Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC! This was a highly anticipated read after I loved Funny You Should Ask. Once More With Feeling did not disappoint! I loved the enemies to lovers and it was done so well. The chemistry between Kathleen and Cal was adorable and I loved them both!

Elissa Sussman is an auto buy author for me and I highly recommend Once More With Feeling to any music/theatre lover!!

I loved this even more than Funny You Should Ask! Kathleen and Cal instantly became one of my favorite fictional couples. I am very picky about stories with dual timelines, but I absolutely couldn't get enough of this one. There was the perfect mix of present and past in order to give the reader a true understanding of their background while still giving us plenty of swoon worthy, tension filled angst from the present day. I read it in one day and couldn't put it down until I finished it.

3.75 stars rounded up!

In “Once More with Feeling,” author Elissa Sussman tells the story of Kathleen Rosenberg, a former pop idol who comes out of retirement/exile to star in a new stage musical. Years ago as Katee Rose, she had a successful music career, incredible fame, millions of fans, and an equally beloved boyfriend Ryan LaNeve, one-fifth of the boyband CrushZone. But all of that fell apart when news leaked that Katee had cheated on Ryan, and rumors swirled it was with his bandmate, the more serious-minded and dance-focused Calvin Tyler Kirby. Now in her late 30s, Kathleen’s coaxed out of a quiet existence living off of her pop star earnings and occasionally giving dance lessons with the possibility of a legitimate comeback—her longtime best friend Harriet is finally getting a show produced and she has a role for her. Unfortunately the show will be directed and choreographed by none other than Cal.

“Once More with Feeling” has a lot of interesting things going on. There is an abundance of tropes—Sussman throws in equal parts “friends to lovers” and “enemies to lovers,” with a good helping of “celebrity romance.” Adds in a few dashes of “workplace romance” and “second chance romance.” And sprinkles in a little of “childhood sweethearts.”

And of course those aren’t the only things that are simultaneously familiar yet intriguing. As a Millennial, it’s hard to miss the parallels between Kathleen’s rise and fall and that of Britney Spears. Like Britney, she grew up wanting to perform, appeared on a kids’ variety show, found success as an overly managed and manufactured pop star, and saw her popularity decline after a cheating scandal involving a celeb boyfriend and (allegedly) a work colleague close to both of them.

As a result, the novel is an entertaining page-turner. But there are a few flaws. First of all, while Kathleen and Cal do have chemistry, for me it wasn’t as palpable as the characters’ attraction in Sussman’s other romance “Funny You Should Ask.” Also, I felt like the characterization wasn’t as strong here either—though occasionally mentioned, the book doesn’t delve too deeply into Kathleen’s and Cal’s backgrounds and neuroses, so their personalities sometimes came off as a bit flat and undeveloped. And I believe there was a real missed opportunity to meaningfully address the misogynist aspects of the tabloid press and celebrity culture that played a part in Katee’s (and Britney’s) fall from grace.

That said, if you are in your 30s/early 40s, enjoyed or were at least aware of pop music and pop culture back in the late 90s and early 00s, and are looking for something fun and easy to read while on vacation or unwinding at home, this is a good option. “Once More with Feeling” is light and amusing. Just like a pop song.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dell Publishing for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review. My review was posted on February 20, 2023 to: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5221063075.

Friends to lovers to enemies to lovers!!! Need I say more? This was such a heartfelt and engaging novel about Kathleen and Cal who meet at a summer theater camp as teens. The story follows their lives as artists as they rise and fall to fame and recover from the aftermath and continue again. I loved the characters and their relationship dynamic. The back and forth between past and present creates a mystery as to what really happened. I simply could not put down the book! This book is very reminiscent of Sussman’s other book, Funny You Should Ask, which I absolutely loved!!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House for providing me with a digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this book and flew through it in a few days. Like Elissa Sussman's other adult romance, Funny You Should Ask (which I loved), Once More with Feeling is a dual-timeline, second-chance romance with a celebrity element. This time, both the main character and the love interest are celebrities. I loved that this story was set in the theater world because I haven't read any celebrity romances with Broadway as a backdrop. (Although I'm sure they're out there!)

Kathleen Rosenberg and Cal Kirby met at theater camp as teenagers. A few years later, they meet again on tour. Kathleen is now pop star Katee Rose, and Cal is in a boy band called CrushZone. Kathleen is dating one of Cal's bandmates, Ryan, an absolute tool, while she actually has feelings for Cal, the boy she had a crush on at camp. When this love triangle blows up in spectacular fashion, she loses her entire career and retreats from the spotlight.

In the present day, Kathleen is set to star in a new musical written by her best friend — and Cal is the director. They haven't spoken in years and each blames the other for what happened between them. I loved the friends-to-enemies-to-friends-to-lovers setup of the book and getting glimpses of Cal and Kathleen's relationship in the past and present. The tension between them was delicious. (I mean, can we talk about that dance scene?!) This book is definitely a slow burn, which isn't always my favorite, but the buildup worked for me because of how much history these characters had and how much tension was between them.

Reading this book was addictive. I kept telling myself, "One more chapter and then I'll go to bed," but the chapters were short enough that I just kept reading. My only quibble here is that I would've liked to see more of Cal and Kathleen being a couple once they got together, and an epilogue that touched on what they're up to now. But that's pretty minor, and it absolutely didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Funny Y0u Should Ask by Elissa Sussman was one of my favorite books of 2022. So when I tell you I WHOOPED when I got my #netgalley approval email, I am not exaggerating. I already preordered the book, and am going to keep it to both support Sussman but also because I loved Once More With Feeling just SO damn much.

This premise ticked all the boxes for me. A former pop star and boy bander who reconnect many years to do a MUSICAL!!!! There is a LOT going on with this concept, and with a lesser writer and characters, it could easily feel too cheesy and forced. But that wasn't the case here.

I adore a book that has multiple timelines and tells the story through flashbacks. And this one kicks off with an article that sets the stage - pop star Katee Rose cheated on her CrushZone boyband boyfriend Ryan with *GASP* ANOTHER MEMBER OF THE BAND, Cal! Time to get out the popcorn.

I don't want to dig in too much on the plot to avoid spoilers. But I LOVED it. I stayed up too late and woke up too early to finish it - I just couldn't put it down. I got SO invested in Cal and Kathleen. I fell for them and rooted for them while also devouring their history. This was just such a FUN romance - really hit all the right notes for me.

Will post this review on Goodreads, my instagram @SCottonReads and on retailer sites.

Thank you so much for this ARC (Netgalley).

I was so happy to learn that this was in the same world as FYSA, and the references to actors or movies from that book felt like I was completely in this world that Elissa Sussman created. I love these books, they just make me happy and the feelings they give me don't make me want to evaluate them critically.

I love that Elissa Sussman writes flawed characters. I know this is common, but there's something so genuine about the flaws she writes. Kathleen is a former popstar who cheated on her boy band ex (think of the denim duo) with another member of his band, Cal, whom Kathleen had a long history with. Ryan (her ex) does everything to play the victim in the media and completely ruin her career.

Years later, Kathleen gets a chance to star in a musical, with hopes of going to Broadway. The musical is written by her best friend Harriet, and directed by her now nemesis, Cal. The friends to lovers to enemies to lovers trope was SO good. Kathleen is admittedly selfish and too concerned about what's happening in her world that she neglects to consider all the emotions her best friend is going through. I just found it all believable.

The characters all had great heart-to-hearts to heal their past wrongdoings, and become better people. It's wonderful watching people stumble with real life issues and learning how to solve their own problems.

I'm not a musical theater fan but I will continue to be an Elissa Sussman fan and I want five more books in this world.

Setting: New York
Rep: Jewish protagonist; queer Black side character

After devouring Funny You Should Ask yesterday I was really excited to get to this, hoping for another 5* read, but this one didn't quite hit the mark. It was another quick read about celebrity romance but I felt like something was missing, perhaps more of the feelings of the past (and the present, really) - I wanted more of Katee as a famous pop star, of why she and Ryan were ever together.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballatine, Dell and Netgalley for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Kathleen and Cal are both former pop stars who are no longer in the limelight and are trying to move onto different things. Kathleen’s best friend wrote a musical and asked Cal to direct it, and Kathleen to star in it. The catch? Cal and Kathleen haven’t spoken to each other in years. As they try to navigate how to work with each other again, we get to see their past lives at the height of their career, and what led to those series of events where it all ended.

This one hurts. I am so sad. One of my most anticipated books of this year and I’m so disappointed. Without even comparing this to FYSA, which I adored, it just fell flat. I really did not like the back and forth storytelling as I felt like it only came when it was convenient, not at all consistent, and it was short scenes for a very specific reason. We get two past timelines and it’s not brought up chronologically, and somehow also never get brought up enough to add to the plot substantially.

I usually like the male MC even if I find the story boring but even Cal couldn’t save this. He’s so in awe and holds so much reverence towards the FMC but I never believed him, and when he told her he loved her in the current timeline…..why? We never saw them have any real/meaningful interactions and the flashbacks did not help at all and did not add any significant moments that would make us root for them as a couple in the present timeline.

Rant: I didn’t even have a chance to care when they got together because it was so short lived and over a few pages later (completely glossed over, too). The scene where Kathleen’s understudy fell and got hurt and Cal came through the door running and huffing because he thought it was Kathleen….oof. I mean, sure, someone got hurt but the convo between Cal and Kathleen after where he was gutted he thought it was her…I don’t know, it just didn’t work as we did not have enough interactions between the two, past or present, to make me believe he was /that/ devastated.

With a title like that I was expecting a Buffy reference somewhere in the book. A mustard one would have been iconic. Maybe I’ll revisit this again later in the year.

xposted to goodreads

ugh i knew i would love this book! sussman’s writing is top tier and i literally ended up finishing this in a day :) super fun, captivating, swoony read..definitely recommend!

read this book for:
an amazing, unbreakable friendship bond
swoony love interest
theater KID CAMP
nyc setting
relatable mc
captivating writing
celebrity mc!

thank u so so much NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this amazing ARC ;)

Enemies to lovers, friends to lovers, and second chance all in one.

Kathleen, once known as Katee Rose, is back on stage. This time in theater where Cal is the director. Kathleen’s and Cals paths crossed long ago and brought on scandal that ended Katee Roses career. Now Cal is directing a musical that Harriet (Kathleen’s best friend) wrote, and Kathleen is the leading lady.

A story of strength, forgiveness, moving forward, learning from the past, and following your dreams. The characters have flaws but that makes them more real. It’s looking past what you see on the outside and seeing what inside that matters most.

Elissa Sussman does it again! This time, she takes on Broadway and washed up pop stars. Specifically, what happens when a pop star with a ruined reputation agrees to star in a musical being directed by the man who aided in ruining her reputation. I loved the story, and thought the flashbacks were fitting and very appropriate to provide the context for what was going on in the present. I thought it felt pretty realistic, with the rehearsals and the entire Broadway workshop process, though I wish we'd had a bit more conflict with the press. I thought that was missing a bit. Either way, fun and quick read!

Once More With Feeling by Elissa Sussman was a great read and strongly reminded me of Funny You Should Ask, but I enjoyed it more than FYSA. Both feature the "then and now" timelines which slowly reveal more to provide the context needed, but I felt it was better executed on OMWF than FYSA. I also enjoyed the reimagining of the role of the media around celebrities, particularly as it related to women and fame. I think you'll enjoy this book if you like musical theatre, celebrities, and/or enemies to lovers or second chance tropes.

Thank you so much to netgalley and random house publishing for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review!

I loved this book more than Sussman’s first, which I didn’t think was possible! A great story with a great ending - definitely recommend.

i want you to imagine a one direction fanfiction with a camp rock backstory, except the musicians get old and decide to give musical theater a go.

while that combination of ingredients will likely entice some people into reading this, I was in no way enthralled.

the tension in Funny You Should Ask kept me interested until the end, but i had made up my mind about this book at the 30% mark. i was getting whiplash by the back and forth flashbacks from different timelines. the storytelling felt so disjointed.

as for the characters, what do these people even look like? how old are they? i only ever got descriptions of grey hairs on both the fmm and mmc. Kathleen's character was flat and unlikable, and Cal's character was so underdeveloped that I found myself simply wanting to throw him away.

i also did not appreciate the portrayals of female characters in this one. it is 2023. it is possible to write complex, rich, three-dimensional female characters without falling for harmful, overused stereotypes. it is also possible to include a queer Black female character that has complexities and doesn't get forgotten about for the majority of the book. do better.

i also personally do not enjoy drama and miscommunication just for the sake of it in my romantic comedies. this is a perfect example of a enemies to lovers that should've stayed enemies

thank you to Random House Publishing Group for the ebook

I was a big fan of Funny You Should Ask and was very much looking forward to reading Once More with Feeling and it did not disappoint!

The book follows Kathleen and Cal through their introduction at theater camp, when they reconnect as Pop Star Katee Rose and boy band member Cal, and in the present when the two have reconnected once again after a falling out in their Pop Star days. The present follows Cal and Kathleen as they work to help bring Kathleen’s best friend Harriet’s Broadway show to life. The book covers these three timelines and jumps seamlessly from past to present. The chemistry and tension between Kathleen and Cal had me eager keep reading and learn what had transpired between the two. I also really enjoyed that we see Kathleen and Harriet’s friendship in all three timelines. This was such a great book and I only wish that I could have spent more time with these characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

<i> four stars! </i> ʚïɞ

elissa sussman is quickly becoming one of my favorite contemporary romance authors bc she does second chance romance sooooo well. i love the fact that this book is reminiscent to <i>funny you should ask</i> in the sense that both novels are second chance and centered around celebrities/former celebrities. the hollywood/famous aspect in these books makes them soo much better imo, and i live for all the drama and everything that comes with it!

i was so stoked for this book, and i’m so happy that it did not disappoint!! unfortunately, i am not a music theater person (although lowkey sometimes i wish i were) so i feel like personally i didn’t connect to this as much, especially with all of the show references and whatnot, but honestly i still really enjoyed it! seeing the work that goes on behind the scenes of shows like that was really interesting and definitely brought a level of entertainment i wasn’t expecting!

as for the characters, i adored kathleen sooo much! i loved that this book had a lot of past chapters, so we got to see her as a teen (and as katee rose, aka the world’s biggest popstar) and how that affected her as a grown up. the transition from pop star to broadway star was really interesting, and i loved that she did the transition with the people she started her journey with; harriet and cal. their friendships were so sweet, even if strained at points, but the feelings and history was definitely there and they were quite meaningful.

the romance was also genuinely so sweet. cal and kathleen first met when they were teenagers at a summer camp that resembled ‘camp rock’ in a lot of ways. after that summer, they wouldn’t see each other again for a few years, when kathleen transforms into katee and cal himself is a member of a high rising boy band. and the present focuses on cal directing the play that kathleen is in, so we get to experience their relationship from all angles and ages, and they were a really cute example of the childhood friends to lovers to rivals to lovers again trope, if that even is one lol. there was so much drama and so much angst and tension between the two, and the chapters from the past really added to the emotional connection between the two.

this was such an amazing and lovely read, and i’m so glad i got to experience it before it hits the shelves! i loved every page of this, and i can’t wait to add a physical addition to my shelves, bc i’m obsessed with this cover scheme sussman has going on!

<i> thank you so much to netgalley and random house publishing for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review! </i>

While I had trouble connecting with these characters on the same level, Once More With Feeling has the same emotion and wit as Elissa Sussman's Funny You Should Ask, a sensation on social media, and it is hard to imagine this won't have the same reaction all around. A well written feel good story for anyone looking for a beach read, reminiscent of not only Sussman's debut, but Taylor Jenkins Reid's Daisy Jones and the Six or Curtis Sittenfeld's Romantic Comedy.

Do you love second chance romance, friends to lovers, enemies to lovers, and a slow burn?? THIS IS THE BOOK FOR YOU!

This story follows the then and now of Kathleen Rosenburg.

THEN. Katee Rose is living the dream as the number one pop star, selling out concerts, and is dating the hottest member of boy band CrushZone: Ryan LaNeve. Her life seems perfect but soon she starts to feel overwhelmed by the pressure and expectations of stardom. That's when she finds herself in the arms of another CrushZone, Cal Kirby. One eventful night is all it takes to blow up Katee's relationship with Ryan, her career, her whole life...

NOW. Kathleen Rosenburg is living an ordinary life out of the spotlight until Cal Kirby offers her an opportunity to be the starring role in a Broadway show which he is directing. Kathleen and Cal haven't been in contact till now since they both blame each other for the destruction of their careers. Kathleen agrees to the Broadway show but will her and Cal get along? Is there still some unfinished business and tension happening between them?

I was quite a bit nervous going into this book because I loved and adored "Funny You Should Ask." This book definitely met my expectations. I am a huge sucker for second chance romance with the couple starting as friends to lovers to strangers to enemies and then to lovers. THE TENSION between Kathleen and Cal was actual perfection. Elissa Sussman KNOWS what she is doing with the slow burn!!! She executed it perfectly for me! I immediately became attached to all the characters in the book! Also, don't get me started on CALVIN KIRBY!! He has officially made the top of my book boyfriend list!! HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS BOOK!! Probably won't shut up about this book!

Sussman’s second Hollywood romance definitely does not disappoint. Kathleen’s story hooks you in and you root for her from the beginning. Cal is incredibly charming (I’m realizing the key to my heart is a MMC who loves deeply). I loved the unique musical / theatre backdrop and creative storyline (leaves you wondering what it’s based on .. Britney / JT?!). A new must buy author for me. Thank you for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. This is out in May!