I’m not sure how I feel about this one still. I liked it while I was reading it but I found it very forgettable. I did really like the characters and the story line.

The Rise and Fall of Ava Arcana by Jennifer Banash is one for lovers of the music industry - fans of books like Daisy Jones and the Six and movies like Almost Famous. It follows Rolling Stone journalist Kayla McCray on cover story for pop icon Lexi Mayhem.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

I did this as an audio book and I loved it! The narrator really pulled me in to the mystery of the story. I liked the dual timeline storytelling and the story from the POV that we got. The story kept me guessing and I never guessed who the ultimate reveal was. The beginning really drew me in and held me until the end. Excellent audiobook, I highly recommend!

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Interesting mystery but not much plot to sustain my interest throughout the whole book. I found the romance in the present point of view to be off putting and unnecessary. I do wish maybe it was in just the past point of view and maybe from both the main characters in that storyline.

Overall, I really enjoyed this. This book reminded me of Daisy Jones and the Six, and I'm a huge fan of that. I thought the author did a really great job setting up the characters and the whole cast. I didn't know "who dunnit" until the very end. Would recommend this to a friend!

you kind of know where it's going the entire time, but it's not terrible or anything. just a little. shallow is a bit too harsh but it's simple and easy

3/5 stars, I felt there was lots of potential

Thank you to Lake Union Publishing for the arc through netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

Upon reading the synopsis of this book I thought that this would be a really interesting read because it reminded me so much of the vibe of Daisy Jones & The Six, and while there were definitely similarities I think I had expectations for this book that it just couldn't live up to. There were some interesting aspects to this book that made it entertaining at times, but ultimately the potential was not equal to the execution in this book for me personally.

One great part of this book was the separate timelines, one in the past and one in the present, as it really helped reveal the little clues to the mystery happening in this book. I really enjoyed how it focused both on the past of Lexi and the present where she was being interviewed for a news story. However I don't think the plot moved fast enough to keep me totally engaged, and I wish there was a bit more mystery before some things were revealed.

There was a lot in this story that also reminded me a little too much of lots of other mysteries and books I've read, so I found less enjoyment in the general story. There were parts that felt very generic, and I rarely read mystery books anymore (outside of being a sub-genre) because I feel that I'm usually disappointed in the way the story goes or I can guess a lot of what happens.

[TW: drugs and alcohol use, death of a friend, suicide mentioned, murder]

Enjoyed the dual timelines in this book, past and present merging into one timeline. Fast paced and so good! Thanks netgalley & the publisher for the ARC, in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this look at the music industry and the power of fame. It had Daisy Jones vibes to it, but set in the current time period. I do think there are some parts that are unnecessary to the narrative, and a few others that could have been better fleshed out, but overall this was enjoyable.

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
"The Rise & Fall of Ava Arcana" by
Jennifer Banash was extremely well written & fascinating.
I love music & enjoyed reading "Daisy Jones & The Six" so the premise of this book grabbed me right away.
The story was told in alternating point of views between Kayla in the present day & Ava in the early 2000's.
The mystery unfolded at just the right pace to keep me guessing until the end.
I highly recommend this book & will definitely be on the lookout for what Ms. Banash decides to write next.

Kayla is a journalist for Rolling Stone, and she’s just gotten her big break - an assignment to wrists a cover story about the iconic Lexi Mayhem. After interviewing her and doing some research, Kayla starts to uncover some questions about Lexi’s rise to stardom, and the mysterious friendship with a woman named Ava Arcana, a young woman who was also seemingly destined for stardom.

Told in alternating POVs between Kayla in present day and Ava in the early 2000s NYC, The Rise and Fall of Ava Arcana is excellent! I love music, and have a long connection to Rolling Stone, so the premise grabbed me right away. The mystery unfolded at just the right pace to keep me guessing as to what happened. I didn’t know until close to the end what was truly going on. This reminds me of a fictional sort of telling of Catch and Kill by Ronan Farrow. There’s always more to the story, even if powerful people want to stop it from being uncovered! I highly recommend this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for an ARC of this book.

The Rise And Fall of Ava Arcana follows Rolling Stone journalist Kayla who is tasked with writing a profile of huge music star Lexi Mayhem, but as she delves into her past she discovers another female singer she was very close to, and that same singer leapt to her death from the top of Lexi’s apartment building years before. Kayla decides she needs to find out what really happened to Ava Arcana.

This book has a great plot, I really enjoyed the idea of it but I found the writing slightly let it down, it was over descriptive in parts and I just found some of it a bit clunky to read.

Lets all just take a second to admire this cover...

The Rise and Fall of Ava Arcana, will be a book that will keep the good people of bookstagram buzzing for years to come. I know for a fact this will be a book I recommend without a doubt in my mind. .

I was instantly intrigued with the cover. I loved the bright colors and the mystery it held. When you think of thrillers you think of dark and gloomy but what happens when the cover seems bright and cheery? It should tell you right there that the book is going to hold surprises and twists at every corner.

You will never know what is going to happen next with this sure to be best seller.

This was my first book by Jennifer Banash but after concluding I ran straight over to amazon to stalk her previous back log.

The writing style is truly mesmerizing, I was hooked early on and my attention only heightened as I kept reading. I breezed right through this book and could not get to the next page fast enough. I was never bored, there were no lull periods where I wanted to put the book down. I read from cover to cover in just a few hours and was left in awe.

This is a book you don't want to miss and a little birdie whispered in my ear that this one is available on kindle unlimited for FREE!!! No excuses, head on over to amazon and download this showstopper.

Teaser :

n electrifying novel about a woman in thrall to the exhilarating rhythms of Manhattan, lost in the dizzying promise of youth, and fatally naive to the dark pressures of fame.

When Rolling Stone journalist Kayla McCray is assigned a cover story on pop icon Lexi Mayhem, Kayla stumbles across a startling new angle to the exposé. Years ago, another rising star from Lexi’s past mysteriously leaped to her death. Some things are better off forgotten, Lexi says. Kayla disagrees.

It’s 2005 and Ava Petrova moves to New York with a notebook full of songs and a dream. Then she meets Lexi, an up-and-coming singer who brands Ava with an enigmatic new stage name and introduces her to an intoxicating city alive with possibilities. From fast friends and kindred spirits to creative muses and inseparable soul mates, Ava and Lexi embark on a parallel journey to stardom, but there is room for only one at the top.

As past and present converge, Kayla chases the ghost of a young woman doomed by betrayal and erased by a secret, and unravels the truth that it takes more than ambition to become a star.

I really enjoyed the double storyline and the character development. The friendship between the girls was very believable and Jamie was a great red herring. I wished that Ben played more into the story. It felt like his involvement in Ava’s death was kind of a throwaway, and the side story with Kayla’s childhood friend was a little pointless. I have the book a 4 out of 5. I would not recommend the story for a school setting, but would definitely recommend to my book club!

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. All opinions are my own.


I'm not the biggest fan of duel time novels because I get confused rather easily. This story was different though.

I loved the mystery and the subjects. Rolling stones is on of my favorite magazines and I find the art of getting the story fascinating. It was a bit slow at times, but I wanted to read to the end which doesn't happen all the time.

Good book about rising stars and the music industry

I think there's a sort of category that should call women in rock fiction. This book belongs to that category like Daisy Jones or Songs in Ursa Major.
This is the only one I read and didn't made me think about a specific singer. It's exciting, fast paced, and riveting.
Ava and Lexi are great characters and you can fell the pulse of the town and the excitement of their world.
A well plotted story with a surprising twist.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

Kayla McCray is a journalist for Rolling Stone, she is assigned her first cover story which is supposed to be a fluff piece on megastar Lexi Mayhem who is starting her own label for up and coming young women in the music industry. During her initial interview she asks a few basic questions about the start of her career and Lexi is a bit evasive. She leaves the interview determined to get the real facts of her rise to stardom. As she digs further her story turns into finding justice for Ava Arcana, the singer songwriter who was on the cusp of stardom along with Lexi and who tragically died in very suspicious circumstances.

This story held a lot of promise, and the idea was very interesting. The story felt very incomplete, the author had trouble linking all the ideas together and writing them cohesively. The dual timeline felt very disjointed. Kayla had a love interest that felt very unnecessary. And the villain felt very cartoon character vibe. It just all needed more refining.

"The Rise and Fall of Ava Arcana" by Jennifer Banash is a gripping novel that delves into the dark side of fame and the pressures of the music industry. The story follows Ava Petrova, a young singer-songwriter who moves to New York with her dreams of making it big in the music industry. She meets the glamorous and enigmatic Lexi Mayhem, who takes Ava under her wing and introduces her to a world of endless possibilities.

As Ava and Lexi's friendship grows, so does their musical success, but their journey to stardom is not without its challenges. Kayla McCray, a Rolling Stone journalist, is assigned to cover Lexi's story, and as she digs deeper, she uncovers a shocking mystery from Lexi's past. Kayla's investigation brings her closer to the truth about the death of another rising star from Lexi's past, and the dark secrets that lie at the heart of the music industry.

Banash's writing is vivid and atmospheric, transporting the reader to the heart of Manhattan's music scene. The characters are well-developed, and the complex relationships between them keep the reader engaged. The novel explores themes of ambition, betrayal, and the high price of fame, and Banash skillfully weaves together past and present to create a suspenseful and thought-provoking read.

Overall, "The Rise and Fall of Ava Arcana" is a captivating and poignant novel that will appeal to fans of music, mystery, and drama.

This fast-paced novel turned murder mystery set in the music world with alternating timelines between female rock musicians and a female journalist for Rolling Stone magazine, held my attention but wasn't as deep as I'd hoped. The characters were interesting, and somewhat likable, though not super fleshed-out, and the two romances - embedded in each different story line but featuring the same guy - were just "enough." It's a fun read, with a nice emphasis on female friendships. Many thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC!

This book really caught me by surprise. I didn't expect it as much as I did but it took a hold of me and I couldn't stop turning the pages. Lexi is an up and coming star and she knows it, then she meets Ava at the cafe she works at. Ava doesn't expect to be a star she just wanted to write music.
Years later, Kayla works for Rolling Stone and she gets her first cover story. She is to write about the superstar Lexi Mayhem. When Kayla goes to talk to Lexi she decides to do some background after their initial interview. She is interested in doing a thorough job and so she talks to many people. She ends up finding an old picture that shows a girl that could be Lexi's sister. When she asked Lexi about her, Lexi shakes it off and says she just someone I knew. Kayla knows there's more to the story and can't let it go.
What Kayla finds when she starts digging is long ago secrets, lost friendship, and people everywhere that have kept quiet. She knows she needs to drop it and just do the story she was told to write.
Told from Ava Arcana and Kayla's Point of view, this story is all consuming and won't let you look away. I suggest you clear your schedule and just read.