I am loving the idea of this Meant to Be series but this one didn’t quite work for me. I felt there was way too much emphasis on the singing career and tour rather than the relationship. A bit of a let down after loving the first two in the series and of course the Little Mermaid.

I love this series. I have read both other books, but this book has to be my favorite out of the entire series. You have Ariel aka Melody trying to find her voice. While there is no true villain every other aspect of the story that you could possibly want out of the original Disney Little Mermaid story line. I love the fact that Zoraida Cordova was able to find a way to acknowledge most of the main characters in a unique way. It allowed everyone to still shine though they may have a different role then in the original plot line. I also love that while Ariel and Eric still fall in love at first sight, they are given the time and space to figure out if that was just a moment or if it was something more. This book was just perfect. I can’t wait to recommend it! It will be at the forefront of my mind. Thank you so very much to Hyperion Avenue and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this amazing title.

In this modern retelling of Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Ariel and her 6 sisters are famous pop stars, not mermaids, although they did play mermaids on TV. Their overbearing and controlling father has promised them a break after the band’s final performance, but within moments of the last note still echoing in the venue, he informs Ariel that he has arranged the opportunity of a lifetime for her to cut a solo album with a famous producer. In order to appease her father, she agrees to it if he lets her sisters have their year-long break. That night, Ariel attends a concert with one of her sisters and meets an up-and-coming singer in a band, Eric. The two of them spend the night getting pizza, talking, and dancing. Ariel introduces herself as Melody, her given name, in order to have one real night with someone who doesn’t have any knowledge of her pop persona. Eric invites “Melody” on tour with the band as their merchandise salesperson has just bailed on them. After a fight with her father the next morning, Ariel decides to take Eric up on his offer with the hopes that maybe she’ll figure out who she is and what she wants to do with her life.

This book was riddled with references to the Disney movie. It was fun whenever one would pop up (for example, Ariel untangles her hair with the plastic trident that came with her cocktail at the bar where she and Eric go dancing). The premise was cute and the characters were sweetly ridiculous. The ending was very predictable, but it didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment of the updated trip down memory lane.

Recommended for adults. Thanks to NetGalley and Disney Publishing Group/Hyperion Avenue for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Look, I adore rom-com fairy tale retellings, and I will buy every single one. And with the Little Mermaid being my favorite Disney movie, I knew I had to read Zoraida Córdova's Kiss the Girl. The book delivers on all of my expectations, keeping with the general ambience of the original movie (including names) while giving the tale a fun rockstar makeover. The chemistry between Ariel and Eric is chef's kiss, and I enjoyed the overall plot.

Kiss the Girl is a fun lighthearted romance retelling of the Little Mermaid. As one of my all time favorite childhood movies, I was super excited to read this one and ended up enjoying it.

At times it felt a little repetitive and cheesy. The 2 main characters also had no flaws which felt a little off to me. I prefer when the characters, even in a romance, are a little more messy and realistic. Some things were hard for me to believe such as that no one would recognize a super famous singer just because she wasn’t wearing her wig.

But overall , if you like romance this one was fun to read and I felt completely invested in the story! I also enjoyed the musical elements to the story and thought that was a fun touch.

Thank you netgalley for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Kiss the Girl is a retelling of The Little Mermaid that reimagines King Triton as Teo del Mar, the head of the record label that manages the Siren Seven, his seven musical daughters. When the seven sisters negotiate some time off to pursue other passions, Ariel gets singled out as the sister that Daddy del Mar wants to continue making music, but Ariel has other plans for herself. She wants to be where the normal people are. It's almost like fate brings the perfect plan to her when she's swept up in a whirlwind night with a wannabe rockstar, Eric, the lead singer of a band called Star Crossed. Star Crossed is desperate for someone to sell their merch on tour, and Ariel is desperate to get away.

I found this book super sweet and fun. I enjoyed the dynamic between Ariel and Eric. While I would classify this as a celebrity romance, I think it's so fun that Eric is finding his fame, while Ariel is hiding from hers. I loved the characters, especially the on the tour bus. And there were a lot of characters, but I thought it was well done and not confusing.

I did feel like the ending was oversimplified, especially when it came to the main characters and their family drama, but that definitely didn't detract from the book being a super fun take on The Little Mermaid.

Additionally, this book is a closed door romance, which makes it a great option for younger readers or anyone who enjoys/prefers that style.

Thank you NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the eARC!

Absolutely adored this book! The Little Mermaid was my favorite movie when I was little (and still is) so when I saw this I knew I had to read it! Not to mention it also combines another one of my favorite things, music! I loved the bond that the Del Mar sisters had and that Eric had with his band as well. It was definitely a book I could not put down and immediately preordered from the author after reading!

LOVED this book! Definitely going in my library.

This story was the perfect retelling. It had the perfect amount of The Little Mermaid details throughout the book but was still very much its own story.

Eric and Melody (Ariel) together with their stories will definitely make you swoon!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to read and review.

This is a middle of the road read, I didn't love it or hate it. I appreciate that het author did a decent job retelling The Little Mermaid (Disney version).

I'm a music lover so I liked that the focus of the story is on two musical groups and their different experiences in the world. There is a lot of dishonesty in the plot, which I didn't love.

With that being said, I do recommend it for romance readers who like retellings and musical stories.

I truly enjoyed reading this book, my first read by Cordova. I found the story is engaging and the characters are charming. The Little Mermaid theming is way overdone for me, even with the Hyperion (Disney) imprint....less is more. It doesn't really enhance the story and to some extent detracts. Still, an enjoyable read with some "can't put it down" vibes.

Thank you NetGalley and Disney Publishing Group for this ARC! I love the Meant to Be novels and was super excited to get the opportunity to read Kiss the Girl because The Little Mermaid was my favorite as a kid! I loved the modern take Zoraida put into the book and the little details thrown in as reference to the little mermaid. It’s like a little treasure hunt trying to find all the ways it relates to my childhood favorite!

This book gave me Ariel meets Hannah Montana vibes and I’m totally here for it!!

I also love how the characters you think would be the villain or hero may not be what they seem and how Zoraida changes the storyline a bit so it doesn’t follow the same story line as the little mermaid. It kept me wondering how things would turn out instead of already knowing what would happen.

I just love this series so much! All three of the books have been so clever in their connections to the Disney movies that they are tied to. Kiss the Girl is no exception. It plays on so many themes of Disney's The Little Mermaid while still working as a fabulous stand alone romance. It was fun to find all of the hidden references to the movie. I'm sure that I missed a bunch! Ariel and Eric are such wonderful people that the reader can't help but be swept away in the journey and cheer for them to come together in the end. Highly recommend for grades 10 and up.

I was excited to read this book. It sounds so cute and the cover was adorable. Sorry to say this book just wasn't for me. I am DNFing it at 18%. I was struggling to have a connection with the characters. I found it a bit too juvenile for my taste. While this book was not for me, it might be the ideal book for someone else, therefore I'm giving it three stars.

Book Releases August 1, 2023

Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the E-ARC

All thoughts and opinions are honest and my own.

I have loved the previous entries in this series, but honestly this one is head and shoulders above them all in writing, plotting, and everything you could imagine. I will be pushing this on all my friends (sorry, y'all) without any reservations. I think I found a new author to follow!

DNF @ 20%

The Little Mermaid is my favorite Disney movie, and after reading the premise of Kiss the Girl, I was so excited! However, after roughing it through the first 20%, i just couldn’t read anymore.

This was… bad. The characters are 25 & 28, and this read like a lower YA novel. I just couldn’t bear with it. Hopefully this works for others, it just wasn’t for me.

Normally I don't care too much for retellings of fairy tales, but I've been on something of a Little Mermaid kick like many others, due to the new movie. So not only is this novel dropping with impeccable timing, it's also an outstanding addition to any Little Mermaid lover's bookshelf!

Ariel, a member of the "Siren Seven", has performed for basically her entire life and craves some time off to find out who she really is and what she wants out of life. Eric is the singer for an up-and-coming band about to embark on their first tour, and the two collide in a venue where he's the headliner and she's on the DL as a regular person for once. Cue an unexpected and totally delightful romance! This is an adorable must-read!

I was OBSESSED with The Little Mermaid as a kid. My sister and I watched the VHS every day after school for three months after we received it for Christmas. So that said I had very high expectations for this book and it absolutely met them. Very cute, very swoony, and very true to the original story (which is not how I felt about the previous installment in the TMB series). I definitely want to read more by this author, who I hadn't heard of before this book.

Kiss the Girl by Zoraida Cordova is a retelling of The Little Mermaid with Ariel, who is a rock star in a family band with her six sisters. When she learns that her father want to continue controlling her life by announcing a solo album, she runs away to live a life she’s never lived since being part of a band at a tender age. Instead of retreating from the music world, Ariel actually throws herself full force by supporting Eric Reyes and his band as they go on tour. During her time away from her sisters and controlling father, Ariel falls deeply in love with Eric as she comes to grips with how she wants to proceed with her career while still being challenged by many elders who don’t always have her best interest at heart. There were many charming moments between Ariel and Eric. It was obvious they had chemistry. I wasn’t so sure about the Hannah Montana moments where Eric didn’t recognize Ariel when she wasn’t wearing her signature “mermaid” look she wore on stage while performing. When her father meddles in her life one final time, Ariel makes a decision that would change her future and potentially her relationship with her father. Even worse, potentially ruin her romance with Eric. However, Disney is the leader in happily ever afters, so Ariel and Eric get the romance we all expect.
Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the opportunity to read this romance in exchange for an honest review.

I have never been so excited for a book before in my life. The new Taylor Swift album was definitely on in the background while reading it.

This Little Mermaid retelling is full of music and all the ooey-gooey romance you could ever want. Ariel De Mar doesn't know what to do with her life after her father refuses to give her the gap year he promised. After a magical night with the lead singer of Star Crossed and is offered the opportunity to go on tour in a new way.

Why I am in love with this book:
~Dual POV
~Little Mermaid Retelling
~Forbidden Love
~Secret Identities
~Music
~LatinX Author
~The Father is the Villain
~Immigrant Families

Thank you, NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the opportunity to arc-read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I'm loving Hyperion Avenue's Meant to Be series, and Kiss the Girl did not disappoint. This modern reimaging of The Little Mermaid brings the perfect amount of new story with just the right amount of nods to the Disney movie. If you love Disney princesses, Disney's The Little Mermaid, music tours, bands, and culture, I think you'll love this. Plus, with a forbidden romance, forced proximity, and two people finding their voice along with themselves, this romance is divine.