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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
tense
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
It's not often I say I absolutely love a book, but this was a heartwarming YA M/M romance.
The struggle to remain closeted vs. coming out of the closet is real. It's frustrating when you are forced to remain in the closet against your will. That's exactly what happens in this novel when two best friends, and bandmates, find themselves falling in love.
This novel deals admirably with finding yourself, finding your voice, and confronting substance abuse.
Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The struggle to remain closeted vs. coming out of the closet is real. It's frustrating when you are forced to remain in the closet against your will. That's exactly what happens in this novel when two best friends, and bandmates, find themselves falling in love.
This novel deals admirably with finding yourself, finding your voice, and confronting substance abuse.
Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This is basically a One Direction fanfic with a few name changes. I speed read my way through it which is rare these days, so that's a real plus. I do think that the character written by Sophie Gonzales (Ruben) was much more developed than the one by Cale Dietrich (Zach), and some very serious issues were dropped as soon as they were no longer convenient to the plot, but overall it was a quick, fun read.
Cute story! I loved the behind-the-scenes of a famous boys' band and how fame will drive you insane and make you do stupid things. I liked how they address the control managers and record labels have over the artist (Britney Spears was right after all...) and how they have to try to make up a persona for the audience etc.
Now the audiobook is not great! I was so confused because it was moving from the 2 POVs we got but the narrator for me made the same exact voice i was listening and then some things did not make sense to me until I pay closer and like hyper attention. I had to relly on some aspects of each character to see which POV I was following at the moment. this was also because the 2 of them were very similar. for me i felt very close in things at the beginning than moving a bit far away when you reach further in the story but not much.
It was a fine read not amazing i think it brought nothing new to the table at this point even the side people of the scenes were just meh IDK i did not vibed and it is a bit sad because I can see a lot of people liking it but it was not for me!
Now the audiobook is not great! I was so confused because it was moving from the 2 POVs we got but the narrator for me made the same exact voice i was listening and then some things did not make sense to me until I pay closer and like hyper attention. I had to relly on some aspects of each character to see which POV I was following at the moment. this was also because the 2 of them were very similar. for me i felt very close in things at the beginning than moving a bit far away when you reach further in the story but not much.
It was a fine read not amazing i think it brought nothing new to the table at this point even the side people of the scenes were just meh IDK i did not vibed and it is a bit sad because I can see a lot of people liking it but it was not for me!
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:
Complicated
As someone who loves romance novels and boy bands, I had very mixed feelings about this one. At the beginning, I was skeptical that anybody could write this premise without it feeling ripped from unethical shipping fan-fiction about real people. Then I got into it in spite of myself. Fascinating setting, interesting characters with tough dilemmas, sweet love story. Until the ending, which dripped with fan wish fulfillment in an extremely unrealistic tidy resolution. Audiobook is well-narrated and brings the characters to life.
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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
To say I didn't enjoy this book would be a lie, as I'm a sucker for drama.
The main topic of the book (the relationship between Zach and Ruben) was my least favourite part of the story. I love a found family trope, and I'm not found of romance, so that's totally on me.
I had no problem with the writing, though some sentences were clumsy, and the time skips were too numerous and very bad, it felt a bit awkward and first draft -ish.
The stakes were stated from the start, so why wasn't I invested and thrilled by the possibility of Ruben and Zach to be caught? I don't really know. Maybe the fact that the story is from their POV made me forget about a bigger threat.
I loved the relation between the four members (I cared about Angel and Jon more than the main two), and the last 60-70 pages were simply amazing! I was really thrilled and hooked, I finished the book in an evening without break (something I rarely do).
Anyway! I would recommend this book to romance lovers, especially queer ones! It wasn't my cup of tea :P
The main topic of the book (the relationship between Zach and Ruben) was my least favourite part of the story. I love a found family trope, and I'm not found of romance, so that's totally on me.
I had no problem with the writing, though some sentences were clumsy, and the time skips were too numerous and very bad, it felt a bit awkward and first draft -ish.
The stakes were stated from the start, so why wasn't I invested and thrilled by the possibility of Ruben and Zach to be caught? I don't really know. Maybe the fact that the story is from their POV made me forget about a bigger threat.
I loved the relation between the four members (I cared about Angel and Jon more than the main two), and the last 60-70 pages were simply amazing! I was really thrilled and hooked, I finished the book in an evening without break (something I rarely do).
Anyway! I would recommend this book to romance lovers, especially queer ones! It wasn't my cup of tea :P
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Homophobia
Minor: Suicide, Death of parent, Outing
This book completely swept me away, I really felt like I was there with the band experiencing everything with them. I loved the character development for each band member and felt so much love for them especially Zach and Ruben, my heart just ached for them. I really loved the discussions on coming out and exploration of sexuality. This was such a heartwarming coming of age story that delved into some serious topics (homophobia, substance abuse, manipulation and controlling behaviour) whilst highlighting the pressures and toxic side of the music industry. This book really was an incredible read and I highly recommend it and is definitely going to be one of my favourite reads this year.
This book was okay. It got a little boring to me at the end and it took a lot of me to get through the last 20 or so pages.