I loved All the Right Notes by this author and was super excited to give this one a try! Unfortunately it ended up being not for me. I prefer stories that are dialogue heavy and this one was very inner-monologey. I have no doubt there will be lots of readers who relate to this story and appreciate the message! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to be an early reader. All thoughts are my own.

4.5 stars!

"Karaoke Queen" by Dominic Lim is a total delight! It is one of the sweetest, most charming, most fun stories I have read this year. I adored every single thing about this book. I loved the characters, I loved the setting, I could visualize the costumes and the music and the performances, I believed in the romance, and I felt the emotions. This is a palpable, realistic, visceral book in every sense of the phrase, like a bright, big, beautiful display of truth and love and glitter and glitz and glam. It's about moving on, acceptance, family, growth, drag, culture, food, staying true to yourself, rediscovery, music, and of course, romance! All of these characters feel realistic and lived-in. Rex and Paolo are the best and have phenomenal chemistry with each other! I loved Paolo's easy acceptance of Rex, even when he was not sure of himself. I had a blast reading this book. Dominic Lim is such a terrific writer, and I cannot wait to read what he writes next!

Thank you to NetGalley, Dominic Lim, and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

I liked this overall, but this is the second book by this author where lack of consent in physical activity has become a plot point, and in this book it happened twice from the same character (the protagonist). The second occurrence in particular made it feel like there hadn't been any growth or introspection on the protagonist's part, which prevented me from liking this book overall more than I would have otherwise.

REVIEW: Karaoke Queen

Karaoke Queen is such a sweet and fun story! It features drag queens, second-chance romance, people to whom you can show your true self, and much fun karaoke.

Karaoke Queen is a light read with some serious undertones throughout. The romance is charming. While it is pretty closed-door, the flirting back and forth is sweet. There are also a few stories regarding complex family relationships and trust. These are done well and show different perspectives. There is also a running theme of being authentic and not having to hide.

The characters were excellent throughout the story. Rex is a Philipino guy who used to do drag as Regina Moon Dee. When his ex-boyfriend, Aaron, is in the same city and needs help at his bar, Rex decides that Regina needs to return. Rex isn’t ready to share his drag identity with Aaron, so he gets some friends to help. Paolo, who runs the technology at karaoke, recognized him right away as Regina and wanted to help. The primary and even side characters are well-developed and have distinct personalities. As a cast, they were so entertaining and had great chemistry.

As a huge drag queen fan, I love reading a story about drag, especially with all the references to RuPaul’s Drag Race. I was thrilled listening to the audiobook because the narrator was Manila Luzon, who not only is a runner-up on RuPaul’s Drag Race but is also a Filipino drag queen herself. It made the story feel very authentic.

The one thing that threw me off while reading is that sometimes, at the beginning of the chapter, they would mention an event and then time shift back a couple of hours. It was repeated often, sometimes confusing me about what was happening.

Overall, I really enjoyed Karaoke Queen. It was cute, funny, and felt like a big gay drag hug.

Thank you, Netgalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) | Forever, for the free advanced copy for my honest review!

This was really a heartwarming coming-of-age story that focused on community, reclaiming your voice, and healing family wounds. Lots of tender moments.

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!

This is an extremely important and great book for anyone who is looking for a heartwarming story. I really enjoyed this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Read Forever Pub for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest thoughts!

Rex's joyful and pain-filled history makes you desperate to root for him and Regina Moon Dee in his present day hidden identity romance. He just wants his one-that-got-away ex to fall back in love with him, and if that means hiding his formerly internet famous drag queen persona and saving the gay karaoke bar Aaron works at he's going to do whatever it takes. I was bewitched by the hidden identity antics and the past/present storylines that let us get to know Rex and his family.

Of course there is a romance element between Rex and the KJ Paolo that I absolutely adored!! Paolo sees Rex for he is and love him for it. I want 1 million more drag queen romances. Paolo is willing to do anything Rex needs and it's so refreshing to see a book that's a love letter to drag culture. Obviously, I had such a fun and emotional time reading Karaoke Queen. I will be checking out Dominic Lim's previous work.

Read this if you like falling in love with who you are, a community of people coming together to save important parts of queer history, drag queens, and someone who wants to see every part of you inside and out.

DNF at 50%

I just really did not like this book. I tried, but it felt off. Like, I can’t quite put my finger on what didn’t feel right, but there was something.

I continued with it as far I did in hopes that maybe the further into the story I got that it might get better, but it didn’t.

Maybe I’m the wrong audience for this book. I don’t know… I really disliked the MC, he seemed incredibly self-centred and selfish. I also didn’t like the way he was immediately falling all over his ex, when they had said basically nothing to each other, as well as the objectifying language used. It felt like there was some sort of reckoning coming, but I just couldn’t be arsed to keep with it to find out.

And lastly, I really disliked the amount of lying that was going on throughout the story. And obviously I understand that sometimes you have to do what you have to do to be yourself and live your life, but this just really felt… wrong?

Overall, this just was not the book for me.

This was a really good rom com. I loved being part of the glittery world of drag. The romance was also so so sweet, I loved both men so so much.

This is a sweet story about family, both found and biological, finding yourself, and learning to live more authentically - especially when it comes to finding someone who accepts that authentic you, too. If you love drag, Filipino culture, love, and of course, karaoke, this one will have you smiling the whole time.

Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for the arc!

This novel was such a fun read, I felt like I was at a drag brunch with my girls. I immediately fell in love with Rex (Regina in drag) and the cast of other characters in this novel that are so relatable. Dominque Lim created a novel with such a beautiful novel of self love, being true to yourself and finding your found family. My heart broke for Rex as he felt he was unable to live his life fully as his authentic self as Regina. This novel has a happily ever after and I was grinning ear to ear with joy and love 🥰❤️

Thank you Forever for the ARC.

Last year I loved Dominic Lim‘s debut novel, All the Right Notes, so I was excited to get an early copy of his new book, Karaoke Queen. As before, the romance here is between Filipino men and involves a ton of music. This time, though, instead of Broadway musicals and high school choirs, these characters are singing karaoke in drag. Yass queen!

Tropes & Narrative Devices:
- Love triangle (kind of)
- Secret identity
- First-person POV

What I Liked:
- Music! As a title including the word “karaoke” suggests, this book is full of music references, especially 1990s-2010s pop (basically, my era!). From Céline Dion’s “All By Myself” to Shakira’s “Whenever, Wherever” to “Poker Face” by Lady Gaga, songs that are karaoke staples abound here, and I loved every single reference. I also enjoyed how Rex found his voice (with an impressively high range) and was able to express a deeper part of himself through music and drag.
- Learning about drag! In all honesty, I know almost nothing about it, but I loved learning about drag here. I like how Rex enjoys exploring his femininity and self-expression through dresses, heels, makeup, and sequins.
- Discussions of who it’s safe to come out to or be your full self around. This is a major theme and why Rex wants to keep his true identity a secret. Years earlier, he became internet famous as his drag queen self, Regina Moon Dee. There are certain people that Rex doesn’t want to know about him being the person behind Regina Moon Dee. This instinct to protect himself leads to a lot of Rex’s hijinks around tricking others about the drag queen he “recruited” to save the local gay bar.
- Rediscovering a vital part of himself. Rex hasn’t performed as Regina Moon Dee in a decade, but he loves tapping into that side of himself again. I loved seeing him feel like a fuller version of himself (or herself, when Regina Moon Dee!) and regain this vital sense of self.
- Figuring out who isn’t right for you… and who is. Rex’s initial romantic goals may not be what is right for him. But there’s another guy who might be deserving of the full package!
- Family relationships. Rex has such a full and loving family. His mom, sister, and uncle are completely understanding and supportive of Rex’s drag and karaoke. But his Dad… well, that will take more work. In addition to Rex’s complicated father-son relationship, both of his love interests have similar arcs with their dads, too.

What Didn’t Work for Me:
- The actual romance (with the right guy) doesn’t really kick off for a long time. In some ways this is less romance and more contemporary fiction? I would have loved to see further development of Rex’s romance with Paolo.

Final Thoughts
Karaoke Queen is a fabulous book about drag, music, femininity, queer identity, feeling safe being your true self, and family relationships. There is so much I loved about it, and I loved the chance to learn about drag like I never have before. This is a book I would recommend far and wide.

Rex has always loved beautiful things. But he learned to hide that love to be safe. But with the help of his mom, sister, and friends, he finally decides to embrace his alter ego Regina Moon Dee.

This was a fun story about embracing all the parts of you and not letting the past dictate your future, all with a fun cast of characters.

✨ Review ✨ Karaoke Queen by Dominic Lim

Thanks to Forever and #netgalley for the gifted advanced copy/ies of this book!

This was a delight of a book, bringing together all sorts of amazing things like:
🎤 drag queens & karaoke
🎤 Filipino food & Filipino characters
🎤 family and friends (and no shortage of family drama)
🎤 a bar called the Pink Unicorn

Rex grew up loving dressing up in women's clothing, practicing his makeup, wearing heels, and dancing to his favorite songs. Once he was a teen, he began performing alongside his uncle, who was also a drag performer, until an incident halted it all, pushing his drag persona quite literally into his closet.

When he encounters an old flame, Aaron, at a bar called the Pink Unicorn, and begins to scheme to save the bar's karaoke night, he agrees for a drag queen to come and host the show. Regina Moon Dee did an amazing job hosting, bringing back a huge fan base after going silent years before, but no one, except Paolo, the karaoke jockey, realizes Regina is Rex.

This is a romance but perhaps not as expected in the early pages, but just as much, it's a celebration of drag and a coming-of-terms of identity sort of book as Rex realizes he can live more openly and partake in drag again. So much of this book leans into the enthusiastic support of most of Rex's family and his friends, and while there are certainly negative things that happen in the book, overall, it just felt really joyful to read.

So many of the characters in this were just a delight -- Rex's mom's passion for singing and wanting to perform "Like a Prayer" at church; his bff's Kat's relationship with her boss where they just yell snark back and forth at each other; Paolo's love of cooking but sometimes clumsy attempts at other things like serving tables; how his dad shows his love in the end -- it was all just really lovely.

Not least, this has an amazing cover! I hope you'll give this a try! 🌈 🎤

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️(4.25+)
Genre: m/m contemporary romance, queer fiction
Setting: San Francisco, Oakland, Bay Area
Pub Date: September 17, 2024

Rex Araneta grapples with his feelings for his college sweetheart, Aaron Berry, while secretly performing as Regina Moon Dee, a drag queen who helps save Aaron's karaoke bar. As Rex's alter ego gains popularity, he faces the challenge of revealing his true self and finding love, all while keeping his identity a secret from those around him.

I absolutely adored this novel. It was just pure joy. Yes there are a few heavier scenes, but it’s so joyful and full of love and happiness and honesty, once Rex decides to be truly himself. I adored Paolo who is a precious angel and I want to keep in my pocket. Their meet cute was adorable. And I LOVED how their friendship and relationship developed. Paolo really made Rex look at himself, and saw Rex for who they are. Beautiful.

I love Rex’s mom. I laughed so much when she was around. I thought Rex’s dad had a great turnaround. Kat was hilarious and her banter with their boss made me cackle. I love the drag culture.

Truly just think everyone should read this!

Thank you for the digital copy for review NetGalley and Forever!

Pure queer joy. That's all you need to know. Go get it!

Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley for providing an eARC for a honest review.

I loved All the Right Notes, Dominic Lim's debut, last year, so I was excited to see he had a new book out. This one looked so fun and it really was.

It's low angst and funny, for the most part. Overall, I really enjoyed it as literary fiction. I loved Rex's journey to feeling open about who he is. I would have loved to see more of the romance between the leads in the book. It really was the side story and Rex was trying to get back with his ex for the first half of the book, so we didn't get to see more of a build up between the two leads.

I'm looking forward to seeing what Dominic has in store for us next.

Thank you to Forever /Grand Central Publishing. I voluntarily read an early copy of this book.

I really enjoyed this story; seeing Rex come back into his own and embrace his whole self was really beautiful. I love Dominic Lim’s writing- the food and music sang from the page! And I thought the romance was sweet, but I felt like this book was much more of a midlife coming of age story than it was a romance. I think that made my expectations for it a little mismatched with the book I got!

Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. These opinions are my own.

This is a beautiful story about being true to yourself and learning to love all the parts of yourself. And it's a love celebration of drag. I really enjoyed this sophomore novel from Dominic Lim. It's a bright book that shines with joy for queer culture.

It incorporates great aspects of found family and safe places. I was surprised to find a bit of a love triangle. But it was one that worked for me because it didn't feel like cheating or leading people on. The music made me smile. And the more serious elements were well balanced with the lighter aspects. I'll look forward to more from him.

Rex Araneta was once the up-and-coming drag queen Regina Moon Dee until a scare and his dad's worries made him put it all away. Until he runs into his college sweetheart years later and the only way to get close to him is by helping revitalize the bar he's working in, which means bringing back Regina in the most public way possible. Rex's dad isn't the only person unsure about drag queens and Rex finds himself enlisting the help of the shy KJ, Paolo, to trick Aaron, setting off a series of events that will help Rex realize that he's hidden a big part of himself for long enough.

Dominic Lim is guaranteed to bring the family emotion in his stories and it's something I look forward to because I just know there will be so many good feelings as soon as everyone is brave enough to show their full selves and put all their cards on the table. As much as the romance takes center stage, the fact that this story is all about being true to yourself and being able to see people for who they truly are instead of who you want them to be is what made me fall in love with it. Rex is free when he's able to fully express himself in drag and having a reason to let his inner diva out helps him see those around him clearly. It's an excellent message and a powerful backdrop to the fun romance.

Very happy thanks to NetGalley and Forever for the great read!