Blended Notes is apparently the conclusion to a trilogy. I wish I had known going into this that it was part of a series, but it still didn't detract from my enjoyment. Grady is a country star about to marry the love of his life, stylist Nico. He's dealt a huge blow, though, right in the beginning of Blended Notes, from his record label. It will affect his love, his life and his career. Everything will depend upon his decision. Does he go along with it and potentially end his relationship? Or does he go with his gut (and his love) and say no and potentially end his career?

But, Grady and Nico do not just have to deal with this huge blow. No, they have to deal with the stress of wedding planning, Nico's little surprise of inviting Grady's estranged family, and Nico's intensely private personality having to deal with Grady's fans, some of whom intensely dislike him. Of course there is miscommunication between the two, secrets being held, not baring their hearts to each other, and almost every other kind of stress a couple in love and planning a wedding can possibly think of. Will Grady and Nico be able to hold onto each other? Or will Grady's career get in the way of his love?

I found myself really liking both Grady and Nico. They make for an interesting couple with all their differences, and yet they make such a great couple. They have strong chemistry and even stronger love. A gay interracial romance set in the world of Nashville is certainly not the most common thing and I applaud Lilah Suzanne for not only highlighting it, but treating it with deft hands and obvious love for her characters. I am really looking forward to more from her!

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

Grady Dawson’s future looks bright. He’s at the top of his country music career, has a close-knit group of friends who have become his Nashville family, and has found solid ground in his personal life as he plans his intimate, private wedding with Nico, his stylist turned lover turned love of his life. It seems Grady has finally left his difficult childhood and tumultuous youth behind. That is, until his past shows up on his doorstep, news of his upcoming nuptials is leaked to the media, and his record company starts issuing demands that challenge his integrity as an artist and as a person. The foundation Grady built his new life on begins to crumble and fast. Can he have his future if he’s haunted by his past? Can he continue making music if it means comprising his convictions? Must he make the ultimate choice between a private life with Nico and the public demands of his career?

I came to Blended Notes (Spotlight #3) by Lilah Suzanne without having read the first two stories (Broken Records and Burning Tracks) and I think that was a mistake.  Each preceding novel gives you the various stages in the Grady Dawson/Nico Takahashi romance/relationship as well as supplies you with the surrounding cast members and overall series foundation.  Coming blind into Blended Notes without all that back history and relationship tapestry means that you as a reader are forever feeling like you are missing pieces of a puzzle or playing catch up in a larger game. And that's a shame because this is a marvelous story.

When Blended Notes opens Grady and Nico are an engaged couple planning a wedding. The stress of that event is showing on the couple as well as the fact that Grady's recording label wants him to change the lyrics on a song he wrote especially for himself and Nico, making it hetrosexual in its romantic orientation.  If Grady doesn't buckle under to the demands of the recording studio, his future career is shaky, information he is withholding from his fiance. Both men start to withdraw into past patterns (here is where reading the previous stories would have helped immensely) of behavior rather than communicate what's really going on between them.

There is so much here.  Complicated angst-filled pasts, family drama, present day Nashville pressures for a Country Music Artist to appear "straight", interpersonal dynamics, pre-marriage stress...honestly the author empties the narrative bag here, addresses them all and comes up shining.  Lilah Suzanne makes you care about Grady and Nico, their complicated lives and their forthcoming wedding which seems to be in jeopardy under the strain of all the current pressures.  How each man handles it is beautifully drawn out, allowing us to peer into the connection and love that ties them both so closely together.

I love all the wonderful elements in Blended Notes,  from the old car that Grady finds and starts to refinish that also allows him to find connections to his relatives and Nico's father to the backup musicians that come to his aid and revive him emotionally and musically.  Suzanne reaches out and brings so much depth to her characters and their situation here that after a while I've forgotten that I've missed out on two thirds of their story and just let the story flow over me all the way to the dramatic and oh so satisfying end. Yes I loved that ending too!

It also will send me back to pick up the stories I considering how I love this story so I want to see how it all began.  So back to Broken Records and Burning Tracks I run!  If you are familiar with this series, you will love Blended Notes!  If, like me, you are new to Lilah Suzanne's Spotlight series, start with the first two stories and then find your way here.  This is a series you won't want to miss!

Cover art works well for the story.  Like the design very much.

Reviews posted on Goodreads, Amazon, B & N and V's Reads: http://wp.me/p3AKEA-2hz

Grady Dawson and Nico Takahashi made quite a splash in the country music scene when they fell for one another back in BROKEN RECORDS. Grady is an up-and-coming country singer and Nico a flamboyant stylist in LA, but they've relocated to Nashville and Nico, a private man, is settling into the celebrity status--not that he's happy with some of the irate fans who blame him for Grady "dumping" a popular female country singer...

It's good though. They're planning their secluded, paparazzi-free, wedding and a life together. Only, well, Grady's under pressure to change the single he wants to release on his forthcoming album. It's a love song he wrote for Nico, and clearly talks about deep love between men--a topic too scandalous for the record label's management. In fact, they're holding up the release of his album until he makes the change which puts Grady into a "Breach of Contract" situation. And, the potential for Grady to lose everything--money, property, and his recorded music--in a lawsuit is high. It's enough to drive Grady into depression, and kills his muse.

Add to this, Nico's struggling with the wedding plans, the lack of privacy, and Grady's self-isolation. He wants to help Grady find his bearings, and this might include opening some rather deep wounds in the hunt for Grady's parents to be guests at the wedding. Grady's been so long estranged, he has no desire to reconnect, but he might not have a choice.

This was an interesting read, with a lyrical and nostalgic tone. Grady tells this whole book from start to finish, and we get some insights into the darkness of his childhood, which includes substance abuse, abandonment and poverty. He was raised by his grandparents from early childhood because his too-young parents couldn't stay employed or sober. I loved the realistic experiences we re-live through Grady's memories. The juxtaposition lends a palpable fear to the legal battle Grady's refusal to re-write his love song brings to his present. What if he's soon-to-be destitute? Should he even marry Nico who could be saddled with Grady's debt? And, should Grady just swallow his artistic pride and re-record the song so it's palatable to heterosexuals? This quandary of conscience forms the biggest conflict of the book, and it's both poignant and easily accessible to the reader.

The resolution to the conflicts are interesting and engaging. I had already lost my heart to Nico, but he swept me off my feet again with all his changes to accommodate Grady and their life together. Likewise, Grady's tension and inner conflicts are so raw and exposed that he's impossible not to connect with on multiple levels. Bits of steam here and there, but those aren't the parts that struck me hardest. The end of the plot lines are so positive that it's beyond HEA. These characters are ones to root for and cheer on throughout, and their happiness merits multiple celebrations. Good thing we get to experience it over and again.

I received a review copy via NetGalley.

Grady and Nico are engaged. It’s supposed to be a great time in their lives, but Nico wants to plan every single detail and Grady just wants to get to the part about being married. He loves Nico fully and will do anything for him, but the wedding plans are not the only pressures that Grady is facing. His past and his family turn up again and although Grady has said he has made peace with it all, he may not have fully. Adding to this, his record label wants him to compromise his integrity as an artist, and the news of his upcoming wedding is leaked to the press causing the paparazzi to follow them closely.

All Grady wants is his music on his own terms and his happy ever after with Nico. But there may be a choice that Grady was not prepared to make.

Blended Notes follows with the third book in Suzanne’s Spotlight series and this book would work best with at least having read the first book, Broken Records. This story follows Nico and Grady as they are settling into living together and planning their wedding.

As the book opens, things are good for the guys, if not a bit hectic. Grady has turned in a brand new album, but the record company wants him to make changes, changes that don’t sit well with Grady and his relationship with Nico. There is also the wedding planning. Nico is a top stylist and a planner and Grady is trying to hang on until they can get to the big day. Nico and Grady are solid in their feelings for each other, but the constant planning and then dealing with paparazzi put strain on their relationship.

The book just moves along and follows the men as they are wedding planning, figuring out their careers, and dealing with family issues. I always enjoy seeing established couples as they move on with their lives, but there wasn’t a lot of spark here for me for a good portion of the book and many of the interactions remained flat, if not a bit uninspired. All of the gang is back with Gwen, Flora, and Clementine, but there wasn’t a lot going on that had me turning pages. While it was a smooth read, there wasn’t much that was pulling me in. It was still great to see Nico and Grady again, but the day in the life formula, which certainly has appeal, didn’t make their story highly compelling for me here.

What was missing was the magic of Nico and Grady, because when they are together they are magical. They were on page together for the earlier portion of the book, but were more circling each other. It wasn’t until later on that they started to come together again for me. Grady has a lot going on and he’s second guessing everything because he’s used to getting left behind. But when he sees Nico he knows that, “Grady can’t get enough of him; he is everything Grady never thought he could have.” And that is what Grady has to come to terms with in the book, that he is allowed to have something good just for himself.

After reading the first book in the series I wouldn’t have missed this one. It did get off to a slower start for me, but when you get to the heart of Nico and Grady it’s certainly worth the journey.

I just finished a five day binge of the entire Spotlight Series finishing with the upcoming Blended Notes. I have enjoyed every book in this series, and this one does not disappoint. Following the lives of Nico, Grady, Clem, Flora and Gwen has been so wonderful. Each character feels real and I just want to live in this world and be best friends with them all. Grady has not had an easy past and this story takes us on Grady's journey wonderfully. But more importantly, we see how he is able to navigate the hard challenge of moving on and growing from the past hurt. Grady goes through family drama, legal woes and some relationship bumps, but his strength is what really shines in this book. He feels so inadequate, but he doesn't realize just how strong he is throughout everything. Gwen, Flora and Clem are more in the background in this story but they are still fleshed out and great characters. want a book about Clementine next! She's a mystery to me yet. I would highly recommend Blended Notes and the entire Spotlight Series. I

When I requested this book, I didn't realize it was third in a series. I did not feel like this was a stand-alone novel and I missed a lot of backstory in the first two books in the series. What I missed was the two main characters Nico and Grady falling love (they are already in love in this book) and getting engaged, which I am sad that I didn't read before this one because that is a really important part of the story--all about how they met and fell in love, and how they are meant for each other, etc.., This book is all about their wedding which is nice and all, but I need to read the other two books now to fill in the rest. Nico and Grady seem like a great couple and I loved reading about their wedding planning but I still felt like I missed out. Next time I will double-check and make sure I am not requesting a sequel, OR I will read the other books in the series first.

Blended Notes is the third book in the Spotlight series. I actually follows the characters we read about in the first book. The second one is a lesbian love affair and is super sweet all on its own, but Blended Notes follows up on the gay characters introduced in the first book, Grady and Nico. In Broken Records, the first novella in the series, we saw Grady and Nico fall in love. In this third book they are planning their wedding.
These men are very different but so much in love that they are finding ways to interact and enjoy their differences. The men are already engaged at this point. There is some friction with Grady’s family that Nico is determined to mend. Grady is resistant but Nico has strong feelings, mainly because he comes from a loving family, and wants Grady’s family to repair their differences.
Grady is a country music star, now based in Nashville. Nico is a Los Angeles based stylist who has specific ideas how Grady should look, dress, and behave in order to be on top of his game. One story line involves Grady having to decide whether he needs to have a more private life with Nico or a public life with his career. When details of the wedding is leaked to the press, tensions mount.
This a wonderful book, third in a series. I recommend reading the books, and least #1 and 3, in order, but if you start with #3 I think you will find your way through it. Well written with a HEA, as is required for a romance.