4/5 ⭐'s

Having not read Funny You Should Ask, I was eager to get my hands on a book by Elissa Sussman and was pleasantly surprised to see I had gotten the ARC for this book!

If you were/are a theater person, this is the book for you! There is all things Broadway in this book and so much to do with singing, performing, and music. Apparently it’s loosely based on Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake back in the day which sort of made the MMC and FMC feel a little one dimensional. I wish they were more their own people.

Cal and Katee were great and I was really looking forward them to getting back together after all these years. I definitely much preferred Cal over Katee. I know it’s her redemption story but she was a bit dramatic and there was not a lot of character development.

LIKES
•Enemies to lovers
•Musicians
•Amazing friendship between Katee and Harriet

DISLIKES
•Second chance romance
•Dual timelines
•One spice scene
•Lack of character development

A second chance romance for Cal and Kathleen. I liked how it had the flashbacks to when they knew each other previously.

I finished this book in mere hours. This is another second-chance romance from Sussman, telling the story of former pop star Kathleen who fell from grace when she cheated on her boy-band boyfriend with another member of the boy band, Calvin. Kathleen is now ready to make her big comeback, starring in the Broadway musical written by her best friend—the only catch is, Calvin is directing. Told in multiple timelines, this was a joy to read.

Straight out of my Britney and Justin fantasies!

We love a second chance love story and Elissa Sussman is doing it SO WELL! Add in celebrity romance and I was immediately hooked!

This is charming, witty, relatable and an absolutely captivating page-turner. Cal and Kathleen were both so relatable and I loved how the author really highlighted their flaws while still demonstrating their growth, both individually and together.

I remember enjoying Elissa Sussman’s Funny You Should Ask, so I was really excited to see an arc of Once More With Feeling land in my inbox. But at 24%, I already wanted to be finished so I decided to skim and only read the dialogue to see if it got better. Now, at 32%, I’m going to have to make the decision to DNF.

There are a couple of reasons I’m not going to move forward with this one:
• The characters. Even though I only made it 32% of the way through, I knew the two main characters weren’t going to win over my heart. Put simply, the main female character (Kathleen) is not a nice woman. She’s egotistical, caring more about herself rather than her “best friend,” and she’s fairly immature. I’m specifically thinking of the scene where her and Cal (her sworn enemy) end up at the Natural History Museum together and neither of them are able to just move forward with their days? They agree to part their ways and enjoy the museum on their own, but they continuously bump into each other and apparently cannot enjoy the museum exhibits without wanting to “throttle” each other despite there not being much angry tension to begin with? I just have a lot of questions about this scene in particular. And then Cal is just sort of there and lack luster. I know I only read a small portion of this book, but it was difficult for me to want to root for them because I didn’t see any chemistry or feel any tension.
• The writing. It’s weird because, as I said, I enjoyed Funny You Should Ask and I don’t recall feeling any extreme towards the writing. But there’s something about the writing here that feels very surface level and arbitrary. It never feels like it goes very deep, and the banter between characters feels scripted and unnatural. There were also a lot of sentences in the 32% of the book that I read that were seemingly trying to be uber dramatic but just ended up falling flat.

And, to be honest, I’ve read some reviews that also mention some of my main complaints, and it doesn’t sound like it gets better. In fact, it sort of sounds like we are expected to completely forgive Cal despite him playing into (and benefitting from) the misogyny that ruined a successful woman’s life? Sure, I don’t love Kathleen but that’s not it.

I hate DNFing books in general. But even more so, I hate DNFing books and then reviewing them, because I don’t feel like I have any right to judge something I didn’t fully read or appreciate. Like I said though, I think I’m catapulting head first into a reading slump so it’s hard for anything to capture my attention these days.

All of that’s to say, while this may not be the book for me, other readers may swallow it up whole and love it with their entire being!

Thank you to NetGalley for an eArc in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

🎤 Multiple Timelines
🎭 Second Chance Romance
🎤 Theater Kids
🎭 Music Camp

This was such a cute read! The multiple timelines were interwoven perfectly, giving us hints as to what happened when the characters were kids, in their early 20’s, and now when they’re in their 30’s. Everything came together, and the ending was adorable.
I love Cal and Harriet. I do like Kathleen, but not as much as the others. Her character did get on my nerves a few times, but I also understand her thought process and sympathize with her.

If you’re looking for a cute, fast paced romance or if you love musical theater- I would totally recommend this! 😊

I definitely enjoyed this one more than her debut so if you're on the fence about it like I was keep that in mind.

I love Broadway and anything having to do with Broadway so this book showing the ins and outs of musical theatre was everything for me. I also really enjoyed the 90's pop scenes I'm a 90's kid and I grew up with all of the boy's bands so that was so special for me. It was like reliving my childhood. The second chance romance trope is my favorite, but it has to be done right if not it just seems cheesy and this one was done perfectly especially since she does the dual timeline so well. Loved the female friendship and how big of a part it played in the book. I hate when romance books are just the two characters living in a box as if no one else exists because the real world isn't like this.

Another thing that you can't ever miss in her books is all the representation!! LGBT reps, Jewish reps.

Thank you to NetGalley for ARC copy in exchange for an honest review as always, all words are my own.

Once More With Feeling was an interesting read for me. Though I enjoy the theater, I know nothing about production and felt excited to get a peek “behind the scenes”. The author’s obvious love for musical theatre was upbeat and engaging as the story played out like a musical of its own. I found that delightful and brilliant!

Unfortunately, the FMC was kind of an awful brat and I struggled to relate to those around her who loved her so much. To be fair, we are talking about a child star with trauma. I think that the portrayal of her as a brat is probably on the nose, so I reminded myself that I didn’t need to love her personality to love the story.

In the end, I DID love the story! Right down to the author’s acknowledgment! This book is Elissa Sussman’s love letter to musical theatre and it’s felt from the Overture to the Finale. Bravo!

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy!

Thank you Random House for Once More with Feeling! I really enjoyed this book, which really stood out not just for taking on themes related to how we (a collective we) have treated young female pop stars (hem hem) and other young female celebrities in the past as compared to their male counterparts and romantic parts (again , hem hem). This is nicely done and I appreciate the attention authors have been giving to these themes recently, while also allowing their characters to have redemption yes but also to never have their characters apologize for who they are and who they were, nicely done and important. A nice blend of second chance romance is developed here along with some great secondary characters and a great examination of friendships that persist over time.

Once More with Feeling is also a delightful ode to theater kids and summer camp, it evokes great memories and nostalgia if not for camp per se but those early adolescent feelings of wanting more/something/meaning/connection, etc... I really liked the backstory with summer camp and how that manifest into the present day story.

I liked Sussman's debut novel last year (Funny you should ask) and this was an even bigger hit for me, I really liked the themes in this one and the characters read as nicely developed. A great, quick summer read; a nice complement as well to books from authors like Ava Wilder and Laura Hankin's The Daydreams.

Once More With Feeling did not disappoint — Elissa Sussman has done it again and is quickly becoming one of my automatic must-read authors. This book examines so many relevant themes — from the ups and downs of love and friendships to second chances and how we treat women in the spotlight (looking at 90s Brittany).

What I love about this author is that the storytelling is so relatable — from the sometimes extremely flawed and frustrating characters to the realness of aging and re-examining situations with older but fresher eyes. Kathleen has so much growth from when she was a teen pop sensation, yet even as an adult going for a second chance (in career, romance, and more), there are still so many things she needs to work on. I love that there wasn’t the magical therapy wand and she was a completely flawless person again — we all still have work to do, no matter how much growth we’ve already made.

Cal, while not quite as fleshed out as Kathleen, was such an interesting love interest because he was also extremely flawed. I would’ve loved more acknowledgement from him on what Kathleen had been through (and what he abandoned her to go through alone), and at the beginning of the book, that’s all I could think about. Eventually, though, we get more context behind why he was hurt by Kathleen, and it makes more sense (though I still think the one drunken apology was not enough).

I also loved the examination of Harriett and how our actions can affect our friendships, too, especially in a long-term friendship that feels more like family.

I am so happy I got the arc from NetGalley on this, and I will probably be buying it anyway! Would recommend!

Katee Rose and Ryan LaNeve - the pop star and the lead of THE boy band, Crush Zone. Sounds like Brittany and Justin...

The book goes in between 2 time lines. Now -"Katee Rose" is gone and now Kathleen Rosenberg trying to have a sort of "come back" after her name and reputation was ruined when she broke up with Ryan LaNeve... She reunites with one of Ryan's old band mates, Cal, to put on a hopeful Broadway show. But first she has to get out of her own way and come to terms with everything that happened in their past. With flashbacks to when she was Katee Rose there are glimpses into how "glamorous" it is to be a pop star and how hard it is to break up with someone when your fame is so closely tied to how much your fans love the story of you and the boy band lead having a fairy tale romance... especially when that romance feels more and more like just a show and a way to increase popularity and not for love...

Can Kathleen Rosenberg find "fame" and love again? Or is she destined to always be Katee Rose...

Once More with Feeling by Elissa Sussman was a good second chance romance. Cute story and premise but honestly I feel like it was missing a big chunk about what made them fall in love. I wish I had more details! But I loved the stage life/acting camp.

Elissa Sussman does a second chance romance so well, and this was no exception. This book was fast paced and lighthearted while still dealing with issues of the sexism and bullying in the entertainment industry. There were moments when I felt like the plot of the broadway show was overshadowing the pent up romance, but overall I really enjoyed it!

This book was amazing!!! Thank you NetGalley for an ARC! The characters were perfect! The plot was perfect! Who wouldn’t love an enemies to lovers, second chance romance, complete with Musical references. It’s the perfect romance novel and I cannot get enough of Elissa Sussman. She’s become an automatic buy/read for me.

I was given an ARC of this book on release day. I am planning to write a full review once finished. So excited though, I been wanting to read this one for a while now. I haven’t read the first book but am excited to start reading both of them. I wish I was able to receive it earlier but am still grateful. Thank you Netgalley for a copy!

I wasn’t sure how I would feel about this one, but I ended up loving it. As a huge theatre fan and a big romance novel fan, I loved it. It was funny, heartbreaking, and full of so much love.

Then: Kathleen met Cal Kirby at summer camp where they became friends and he was her first kiss. She becomes a celebrity pop star and goes on tour with the up and coming band CrushZone, and her boyfriend is the lead singer. When Ryan introduces her to his band mates, to her shock one of them is Cal. Things between her and Ryan have gone stale but how do you break up when all of the fans think you're the "it couple". Meanwhile her attraction to Cal is growing and when they give in one night to temptation, everything blows up in her face.
Now: Her best friend Harriet has written a screenplay and Kathleen would be perfect for the main character, but Cal is the new director. She hasn't seen Cal since the implosion of her celebrity career and still blames him for not standing up for her. Now they can't stop bickering and have to get along if they ever want to bring the show to Broadway.
I like the setup for this book, but Kathleen just seemed really juvenile through the whole book and I couldn't seem to connect with her character. I loved Cal's character and how steady and calm he is under all of her attitude. The ending was really cute though.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

3.5 rounded up to 4⭐️

Thank you Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for sending me an e-ARC!

This one is for the theatre kids and I am here for it!!

I usually don’t lean towards second chance romance, but this is such a quick and easy timeline to follow that when I started, I noticed that I was already halfway through!

The tension between Kathleen and Cal is so so good, but at the same time I was like their friend Harriet telling them to grow up and move on from the past. They’re full on adults now, like c’mon, communicating isn’t that hard (but yes I know it’s the whole plot etc etc).

Kathleen is very much a ✨this is me trying and nothing new✨ girlie. Iykyk.

During rehearsals, she’s constantly trying to prove to herself that she’s just as good as she was all those years ago and doesn’t want pity, especially from Cal. She feels like she’s old news, but it’s finally her time to shine and show people her true raw talent.

“You come alive on stage…I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Throughout the whole book, I felt so bad for Cal because he just wanted to be chosen for once and Kathleen kept dragging him along both in the past and present. I think the last 20 minutes were super rushed and we didn’t get to sit in those feelings long enough.

Overall, a good second chance romance and I got to relive my musical days through these characters and enjoyed it! I’m excited to see what Elissa writes next!

This was a great second chance romance. I enjoyed the characters and felt they had dimension. I thought the elements of Hollywood/fame/Broadway were done very well. The story jumped between then and now, which was done seamlessly.

I do think there may have been a few issues with pacing, but overall it was a great second chance romance read!

I really wanted to love this book. Elissa Sussman's first book Funny You Should Ask was one of my favorite reads of 2022. And the premise of this one is so good! Boy bands and Broadway are two of my favorite things! How could it possibly flop?

The answer is an annoying main character, terrible communication, and infidelity that was definitely avoidable. Kathleen was poised to have a great redemption arc, from ex-communicated pop star to Broadway legend, but to me, she came across as extremely self-centered. Throughout the book, she continually lies to her best friend and fails to consider Cal's feelings.

Issues with the main character aside, there were some fun aspects to this book, mainly the Broadway & boy band/teen pop star storylines. It was a quick read, that I found myself looking forward to picking up. I look forward to reading more of Elissa Sussman's work in the future.