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delightful_reading's review against another edition
4.0
This book was cute, and frustrating.
I mean I love Aimee and Miles trying to overcome their differences to be together.
But I felt that some characters were pushed to the sideline to achieve this. Like Nick. He existed to add more conflict. I mean he interacted with the couple here and there, expressing his disapproval. Look I love the big brother characters who threaten their sis's boyfriend or crush or whatever. I just find them entertaining and comical. Probably because I don't have one, but I digress.
Plus Mile's mom is sort of there, but not there. Don't sideline the brother and mother characters!
Moving on, what I really liked about this book was Aimee and Miles chemistry. I mean they clicked. Plus it had the whole love/hate relationship that I enjoy so YAY! Plus the songwriting thing Miles did for Aimee was endearing. And this is what really made me like this novel.
All in all, it was an enjoyable read with some language.
I mean I love Aimee and Miles trying to overcome their differences to be together.
But I felt that some characters were pushed to the sideline to achieve this. Like Nick. He existed to add more conflict. I mean he interacted with the couple here and there, expressing his disapproval. Look I love the big brother characters who threaten their sis's boyfriend or crush or whatever. I just find them entertaining and comical. Probably because I don't have one, but I digress.
Plus Mile's mom is sort of there, but not there. Don't sideline the brother and mother characters!
Moving on, what I really liked about this book was Aimee and Miles chemistry. I mean they clicked. Plus it had the whole love/hate relationship that I enjoy so YAY! Plus the songwriting thing Miles did for Aimee was endearing. And this is what really made me like this novel.
All in all, it was an enjoyable read with some language.
fictioncourt's review against another edition
4.0
4 cute stars!
I was lucky enough to get an ARC from netgalley and this book turned out to be amazing! It was the sweetest and not in a cheesy way; mostly because of the age, don't expect hard core rock star, this is a Young Adult novel.
Aimee had a crush on Miles. Until Miles broke her heart. Now that she's going to spend a few weeks on tour with him, things are bound to get interesting. The story is pretty much easy to figure out what I liked about it though was the unique approach of the character's background. Aimee is a normal teenager and that reflected so much into the story, she's on every social media and she's a fangirl, a fangirl that goes on tour with her favorite band and the now heartthrob that broke her heart. It was fascinating.
“Write it for me.”
He automatically laid an arm over his notebook.“What?”
“If you need motivation. Think of it like an AP Music Theory assignment. Promise me, Miles Anthony Carlisle, before my three weeks are up, you'll write me a song on the piano.”
Miles had a couple of very public break ups but Aimee, well, you get it, she's known him since he wasn't famous, they had something, no matter how small and having her in his world for a few weeks is turning things around for him.
“I don’t know if I’d call it a crush,” he finally said. “It’s more like, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you for the past five days. When I’m in a band meeting…” He kissed her eyebrow. “When I’m onstage.” He kissed the bridge of her nose. “When I’m trying to bloody fall asleep at night, that’s the worst. And the best.”
Get ready for lots of teen romance, backstage music and a lot of teen speech, LOL and all. I found it very unique and cute and not at all tiring, in fact refreshing in a way that totally suited the age. Young Adult all the way ♥
I was lucky enough to get an ARC from netgalley and this book turned out to be amazing! It was the sweetest and not in a cheesy way; mostly because of the age, don't expect hard core rock star, this is a Young Adult novel.
Aimee had a crush on Miles. Until Miles broke her heart. Now that she's going to spend a few weeks on tour with him, things are bound to get interesting. The story is pretty much easy to figure out what I liked about it though was the unique approach of the character's background. Aimee is a normal teenager and that reflected so much into the story, she's on every social media and she's a fangirl, a fangirl that goes on tour with her favorite band and the now heartthrob that broke her heart. It was fascinating.
“Write it for me.”
He automatically laid an arm over his notebook.“What?”
“If you need motivation. Think of it like an AP Music Theory assignment. Promise me, Miles Anthony Carlisle, before my three weeks are up, you'll write me a song on the piano.”
Miles had a couple of very public break ups but Aimee, well, you get it, she's known him since he wasn't famous, they had something, no matter how small and having her in his world for a few weeks is turning things around for him.
“I don’t know if I’d call it a crush,” he finally said. “It’s more like, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you for the past five days. When I’m in a band meeting…” He kissed her eyebrow. “When I’m onstage.” He kissed the bridge of her nose. “When I’m trying to bloody fall asleep at night, that’s the worst. And the best.”
Get ready for lots of teen romance, backstage music and a lot of teen speech, LOL and all. I found it very unique and cute and not at all tiring, in fact refreshing in a way that totally suited the age. Young Adult all the way ♥
farahhananii's review against another edition
4.0
Aimee and the Heartthrob got me hooked from the beginning. I read the whole book in one sitting.
I love the sneaky rendezvous Aimee and Miles had. Sneaking in private bus tours, into kitchens and running down hotel corridors. And how comfortable they are when bantering with each other. And their way-back-then history with each other. However, what I don't like is the many times they kept going down memory lane. Once, or twice was enough. But after that just feels repetitive and slightly annoying. But that didn't happen throughout the whole book so no worries.
I love how the author kept switching from Miles then to Aimee's POV back and forth. But I wished she had put more scenes with the side characters in it. I didn't feel any connection there with the side characters like with Aimee's brother, Nick. The brotherly touch was nice but I just wished he was more there in the picture.
This was such an adorable and lighthearted read. A classic cute contemporary that will put a permanent smile on your face by the end of this book. Also, perfect for readers to take a break from heavy books or heavy real-life problems ;)
Also, sign me up in Miles High Fanclub! The boy is so swwooooonnwwooorrrttthhhyyyy!!
I love the sneaky rendezvous Aimee and Miles had. Sneaking in private bus tours, into kitchens and running down hotel corridors. And how comfortable they are when bantering with each other. And their way-back-then history with each other. However, what I don't like is the many times they kept going down memory lane. Once, or twice was enough. But after that just feels repetitive and slightly annoying. But that didn't happen throughout the whole book so no worries.
I love how the author kept switching from Miles then to Aimee's POV back and forth. But I wished she had put more scenes with the side characters in it. I didn't feel any connection there with the side characters like with Aimee's brother, Nick. The brotherly touch was nice but I just wished he was more there in the picture.
This was such an adorable and lighthearted read. A classic cute contemporary that will put a permanent smile on your face by the end of this book. Also, perfect for readers to take a break from heavy books or heavy real-life problems ;)
Also, sign me up in Miles High Fanclub! The boy is so swwooooonnwwooorrrttthhhyyyy!!
princess_starr's review against another edition
2.0
It’s not…an entirely well-kept secret of mine that I am still to this day a massively huge Backstreet Boys fangirl. I’ve seen them more times in the last five years than I did at the height of their popularity (although to be fair, I was fourteen back then, and my mom wasn’t too wild about driving me two to four hours for a concert at the time), I own all their albums (including the solo ones!), and let’s just say out of the last five concerts I’ve been to, I was more excited for the three Backstreet shows I went to than seeing Springsteen for the twelfth time.
I have also mentioned before that I cut my fanfiction teeth on reading bandom RPF back when FF.Net had a fairly impressive RPF output. I spent a lot of time trawling for decent fanfiction, and I have said in the past that I really wasn’t entirely a fan of “OMG I’ve met x from the band and HE’S FALLING IN LOVE WITH ME SQUEEEEE” even back then. (I liked the sci-fi/paranormal/horrorish fic a lot better. There were a lot of fics based solely on the music videos for “Everybody” and “Larger Than Life.”) And before you ask, I did write one RPF for Backstreet. (Crossover fic with Sailor Moon. Everyone who knows me is completely shocked.) It’s buried in the depths of my disused AOL Mail account. We Do Not Speak of It (except when we totally do). I was fourteen. It’s not very good.
So when I say that half of this book reads like a thirteen year old’s fan fiction, believe me, I know what I’m talking about.
The other half of this book is so carefully marketed to specific idea that the publishing company is going to stick to this plan that it feels so wooden and see-through that I honestly didn’t find anything genuine. The whole idea of the Backstage Pass series (of which this is the first book) feels like a calculated attempt to cash in on the One Direction P2P fanfiction craze, but with an actual copyright and marketing plan and without the winking and nudging to the fanbase. Hell, Seconds to Juliet is pretty much a One Direction riff, with the backstory of their creation being via a reality show competition. (Although because I’m of a certain age, my mind went “Reality show boy band = O-Town.” At least S2J doesn’t seem to produce anything like “Liquid Dreams.”) Not to mention the overinstance in-universe usage of the band members’ “nicknames” to set up the rest of the series’ titles in the future- the “bad boy,” the “big brother,” the “shy one,” the “baby” (which clearly Marketing didn’t think this through down the line) and book one’s titular “heartthrob.”
The two main problems with this book is that it is incredibly bland and there’s a point where my reality meter can shatter into a million pieces. When I say that this is a thirteen year old’s fanfic, I’m more referring to the fact that this reads like someone who has no idea how this would actually go down in real life. For example, the fact the security detail on this group is nonexistent. Miles and Aimee frolic around hotel room corridors while somehow managing to dodge the paparazzi and hotel cameras the whole time and the one time that a tabloid journalist does show up, it’s a null point that barely moves the plot. They have the band tour around in a giant tour bus with their half-naked picture emblazoned on the side, but apparently “Well, no one knows which bus the band’s really in! We’re trying to keep things quiet.” Because you know, giant half-naked pictures of pop stars on the side of a bus are incredibly subtle.
(There is also…”The Rain Dance.” The Rain Dance is a very particularly choreographed dance number for the band’s super-secret, never before seen (until after the first concert when everything gets posted online) encore that they can only do in all but one or two venues.
Aimee spends a lot of her time backstage waiting for this number so she can watch Miles and the band run all the way to their bus in their soaking wet clothes so that they can immediately leave the show and avoid the fangirl rush. Apparently, nobody thought that this might be an insurance risk.)
There’s also a major character plot point for Miles that he’s had a troubled past—his mother’s an illegal immigrant from England (btw the way the tabloid journalist threatens to get her deported and compares Miles’s accent to the Obama Birthers. Yes, they’re going to deport the lily white English pop star.), and he’s had drug and anger issues stemming from his father’s abandonment that landed Miles in juvie for a year. Either S2J’s manager Lester is paying off the band’s legal team amazingly well to keep this information out of the papers or this book’s version of TMZ isn’t good at their job. Really, the only reason this plot point exists is to create more manufactured drama between Aimee and Miles.
And really that’s all this book’s plot is—manufactured drama. Aimee and Miles give into their poor, starved hormones and then blow up over any detail that they uncover about each other over the course of two hundred and some pages. Rinse and repeat. Aimee’s not sure if Miles really likes her because, oh, he’s a “playa” and flirts with all of the girls (because that’s…kind of his job? Again, I’ve been to five BSB shows in the last five years. They’re all married now, and they still hit on the girls in the audience.), but no! He really likes her, but he know she hates him for whatever reason!
It doesn’t help that none of the characters in this book have any personality whatsoever to speak of. Miles is supposed to have this very particular and polished onstage persona, but he’s always battling his inner anger (LIKE THE HULK. Miles is very much like the Hulk because he can’t control his anger! And he needs to be more like Banner and not let the Hulk be unleashed! Have I mentioned that he’s like the Hulk? Because Miles is like the Hulk). And that he really wants to be a versatile artist like Prince. Because he really likes Prince and is inspired by him. (He even picks Aimee up for their date in a Little Red Corvette, get it?) And he’s so super close to his bandmates—Trevin and Ryder and… those other two guys—they’re just like brothers! So super close that Miles has no qualms about repeatedly ditching his bandmates and his responbilites like interviews and band meetings but they’re not that important. The only time that we actually to get to see the entire band interacting together is towards the end, when Trevin and Ryder finally call Miles out for repeatedly ditching them. (I honestly forget Nate’s name for three-fourths of the book, because he’s only mentioned once until the end.)
Look, I get that this is a romance novel between Aimee and Miles, and that’s where the focus is going to be on. But there’s a point where I become disinterested in the constant “You got it (the right stuff)” and “As long as you love me,” only to be marred by not-that-dramatic ~drama!~ especially considering that neither one of the involved characters are strong enough to carry the romance and/or the drama.
Because Aimee is just as bland. Aimee has the character description of an audience self-insert Flavor of the Moment—plain, quiet brunette who’s a good girl (not a slut like Miles’ exes or any of the girls Ryder would date) who likes Taylor Swift-esque dresses and is a book vlogger. And I wouldn’t have such a problem with Aimee’s characterization if she had any character to speak of. She doesn’t really do much but get pushed around by other characters and is so incredibly naïve to the point that I was slamming my head against the wall every time she would be shocked—SHOCKED!—when she learns that Miles has been “keeping” something from her.
My main problem with Aimee, however, is the revelation that she has written fanfiction about her and Miles. Now, we can argue about the creeper implications of RPF in general (especially once you start involving people in the celebrities’ personal lives, or RPS which I’m not touching with a tenth foot pole. Y’all do what you do, I am not interested). But given there is the whole premise that Aimee and Miles grew up together. He is her brother’s best friend, she thinks that he thinks of her as a little sister.
I DON’T CARE IF HE’S FAMOUS NOW. YOU DO NOT POST FANFIC OF PEOPLE YOU KNOW OR FRIENDFIC ON THE INTERNET. IN FACT, YOU SHOULDN’T BE WRITING IT IN THE FIRST PLACE. Yes, of course, Miles is going to think that Aimee’s a stalker and that she’s only interested in him for the fame! But the second they clear up the misunderstanding, oh no, isn’t it totally sweet and romantic! (Oh, and this is the reason why Aimee forgives her friend Becky for leaving up said fanfic on their SHARED SITE for TWO YEARS that Aimee somehow conveniently NEVER NOTICED. It’s one thing when I say that my terrible fanfic is floating in the ether somewhere because I haven’t used those accounts in forever. It’s another if you have a website that you run FOR THAT LONG.)
Not to mention the constant slut-shaming from both Miles and Aimee—more from Aimee, but Miles has a pretty gross comment about “Oh, how can I resist you tempting me in those short little dresses of yours.” Aimee just constantly slut-shames every single girl, including jokingly calling her friend Becky a slut a few times. (Not that I wish slut-shaming on anyone, but I don’t buy the reassurance at the end that “Miles’s fans are totes cool with this and they love Aimee!” No, sorry, Aimee, but karma is going to be a bitch.)
(Can I also talk about the writing and dialogue? DOES ANY TEENAGER ACTUALLY TALK LIKE THIS? Aimee constantly switches between such gems as “Nutty nut-burgers!” and “assjacket,” plus Miles’ constant descriptor of “playa” and there’s a lot of extraneous x’s and z’s, not only in the dialogue, but in the actual prose itself. Like “pix”—you can say pictures or pics, you don’t have to be hip with the kids.)
As far as the first book goes (because I have committed myself to reading this whole series for…whatever reason. Mainly reliving my RPF days), this was just bad. The first half was at least a little fun, albeit cheesy, but the second half went steadily downhill that I was just getting ready to DNF it or plow through the end. Unfortunately for this book, I do not want it that way, because it’s bland and boring while sometimes trying too hard. We will have to see that if I want a good book, I should be getting myself a bad boy.
(…forgive me I had to.)
I have also mentioned before that I cut my fanfiction teeth on reading bandom RPF back when FF.Net had a fairly impressive RPF output. I spent a lot of time trawling for decent fanfiction, and I have said in the past that I really wasn’t entirely a fan of “OMG I’ve met x from the band and HE’S FALLING IN LOVE WITH ME SQUEEEEE” even back then. (I liked the sci-fi/paranormal/horrorish fic a lot better. There were a lot of fics based solely on the music videos for “Everybody” and “Larger Than Life.”) And before you ask, I did write one RPF for Backstreet. (Crossover fic with Sailor Moon. Everyone who knows me is completely shocked.) It’s buried in the depths of my disused AOL Mail account. We Do Not Speak of It (except when we totally do). I was fourteen. It’s not very good.
So when I say that half of this book reads like a thirteen year old’s fan fiction, believe me, I know what I’m talking about.
The other half of this book is so carefully marketed to specific idea that the publishing company is going to stick to this plan that it feels so wooden and see-through that I honestly didn’t find anything genuine. The whole idea of the Backstage Pass series (of which this is the first book) feels like a calculated attempt to cash in on the One Direction P2P fanfiction craze, but with an actual copyright and marketing plan and without the winking and nudging to the fanbase. Hell, Seconds to Juliet is pretty much a One Direction riff, with the backstory of their creation being via a reality show competition. (Although because I’m of a certain age, my mind went “Reality show boy band = O-Town.” At least S2J doesn’t seem to produce anything like “Liquid Dreams.”) Not to mention the overinstance in-universe usage of the band members’ “nicknames” to set up the rest of the series’ titles in the future- the “bad boy,” the “big brother,” the “shy one,” the “baby” (which clearly Marketing didn’t think this through down the line) and book one’s titular “heartthrob.”
The two main problems with this book is that it is incredibly bland and there’s a point where my reality meter can shatter into a million pieces. When I say that this is a thirteen year old’s fanfic, I’m more referring to the fact that this reads like someone who has no idea how this would actually go down in real life. For example, the fact the security detail on this group is nonexistent. Miles and Aimee frolic around hotel room corridors while somehow managing to dodge the paparazzi and hotel cameras the whole time and the one time that a tabloid journalist does show up, it’s a null point that barely moves the plot. They have the band tour around in a giant tour bus with their half-naked picture emblazoned on the side, but apparently “Well, no one knows which bus the band’s really in! We’re trying to keep things quiet.” Because you know, giant half-naked pictures of pop stars on the side of a bus are incredibly subtle.
(There is also…”The Rain Dance.” The Rain Dance is a very particularly choreographed dance number for the band’s super-secret, never before seen (until after the first concert when everything gets posted online) encore that they can only do in all but one or two venues.
Aimee spends a lot of her time backstage waiting for this number so she can watch Miles and the band run all the way to their bus in their soaking wet clothes so that they can immediately leave the show and avoid the fangirl rush. Apparently, nobody thought that this might be an insurance risk.)
There’s also a major character plot point for Miles that he’s had a troubled past—his mother’s an illegal immigrant from England (btw the way the tabloid journalist threatens to get her deported and compares Miles’s accent to the Obama Birthers. Yes, they’re going to deport the lily white English pop star.), and he’s had drug and anger issues stemming from his father’s abandonment that landed Miles in juvie for a year. Either S2J’s manager Lester is paying off the band’s legal team amazingly well to keep this information out of the papers or this book’s version of TMZ isn’t good at their job. Really, the only reason this plot point exists is to create more manufactured drama between Aimee and Miles.
And really that’s all this book’s plot is—manufactured drama. Aimee and Miles give into their poor, starved hormones and then blow up over any detail that they uncover about each other over the course of two hundred and some pages. Rinse and repeat. Aimee’s not sure if Miles really likes her because, oh, he’s a “playa” and flirts with all of the girls (because that’s…kind of his job? Again, I’ve been to five BSB shows in the last five years. They’re all married now, and they still hit on the girls in the audience.), but no! He really likes her, but he know she hates him for whatever reason!
It doesn’t help that none of the characters in this book have any personality whatsoever to speak of. Miles is supposed to have this very particular and polished onstage persona, but he’s always battling his inner anger (LIKE THE HULK. Miles is very much like the Hulk because he can’t control his anger! And he needs to be more like Banner and not let the Hulk be unleashed! Have I mentioned that he’s like the Hulk? Because Miles is like the Hulk). And that he really wants to be a versatile artist like Prince. Because he really likes Prince and is inspired by him. (He even picks Aimee up for their date in a Little Red Corvette, get it?) And he’s so super close to his bandmates—Trevin and Ryder and… those other two guys—they’re just like brothers! So super close that Miles has no qualms about repeatedly ditching his bandmates and his responbilites like interviews and band meetings but they’re not that important. The only time that we actually to get to see the entire band interacting together is towards the end, when Trevin and Ryder finally call Miles out for repeatedly ditching them. (I honestly forget Nate’s name for three-fourths of the book, because he’s only mentioned once until the end.)
Look, I get that this is a romance novel between Aimee and Miles, and that’s where the focus is going to be on. But there’s a point where I become disinterested in the constant “You got it (the right stuff)” and “As long as you love me,” only to be marred by not-that-dramatic ~drama!~ especially considering that neither one of the involved characters are strong enough to carry the romance and/or the drama.
Because Aimee is just as bland. Aimee has the character description of an audience self-insert Flavor of the Moment—plain, quiet brunette who’s a good girl (not a slut like Miles’ exes or any of the girls Ryder would date) who likes Taylor Swift-esque dresses and is a book vlogger. And I wouldn’t have such a problem with Aimee’s characterization if she had any character to speak of. She doesn’t really do much but get pushed around by other characters and is so incredibly naïve to the point that I was slamming my head against the wall every time she would be shocked—SHOCKED!—when she learns that Miles has been “keeping” something from her.
My main problem with Aimee, however, is the revelation that she has written fanfiction about her and Miles. Now, we can argue about the creeper implications of RPF in general (especially once you start involving people in the celebrities’ personal lives, or RPS which I’m not touching with a tenth foot pole. Y’all do what you do, I am not interested). But given there is the whole premise that Aimee and Miles grew up together. He is her brother’s best friend, she thinks that he thinks of her as a little sister.
I DON’T CARE IF HE’S FAMOUS NOW. YOU DO NOT POST FANFIC OF PEOPLE YOU KNOW OR FRIENDFIC ON THE INTERNET. IN FACT, YOU SHOULDN’T BE WRITING IT IN THE FIRST PLACE. Yes, of course, Miles is going to think that Aimee’s a stalker and that she’s only interested in him for the fame! But the second they clear up the misunderstanding, oh no, isn’t it totally sweet and romantic! (Oh, and this is the reason why Aimee forgives her friend Becky for leaving up said fanfic on their SHARED SITE for TWO YEARS that Aimee somehow conveniently NEVER NOTICED. It’s one thing when I say that my terrible fanfic is floating in the ether somewhere because I haven’t used those accounts in forever. It’s another if you have a website that you run FOR THAT LONG.)
Not to mention the constant slut-shaming from both Miles and Aimee—more from Aimee, but Miles has a pretty gross comment about “Oh, how can I resist you tempting me in those short little dresses of yours.” Aimee just constantly slut-shames every single girl, including jokingly calling her friend Becky a slut a few times. (Not that I wish slut-shaming on anyone, but I don’t buy the reassurance at the end that “Miles’s fans are totes cool with this and they love Aimee!” No, sorry, Aimee, but karma is going to be a bitch.)
(Can I also talk about the writing and dialogue? DOES ANY TEENAGER ACTUALLY TALK LIKE THIS? Aimee constantly switches between such gems as “Nutty nut-burgers!” and “assjacket,” plus Miles’ constant descriptor of “playa” and there’s a lot of extraneous x’s and z’s, not only in the dialogue, but in the actual prose itself. Like “pix”—you can say pictures or pics, you don’t have to be hip with the kids.)
As far as the first book goes (because I have committed myself to reading this whole series for…whatever reason. Mainly reliving my RPF days), this was just bad. The first half was at least a little fun, albeit cheesy, but the second half went steadily downhill that I was just getting ready to DNF it or plow through the end. Unfortunately for this book, I do not want it that way, because it’s bland and boring while sometimes trying too hard. We will have to see that if I want a good book, I should be getting myself a bad boy.
(…forgive me I had to.)
capa105's review against another edition
3.0
Read full review HERE
I’ve been wanting to read this series for a little while now, so when the whole series showed up on Netgalley, I requested it, obviously, and so me and Cátia started our way through the Backstage Pass series with the first book, Aimee and the Heartthrob.
I don’t really know how to describe this book with any other word than “meh“… I usually love Entangled Crush books, but this one read way too young, if you get my drift. The writing was ok, and the pacing flowed well and the story is told in dual POV, in the third person. But it didn’t exactly stand out, to be honest.
The characters felt so much younger than they were supposed to be, and, as Cátia so well put it, this story would would way better if the characters were aged up a bit, because some situations (especially in Miles’ past), were not very credible to happen to a 15 yo boy. Aimee was also kind of annoying at times, and honestly, the whole fanfic thing she had done when she was 14?! Weird as hell… I mean, I guess I would be ok with that if she didn’t know the guy from before, but she did know him in real life, and I really thought that blog was kind of creepy… sorry!
The plot was extremely predictable and cliché… I was kind of hoping for something a little more out there =/. The couple did have a few cute moments, but the constant lies and hiding their feelings, didn’t quite work for me.
Overall it wasn’t the strongest beginning for a series, let’s hope that the books get better as we go.
I’ve been wanting to read this series for a little while now, so when the whole series showed up on Netgalley, I requested it, obviously, and so me and Cátia started our way through the Backstage Pass series with the first book, Aimee and the Heartthrob.
I don’t really know how to describe this book with any other word than “meh“… I usually love Entangled Crush books, but this one read way too young, if you get my drift. The writing was ok, and the pacing flowed well and the story is told in dual POV, in the third person. But it didn’t exactly stand out, to be honest.
The characters felt so much younger than they were supposed to be, and, as Cátia so well put it, this story would would way better if the characters were aged up a bit, because some situations (especially in Miles’ past), were not very credible to happen to a 15 yo boy. Aimee was also kind of annoying at times, and honestly, the whole fanfic thing she had done when she was 14?! Weird as hell… I mean, I guess I would be ok with that if she didn’t know the guy from before, but she did know him in real life, and I really thought that blog was kind of creepy… sorry!
The plot was extremely predictable and cliché… I was kind of hoping for something a little more out there =/. The couple did have a few cute moments, but the constant lies and hiding their feelings, didn’t quite work for me.
Overall it wasn’t the strongest beginning for a series, let’s hope that the books get better as we go.
katekat's review against another edition
3.0
I loved the synopsis for this book but I did not enjoy it once I started reading. The hero and the heroine had a very young feel about them which just did not work with the story line at all.
kerrreads's review against another edition
3.0
I’m going through a rough patch. Don’t judge my book choices. I’m still an academic.
bookishzelda's review against another edition
Aimee and the Hearthrob killed me with it’s adorableness. I loved the book and flew through the pages. First off the whole series is such a great idea. It revolves around a boy band and each book focuses on a different boy and, here is the cool part, written by a different author. So Ophelia London tackled the Heartthrob Miles in this first installment of the Backstage Pass series.
For me reading Ophelia London is a no brainer, I love her romance storytelling and her way of creating chemistry between characters. She also likes the slow burn.
Aimee is pretty adorkable. She has her own Vlog, where she and her best friend review books, movies and music. Although she hasn’t reviewed Seconds to Juliet because of her falling out with the lead singer. I really liked how Aimee stuck her ground in the beginning, Miles broke her heart and she wasn’t going to cave. Totally blowing him off when he first comes in contact with her. She’s also pretty honest about her feelings and even though she’s been hurt before tries to put it all out there.
Miles of course is the Heartthrob of the band for good reason. I liked how he was this cool singer but also kind of stumbled around his relationship with Aimee. He would do super adorable things for her but also could get easily flustered where it concerns her.
The plot is great because it’s just what I needed. The skeletons in the closet are not so bad and a lot of the book is Aimee and Miles falling in love. I just loved their little adventures they went off onto and easily found myself smiling. When the crap hits the fan it’s not great but it’s not the worst. It was nice to have something a little lighter be the conflict.
I really loved the book, it was such a great pick me up. I loved the romance and the way Aimee and Miles finally find their way to one another. Plus he writes songs. Come on. He can write me a song any day.
For me reading Ophelia London is a no brainer, I love her romance storytelling and her way of creating chemistry between characters. She also likes the slow burn.
Aimee is pretty adorkable. She has her own Vlog, where she and her best friend review books, movies and music. Although she hasn’t reviewed Seconds to Juliet because of her falling out with the lead singer. I really liked how Aimee stuck her ground in the beginning, Miles broke her heart and she wasn’t going to cave. Totally blowing him off when he first comes in contact with her. She’s also pretty honest about her feelings and even though she’s been hurt before tries to put it all out there.
Miles of course is the Heartthrob of the band for good reason. I liked how he was this cool singer but also kind of stumbled around his relationship with Aimee. He would do super adorable things for her but also could get easily flustered where it concerns her.
The plot is great because it’s just what I needed. The skeletons in the closet are not so bad and a lot of the book is Aimee and Miles falling in love. I just loved their little adventures they went off onto and easily found myself smiling. When the crap hits the fan it’s not great but it’s not the worst. It was nice to have something a little lighter be the conflict.
I really loved the book, it was such a great pick me up. I loved the romance and the way Aimee and Miles finally find their way to one another. Plus he writes songs. Come on. He can write me a song any day.
leaslibrary's review against another edition
4.0
Der Schreibstil lässt sich angenehm und schnell lesen und im Großen und Ganzen ist es ein tolles Buch für zwischendurch. Besonders gut hat mir der humorvolle Touch gefallen, der das Lesen wirklich nochmals schöner gestaltet und Abwechslung mit sich bringt.
Im Buch lassen sich zudem sehr viele Klischees finden. Es ist sehr vorhersehbar, aber dennoch wollte ich immer weiter lesen. Und anders als erwartet haben mich die Klischees gar nicht so gestört, weil sie einfach gut zum Buch gepasst haben. Allgemein hatte ich den Eindruck, dass alles stimmig war. Auch die vielen Rockstarelemente, wie die Auftritte oder Interviews wurden authentisch umgesetzt.
Kommen wir nun aber mal zu den Charakteren. Aimee ist ein sehr selbstbewusstes, aber auch freches und verantwortungsbewusstes Mädchen. Sie war mir sehr sympathisch und ich konnte ihr Handeln immer nachvollziehen. Besonders toll fand ich natürlich ihre Hobbys, da sie ebenfalls bloggt und Rezensionen schreibt und früher sogar Fanfictions geschrieben hat, die noch eine größere Rolle in der Handlung spielen werden.
Da das Buch auch aus der Perspektive von Miles geschrieben ist, erfährt man ebenso etwas über ihn, den männlichen Protagonisten. Auch seine Gedanken konnte ich immer gut nachvollziehen und ich mochte einfach seine gesamte Art. Er konnte seine Fehler einsehen und es war erfrischend, dass er als Rockstar mal nicht als Badboy dargestellt wurde.
Leider erfährt man nicht wirklich viel über die anderen Nebencharaktere wie die anderen Bandmitglieder. Das finde ich etwas schade, allerdings kann ich es auch nachvollziehen, da das Buch der erste Band einer Reihe ist und die anderen Bände jeweils die Geschichte eines anderen Bandmitglieds erzählen.
Wie schon angesprochen ist die Geschichte sehr klischeeüberladen. Genau so würde ich auch die Beziehung zwischen Aimee und Miles beschreiben. Es gibt wirklich sehr sehr viele romantische, süße und meistens auch kitschige Momente. Allerdings wurde sie trotzdem gut ausgebaut. Für mich war nichts zu überstürzt und ich konnte die Gefühle der beiden nachvollziehen.
Fazit
Eine zuckersüße Liebesgeschichte mit tollen Rockstarelementen. Der Schreibstil ist wirklich toll und auch die Charaktere sind sympathisch. Trotzdem empfehle ich die Geschichte nur an diejenigen, die ein sehr romantisches Buch erwarten und Klischees in Büchern mögen. Das Buch erinnert mich etwas an eine sehr gut gemachte Fanfiction und ich denke, mein 14-jähriges-Ich hätte dem Buch 5 Sterne gegeben. Mir war jedoch vieles etwas zu kitschig und demnach auch unrealistisch, weswegen ich einen Stern abziehe. Dennoch ist es ein gutes und gelungenes Buch.
4/5 Sterne!
Im Buch lassen sich zudem sehr viele Klischees finden. Es ist sehr vorhersehbar, aber dennoch wollte ich immer weiter lesen. Und anders als erwartet haben mich die Klischees gar nicht so gestört, weil sie einfach gut zum Buch gepasst haben. Allgemein hatte ich den Eindruck, dass alles stimmig war. Auch die vielen Rockstarelemente, wie die Auftritte oder Interviews wurden authentisch umgesetzt.
Kommen wir nun aber mal zu den Charakteren. Aimee ist ein sehr selbstbewusstes, aber auch freches und verantwortungsbewusstes Mädchen. Sie war mir sehr sympathisch und ich konnte ihr Handeln immer nachvollziehen. Besonders toll fand ich natürlich ihre Hobbys, da sie ebenfalls bloggt und Rezensionen schreibt und früher sogar Fanfictions geschrieben hat, die noch eine größere Rolle in der Handlung spielen werden.
Da das Buch auch aus der Perspektive von Miles geschrieben ist, erfährt man ebenso etwas über ihn, den männlichen Protagonisten. Auch seine Gedanken konnte ich immer gut nachvollziehen und ich mochte einfach seine gesamte Art. Er konnte seine Fehler einsehen und es war erfrischend, dass er als Rockstar mal nicht als Badboy dargestellt wurde.
Leider erfährt man nicht wirklich viel über die anderen Nebencharaktere wie die anderen Bandmitglieder. Das finde ich etwas schade, allerdings kann ich es auch nachvollziehen, da das Buch der erste Band einer Reihe ist und die anderen Bände jeweils die Geschichte eines anderen Bandmitglieds erzählen.
Wie schon angesprochen ist die Geschichte sehr klischeeüberladen. Genau so würde ich auch die Beziehung zwischen Aimee und Miles beschreiben. Es gibt wirklich sehr sehr viele romantische, süße und meistens auch kitschige Momente. Allerdings wurde sie trotzdem gut ausgebaut. Für mich war nichts zu überstürzt und ich konnte die Gefühle der beiden nachvollziehen.
Fazit
Eine zuckersüße Liebesgeschichte mit tollen Rockstarelementen. Der Schreibstil ist wirklich toll und auch die Charaktere sind sympathisch. Trotzdem empfehle ich die Geschichte nur an diejenigen, die ein sehr romantisches Buch erwarten und Klischees in Büchern mögen. Das Buch erinnert mich etwas an eine sehr gut gemachte Fanfiction und ich denke, mein 14-jähriges-Ich hätte dem Buch 5 Sterne gegeben. Mir war jedoch vieles etwas zu kitschig und demnach auch unrealistisch, weswegen ich einen Stern abziehe. Dennoch ist es ein gutes und gelungenes Buch.
4/5 Sterne!