It's already been a bit since I read this, but I thought this was a really cut contemporary romance following a boy band on tour. Obviously, this brings to mind the recently released If This Gets Out, but they're different enough, in both plot and themes, to stand on their own and to enjoy both separately. While If This Gets Out focuses on forced closeting and issues with that, Kiss & Tell follows already out Hunter, who must now fit within the sexless, clean gay box the label (and fanbase) want to see him in. I thought the addition of all the media interviews and press coverage between the chapters were great additions to give readers an idea of all the criticism and support that comes with fame. What kept this from 5 stars for me was the characters; I don't feel like we got enough time with the other members to give them a solid personality, and I also had some problems with the love interest that, while talked about, still rub me the wrong way. Overall, really enjoyed this, and I can't wait to see what Adib Khorram releases next.

A book about a boy band featuring a gay main character? Yes, please! When I first saw this book I was so excited and just knew it would be a fun read, and while it absolutely was, it also dealt with a lot of heavy themes as well, such as homophobia, online harassment, and fetishization. In Kiss & Tell we follow Hunter, one of the members of the band by the same name as the book. They're a pop culture sensation hailing from Canada, and everyone knows their hit single, Poutine (LOL - I love a good Canadian joke.). But right before they depart for a sold out North American tour, Hunter has a very public breakup with his long-term boyfriend, who also happens to be the twin brother of his best friend and band mate. The story is told from the perspective of Hunter, and through text messages, emails, interviews, and magazine articles of the band. We see Hunter navigate celebrity culture, fame, his breakup, and a rebound, all while dealing with being the "stereotypical gay guy" in his boy band. The book is 100% character driven and the plot is rather repetitive. They play shows, Hunter gets stereotyped or has bad shit written about him in the press, he (understandably) gets upset, etc. I would have loved to see these themes and conflicts explored more in depth, but instead they were glanced over and a romance plotline was pushed forward instead. I think the book would have succeeded more as a self discovery/personal growth story than a romance.

My love for Darius is endless, so I was nervous to read Kiss & Tell, but this was nothing short of a testament to Adib Khorram's range in storytelling. The strengths of Khorram's writing — the careful treatment of weighty themes, the beautifully flawed and wholly conceived characters, the emotional reflection and vulnerability — are at the core of this story, which is what works.

Kiss & Tell follows Hunter, an openly gay member of the eponymous boy band, on the band's first major North American tour. Under intense scrutiny from a public breakup and expectations from his label and the masses to be the perfect role model, he's just doing the best he can because what does being the perfect queer kid even mean?

There are so many layers to this book: fake dating, a tender foray into young romance, and charming banter between the main couple but also among the bandmates. Then, a deep dive into the impossibly high standards for queer and racialized folks to meet and how they must strive to be more palatable to be taken seriously. We also see Khorram pick apart sex-negativity, toxic masculinity, and the sanitizing of queer sexuality to fit within the constructs of cis heteronormativity. He balances the pressure the Hunter is under while emphasizing the privilege our MC holds as a white cis male, honestly examining mental health as well.

Hunter's journey is also learning to decenter himself and acknowledge that his fellow band members (three of whom are of Indian, Brazilian, and Vietnamese descent, respectively) and Kaivan (the love interest) also deal with microaggressions and stereotypes. At first, Hunter has misguided selfishness about him, but by the end, he realizes that bigotry exists beyond his experience and is immensely damaging. It does take a bit of emotional labor on the part of the racialized people in his life for him to begin thinking about racism. Regardless, I'm glad that this book honed in on intersectionality and the effects of being multiply marginalized.

The mixed-media format, complete with interspersing texts, narrative chapters, news articles, social media posts, emails, and interviews, lent itself to a rich reading experience. I wish we saw more of the bandmates because they seemed like a hoot, but I am always grateful for Adib Khorram's writing! I recommend this book to anyone looking for an immersive reading experience that explores identity and social pressures.

Give me a boy band romance and I’m going to read it every time. Throwing in queer characters is just the cherry on the top. Normally I forgive a lot of character sins just cause I love to see the representation but I was not a huge fan of Kaivan. There were a lot of mean comments that he made to Hunter that got swept under the rug because Hunter was just trying to see the best in everyone. I loved the way Kaivan was trying to stay true to who he and his brothers were but at the same time he was extremely judgmental and never really apologized well for it. There were a lot of stereotypes being thrown around that I wished had been better handled. For me, this was a 3/5.

If you like boy bands, forced proximity, or not-so-fake relationships, this is the one for you.

I received a digital copy of this book free from Penguin Young Readers Group and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I am so here for these boy band YA books. This one is so good because the gay boy band member is actually out, so it's a different dynamic than other gay boy band novels I've seen so far. Really interesting to see how the music industry uses his sexuality to sell more stuff, and I think the conversation about boy band members not being allowed to have sex is a very timely one.

This was the book that I would have loved to read as a teenager trying to figure out my sexuality. The way that the author treats the subject is fantastic. I love that the characters are given room to grow and make mistakes and learn from them. There are so many things brought up in this book that I've never heard/read about in other queer books. I think that it was refreshing to see some of these things brought up even if they might make people uncomfortable. Overall, I think that this book discussed certain topics in a fantastic way and I would encourage anyone to check it out!

WHY DID I LISTEN TO KISS & TELL BY ADIB KHORRAM?
Kiss & Tell by Adib Khorram initially appealed to me because it was pitched as a fictional boy band tell all sort of book. Additionally, the main character is gay. The band, called Kiss & Tell is also comprised of members from diverse backgrounds. So, as someone who prioritizes books by marginalized people and reading about characters who are different from me, I knew I had to read this book. The fact that the audiobook was essentially full cast cemented my choice to read via audio.

Kiss & Tell by Adib Khorram initially appealed to me because it was pitched as a fictional boy band tell all sort of book. Additionally, the main character is gay.

WHAT’S THE STORY HERE?
Adib Khorram’s Kiss & Tell is about Hunter who is the only gay member of the boy band that he’s in. He experiences his first break up in a very public way. His text messages which are a bit racy leak. There’s some scandal — particularly as Hunter is someone who is Queer and in the public eye. It’s like he has to be this perfect representation. Hunter ends up becoming close to one of the members of the band opening for Kiss & Tell and falling for him — Kaivan, the drummer. This book was quite a ride of various choices made.

HOW DID I LIKE KISS & TELL?
I genuinely enjoyed my time reading Kiss & Tell. It makes me want to pick up more books by Khorram. The format was one that appealed to me — consisting of not just straightforward prose, but emails and text messages, articles, among the normal narrative. I love when books do that — it just feels like an immersive experience. Kaivan was a wonderful love interest too — sure he makes mistakes, but he’s such a great guy at the end of the day. And I loved the diversity within this book too! And the intersectionality!


HOW’S THE NARRATION?
Friends, the literal big main feature, why I enjoyed this book so much was the audiobook narration. It is a multi cast audio. The audiobook narration style reminded me a little bit of The Good Girl’s Guide To Murder. I would also imagine that Daisy Jones And The Six is narrated in a similar style. This audiobook has been one of my favorite productions that I have listened to this year. I can’t help but highly recommend. It is 7 hours and 50 minutes long but feels like it goes by in a blink. The various narrators are Pete Cross, Fajer Al-Kaisi, Hannah Choi, Shimali De Silva, Mehr Dudeja, Michael Levi Harris, Huy Nguyen, Eileen Noonan, Lee Osorio, Javier Prusky, André Santana and Elaine Wang. All do a superb job with Kiss & Tell.

I am torn with this one. One one hand, I absolutely love stories about boybands and boybands with gay members. On the other hand, I do not love stories that turn preachy and stereotypical. This particular book had both. It started out light-hearted but quickly turned into something darker and more serious. It touched on very serious topics that felt like they were added to move the story along (or shock value) but were never addressed. That is always a huge pet peeve of mine. The author had the chance to use this platform to address these topics (under age drinking, under age s*x, almost statutory r*pe and so much more) but instead none of them were talked about.

Then the ending was super rushed and wrapped up in a neat little bow in about 5 pages. That's not real life and I will never believe it is that easy.

I almost didn't read this one based on the cover alone (seriously not one of my favorites), but I opted to borrow from my library and give it a go. I'm very glad I didn't purchase this one my own

The Darius books are a couple of my all-time favourite contemporaries, so I couldn't wait to see what the author came up with next! Cute and inclusive and everything I was hoping for. This would be the perfect summer-time read for any contemporary readers looking for a sweet love story.

Thank you to Penguin Teen for providing me with an e-ARC of Kiss & Tell in exchange for an honest review! I also got a complimentary audiobook from Penguin Random House Audio!

3.5 rounded up.

For audiobook fans: If you're like me & love multiple narrators in an audiobook, this one is worth checking out!

Me? Still on the 4-Town kick?! & reading Kiss & Tell?!@! A book with a CANADIAN BOY BAND!?@!! It's meant to be, amiright?

Kiss & Tell takes us on tour with the band & has us going through drama, romance, break-ups & all that fun stuff. There's insight on the pressure boy banders (& honestly any popstar) go through when it comes to having a certain image & maintaining that image for their fanbase. Plus, Kiss & Tell is a Queer YA so we love to see it.

I couldn't necessarily get behind the romance in this book, but Kiss & Tell was still an enjoyable read & I think I need more boy band themed books in my life.

This was a pretty cute YA queer romance about a boy in a boy band. There are lots of deep rooted themes that this book covers in a way that's easy to take in. I thought the characters were cute and sweet but some of them felt like they were kind of flat. I felt like there could have been a little more character development to make them a little more dynamic, but all in all it was an entertaining read that I got through fairly quickly. I found this book to be satisfyingly entertaining.

3.5
I really enjoyed this contemporary it was a fun read yet covered a lot of serious topics about LGBTQ in North America.

The romance was really sweet and hunters questions and self identity growth from beginning to end I think was well done although they were times I found him extremely immature (but he is a teenager after all). It’s not easy being a teen celebrity!

I really liked how the story is created through many different avenues such as magazine articles, interviews, documentary videos and pros. There were a lot of 21st-century references from video games to other celebrity names etc.

I will say at the end it fell a little flat for me. I was left wanting more and I felt like they were a few things that were not tied up well.

I think this is a great book for queer teens who may also be struggling to find their identity and find who they are.

I also highly recommend the audiobook. It was very well done and I love that it was a full cast!

This was so much different than Adib Khorram's Darius series, but it was different in a wonderful new way. I really loved this cute romcom dealing with the tried and true trope of being famous in love.

‘kiss + tell’ follows seventeen year-old hockey-player-turned-boy-band-member, hunter drake, as he and his band start their north american tour. struggling with a recent break-up, his public persona, trying to be a ‘good gay’, and the possibility of someone new, hunter doesn’t know if he can keep up with everyone’s expectations of him & new revelations make him wonder if he even should.

adib khorram has once again crafted a protagonist so flawed and naive and good (and just as fleshed out secondary & tertiary characters) that you can’t help but root for hunter even when he says & does some dumb shit. i loved him and ethan and ian and ashton and owen and all the little scenes they had together. 🥺

sadly, i wasn’t a huuuuge fan of the romance, tbh. i didn’t feel like the characters made sense together and it felt almost out of place with everything else. 😬

but i enjoyed this glimpse back to my directioner days (it’s hard not to make the comparison ok?!) & i also enjoyed the depth and vulnerability shown throughout the story.

at face value, ‘kiss+tell’ is about the sole queer member of a boy band navigating his life in the spotlight. but underneath it all is a steady conversation about the palpability of queerness, the reality of non-whiteness in celebrity, healthy portrayals of sexuality, communication, mental health, and respectability politics.

i can’t speak on a lot of the topics brought up in this but i can’t wait to see what other bookstagrammers think now that this novel is out in the world. thank you again to Sam at @penguinteenca for the e-arc, it’s out now folks!

This was such a fun read, perfect for fans of boy bands, the movie Turning Red and those who enjoy a good book with LGBTQIA+ representation. I loved all the references to my hometown, Vancouver! The articles, interviews, documentary scenes, text message exchanges and more made the read more exciting and interactive. The ending did feel a tad bit rushed. I wanted to read more about what happened once the dust settled. Overall, this was a great book that handles some difficult topics with care. I enjoyed Khorram's writing and will definitely be reading more of his work in the future.

A book about a boy band featuring a gay main character? Yes, please! When I first saw this book I was so excited and just knew it would be a fun read, and while it absolutely was, it also dealt with a lot of heavy themes as well, such as homophobia, online harassment, and fetishization.

In Kiss & Tell we follow Hunter, one of the members of the band by the same name as the book. They're a pop culture sensation hailing from Canada, and everyone knows their hit single, Poutine (LOL 😂). But right before they depart for a sold out North American tour, Hunter has a very public breakup with his longterm boyfriend, who also happens to be the twin brother of his best friend and band mate.

The story is told from the perspective of Hunter, and through text messages, emails, interviews, and magazine articles of the band. We see Hunter navigate celebrity culture, fame, his breakup, and a rebound, all while dealing with being the "stereotypical gay guy" in his boy band.

The book is 100% character driven and the plot is rather repetitive. They play shows, Hunter gets stereotyped or has bad shit written about him in the press, he (understandably) gets upset, etc. I would have loved to see these themes and conflicts explored more in depth, but instead they were glanced over and a romance plotline was pushed forward instead. I think the book would have succeeded more as a self discovery/personal growth story than a romance.

Overall, while it was fun and enjoyable while it lasted, it fell a little flat and I was left wanting more. Bonus points for all the sex positively, though! A solid 3 ⭐ read for me.

If you love a quick YA queer romance that doesn't only focus on the romance itself, but also on real -life struggles, this is the book for you!

This is probably a 4.5/5 star book for me, rounding up.

I loved it. It was so wildly different from Khorram's previous books, a little lighter and frothier, more fun, but still carried the same sort of introspective thoughtfulness that I feel has become his hallmark as a writer.

As always, the characters were so easy to get on board with and root for, and while the romance at times felt a little half-baked, it was overall incredibly sweet and just...lovely is the best word I can think of to describe it.

Khorram's writing is some of the best YA writing I've read in recent years, and reading something so different from his previous books, I'm even more excited to see what he writes next and see how else he continues stretching his skill.

This was another great book about a boy band! I loved all of the extras in the book, like the lyrics and set lists. I also felt the use of texts and emails added to the story and didn’t go overboard. I was very appreciative of the recognition of privilege in this book. It is very refreshing to hear a white cis gay man know about his advantages in life and try to do something about it! I thought the characters were well developed, but I wish we had more time with the other boys. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the story. It was an easy read, although I felt like the ending lacked. I wish the book was longer to delve into their futures more.

Hunter's life was altered forever when he suffered a career ending hockey injury that throttled him into the spotlight when he formed a boy band with his friends. Taking place on their first major tour of North America, Hunter is reeling from a major (and very public) breakup. Being pressured by the label date the opening act, dress a certain way, and maintain a pre-determined image has Hunter feeling on edge and questioning everything.

Perfect for fans of If This Gets Out, Kiss & Tell is a coming of age YA novel about a boy band star and what it means to be queer in the public eye. I enjoyed reading Hunter's story and loved all the mixed media that was included in the book (emails, interviews, articles, texts). It gave a broader picture of what was swirling around the band other than Hunter's struggles. I mainly listened to the audiobook and really enjoyed the full cast of narrators.