke his heart.
As if hurt grandmas and awkward old friendships wasn’t enough Sam now finds herself listening to her CD player and somehow back at her high school and reliving the past but only for a few minutes at a time. Is this alternate reality showing her she made the right choice or showing her what she missed out on?
Don’t walk but run to add this to novel to the top of your To Be Read pile. I flew through the pages and didn’t want the book to end. It was light hearted with a bit of time travel. Great read to show the impact that each decision has on your life. I will definitely be recommending this to all my book loving babes whether you’re a romance reader or not. July 16 can’t come fast enough. I’ll be on the lookout for more books by Erin. This will definitely be in my re-read pile! I also loved the QR code at the back for you to play the tracks that correlate with the story. Thank you NetGalley and Erin La Rosa for allowing me this read in exchange for an honest review.
The Backtrack is a 2000’s nostalgic hug in a book! This was my first Erin La Rosa book and I enjoyed it.
After being away for several years to pursue her career as a pilot, Sam Leto returns to her hometown to help her grandmother clean out her family home before it goes on the market. Not only is she confronted with all her 2000’s memorabilia, but she must also navigate challenging family dynamics and the “what ifs” with her high school best friend…all while a magical CD player keeps showing her glimpses of an alternate version of her life!
Similar to Sam, we sometimes wonder the “what ifs” in life the older we get. I found the concept of the magical CD player showing Sam an alternate version of her life if she had made different choices very intriguing — be careful what you wish for! I loved following each song from Damon’s mixtape and seeing how the song fit into the plot of Sam’s alternate life. As a fellow millennial with a love for 2000s emo music, this is what really made the book for me!
Going into this book, I thought it would be a fun, light-hearted rom-com but it ended up having much deeper themes. I greatly appreciated the mental health representation. The depiction of Sam navigating the challenging relationship with her mom was done really well, especially towards the end when they were setting boundaries and moving towards a path of understanding. Lastly, Grandma Pearl was a riot and should be protected at all costs!!
I liked Erin’s writing and followed it along as if I were watching a movie. (Okay, but this book should totally become a movie!) Overall, this story was a fun walk down memory lane with all the 2000s references and music!
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
After being away for several years to pursue her career as a pilot, Sam Leto returns to her hometown to help her grandmother clean out her family home before it goes on the market. Not only is she confronted with all her 2000’s memorabilia, but she must also navigate challenging family dynamics and the “what ifs” with her high school best friend…all while a magical CD player keeps showing her glimpses of an alternate version of her life!
Similar to Sam, we sometimes wonder the “what ifs” in life the older we get. I found the concept of the magical CD player showing Sam an alternate version of her life if she had made different choices very intriguing — be careful what you wish for! I loved following each song from Damon’s mixtape and seeing how the song fit into the plot of Sam’s alternate life. As a fellow millennial with a love for 2000s emo music, this is what really made the book for me!
Going into this book, I thought it would be a fun, light-hearted rom-com but it ended up having much deeper themes. I greatly appreciated the mental health representation. The depiction of Sam navigating the challenging relationship with her mom was done really well, especially towards the end when they were setting boundaries and moving towards a path of understanding. Lastly, Grandma Pearl was a riot and should be protected at all costs!!
I liked Erin’s writing and followed it along as if I were watching a movie. (Okay, but this book should totally become a movie!) Overall, this story was a fun walk down memory lane with all the 2000s references and music!
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
adventurous
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
3.5 ⭐️ thanks to netgalley and the publisher for this arc!
This was so cute! 1. his name is Damon!! immediately sold
2. he drives a motorcycle!!! SAY LESS
The way the music was intertwined with the time travel and it‘s overall importance in this story was so good. I enjoyed the characters and the journey they went on. Seeing your life happening in a different way because of one tiny decision sure does make you reflect on it. Not really a fan of the mmc having a girlfriend for a small part in this and the cheating plot in the "other life" but overall I really liked this!
2. he drives a motorcycle!!! SAY LESS
The way the music was intertwined with the time travel and it‘s overall importance in this story was so good. I enjoyed the characters and the journey they went on. Seeing your life happening in a different way because of one tiny decision sure does make you reflect on it. Not really a fan of the mmc having a girlfriend for a small part in this and the cheating plot in the "other life" but overall I really liked this!
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
“Having nostalgia is romantic. It’s the ability to never forget something you love.”
Thank you to Canary Street Press and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!
As an elder emo, I felt such a great nostalgia reading this book. Music is, and always has, been very important in my life and revisiting albums from the early aughts that I was obsessed with is always great. Throughout this book, we get to see Sam revisit her favorite musics from high school while seeing an alternate version of her life.
Sam is a really great protagonist. She followed her dream of being a pilot straight out of high school and left Georgia, and her best friend Damon, behind. When she returns, so do her complicated feelings. She’s always asking the what if questions and her old cd player shows her exactly that.
On the surface, it seems like a sweet rom com, but it tackles some difficult topics really well. Sam struggles with her relationship with her mother and her regrets of the past. Her friendship with Damon was always an anchor for her, and it’s exciting when they reconnect. The alternate timeline she sees is really devastating in what could have been, both good and bad.
Damon is so sweet and truly cares about Sam, even though they haven’t seen each other in years. He wants to help Sam in any way that he can. Also, Sam’s grandmother Pearl is an absolute delight. She is so funny and sassy, and she provides the perfect amount of levity when the subject matter gets tough.
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes