This book was such a beautiful romance! Every now and again I'm in need of a great, fun romance and this one really took the cake. I loved the characters - they were so much fun and the novel itself was a great story.

Cute, fluffy YA Romance.

I seriously adored Archer. The teasing, The adorable awkwardness... And how he didn't play games.

Kassidy was fun, though less of a full character. The focus on her phobia and past friendship consumed her.

They were pretty adorable together though, and I definitely feel like they had chemistry.

The friend interactions, both on social media and off, were fun and felt pretty genuine. The way her side was prose and his side was texts and FB was different and gave the whole thing a more lighthearted vibe.

Which sort of made her issues with her friend feel a bit heavy, especially near the end. I think getting more sooner might have helped that, as well as maybe skipping her final goodbye.

All in all, a very quick read that fits in well with the genre.

This was a very cute story. It seems more appropriate for teens than adults,. but I still enjoyed it nonetheless. Would like to see more books by her. Thanks for the opportunity.

I cannot begin to imagine the stress that would come with being a twin of a super star.  As the oldest of four, two of my siblings being boys, there were plenty of girls who were just friends with me to get close to my brothers. It is annoying and the source of a lot of my trust issues when it comes to friends. I cannot imagine how bad it would be with someone who was famous in the family.


It is hard enough being famous but being mistaken for your twin who is famous and not being able to have any privacy has to be a special type of torture. You didn't sign up for it but you are gonna get it.


The angst in this book was very relatable. As I said before I had my own trust issues because of people only being friends to get close to my brothers and the author nailed it with Archer's insecurities.


I liked how realistic the uncertainty of dating in high school and all the questions that came with it. Does she like me? Is this flirting?  Is this a date or are we just friends?


As a mom and a married woman I don't have to deal with these problems anymore so it is a nice reminder of what single life use to be. I read this book in one setting, it was the perfect bit of cute summer read that made laying out in the yard soaking up the rays bearable.

This was the cutest book I've read in a long time! Great characters, and an amazing plot! The end was spectacular!

I liked the idea of a rock star romance involving twin brothers, and the cute, fresh feel of a teen novel.

I'm sorry, but I did not finish this story. I decided to quit around 30% in to the book. I wasn't connecting with any characters and I wasn't enjoying it.

This was a quick, super cute read about two insecure people who find the strength to fall in love with each other. At times, I will admit, I was left infuriated at the characters when their lack of taking the time to listen to each other left them both in a tangle of misunderstandings. Though they seemed perfect for each other, these misunderstandings had me wondering if they were truly good for each other. However, I'm not going to give the ending away. I will say that with the fun jokes, hilariously unforgettable dialogue and a pretty darn epic first date I have to say that this book's "journey" was every bit as satisfying as its ending. Definitely recommend for those who love a fun upper teen romance!

Fun and charming tale that reader's will fall in love with. What do you do when you've been burned by love before? Do you trust your heart and take a chance or let love slip through your fingers? Archer has been burned by girls before who were using him to get to his famous twin brother so it is understandable that he is a little hesitant to believe that Kassidy might be into him. Kassidy is dealing with her own messed up life and isn't sure if she is ready to open up and make herself vulnerable. It is a twisty and turning path that Archer and Kassidy take and readers will be rooting for them to find their "happily ever after". Definitely recommend.

I'm Not In The Band

Amber Garza




Why have I never read Amber Garza before? I loved I'M NOT IN THE BAND so much that I read it in one sitting! That says a lot doesn't it? Once I started reading, I couldn't put it down and was so involved in all the characters lives. Kassidy Milton finds herself at a Playlisters concert with her sister, Sophie. While trying to find something edible at the snack bar she bumps in to a dude named Archer. Archer just happens to be the twin brother of Ross Devlin, the lead singer of the Playlisters. Since Kassidy tells Archer she is new to his high school and has no friends there, he persuades her to give him her phone number so he can show her around when school starts.


Kassidy knows she just met Archer but can't help but feel that Archer is a good guy. I'M NOT IN THE BAND is how Archer deals with having a famous brother. It is also the story about finding yourself and growing up. I found myself giggling out loud while reading this sweet and fun story. Kassidy tries real hard to make friends when she gets to school but it seems as if most of the girls hate her because of her friendship with Archer. She also suffers from panic attacks but tries not to let Archer see them. Once he does realize what is going on, he really tries to help her get through them and that is when my heart was filled with Archer. He was almost perfect for Kassidy and you wont be able to help yourself from falling for him.


I'M NOT IN THE BAND addresses some serious issues, but not too much that you feel depressed reading about them. But they do feel very real and you even might find yourself relating to many of them. Being in the shadow of others is a big one for me. Not long after starting I'M NOT IN THE BAND, I was praying that Kassidy would trust her instincts and not push Archer away. Would Archer ever be able to get out from his famous brother's shadow and realize that Kassidy truly likes him? Amber Garza put my emotions on a crazy roller coaster ride and I loved every minute of it! I'm excited to go back and read the rest of her books!

I'm Not In The Band is a pretty cute, contemporary romance. Kassidy goes to a concert with her sister to a boyband she's never heard of, and runs into the lead singer's twin brother near the concession stand. Archer is used to having girls fawn all over him, either because they think he's his famous brother or because they think they can use him to get close to him. So, of course, he loves it when this cute girl seems to like him just for himself. And, turns out, they're going to be going to the same school!

The story is told in dual POVs, and it's handled pretty well. The voices feel different. Garza uses different formats (texts, Facebook updates, tweets, etc.) to move the story along and also develop the characters. Kassidy and Archer's relationship starts off as friends first and it's all very cute and sweet.

There are also some great side characters. Kassidy's sister Sophie is awesome, her young-at-heart mother is awesome, and Archer's friends are also pretty great.

However, there is an issue with Kassidy not being "like other girls," which gets annoying. At first she isn't like other girls because she likes Archer for who he is. But then Archer has some real jealousy issues he needs to work through. I didn't like watching him work through them on Kassidy's time, all the while telling her that he thought she wasn't like other girls. 

Should you read it?I'm Not In the Band  is a fun, quick contemporary romance that turns the rock star trope on its head and will give readers a lot of feels. 

Review will go live July 17.

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Kris – ☆☆☆☆☆
LOVED this book! Everything about it appealed to me for a young adult read. With just the right amount of innocence but still a bit of steam between the two leads to keep me interested, I found this book highly addictive. Drawing out the ghosts in Cassidy's past just long enough to keep things suspenseful but not aggravating (get to the point already type thing), I found the pacing to be perfect.

Cassidy is trying new things, she's coming into her own person after a tragedy has her rethinking her life. Archer is trying to get out from under the shadow of his famous twin brother, who is the lead singer for the newest hot boy band. Everyone in school wants to get to know Archer only to get close to his twin. Cassidy is the new girl in school, but that's not the only thing that attracts Archer to her.

There's some good young adult strife, some funny tweets and Facebook posts, and great coming of age drama. Very well written, I thoroughly enjoyed it from cover to cover!

I'm Not in the Band is an adorable story of two teenagers battling their insecurities by relying on their friendship and romantic chemistry. I liked Kassidy and as a person with anxiety, I thought that the the character was written, the reasons she doesn't he things she does and responds the way she does, is authentic and really ads to the character.

Sometimes is hard for me to really get into books with dual POVs, especially ones with different genders. However, I think that I'm Not in the Band did a great job of having two very distinct, interesting voices and characters and I loved Archer's sections as much if not more that Kassidy's.

Archer and Kassidy's relationship, despite starting with a cliche bump in at a concert, develops in a relatively believable way, and the conflicts and insecurities brought to the forefront for both of them make sense and add to the character development. Sometimes I felt that Kassidy's character fell a little flat and was sometimes a little inconsistent. However, her development throughout the story, and Archer's place in really pushing that development, really drives the story. Archer's band of friends also really work to push the story forward and add a lot of voice and humor, making for a funny, sweet, romantic summer read.

-sent from Netgalley in exchange for a honest review-


I LOVED this book.

Firstly, the fact that this is about a brother of a famous singer is so different.

ALSO the texting! I loved seeing the texting interaction between each character especially Archer and Ross. Even with Archers jealously at times the brotherly connection is there and I love to see a good supportive family in books.

Archer has a bad time with people trying to be his friend or boyfriend to get to his brother and he holds a lot of jealously because of that.

Kassidy has a lot on her plate in this story. You know she has demons she's fighting right off the bat, and you don't find out until the end why. She has panic attacks and anxiety throughout the story and I felt like the anxiety especially was so well portrayed. I loved that her parents let her take days off of school to let her calm down and take care of herself.

Overall, id rate this a solid 4. I really enjoyed this book and would read more from this author.

What can I say about this book? Hell YEAH!!😃😃😃

well… it was so cute when Kass did not know who Ross is.. it was obvious Archer is very happy…

This book is a quick read and a cute one too. The people. anxiety and worries are almost the same in real life. I just don’t get it why some people let other people dictate their lives. I get the jealousy part though, I mean it is normal..

I would recommend this read to high school and college youth. It is so cute! I also love the best friends! yeah really.. I love Sophia, even though she’s the boy crazy one, and not so much alike, she loves Kassidy.. she always make sure Kass is comfortable. Mac for Archer is also good. They’re like brothers, and the good thing is, they tell the truth. I hope there’s another book that tells Sophie and Mac together..😍😍😍

well.., I’m betting on their love team. Bet they’ll be so cool no dull moments!

I thought this was a really cute book! I loved the social media aspect and the integration of texts and status updates. Also the character were really fun. I did feel a little bit of insta love but at the same time felt the relationship grew at a natural pace for a short book. Overall a really awesome contemporary.

Sometimes it’s really hard being a teenager, and when there are other factors in your life preventing you from fully being yourself it makes life even harder. I think that Amber Garza did a really great job showing the different sides to teenagers and just people in general today. Sometimes there are factors out of your control.

We meet Kassidy (great name by the way) who is out with her sister and trying to pretty much get her life back on track. She’s starting a new school and trying to find herself after her breakup with all her friends at her old school. Of course she just happens to run into a guy at a concert and one thing leads to another and they really hit it off. I think this is a fantasy of many teenage girls, to find a guy at a concert who just so happens to be related to the band or at least knows someone. I know when I was younger I used to fantasize about things like that. Anyway back to the story, it just so happens they go to the same school and he’s going to show her around.

I don’t really want to expand on the story to much because you should really check it out. But the interaction between these two and their friends is quite fun to experience. There is a bit of jealousy going on that I think anyone would feel and then of course all the backstory with Kassidy comes out in little pieces here and there. It’s interesting and difficult to live through her panic attacks, and understand what she’s going through but at the same time I think it’s something we definitely need to learn to understand. These are some serious illnesses, thoughts and things that happen to these kids and it will just make you a better person for reading about them and experiencing it through their eyes. Especially because the author did such a great job describing them.

This was really a great book overall and I think anyone would enjoy it. I love the cover I think it’s sweet and endearing and I’m totally rooting for these two to live happily ever after. Great quick read with some serious undertones.

*Book Received in Exchange for Honest Opinion/Review*

This young adult contemporary romance was sickeningly sweet, with a chocolate dipped cherry on top. So while I had some issues with the story, which I will get to shortly, overall it was a light-enjoyable read. Kassidy and Archer are perfection together and their first kiss had me ten levels of swooning! While they both seem to be battling issues, you really see them work through them together and come out better for it on the other side.

Now some of my pet peeves, first off…Kassidy’s mom is over the top in her attempt to be “hip” to the point where I was rolling my eyes because she was just trying too damn hard. Next, track and cross country are not equal and cannot under any circumstances be used interchangeably, this is very offensive to my past teenage runner heart. Lastly, Kassidy had a lot of little baggage and I felt like her copious amount of issues (I won’t list them but I can think of 5 different things) took away from her blossoming romance with Archer. I wished that Amber would have picked on glaring troupe and focused on that, but her troupes were vast and spread out, with some only being mentioned once but they were still a part of Kassidy’s character and that was just a little too much for me.

In regards to secondary characters, I loved them. From Ross being so full of himself to Sophie being so full of herself and all the details in between. I loved how welcoming and accepting everyone was at Kassidy’s new school and all the secondary characters really created a warmth to the story that had me laughing and smiling. The story opens up with a conversation over texting or social media and while I first wasn’t a fan, the little conversations throughout the rest of the book had me smiling because it allowed me to get to know another dimension of the characters. Overall, I enjoyed the story and it was a great airy read on this hot, hot day.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a sweet story of self discovery and forgiveness.

Archer just wants to be a normal teenager, however his twin brother is the lead singer in a popular band, and people either mistake him for his twin, Ross, or use him to get to know Ross. Archer has been burned one too many tomes, but when he meets a cute girl (Kassidy) who doesn't even know who Ross is, Archer decides he wants to get to know her more.
Kassidy has some issues (which are explained through the story), and this year she has decided on a fresh start. She is attending a new school for her senior year - and is more than happy for Archer to show her around. Kassidy is a flawed and relatable character. I suspected what her issues might have been, but I didn't guess the full extent (it was nice to be surprised - often these sorts of books are extremely predictable).

This book was a nice mix of sweet romance, great friendships, laugh out loud fun and a little bit of sadness thrown in.

Highly recommend this book for lovers of YA Contemporary.

I enjoyed everything about this book, from the chapters in different POVs and the text strings to the actual plot. Kassidy and Archer were such a cute couple, and Archer's insecurities over being the less famous brother were totally relatable. Loved it.