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miloalright's review
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
readingroodle's review against another edition
emotional
funny
relaxing
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
4.0
josworld96's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
teddytr19's review against another edition
4.0
This book is so bad but in all the right ways. Very similar to Red, White, and Royal Blue, just with not as good writing and character development. but we love bi representation!
beckxx_'s review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-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
3.75
tessa_stephens's review against another edition
3.0
I was so into the start of this book and was convinced I would give it 5 stars because of how easily I read through it. However, after I got about 60% through, I STARTED to lose interested and Zach and Ruben (who had originally felt very distinct) started to blend together.
I also wish we had seen Zach write a song for Ruben because it was set up that he would but never happened...
Overall, I still really enjoyed reading this book and the four boys of Saturday were really fun and felt like real friends. I wish some things about the story were different, but it was still enjoyable :)
I also wish we had seen Zach write a song for Ruben because it was set up that he would but never happened...
Overall, I still really enjoyed reading this book and the four boys of Saturday were really fun and felt like real friends. I wish some things about the story were different, but it was still enjoyable :)
becksgoesbookish's review against another edition
4.0
5 ⭐️ Audio
4⭐️ Story
If I can count on anything in YA/NA books, it's that all the adults ain't shit
4⭐️ Story
If I can count on anything in YA/NA books, it's that all the adults ain't shit
slowa_w_filizance's review against another edition
2.0
I really wanted to love this book. I adored previous books by Sophie Gonzales, so I've expected that this will easily be a five star read. So, you can imagine, it really hurts me to say, that I did not enjoy this book for the most part.
The beginning was pretty good. I really liked Ruben and Zach, I was interested to see how their story unfolds. But then, as the romance progressed... See, I understand that there needs to be some conflict and drama. But I draw the line at the conflict that is basically 5 chapters of miscommunication, that dragged to the point where I felt the urge to throw my book across the room.
With this being said, we actually come close to the main issue I had with this book: the pacing. Some things, like the conflict I mentioned, dragged horribly but then things I've expected to take some time, happened really quickly and felt rushed. Not to mention that at some point there was a scene I've we reached the climax of one particular plotline. But then it was swept under the rug and the actually climax, written in the really dimilar way, happened some time later.
While I did like some of the dramatic aspects of this book - what can I say, I am a sucker for good angst - I didn't feel like the heaviest themes where handled well. There is this plotline of one of the bandmates, Angel, who is not really taking the fame and pressure well, doing drugs because of this. I was really interested in this plotline - at some point I cared about Angel more than I cared for the main characters. But, man, I was so annoyed, when the other bandmates, who were supposed to be such close friends, were really just observing Angel's struggle and kinda waiting for someone else to do something. And then, when something bad had actually happened, the main characters were talking about themselves, their relstionship instead of focusing on their friend just once.
While the middle of the book dragged and annoyed the hell out of me, I was surprised to actually enjoy the ending. Honestly, if the authors handled communication better and written found family the way they did on the last pages, this could be much better book.
The beginning was pretty good. I really liked Ruben and Zach, I was interested to see how their story unfolds. But then, as the romance progressed... See, I understand that there needs to be some conflict and drama. But I draw the line at the conflict that is basically 5 chapters of miscommunication, that dragged to the point where I felt the urge to throw my book across the room.
With this being said, we actually come close to the main issue I had with this book: the pacing. Some things, like the conflict I mentioned, dragged horribly but then things I've expected to take some time, happened really quickly and felt rushed. Not to mention that at some point there was a scene I've we reached the climax of one particular plotline. But then it was swept under the rug and the actually climax, written in the really dimilar way, happened some time later.
While I did like some of the dramatic aspects of this book - what can I say, I am a sucker for good angst - I didn't feel like the heaviest themes where handled well. There is this plotline of one of the bandmates, Angel, who is not really taking the fame and pressure well, doing drugs because of this. I was really interested in this plotline - at some point I cared about Angel more than I cared for the main characters. But, man, I was so annoyed, when the other bandmates, who were supposed to be such close friends, were really just observing Angel's struggle and kinda waiting for someone else to do something. And then, when something bad had actually happened, the main characters were talking about themselves, their relstionship instead of focusing on their friend just once.
While the middle of the book dragged and annoyed the hell out of me, I was surprised to actually enjoy the ending. Honestly, if the authors handled communication better and written found family the way they did on the last pages, this could be much better book.
laelyn's review
4.0
I admit, my main reason for requesting an arc of "If This Gets Out" was Gonzales as one of the authors. I recently read and adored her "Perfect on Paper", and another book of hers is already waiting on my shelf. The blurb itself wasn't even that interesting to me, mostly because I've never been a boyband kind of girl myself and because, quite frankly, I find the amount of 'real people shipping' and fetishization of gay men that seems to be happening a lot in these particular fandoms concerning and borderline problematic. But I was still interested how all of this would play out in the hands of two talented authors, so I gave it a go. I don't regret it.
"If This Gets Out" is utterly adorable with lots of yearning, a plethora of tropes I love and a cast of complex, loveable characters. Both protagonists, Ruben and Zach, are fleshed out, flawed and relatable characters with issues that go beyond just their romance, which I really enjoyed. They didn't exist just for the romance, they were interesting people on their own. I rooted for the both of them and they deserve all the happiness in the world tbh. The other two members of their boyband are JUST as loveable and fleshed out, too, and I felt for all of them. They wormed their way into my heart and I won't ever get rid of them, I just know it.
The romance is swoonworthy and with just enough drama to keep it interesting without going completely overboard with it. The story on a whole is really intriguing and I loved how this novel puts a spotlight on the darker sides of the entertainment business - on closeting, on abuse, on power imbalances, on drug addiction, on exhaustion and constant pressure to perform. I don't know much about the inner workings of the music industry but honestly, I could easily see it happening just like in this book. Looking at modern boybands and kpop bands, it's probably a given. And it's horrible to read about.
There are just minor things that dampened my overall enjoyment of the book, and honestly, they're super subjective. While the writing was really engaging and fun and spot on, Zach's chapters especially tend to make the characters use the filler word "like" a loooot in the dialogue scenes, to a point where it gets unrealistic and a little annoying. I'm not American but I honestly don't think someone like Zach would naturally talk like this, especially because he doesn't in Ruben's chapters.
I'm also not entirely on board with how Angel's drug addiction was handled by his best friends. It didn't make sense to me for them to not even try to I don't know, get his parents involved or anything. It's not what best friends would do, at least not from where I'm standing. I also generally would have preferred the novel to address the racism Angel faces, as well as Jon to some degree, a little more openly. It's mentioned, it's described, but never actually called out for what it is - the homophobia is always at the forefront as the One Big Issue, obviously because it's part of the romance, but for all the good it does to call out these problematic structures in the music industry: if you include characters of color that face obvious racism (especially Asian stereotypes in this case), it should be more than just a sidelined mention that later gets ignored in the final confrontation.
But these are honestly minor gripes, I still really enjoyed this fast-paced, quick read and devoured it in two days. It's definitely a must-read for boyband fans especially, but even if you don't belong to any such fandom this is a highly enjoyable, very cutesy experience.
Many thanks to St. Martin's Press for the arc!
"If This Gets Out" is utterly adorable with lots of yearning, a plethora of tropes I love and a cast of complex, loveable characters. Both protagonists, Ruben and Zach, are fleshed out, flawed and relatable characters with issues that go beyond just their romance, which I really enjoyed. They didn't exist just for the romance, they were interesting people on their own. I rooted for the both of them and they deserve all the happiness in the world tbh. The other two members of their boyband are JUST as loveable and fleshed out, too, and I felt for all of them. They wormed their way into my heart and I won't ever get rid of them, I just know it.
The romance is swoonworthy and with just enough drama to keep it interesting without going completely overboard with it. The story on a whole is really intriguing and I loved how this novel puts a spotlight on the darker sides of the entertainment business - on closeting, on abuse, on power imbalances, on drug addiction, on exhaustion and constant pressure to perform. I don't know much about the inner workings of the music industry but honestly, I could easily see it happening just like in this book. Looking at modern boybands and kpop bands, it's probably a given. And it's horrible to read about.
There are just minor things that dampened my overall enjoyment of the book, and honestly, they're super subjective. While the writing was really engaging and fun and spot on, Zach's chapters especially tend to make the characters use the filler word "like" a loooot in the dialogue scenes, to a point where it gets unrealistic and a little annoying. I'm not American but I honestly don't think someone like Zach would naturally talk like this, especially because he doesn't in Ruben's chapters.
I'm also not entirely on board with how Angel's drug addiction was handled by his best friends. It didn't make sense to me for them to not even try to I don't know, get his parents involved or anything. It's not what best friends would do, at least not from where I'm standing. I also generally would have preferred the novel to address the racism Angel faces, as well as Jon to some degree, a little more openly. It's mentioned, it's described, but never actually called out for what it is - the homophobia is always at the forefront as the One Big Issue, obviously because it's part of the romance, but for all the good it does to call out these problematic structures in the music industry: if you include characters of color that face obvious racism (especially Asian stereotypes in this case), it should be more than just a sidelined mention that later gets ignored in the final confrontation.
But these are honestly minor gripes, I still really enjoyed this fast-paced, quick read and devoured it in two days. It's definitely a must-read for boyband fans especially, but even if you don't belong to any such fandom this is a highly enjoyable, very cutesy experience.
Many thanks to St. Martin's Press for the arc!