Elissa Sussman does what she does best in 'Once More with Feeling', delivering us a beautiful second-chance-romance novel. She seems to have a formula, and honestly, it works well! She ties together two of my favorite tropes of the previously mentioned second chance romance, and enemies to lovers in her new novel, and one I think readers will truly enjoy. The story follows Katee Rose, a pop star caught in a whirlwind of fame and tangled relationships. When a life-altering event separates her from her boyfriend and her career, years later she reunites with Cal, a former CrushZone band member, in a Broadway show. Sussman's evocative writing and alternating timelines bring depth to the characters and their journey of forgiveness and self-discovery. While the plot may have a few predictable moments, the exploration of emotions and the power of second chances make "Once More with Feeling" a compelling and satisfying read.

Another famous person romance from Elissa Sussman? YES PLEASE!

I loved last year's Funny You Should Ask, and was so excited for Once More with Feeling, Sussman's new romance in the musical theater world. While not quite as funny/banter-y as FYSA, this is a really solid summer romance read, particularly for musical theater fans. While I don't know a ton about it, I can tell that if you are a mega fan, then you would love all of the references.

The only part that I didn't love were the flashbacks to the summer camp, but those scenes were very minor relative to the rest of the story.

4.5 stars rounded up!

Elissa Sussman is now a must read author for me. I adored ONCE MORE WITH FEELING. There is agnst, there is coming-of-age drama and growth, and there is a *spark* between two complex characters. My only complaint is the bickering between the characters at first. I don't love when a character is stubborn to an unreasonable fault. I found it childish and it made me cringe to read. Other than that slight complaint, I have nothing but love for this book and I anxiously await another romance from Sussman.

Elissa Sussman’s second novel is a knockout if I’ve ever seen one. This book is for the theatre kids, the boy band lovers, and anyone with a dream that’s bigger than themselves. It will make you laugh. It will make you cry. But most importantly, you’ll fall in love with Kathleen and Cal. Everything about this book from the cover to the title to the very premise is perfection. I was obsessed with Sussman’s first novel, if it’s possible I love this one even more.

This was my first experience with Elissa Sussman's books but this definitely will not be my last! I devoured this book and loved it a lot. A lot of the elements of it just worked for me.

In this book we are getting a second chance romance between Kathleen, former pop star, who cheated on her boy band boyfriend years ago with Cal, a different member of said boy band. And now years later Cal has recruited Kathleen to star in a new Broadway musical. This story gives us both storylines showing up what happened in the past between Kathleen and her ex boyfriend Ryan and how that relationship went down in smoke and how Cal is tied into it. And then we get the present day timeline of Cal and Kathleen's contentious rekindling of their relationship.

I thought both storylines were done very well. They each had me equally on the edge of my seat turning pages to see how things were going to resolve. The stories were friends to lovers and then enemies to lovers and Sussman nailed the tension for both of those tropes very well.

I also loved the back drop of the Broadway musical. I'm a sucker for musicals and this one sounded like it would have been a really fun show and I wish it was an actual show and not just in this book.

I will warn there is an incident of cheating in the book (which is pretty evident in the blurb so this isn't a spoiler) so if you have a hard line against reading cheating in books I would warn you off of this one.

I absolutely adored Funny You Should Ask so this book was one of my most anticipated of the year and it absolutely did not disappoint! Loved these characters, loved the second chance element, and the musical theater!! Elissa Susssman keeps producing hit after hit and I can't wait to see what's next!!!

Wonderful follow up novel, heartfelt and captivating story!

If book 1 was inspired off the Chris Evans interview, this one gives me inspiration of Britney/JT relationship with Pam's return to showbiz on Broadway and I'm here for it.

This story give you childhood friends to lovers, second chance romance, showbiz romance and heartbreak, and characters finding/redefying themselves and their careers again in adulthood. There a few different timeline and interconnected stories following our lovers Kathleen and Cal, plus Kathleen's bestie. This drama filled book is faced paced while being heart warming and heart wrenching. Highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing/Ballantine/Dell for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

46. Once More with Feeling by Elissa Sussman

3.75/5 ⭐️ (rounded up to 4)

I was excited to get my hands on this ARC because I really enjoyed Sussman’s previous book, “Funny You Should Ask.” This book follows washed up pop star Kathleen and her opportunity for a second career as a Broadway lead, her dream since she was a kid. The only problem? Her ex-lover is set to direct the musical and being close to him is something she despises. Will she be able to hold it together while everything she desires is on the line?

This is the book for all you musical theater lovers, anyone who loves boy bands, or anyone who loves the “second shot at first love” trope. I enjoyed Sussman’s writing in the last book, and enjoyed this writing as well! Kathleen was a fun protagonist to root for, even though she seemed a little crazy and a little bit of a diva. Cal seemed like the perfect hunk, down to earth, but also humble and genuinely talented. As someone myself who played in the pit orchestra in high school, I loved reading about the ins and outs of putting together a Broadway musical.

I also liked how the book was formatted. The story jumped from the past (Kathleen’s teenage years and pop stardom) to the current musical she’s working on. While the story developed in real time, we got glimpses into her past with Cal that tie the story together. It made sense and continued to unravel the romantic attraction ✨💖

TBH I’m really sad that the faux musical that is the subject of the book isn’t real. I would DIE to see a musical focused all around Rosie the Riveter! I think just about anyone would enjoy this book with likable characters and a unique setting. Pick this book up for your beach trip this summer when it publishes on May 30!

Special thanks to Random House and NetGalley for this Advanced Readers Copy!

Book : Once More With Feeling
Author : Elissa Sussman
Release Date : 30 May 2023

Thank you Net Galley, Random House Publishing Group — Ballantine and the author of this book for an opportunity to review this ARC.

This book cover is fresh. I not only love this cover but I also love this story! This is a celebrity second chance love story. This book held the attention the entire way though and was such a fun read. I also appreciate a good book with dual POV. This book gives you that.

There is nothing bad I can say about this book at all. Great characters, strong story line that keeps you reading along to figure out how it is going to end. I gobbled it up like I did with funny you should ask by this author as well. I have already been telling my book girlfriends to watch for this fun read.

If you love :
Celebrity MC’s
Broadway shows/references
Second Chance Romance
Childhood Romance
Dual POV
This book will be for you!

One of my favorite books of 2023.I can’t wait to read more from this extremely talented author!!!

Race and put this on your TBR NOW!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Random House and Elissa Sussman for the ARC! This once comes out in a couple weeks on May 30th!

REVIEW: Once More with Feeling

Author: Elissa Sussman
Genre: Romance
Format: Kindle Advanced Copy
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Summary:

Katee Rose was living her dream as America’s number 1 pop star and dating boy band superstar, Ryan LeNeve. She loves to perform, but she finds herself hating the demands of stardom, which may be why she finds herself in the arms of Ryan’s band mate, Cal Kirby. It only takes that one night with Cal to cause her entire career to implode.

Years later, Katee Rose is gone and Kathleen Rosenberg had become okay with her now ordinary existence. That is, until Cal Kirby resurfaces with an opportunity that Kathleen has always dreamed of - being on Broadway. Can she overcome her hate of Cal and how he led to the end of her career in order to fulfill her dream of performing?

Review:

I read “Funny You Should Ask” earlier this year and really enjoyed it, so I was so excited to get to read Elissa Sussman’s newest work!

This was a very cute rom-com, with a “friends to lovers” meets “enemies to lovers” trope. I flew through the story, but the reason I didn’t give it a higher rating was that the characters didn’t feel very flushed out. I found myself confused by how easily they overcame conflict and also how quickly they became angry with each other.

It was definitely a fun book and would be a good one to pick up this summer!

This book felt so familiar and was definitely easy to read. After reading Elissa Sussman's other novel, I was excited to be approved for this one. I was not disappointed, except for the fact that I didn't want the book to end and of course it had the audacity to be over!

As someone who grew up a talentless music theatre geek, I greatly appreciated this. Especially when I read the acknowledgements and found that Elissa Sussman could relate, LOL. I enjoyed this one! The writing was great and exactly what I expected after loving her 2022 book Funny You Should Ask. I just feel justice wasn’t served and the love interest pissed me off with how he handled things in the past timeline. But I found Kathleen to be a relatable main character, even if she was a bit unlikable at times. Even though I was like 7 years old, I STILL remember the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards and was a diehard Britney Spears and NYSNC fan (look, I know Backstreet Boys are better but NYSNC was hotter ok). So this book being a bit inspired by Britney and Justin was super nostalgic for me. Honestly, just a really fun read. I can’t wait to read what she writes next!

Elissa Sussman has become an auto-buy author for me! I LOVED the Jewish representation, which was integrated seamlessly into the story. You could feel the angst and sexual tension between Kathleen and Cal. The plot line was realistic and made for an overall very enjoyable book!

Sussman's novel "Once More With Feeling" was a complicated read, The novel has a lot of heart and allows the reader to follow dynamic characters that are complex, cringy, quirky and unlikable at most times. However, there is an understanding of why the main three characters are acting the way they do and you see their struggle to break previous habits. I think she did a great job of explaining a lot of intense and intricate backstory that happened over a large period of time.

While it still bounces back and forth from past to present, it does so without the whiplash that "Funny You Should Ask" gave readers. While this book is a definite improvement on the former's formula, I think that some of the pop culture moments that she is taking inspiration from are too familiar in the cultural zeitgeist for readers to suspend belief.

Rating: 4/5
Warnings: cheating (in flashbacks), slut-shaming
Steam: 2/5
Tropes: second chance romance, celebrity romance, frenemies to lovers

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for access to this advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

I had high hopes for Sussman’s sophomore novel. Funny You Should Ask was an amazing debut and I was so excited to get my hands on this one. It’s a mixture of I really liked this one and I still feel like there were a bunch of holes in the story. The dual timeline was really well done, I loved seeing so many aspects of their past and how they knew each other.

Things I loved: great banter, perfect for theater nerds. boy band/pop star dynamic. the dual timelines. Kathleen, while frustrating at times, was also super relatable. Cal was a great hero and balanced Kathleen out well. I appreciate the calming approach he took in his work and relationships.

Things I didn’t care for: Kathleen had a lot of growing up to do, and we did not get to see true character development. Kathleen and Harriet’s relationship had some tension points. wish I would have gotten Cal’s pov. jewish rep was well done. I wish there were more interactions with other characters, it feels like we had some repetitive story plot points between the two. Cheating…and the justification

At the end of the day, maybe I would have loved this more if I was invested in the nostalgia of Britney and JT.

Everything about this book just worked for me!!!

Synopsis: Kathleen and Cal first met one summer at a performing arts summer camp. Then fate brought them together once again when Cal’s band became the opening act for Kathleen’s tour. Despite their chemistry, timing was never right, especially because Kathleen was dating another band member at the time… who eventually blew up her entire singing career. In the present, it’s ten years later and Kathleen is finally getting her second chance by starring as the lead in a new Broadway show written by her best friend. However, when she finds out Cal is the director, she finds it hard to let go of the resentment she has towards him, though at the same time cannot help the attraction resurfacing.

Thoughts: I am a HUGE fan of celebrity romances and this one was done so well. I loved the mix between teenage pop star, boy band and broadway and all the pop culture references. The second chance love story was filled with so much heart. Yes, Kathleen was definitely a flawed main character, and you will have some mixed emotions during her irrational moments, but I could not help but route for her in all aspects of her life- friendship, romantic relationship and career. And Cal was a great love interest/ hero. Even though we did not hear from his perspective, I felt like I got to know his character well, and I love when he took control. I also thought Elissa did a great job weaving together the past and present timelines, which I struggled more with in her debut.

Read if you like:
-Second chance romance
-Hollywood and broadway
-Frenemies to lovers
-Past/present timelines
-All the angst
-Slow burn build up

Thank you Random House for the ARC!!

We love a good second chance romance! I dont normally like second chance romance but this was good! I couldn't stop reading.

This is a read for all the theater lovers! The broadway references, the theater camp flashbacks, I loved Cal and Kathleen's story. Their enemies (but are they) to lovers, the glimpses of sweet moments between the two, their theater family friend group, and an inside look at opening a Broadway show....the story just works! Part the hating game, part roomies, with a sprinkle of love and other words, you can't help but root for Cal and Kathleen right from the get go!


Thank you Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the ARC in exchange for my review!

Second-chance romances are where it's at right now. Loving this author. The cover is eye popping and captivating. I think that this book will go places. Loved!

I’ve read Elissa Sussman’s previous work and I was impressed. So of course, I had to check this one out too. As someone that loves and adores second chance romance, I was extremely excited to see Sussman writing one again. I loved this a lot more than I expected to. It was amazing to see the characters slowly make their ways back into each others lives once again and explore the dynamics that they were newly subjected to in this.