October 1, 2024
DEBUT After a wild night out leads to public and professional backlash, Valerie Quinn is in desperate need of a PR glow-up to help save her musical TV show career. As the former lead singer of the cult-favorite and short-lived pop-punk band the Glitter Bats, Valerie is no stranger to drama and decides to leverage the promise of a reunion concert to help reform her reputation and save her show. And if her fans think she and bassist Caleb Sloane are dating, all the better, even if Caleb is afraid he will again end up heartbroken. Despite his misgivings and anxiety attacks, Caleb is hopeless to fight his chemistry with Valerie, which launched their young band to superstardom over six years ago, and their fake relationship soon becomes very real, threatening to recycle the bad drama from the past. VERDICT A lyrical dual-POV romance debut that's perfect for readers who enjoy elements of oral and print storytelling devices, such as in Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid, but crave a happily-ever-after too.--Elizabeth Gabriel
Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
October 21, 2024
James’s passion for music shines in her cute second-chance romance debut. Teen pop-punk band Glitter Bats achieved meteoric success before everything came crashing down around them. Ten years later, lead singer turned television star Valerie Quinn, 27, winds up as tabloid fodder after apparently cheating on her ex-boyfriend with her female costar. To save her career, she hopes to get the band back together for a one-night-only performance. She’ll capitalize both on her old fans’ goodwill and on their intense investment in her never-confirmed but never-denied romantic relationship with her bandmate, Caleb Sloane, to redirect the conversation around her dating life. The only problem is getting Caleb to agree. After Valerie broke his heart, he struggled with balancing his mental health, fame, and family issues and walked away from the limelight for good. When Valerie unexpectedly shows up at his door, are they and the rest of the band ready to face the ghosts of their past? James makes the camaraderie between all the members of the Glitter Bats just as endearing as the lingering attraction between Valerie and Caleb. The foibles of fame and the treacherous waters of the music industry add plenty of delicious drama, but the abundance of frequently name-dropped fictional bands and TV shows grows somewhat tiring. Still, James is off to a promising start.
December 1, 2024
Former bandmates reunite for one performance, but their fake-dating plan brings up old feelings. Once upon a time, Valerie Quinn and Caleb Sloane headed the pop punk band Glitter Bats. Along with bandmates Jane, Keeley, and Riker, they performed to crowds of obsessed fans. While listeners suspected they had a romantic relationship, no one knew for sure--and when the band suddenly broke up, the band members all moved on to various jobs. Now, Valerie stars in a superhero-themed musical TV show, and Caleb is a teacher. Their lives couldn't be more different--but when Valerie's bad press and dramatic romantic entanglements threaten her show's chances of renewal, she knows she needs an image rehabilitation, fast. So, she proposes a Glitter Bats reunion: one epic concert to make the fans happy and garner herself some good press--not such a big deal, right? The band members all have hard feelings from the way things fell out, no one more than Caleb. But his feelings for Valerie never went away, and when she suggests playing up their will-they-won't-they relationship for the press, he goes along with it. Pretty soon, though, all this fake dating is feeling very real, and they have to decide if what they have is worth keeping, or if it's really just, as the title suggests, for one night only. In her debut, James creates a sense of realism around the Glitter Bats reunion by including interview transcripts, gossip site articles, and fan social media posts, as well as Glitter Bats song lyrics. Valerie and Caleb's inability to communicate can occasionally be frustrating, but their bond feels real, and their happily ever after is well earned. A steamy, second-chance romance full of behind-the-scenes music drama.
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