This was a sweet romance about Alex, a rockstar, and Heather, a waitress from a small town.

I liked how they bonded over books and Heather’s bookshop/café was so cute.

Unfortunately, this book just wasn’t for me. Personally I felt the character and relationship fell a little flat, I mean he’s a literal rockstar and had the personality of cardboard. The dialogue also felt corny and immature, I kept forgetting this book was about literal adults in their late twenties and not teenagers because that’s how it read.

I received this audiobook free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Starstruck was a very sweet romance. At the beginning I wasn’t sure how much I was going to like Heather. She was very superior and when anyone was excited about anything her internal monologue continually compared them to teenagers. I enjoyed her connection with Alex and getting to see both sides of their relationship instead of just one or the other. I will say the third act break up was frustrating to me, but was resolved relatively quickly. I would definitely read more by this author!

Alex Kirwin, the lead singer of the famous band “The Kirwan Brothers”, falls instantly for Heather Gordon, a small town waitress with dreams of opening her own bakery and bookshop. Their new relationship is tested by Alex’s busy schedule, the paparazzi, and internet trolls.

This book was okay. I didn’t hate it or love it. The insta-love was a little immature and didn’t feel real. Both main characters didn’t particularly stand out.

Although famous boy meets small town isn't usually my favorite romance trope, author Amy kept me hooked. It was hallmark with interesting characters and an amazing narrator..

What a sweet, fun romance! This was the perfect book to read after a couple heavy ones and as I start to transition into Christmas reads. I loved the small town feel mixed with the touring life of a rockstar.

This is the first I’ve read by Amy Clipston but certainly not the last, especially since I have a couple sitting on my bookshelves!

Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25

Read if you like:
Closed door, sweet romance
Mixed media
Music life

What a beautiful, heart-warming, gut-wrenching love/romance story.
This one brought me through so many emotions, I am a mess!
But what a beautiful story of innocent, beautiful, LOVE....
We have the Gordon family, who live in small town North Carolina and run a BBQ restaurant.
And we have the Kirwan brothers, who are an internationally known rock band.
They come together when the boys are playing in NC and stop in to eat dinner...and then have a food fight...like little kids. And Heather and her sister Wendy are stuck cleaning up the huge mess that they made... And then Alex Kirwan, the oldest brother appears, after everything has transpired...and he is apologetic, and sorry for what happened. BUT, Heather does not care! She is annoyed...and nothing he says or does can change that! He offers money...to help them clean up...NO. Then he asks if he can give them VIP tickets to their show the next night. Heather says no, she's busy...but Wendy says YES!! We'll be there!
And so it begins...
They start with texts...and then phone calls, and then it all just blooms right in front of you.
And it is so sweet. And so special...
Until it is not....

Brought me to tears! Made me laugh! And made me believe that there really are still GOOD people out there in this big, wide world...
Loved Alex's interactions with the kids. Loved his big heart. Loved how he interacts with his fans, family, and the world!
And, just loved everything about Heather!

What a terrific little book! Made my heart soar!!

4 1/2 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 for me, rounded up to 5!

Thanks to #NetGalley and #HarperCollinsChristianPublishing and #ThomasNelsonFiction for an ARC of the audiobook that was recently released on 11.14.23.

#Starstruck by #AmyClipston
Let me add that I believe this is the first of her books that I have read, but it will not be my last!

Keep up with all my upcoming reviews and previews on IG @ #BookReviews_with_emsr or on FB @ #BookReviewsWithElaine.

Thanks for reading!

*3.5 Stars On My Instagram Account*

"Thank you for bringing my son's heart back to life."

The sweet, very G rated Starstruck by renowned romance author Amy Clipston has rock star Alex fall for small town waitress Heather before she knows his star status.

Alex has been the man of the house since his dad's death when he was a teenager. He and his younger brothers rocketed to stardom but he's tired and lonely on the road when he meets the quiet Heather who dreams of opening her own bakery/bookstore.

I enjoyed Narrator Madison Lawrence but I prefer a dual first person POV in romances. It's a very slow burn; the first kiss isn't until about 70% into the story, around the same time Heather is anxious about all the unwanted attention dating a rock star brings to her safe life. You know how it will end but that's why we love romance; you can count on it ending with heart.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publishers via #NetGalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

This book was charming and adorable. I listened to the audiobook. The narrator did an excellent job, but I sometimes felt that some of the language used was more like a twenty-something writing in her diary. I don’t feel like this book is being marketed for high schoolers, but I feel like it was written for a high schooler. I would have loved reading a book like this 20 years ago.
The story was good. The character of Heather is stubborn and down to earth but also cares a lot about what strangers think of her. Alex was lonely, sweet, and felt obligated to his brothers. Even though the storyline isn’t very realistic (rock star falls in love with the girl next door), there were just aspects of it that felt highly improbable. I won’t speak on them because of spoilers.

I received this book as an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I was not a huge fan of this book. It seemed rather juvenile for characters in their late 20’s and it was very slow and kind of cringy. So much dialog with very little action and some things were so repetitive. For example we hear the FMC tell what she texts and then have to hear the MMC read it again word for word in the very next section. I honestly did not really want to finish it, but I did. I sped it up towards the end so I could just get through it though. I would very much prefer two narrators when their are duel POVs. The narrator did a good job overall. I did like that it was clean with no language. There was only kissing in the book and it was well written with no obvious editing errors.

This was a refreshing, clean, unlikely meeting between a small-town waitress and a rock star. I loved the story about Heather and Alex. Heather is a down to earth, naive, goal-oriented girl next door who doesn't think she deserves someone like Alex. Alex is in a popular rock band with his brothers who wants normalcy but is living in the spotlight of being famous. The story of their long distance, in secrecy, but then in the face of the world is beautiful and well written.

Madison Lawrence did a wonderful job of narrating this book for Amy Clipston. Amy, well, she gets a five star rating from me. This is the first novel I've read from her, but will be looking for more in the future.

Thank you Amy Clipston, Netgalley and Harper Collins Publishing for the chance to read or listen to this ARC. My review and rating is my own and not in exchange for anything.

Hallmark level happiness wedged in a feel good love story.

If you are in the mood for a story about unbridled love. The kind of love you would do anything for, possibly end your entire career... read "Starstruck"
An unsuspecting waitress and aspiring entrepreneur cleans up a mess that is going to change her life forever.
This meet cute is dripping sweet. Perfect story to lift your mood, restore your faith in love, and give you the warm fuzzy at the end.

Ugh Heather and Alex make my heart throb. I clearly did not want this book to end. Alex and Heather meet at Heather’s family business. Alex is a big time singer and is in awe when Heather has no clue who he is, so what does the superstar do? Back stage tickets to his concert. This book was filled with ups and downs and had me on a kid sized rollercoaster!
Thank you NetGalley & Harper Collins publishing for the opportunity to listen to this book in exchange for my honest feedback!

I loved this audio book. Normally audio books can’t keep my attention but this story was so captivating from the very beginning. I’d make up excuses to throw in my ear buds and take the dog for another walk! The author did a fantastic job of making these characters seem very real and gave all of us “nobody’s” hope that we too could mean something to someone so famous. I’m pretty sure the time it too for me to finish this Audi book was a record for me! Thank you Amy Clipston for writing such a captivating cute story! I’ll be looking out for your next one!

I absolutely loved the audio of Starstruck.
When small town waitress Heather meets the charming Alex Kirwan, lead singer of a famous rock band, the sparks fly.

Heather and Alex were such a great couple to follow. This book was a sweet and charming love story.
For people that don’t like spice this is a good book for you.
This was my first book by Amy Clipston but won’t be my last.

I liked the story. It sucked me in and kept me hooked. The only downside is the narrator. At times it seemed like they were speed reading, which just didn’t make it that enjoyable to listen to.

This is a very wholesome Christian romance between a small-town woman who works at her family's restaurant and is saving up to start her own bakery/bookstore and a rock star whose band is made up of him and his two younger brothers. It's a cute if a bit slow story told in third person POV read by one narrator. Personally, I prefer when there are multiple narrators when the author is switching from who the focus of the story is but the narrator did a great job. It's a very clean ~ hugging and kissing only ~ romance without much character development. I liked that they kept in touch via email, texts, calls and eventually video calls since they spent a lot of time apart during their courtship while he was on tour. It gives Hallmark movie vibes if that's something you enjoy!

Thank you NetGalley & HarperCollins Christian Publishing for the audio ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This review is posted on Goodreads.

All Heather has ever wanted to do is open a bakery and bookstore, but to save up she is working in her family's restaurant. A restaurant that is locally famous in small town North Carolina - makes the best BBQ. However, when a rock band comes into the restaurant and starts a food fight, sparks fly between Heather and the eldest Kirwan, Alex. Heather is not fussed but when Alex shows up on her doorstep with her lost phone, their relationship starts to develop.

Alex, the eldest in the Kirwan rock band has been looking after his brothers since he was 15. They have finally made it and are touring the USA and Europe. This means lots of travel, concerts and interviews. This does not make it conducive to having a relationship with anyone. However, Heather is special. Alex is not sure why but he just has a feeling. However, life as a celebrity is tough, on both of them.

How will they be able to have a relationship when Alex is always travelling and performing? How will they both cope with the distance and the busy times? Will Heather ever achieve her dream of owning a bakery and bookstore? And what will they both sacrifice to stay in this relationship together?

This was a sweet, slow burn audiobook. The narrator was good but it was hard to tell the characters apart sometimes. There was enough action to keep me interested considering there was no spice. The angsty book is great and the final grand gesture is beautiful. Nice read but not something I would read or listen to again.

Big thanks to NetGalley, HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Thomas Nelson Fiction and Amy Clipston for this early release audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Heather Gordan is a small town girl with small town dreams. She wants to open her own bakery and bookstore, and she's never heard of a band called Kirwin. But when two of the band members make a giant mess in her family's restaurant, Alex, the lead singer of the group, apologizes and offers her and her sister tickets to their concert the following evening. She says she'll be busy, washing her hair, but she ends up attending, anyway.

Sparks fly at the meet-and-greet after the concert, and Alex can't get Heather out of his head. They start texting and calling, and before they realize it, they're in a real relationship, whether they put a label on it or not. But can this real, special connection survive the stress of Alex's fame?

This is a sweet, closed door romance about connection and fame and what's truly important. If you like romance without the steamy bits, this would be a great one to pick up. The audiobook was a great way to experience the story. Madison Lawrence did a great job as the narrator.

I really enjoyed this story. I’m very skeptical of the storyline of superstar and girl next store stories. This may have changed my mind. The characters worked to overcome the challenges and write their own happy ending! The narration was very easy to listen to.

I enjoyed this love story. Great characters and looks into their separate lives. A funny chance meeting that leads to fun dates, waiting to see one another and the stress of how to merge your lives.there were parts of this that felt slow but all in all a good story. I can totally picture this as a movie.