ARC Review: Not Another Rock Star by Kate Callaghan ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 The book follows Phoebe who is an artist and her fiancé Cillian who is a rockstar in the band Brothers of Anarchy. Tragedy strikes and Phoebe’s world is turned upside down. Then there’s Axel, the drummer of Brothers of Anarchy. He has been in love with Phoebe since he first laid eyes on her. But, he knows she is off limits. She is his best friend’s sister. But, someone is out to hurt her and he must protect her at all costs. This book included found family, loss, grief, slow burn, suspense and secret obsession. I really enjoyed it! Thank you @netgalley and @katecallaghanwriter for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

First, I’d like to thank NetGalley and Kate Callaghan for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

Initially, I was really into this story—I appreciated how it tackled heavy and important topics, and I thought it had great potential. However, as I kept reading, the story started to feel more like fanfiction, and that’s where it began to lose me.

One of my biggest issues was how quickly Phoebe moved on from Cillian. There was no real grieving process, which felt completely unrealistic given the situation. The more the book leaned into this direction, the more disappointed I became, and ultimately, I DNF’d at 36%.

At first, the story captivated me, but the lack of emotional depth in handling grief made it hard to stay engaged. Unfortunately, this one just wasn’t for me.

This book was alright but I didn't like it as much as I thought I would from reading the blurb. I liked Axel from the start he seems like the ultimate good guy and perfect boyfriend but I could't really relate to Phoebe very much. I also felt like the romance between Phoebe and Axel starts a bit too soon after Cillian's death to be believable. I liked the suspense at first but i felt that it dragged on too long and it was rather obvious who was the culprit. All in all the book was okay but not a must-read for me.

I am a huge Kate Callaghan fan! I enjoyed how fleshed out the characters were and how the relationship with Phoebe and Axel built up and boiled over.

My only criticism is that the dialogue is very “therapized”. Real people don’t talk that way, not everyone speaks like they are therapists and have insane empathy.

I always love Kate Callaghan books and " Not Another Rockstar" did not disappoint. When Phoebe decides to surprise her fiancé, Cillian at his concert in Dublin, she finds him with another women.
The next morning Cillian wants to apologize and talks her into getting in his car. He is still drunk and there is an accident. and Cillian gets killed and Phoebe is injured. The media targets Phoebe and says it’s her fault. But what really happened to cause the accident. An ending I didn’t see coming.

Thank you NetGalley, BooksGoSocial, ad Kate Callaghan for the ARC for my review.

This was a very well written book and I thoroughly enjoyed the storyline. The storyline kept me interested and at no point was the ending of the story given away by previous events in the book. The character development was perfect and at no point did the story feel rushed. Great book that I'll be recommending to some of my students and to my coworkers and friends!

3.5 stars

I'm so glad I got the chance to read an early copy of this book. It was fun, lighthearted, and even sad at times.
I'm definitely going to read more of this author's books

Tropes that are included in this book:
- Drummer x Artist
- Ex's Best Friend
- Living with the Band (Like New Girl, but make it musical)
- Chronic pain rep (I need more of those)
- ''We shouldn't'' but they do it anyway

Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for providing me with an advanced reader copy of this book.
Not Another Rockstar by Kate Callaghan offers a captivating blend of romance and suspense, though it’s not without its flaws. The story follows Phoebe, a talented painter, who is on the brink of starting a new chapter in life with her fiancé, a former rock star. But when tragedy strikes, Phoebe is left picking up the pieces of her life, with a little help from the band her fiancé once belonged to. As Phoebe tries to rebuild, things take a darker turn when someone begins threatening her and destroying her artwork.
There’s a constant sense of tension, especially as Phoebe's world unravels and the danger surrounding her intensifies. However, the stalker subplot felt overly predictable—I spotted the identity of the culprit early on, which took away some of the suspense.
Additionally, there were moments in the story that felt drawn-out or unnecessarily dramatic, causing the pacing to drag at times. I couldn’t help but feel that some of the tension was diluted by the excess drama.
Despite these issues, I still found myself enjoying the book overall. Phoebe’s emotional journey, combined with the mystery and the evolving relationships, made for a compelling read.

Thank you Netgalley for access to the arc.
This novel opens with a tragedy but ends on a sweet note.
You meet a painter named Phoebe who is ready to start another chapter with her rocker fiance. But when events don't go as planned, Phoebe is left trying to pick up the pieces all with a little help from the band her fiance was a part of. Part romance (with some descriptive spicy scenes ~) part intrigue and mystery - I was hoping this would be a tad bit longer. But if you like characters who take no shit from others and slowly move on from their unfortunate circumstance, this book might be what you are looking for.

This book had everything I love in a rock star romance—drama, passion, and a bit of mystery to keep things interesting. At first, I wasn’t sure about the third-person POV, but it ended up working for this story. I loved the chemistry between Phoebe and Axel, and how protective he was of her. The mystery surrounding her stalker added an extra layer of suspense, and the twist at the end actually surprised me! Overall, a very entertaining read that kept me hooked until the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Really good story. Kate callaghan has found a way to make a romance/thriller mix again, as she did in ms. perfectly fine (whose characters showed up by the way and i loved it). I really got into this story and was on the edge of my seat throughout. Around the middle, some parts felt a bit dragged out too long, but then the ending was so good, so honestly all is well.

Thank you to the author for sending me the book in exchange for an honest review

ARC review - 3,5 ⭐️

“Not Another Rockstar” by Kate Callaghan is a romance with suspense.
I received an ARC from the author and Netgalley. The opinions from this review are completely my own.

Pheobe is a painter and Axel a drummer. He had feelings for her for a few years, but she is engaged to the lead singer of the band. Also, Pheobe’s brother is one of the other band members. After finding her fiance cheating on her, she breaks up with him. The next day they get in a car accident and he doesn’t survive.

Axel is there for her and helps her grieve while also recovering from the trauma caused by the accident. The story gets more complicated as there is someone threatening Pheobe and destroying her art.

The romance develops slowly, but there is a lot of chemistry between them. Axel is kind and protective and does his best to be there for her with whatever she needs. I did not like Pheobe’s brother because he knew her boyfriend was cheating on her and also did not protect her.

The suspense part of the book was a bit underwhelming, especially the revelation from the end. But I enjoyed reading the book.

First, thank you so much for the opportunity to read this ARC.

At first, I was super into this book and fell in love with Axel. However, things took a triggering turn and I couldn't finish it. I would love to re-visit it again someday because I enjoyed what I did read, 7 chapters in.

I will say, from the get go, story factors like the band mates questionable loyalty to Phoebe irked me. I think it will prove to be thrilling and full of drama.

I can’t say that I have read many rockstar romances, but this one was wonderful. The author is one that I really enjoy, so I knew I had to take a chance on this one. A huge thank you to the author, Kate Callaghan’s, and the publisher, BooksGoSocial, for a chance to read and review this book early.

Although Callaghan’s is a hit or miss author for me, when they hit, it is amazing and captivating. I loved the Story of Phoebe and Axel. And the suspense throughout was really good. There were a few areas that dragged a little, but overall I really enjoyed the book. I truly hope that we will see more books with the characters from this one as I think I seen sparks for things to come woven throughout.

I had high hopes for this one because I love a rockstar romance. But this got really soapy and predictable with all the plot developments and slow pace I ended up skipping from chapter 6 to the end. Honestly I didn't miss much.

This book needed to cut out the unneccessary drama (like the mistress) and start from the funeral just afterwards because those first few chapters were slow waiting to see what we already knew would happen since the blurb says so. I didn't like Axel (I thought he sounded like a stalker more than in love with her) or the bandmates for hiding super important information from her (and come on did we really need that reveal from the mistress?). The villain was also obvious from the get-go. To top it off I didn't understand and found it infuriating that Phoebe would hide her talent and role in the band's success. Maybe if the book ended with Phoebe ditching all of them to be a sucessful musician herself I'd have liked it.

Thanks to BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for the ARC.

I really enjoyed this book! Phoebe is an up and coming artist engaged to rockstar Cillian of Brothers of Anarchy. You go along on the roller coaster ride of happiness, sorrow, fear and determination. I’m definitely a fan of the two points of view because it lets you get to know the characters and understand their actions.

I absolutely loved this book! The chemistry between the main characters were insane, and I giggled and kicked my feet several times! This was such a good reading experience!

Romantic suspense books aren't something I read very often because I haven't found many authors that delve into such a genre, but the more of them I read, I'm finding that I actually quite like them. I'm a sucker for a good romance, but of course, I also love a mystery, and some high stakes, so the suspenseful aspects simply heighten the experience.

I really enjoyed the blossoming relationship between Axel and Phoebe. In such a tragic situation, losing someone so close to you after finding out something that changed your view of them, is a lot. So, of course, comfort is something everyone, I think, would seek out. Phoebe found that in Axel, and ended up falling for him. His unwavering support and care when it came to Phoebe was so nice to read about.

I highly recommend this book to people who enjoy romance, but want a bit of edge alongside it.

A lovely story mixed with tragedy. This was a lovely book, that dealt with some heavy topics. I felt for the FMC and what she had to go through but having the band by her side did really help. I did struggle to read this book due to it being in 3rd person, that’s personal preference though and would still recommend based on the writing and storyline.

I’ll admit, I actually didn’t read anything about this book before I dived in so everything was a surprise to me and I would highly recommend you do the same!

I gasped quite a bit, and laugh so loud I gave my dog a fright. It seems that I accidentally jumped into 2 books in a row that had the subject of grief in it. I guess I was expecting single girl, meets a rock start, retires to fight it, ends up together, breaks up, gets back together but this book surprised me and I loved it!

It really highlights how crazy fandoms can get, and really I don’t most of it felt too far fetched either.

I was very invested in solving the mystery, and loved that there was no third act break up. I particularly enjoyed how there was no shaming the romance that occurred in this book as well!

I would absolutely recommend this book!

<b>Tropes & Themes</b>
🥁 Drummer X Artist 👩‍🎨
😈 Forbidden Romance
❌ Ex's Best Friend
🎸 Brother's Best Friend
🥹He Falls First
🕵️ Stalking
🏠 Living With The Band

Thank you Kate Callaghan & NetGalley for the ARC.