Loved this adorable YA book by Emma Lord! Millie Price lives with her nerdy father and super fun Aunt Heather. Millie is really into musical theater and attends an arts school in NYC. She's set her sites on a precollege program in CA but her dad is not into the idea. She and her best friend Teddy hatch a scheme to find her mother (who left her with her dad when she was an infant) who may understand Millie's need to go to the precollege program.
Millie finds three potential moms-yes, just like Mamma Mia!! She applies for an intership where Mom #1 is and runs into her high school nemesis Oliver. Over the course of the story, she comes to know Oliver's motivations better and also finds herself.
Millie is very dramatic, as expected but her character is fully realized, as are all of the supporting characters. There are lots of fun Broadway references.
Emma Lord is a must read YA author for me. I don't read too much YA anymore but she is an exception.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for my honest review.

Emma Lord is quickly becoming a go to author for contemporary YA romance. She perfectly blend humor and heart in each of her stories. Her ability to appeal to teens and adults alike is a gift. I love the way she structures a coming of age story. I know students will find a lot to relate to in her new book. Definitely recommend.

This book sounded so cute, and I was excited to finally pick it up, but I discovered pretty quickly that I wasn’t going to like it. I ended up switching to the audiobook to see if I liked it better that way, but nope.

Millie’s immature and selfish attitude was hard to get behind. And her dad’s selfish attitude with literally not telling her who her mother is was absolutely insane. Like this is supposed to be a 16 year old, and you’re telling me she can’t locate her birth certificate in her own home?

There were also just too many characters with too many sub-plots happening. I felt lost and honestly couldn’t wait for the book to be over. I’m not sure if a younger audience would like this or not, but maybe?

It’s just weird how all the teens in this book talked and acted like they were adults, but we’re still incredibly naïve and made impulsive and stupid decisions. I don’t know y’all. This book was just not it, for me at least.

4 1/2 stars

So this book has solidified Emma Lord as an auto buy author for me. No one does complicated families and integrates social media/current technology into their stories like Lord. This book may be my favorite from her and I'm not even into musical theatre but I loved this story so much. It is fun and moving and everyday I couldn't wait to continue the story. From our wonderful ball of fun Millie to all of the side characters this story touches on themes like reaching for your dreams, mental health, what makes family, hurting those we love, kindness and falling in love.

Musical theatre loving Millie is on a search for her birth mother after reading her father's old social media account and narrowing it down to 3 women. This search also leads her into direct interaction with her high school nemesis who also happens to be very cute...

Millie is a wonderful character, talented and kind to everyone in her orbit. Throughout the book we see her world expanding and her question what she really wants to do to achieve her dream. Her mental health is a focus that I was happy was included and reading about her nerdy loving single father was a joy to read as it's so rare. The conclusion of the search I found to be realistic and emotional and I appreciated how the story reflects how it touched everyone not just the two directly involved. Soo many feelings!

Overall highly recommend. I will be eagerly anticipating the next Emma Lord book.

Thanks to St. Martins Press, Wednesday Books and Netgalley for providing an early copy of this book. All opinions are my own. Review posted on Instagram account @sdrosereads on Jan. 17th and on Goodreads.

Links:
https://www.instagram.com/sdrosereads/ review saved in highlights and book mentioned on a post in main feed
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4319456940?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

A huge thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this book. I am voluntarily leaving a review, all opinions are my own.

Emma Lord does it again with another great book! I’ve fallen in love with the way she writes, and this book was no exception.

I enjoyed Millie as a character and loved her story from beginning to end. This was a great, quick read that had me grinning at times.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Young Listeners, and NetGalley for advanced listening and ebook copies of this title.

Millie Price is about to enter her senior year of high school with dreams of becoming a Broadway star. She lives in New York City with her single dad and his sister who has acted as Millie's stand-in mom since her birthmom left her as an infant. She has longed for information about her mother, but her dad has always been reluctant to divulge anything. When Millie and her friend discover her dad's college Live Journal, it sets her on a quest to track down her mother. What ensues is a delightful story that reminds us that family isn't just the people we're biologically related to. I enjoyed this story a lot!

4.5 stars = Loved it! Would re-read.

Another winner from Emma Lord! I loved the characters in this, and the plot was clever and engaging. Some great laugh-out-loud moments. A fun read from start to finish! (Language, LGBTQ+)

4.5 Stars

The first adjective that comes to mind when thinking of Lord's third novel is delightful. All of Lord's books have been wonderful and yes, delightful - and When You Get the Chance is right up there with Tweet Cute in terms of how much I loved it. In sort of a modern reverse Mamma Mia (looking for a father), while putting on a high school production of Mamma Mia - and interning in the theater industry with her arch-nemesis, Oliver, Millie Price might just find herself along the way. Chock full of Broadway references (and NYC references that this city girl couldn't help but love), even those with minimal theater knowledge will be charmed by Millie and her antics.

This is an adorable (reads young) YA story. If Millie hasn't been such a self centered, self absorbed brat for half the book, this would be a five star review. I loved the friendships, the positive dad/daughter relationship, and how much Millie grows, especially once she has a "mentee" and stops focusing so much on herself.

I also liked her relationship with her aunt Heather. But everytime she gets dressed with "Heather's boots", I thought, at what point does someone else's shoes become yours if you wear them All. The. Time. The story predictably wrapped up so nicely that it seemed kind of unrealistic. And really, as unpleasant as Millie's character was, it seemed like at least *something* shouldn't have gone her way.

It's an entertaining and sweet story, a nice break from some heavier reads.

If I had to describe this book in one sentence it would be a modern day parent-gender-swapped Mamma Mia with a diva main character who just so happens to have a secret heart of gold. But just when you think you know what the story holds, BAM, the author rips the (theoretical) carpet out from underneath you with the biggest most unexpected twist and it was just so good! That is all I can say about that so no spoilers, just read to experience.

I also love that her best friend is male and there is ZERO romance between them and I adore that that was not a love triangle or repressed romantic feelings here. BUT we do have a love interest present here to make a nice enemies to lover trope bloom in the sweetest way.

I also really love the overall message in the story, that where or who you came from doesn't matter as much as where you are going and who you are now. This was overall a super enjoyable rollercoaster read, full of fun, heart, drama and theater and has now cemented the fact that this author can do no wrong in my eyes. I highly recommend this read for anyone who likes loud characters, mischievous antics, great relationships of all kinds and the play Momma Mia.

This was such a cute read, and I can definitely see it being someone's comfort book. As background, I was in chorus in high school, but I had no theatre experience. Even without connecting to our main character Millie on that level, I was able to enjoy this story and fall in love with our characters.

The one thing done so well here was character creation. Emma Lord made Millie feel like my best friend, and every line of dialogue cemented her personality, down to discussing the different "genres" of math. Teddy and Chloe were such sweet sidekicks, and I even connected to Millie's dork of a dad. This story transported me to a New York where this really happened, and I loved every second.

While I did call this a comfort read, there are some heavy topics covered in here. This story is all about Millie looking for the mom who abandoned her at birth, so there are discussions of that abandonment throughout. Millie is also a junior in high school slowly discovering who she is and who she wants to be once she gets into the real world, so there are instances of teenage angst, known as "Millie Moods" that can be stressful to read. However, the conflicts these Millie Moods create never last too long, and of course we get a happy ending.

I'd recommend this to any high schooler struggling to fit in or anyone who uses reading to escape. This was my first Emma Lord book, but it definitely won't be my last.

Could I love this book anymore?! Millie Price has dreams of being a Broadway star and she thinks the ticket to getting there is transferring for her senior year to a prestigious art program halfway across the country. She is not going to let her introverted dad or her extroverted aunt who has had a big hand in raising her get in her way. In fact, she's already said goodbye to her biggest rival Oliver. But when Mille's dad says no, she knows she needs someone in her corner and makes it her summer's mission to find the mother who abandoned her as a baby on her father's doorstep. This is a book of adventure, making messes glitz, glamour, and the people who love and care about us the most.

When You Get the Chance by Emma Lord was a delightful escape into musical theatre, family bonds, discovering yourself, and finding love. Millie Price is a high school student who wants to be an actress/singer who makes it big on Broadway. She has a stone supportive Dad and Aunt who support her, but Millie wants to find her mother. This is a fun retelling of Mama Mia with a gender swap. In addition to finding her mother, Millie and Oliver have this great enemies-to-lovers romance happening throughout NYC as they fulfill daily tasks for their talent agent internship. The relationships in this book were great with all of Millie's family and friends. Get yourself a copy of this YA book because it's a great read you don't want to miss.

Thank you, Wednesday Books and Macmillan Audio, for my gifted copies to review honestly.

3.5 stars. This was sweet. I really wasn't feeling Millie for the first half of the book. Her 'Millie Moods' drove me nuts! The self-awareness was there, but it didn't seem like she was doing anything to counteract the pretty bitchy behavior. Also, her internal dialogue came across as very childish. Luckily, slowly but surely she moved in the right direction and grew up, so to speak. If you're a musical theater lover, the non-stop references are fun and entertaining. I wish we would have seen more interactions with Millie and her dad. Nothing super special or original with this one by Lord, but very sweet and cute and an easy read.

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you Wednesday Books and NetGalley for a gifted copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

If you're a fan of musical theater, you have to read this book! All the references and behind the scenes of producing a show were delightful. Millie can definitely be a bit much at times with her big personality and antics but I think it fits with her character and age. I'm jealous of her confidence and goals - I certainly didn't have that at the age of seventeen. The romance between her and Oliver was adorable and how they got together felt authentic and I loved it.

Once again, Emma Lord doesn't disappoint when it comes to YA contemporary/romance!

In Emma Lord's new book, When You Get the Chance, our protagonist, Camille "Millie" Price is determined to become a Broadway star. Raised by her single dad and her aunt, Millie has never known her mother. But when her best friend and neighbor Teddy discovers her father's old LiveJournal, Millie starts to wonder exactly which of the women mentioned in it might be her mother?

When Millie is accepted to a prestigious drama program across the country, her father tells her she can't go. So Millie decides to pull a "Millie Mia" and suss out which of the three women Dad mentioned on the blog is her mother in the hopes that her mother would side with her going to the program.

What follows is adorable hijinks as Millie finds surreptitious ways to insert herself into the lives of Beth, Steph, and Farrah, hoping she'll just know which one is her mother. When attempting to meet Steph, who is the secretary to a talent agent, she runs into archenemy Oliver, who is applying for an internship with Steph's boss. Millie turns that into an opportunity - if she's working for Steph's boss, she'll be around Steph! - and her rivalry with Oliver turns into a key plot point.

This book is just so much FUN. Millie's voice is perfect. It's young and totally G-rated, light and fluffy while still addressing Millie's search for her mother and deep-seated worry regarding why her mother chose to foist her off on her father. A heartwarming ending just iced the cake of this lovely book. I really loved it and highly recommend!

Thank you Wednesday Books for the gifted book.

I’m really conflicted on what to rate this book.

I really loved this book. The story and the writing were just fantastic.

Millie Price is young diva (Rachel Berry anyone?) who’s dream is to be a broadway star. I didn’t always love her, some moments I found her unlike able. Other times I found her hilarious and adorable. I’m chalking it up to teen behavior.

The whole plot is based off of Millie looking for her birth mom.
Well guess who figured out that secret immediately? Yep, I sure know how to ruin the fun for myself. I was hoping I was wrong and it would be some crazy twist.
While I was bummed it still didn’t take away from the story.

My favorite part of this book was the family dynamics. I’m in love with Cooper. Honestly I love dad and daughter relationships, we don’t see those enough!

All the characters were amazing in their own way.

Emma Lord is such a great YA writer, I can’t get enough.

Overall I really loved this book despite the two “problems “ I had with it.

Also this book made me find my embarrassingly moody livejournal from 2008.

Millie dreams of being a Broadway star. Actually, she's not just dreaming about it, she's working her butt off to make it happen. So she's thrilled to find out she's being offered a pre-college place in a prestigious school. The only problem is, it's on the other side of the country and her dad has already told her no.

Millie starts to wonder if her mom would be more supportive, except she doesn't actually know who or where her mom is—she left Millie with her dad in college and hasn't seen her since. So, in Mama Mia style, Millie starts doing some sleuthing, with the help of her neighbor. Of course, nothing goes according to plan (because that would be a fairly boring book) and there are all sorts of hijinks along the way and plenty of run-ins with Millie's rival, Oliver.

I'm not much of a musical theater lover, but if you are I'm sure you'll love this one. There is plenty to keep you entertained even if you're not though. There's love, found family, drama, mystery, rivalries, deceit and so much more.

2.5*

When You Get the Chance had such a fun premise and the potential to be really great, but sadly for me it just missed the mark. I did not like Millie for the majority of the book. She was fine in the beginning, and she pretty much/kind of redeemed herself at the end, the best part of the book, but through the bulk of the story she irritated and frustrated me. I think she'd benefit greatly from therapy.
There were some really sweet moments, and I even found myself tearing up a couple times, but other than that this book didn't work for me. I'm rounding up because I really liked the ending, and the big reveal took me by surprise.

Emma Lord has done it again. Honestly, an ode to NYC and musical theater? Already my jam. Throw in a modern Mamma Mia retelling and a YA love story? And just like that, I'm sold.

This is a fantastic follow-up to Lord's other books - we get the same central themes of family, identity development for some eccentric, but loveable, teens, and the best YA love story.

I felt the pacing was quick and kept me wanting more. Emma's development and the romantic relationship was realistic and didn't feel forced.

Overall, Emma Lord is an auto-buy author for me now.