Review: I loved this story
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 10 23, 2013
4.5 StarsI connected with this book. I lived it and breathed it like it was happening in real time, in real life. I rooted for Jane, wanted to reach in and help her. I lusted after Mathew, wanted to reach in and touch that sexy Brit. Alas, I couldn’t touch Mathew and I couldn’t help Jane but wouldn’t you know that Lauren Blakely wrapped it all up in a nice big bow and made it all right.Jane Black is a rock-star. She was finally made it with her latest album after three that didn’t hit that spot for listeners. She is living the dream and has a brand new Grammy to show for it. The only problem is that her success and her fabulous music have come from a place of real pain. The life-changing and soul-crushing kind of pain that leaves a person inherently changed. And Jane is, changed.Matthew is a sexy British music critic with an eye for Jane. He loved her latest album which only served to make him more interested in her. When he sees an opportunity to combine business with pleasure, he takes it. Ever the professional he tries to keep his feelings at bay as he completes his assignment. He can’t fight his feelings for her forever and as he tries to break down her walls he lets her in and falls for her at the same time.“How can he kiss me senseless in the elevator and then hold my hand as if he’s my guy and he’s worried that I won’t make my deadline? But he manages both sides- the sexy one and the considerate one- and if he keeps this up, my mind just might turn to mush because I am dangerously close to this being more than just a crazy kind of chemistry, more than a fun bit of flirting. I could see him as the man in my life.”Jane has been lied to, betrayed and had her heart broken. She is now navigating life a survivor of said events. It’s extremely hard for Jane to allow her newly patched-back-together heart to risk love again. Will Matthew be the balm she needs to heal her heart for good? Or will his career take center stage subjecting Jane to betrayal once again?“I am shaking right now, deep, searing tears pierce my throat, big splashes of salty water threaten to spill from my eyes because right now, this is all my fears, all my doubts, crashing around me again. This is me believing in something so deeply and then finding out I was tricked.”I loved this story. Jane was a refreshing character. She was real, normal and relatable. Besides being a rock star, she was a proud mom, a friend and family member. I loved how she talked about her son. I loved how she interacted with her family and friends. I just plain liked her.I also loved her process as a songwriter. I know little about music and musicians but I felt this was such a great glimpse into music. I am not a songwriter by any stretch of the imagination but Jane’s story had me wanting to scribble song lyrics on scraps of paper and mail them to her. I found myself seeing the music in her life when she couldn’t. Then I read a little further. And damn you Lauren Blakely for making me feel musically smart for a minute because it was your fabulous writing all along. You expertly placed these musically inspired scenes and then had her relive them as she wrote her album. It was EPIC! I loved seeing it all come together. I love music and this book will defiantly be getting a playlist. I may even read it again as I listen to my playlist. I would read it again, it was that good.