katheastman's review
5.0
I ignored everyone and everything around me until I had read Please Don’t Stop the Music from cover to cover in one sitting. It wasn’t only the promised Dark Secrets that were responsible for this, but also the characters. In Jane’s book, they’re refreshingly different to the ones you often find between the pages of a romantic novel. The characters in Please Don’t Stop the Music are very much an “alternative” cast: they certainly don’t have perfect lives, nor are they perfect themselves. These are flawed human beings with problems, handicaps or baggage. I loved that about them because they were all the more real for it.
The main character, Jemima Hutton, is a gifted jewellery artist who wields sarcasm about her like a ferocious ninja in skinny jeans. This defence mechanism helps protect someone who is a flawed and deeply troubled young woman, continually on the run from her past. While searching for stockists for her jewellery, she meets the enigmatic Ben Davies, who now works in a music shop but was once in an indie band. As their friendship develops, it threatens to upset her coping mechanisms and force her to share her secrets with him. But Ben’s also keeping a secret of his own and Jemima has a similar impact on him. How he feels about this is cleverly conveyed through extracts from a journal he keeps.
Please Don’t Stop the Music is funny, poignant and heartbreaking in places. I really felt for the characters, both because of what they had gone through and what they were having to deal with now, as a result of their pasts. Jane handles her characters’ stories with great understanding and dexterity and, for me, it’s a fantastic example of how to sensitively incorporate disabilities and troubled backgrounds into romantic fiction. Before you start thinking that the book is altogether too dark for you, it’s not. I laughed a lot too. Jane puts her wonderfully unique sense of humour to very effective use throughout.
Please Don’t Stop the Music was an exhilarating and lively read because it was so full of life. Real life. It feels like a fresh take on romantic fiction because this is something that could happen to people that you or I might know in the real world. It’s a book about friendships, about how they change, grow and develop, and, most of all, about how important they are, and can be, in all our lives. I know that I’ll remember these characters and their story long after closing the book on them. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this, my first Jane Lovering novel, and I can’t wait to see what she writes next. In the meantime, I’ll be checking out her back catalogue until the next exciting new release from her.
The main character, Jemima Hutton, is a gifted jewellery artist who wields sarcasm about her like a ferocious ninja in skinny jeans. This defence mechanism helps protect someone who is a flawed and deeply troubled young woman, continually on the run from her past. While searching for stockists for her jewellery, she meets the enigmatic Ben Davies, who now works in a music shop but was once in an indie band. As their friendship develops, it threatens to upset her coping mechanisms and force her to share her secrets with him. But Ben’s also keeping a secret of his own and Jemima has a similar impact on him. How he feels about this is cleverly conveyed through extracts from a journal he keeps.
Please Don’t Stop the Music is funny, poignant and heartbreaking in places. I really felt for the characters, both because of what they had gone through and what they were having to deal with now, as a result of their pasts. Jane handles her characters’ stories with great understanding and dexterity and, for me, it’s a fantastic example of how to sensitively incorporate disabilities and troubled backgrounds into romantic fiction. Before you start thinking that the book is altogether too dark for you, it’s not. I laughed a lot too. Jane puts her wonderfully unique sense of humour to very effective use throughout.
Please Don’t Stop the Music was an exhilarating and lively read because it was so full of life. Real life. It feels like a fresh take on romantic fiction because this is something that could happen to people that you or I might know in the real world. It’s a book about friendships, about how they change, grow and develop, and, most of all, about how important they are, and can be, in all our lives. I know that I’ll remember these characters and their story long after closing the book on them. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this, my first Jane Lovering novel, and I can’t wait to see what she writes next. In the meantime, I’ll be checking out her back catalogue until the next exciting new release from her.
bookishnat's review
4.0
I bought this book after reading so many good things about it - they were true! I absolutely loved this book, and read it so quickly, as I couldn't put it down. I just wanted to keep reading to find out what was happening to them! The characters were so well written, they were 3d and you really felt like you were getting to know them, as the events were unfolding. The storyline I really enjoyed, it wasn't too obvious as to how it would end, which I liked.
I keep thinking about the characters even now, I really want to know how they are getting on!
I will definitely be looking into Jane's other books, and I would absolutely recommend this book.
I keep thinking about the characters even now, I really want to know how they are getting on!
I will definitely be looking into Jane's other books, and I would absolutely recommend this book.
susanscribs's review
2.0
First and last lines of the book are great, but everything in between is a melodramatic mess. I'm a sucker for romances with a music theme but sadly although the hero is a former rock star there are almost no scenes related to music. Just two incredibly wounded people who keep running away from each other - first he's too damaged, then she's too damaged, etc. etc. And considering the heroine is supposed to be a jeweler, wouldn't it be a good idea if the author had learned how to spell "jewelry?"
Edited: Okay, after reading the second British book that uses "jewellery," I realize that it's an American/British spelling difference, not an error. My apologies to the author, but the rating stands.
Edited: Okay, after reading the second British book that uses "jewellery," I realize that it's an American/British spelling difference, not an error. My apologies to the author, but the rating stands.
georgiewhoissarahdrew's review
4.0
You know the plots you've read 110 times before - the ones you can see coming a mile off? This isn't one of them. It's got "real" people, with proper problems, and an unsettling sense that this time Happy Ever After might just not be on the cards. So when h.e.a. does arrive, it's with a sense of real achievement - and not a little humour. There's also at least one Person You Love To Hate - though perhaps a little more could be made of their involvement (just a leetle farfetched). I've gone back to this book a couple of times, and got more out of it each time. A keeper. Oh, and I've forked out real money for Jane Lovering's other books - they're worth it too.
blodeuedd's review
4.0
Plot:
Jemima Hutton makes belt buckles, and that leads her into the guitar store owned by Ben Davies. They both have secrets, and they both need someone.
My thoughts:
What can I say, it was real. I like this kind of romance. You know where a couple meet, are friends, and then something slowly builds up. It is real, it's life, there are doubts, and there is love.
Jemima is young woman trying to build a life. She is nice, but she is also broken. Why we do not know. But there are hints, something has happened in her past. That alone could have kept me reading, I do like secrets. Then there is Ben, a former celebrity from a band bigger than Coldplay. Why he suddenly left no one knows. He has issues too, and I though that I knew why while reading, but the truth is never that simple. His secret made me want to read on too. These two needed each other. Their way to romance was slow, but truthful, and it made me the happier when they took small steps.
There are also two side characters, Jason who shares a studio with Jemima. He was fun, and Rosie with her newborn son Harry. She was sweet and now I kind of want her story. And of course we need someone not to like and in comes Saskia, the resident bad guy. She does not want to sell Jemima's belt buckles anymore, she seems to have a stick up her ass, and she demands too much from Rosie (who makes handmade cards and sells them in Saskia's store). Something fishy is going on there, so there is a third mystery that makes the plot go forward.
This book had a mix of everything, and there was warmth, true friendship and feelings about loss and trying to hide who one really is. I could not put it down, I had to read on. It was a fast read, and wonderful read too.
Final thoughts and recommendation:
I would recommend this one, it is not contemporary romance with whirlwind romances in a day, and big jealousy dramas. It's a more truthful look at a couple finding each other and opening up. While dealing with life. It was a wonderful book that I did not want to stop reading, and I do want to read more by this author.
Reason for reading:
I like Choc-lit books, Brit romances are fun :)
Cover:
Nice, but it does make me think about what her belt buckles really look like with all those stones on it.
Jemima Hutton makes belt buckles, and that leads her into the guitar store owned by Ben Davies. They both have secrets, and they both need someone.
My thoughts:
What can I say, it was real. I like this kind of romance. You know where a couple meet, are friends, and then something slowly builds up. It is real, it's life, there are doubts, and there is love.
Jemima is young woman trying to build a life. She is nice, but she is also broken. Why we do not know. But there are hints, something has happened in her past. That alone could have kept me reading, I do like secrets. Then there is Ben, a former celebrity from a band bigger than Coldplay. Why he suddenly left no one knows. He has issues too, and I though that I knew why while reading, but the truth is never that simple. His secret made me want to read on too. These two needed each other. Their way to romance was slow, but truthful, and it made me the happier when they took small steps.
There are also two side characters, Jason who shares a studio with Jemima. He was fun, and Rosie with her newborn son Harry. She was sweet and now I kind of want her story. And of course we need someone not to like and in comes Saskia, the resident bad guy. She does not want to sell Jemima's belt buckles anymore, she seems to have a stick up her ass, and she demands too much from Rosie (who makes handmade cards and sells them in Saskia's store). Something fishy is going on there, so there is a third mystery that makes the plot go forward.
This book had a mix of everything, and there was warmth, true friendship and feelings about loss and trying to hide who one really is. I could not put it down, I had to read on. It was a fast read, and wonderful read too.
Final thoughts and recommendation:
I would recommend this one, it is not contemporary romance with whirlwind romances in a day, and big jealousy dramas. It's a more truthful look at a couple finding each other and opening up. While dealing with life. It was a wonderful book that I did not want to stop reading, and I do want to read more by this author.
Reason for reading:
I like Choc-lit books, Brit romances are fun :)
Cover:
Nice, but it does make me think about what her belt buckles really look like with all those stones on it.
leahmichelle_13's review
5.0
Jemima Hutton is a talented jewellery designer with a dark past, but after being dumped by her only buyer, she has no idea how she’s going to carry on making money. Until she walks into Ben Davies’ guitar shop and her offers to carry her belt buckles as long as they sell. Jemima is intrigued by Ben, who shies away from people, and when she learns he was once part of uber-successful band Willow Down, she can’t help but wonder why he quit in the middle of their American tour. But if Jemima wants Ben to open up to her, she’s going to have to open up about her secrets, too. As they tiptoe around each other, could they finally have each met someone they’re able to fully open up to or will it be over before it’s even begun?
When I first heard of Please Don’t Stop The Music I was very intrigued to read the book. I liked the cover, I thought it sounded great and I’d already reviewed and enjoyed a couple of books with the Choc Lit publishing imprint. I was thrilled to receive a copy to review but because I’ve been very so-so about Chick Lit recently, I’ve let it sit on my shelf for a couple of weeks, only browsing the first page before putting it back again. The publication date is finally coming around, though, and I thought it was high time I read the book, and I’m pleased that I did.
As soon as I started the book, I was pulled in right from the off and we’re introduced to Jemima and those who inhabit her world: Saskia, who buys Jemima’s jewellery, Rosie her best friend along with her son Harry and Jason, who Jemima shares a studio with. I was transported instantly into Jemima’s story as she struggles to find someone to show off her belt buckles, until she happens on Ben Davies’ guitar shop, down a York side street. The sparks fly off the two since they first meet and I found their interactions very entertaining as they took the Mickey out of each other constantly. It made for amusing reading, and when I learnt that they both were keeping secrets, I was dying to know what they were and it definitely kept me turning the pages as they both kept almost blurting it all out.
I loved all of the characters. Jemima is a very intriguing character right from the off. I knew she had a secret, as the synopsis says so, and I was desperate to find out what it was. Despite her secrets, I loved Jemima, she’s very sarcastic, and she’s someone I could definitely see myself being friends with. She’s exactly what I look for in a main character and she carried the book with aplomb. At first, I wasn’t completely taken by Ben. He interested me, but the description Jemima gives of him makes him sound very skinny and a bit scruffy, but as Jemima changes her opinion of him, I did too and by the end of it, I loved him. I also really liked Rosie and Jason, Jason in particular were hilarious and they were such good friends to Jemima despite not knowing her as well as they might have liked.
Please Don’t Stop The Music is really well written, and I flew through the pages and the book just seemed to pick up steam the more I got into it. It’s told entirely from Jemima’s point of view with regular diary entries from Ben and I liked that small addition, because it gave us a bit of an insight into Ben’s head. As I’ve mentioned, both characters have big secrets and while I eventually guessed Ben’s, I had no idea of Jemima’s. We’re told a little bit about Jemima during the book, just snippets, so while I was expecting something a bit different to what you normally find in a Chick Lit book, I wasn’t expecting what I got! It was very much a surprise. I absolutely loved reading Please Don’t Stop The Music, I loved the writing style, I adored the characters and I loved the humour within the pages but most of all, I loved the romance. I’m a sucker for a happy ending, and I was rooting for Jemima and Ben throughout, practically from their very first meeting. Jane Lovering is definitely an author on my radar and I really hope she’s working on a new novel. I hugely recommend you pick up this book, it’s really great.
When I first heard of Please Don’t Stop The Music I was very intrigued to read the book. I liked the cover, I thought it sounded great and I’d already reviewed and enjoyed a couple of books with the Choc Lit publishing imprint. I was thrilled to receive a copy to review but because I’ve been very so-so about Chick Lit recently, I’ve let it sit on my shelf for a couple of weeks, only browsing the first page before putting it back again. The publication date is finally coming around, though, and I thought it was high time I read the book, and I’m pleased that I did.
As soon as I started the book, I was pulled in right from the off and we’re introduced to Jemima and those who inhabit her world: Saskia, who buys Jemima’s jewellery, Rosie her best friend along with her son Harry and Jason, who Jemima shares a studio with. I was transported instantly into Jemima’s story as she struggles to find someone to show off her belt buckles, until she happens on Ben Davies’ guitar shop, down a York side street. The sparks fly off the two since they first meet and I found their interactions very entertaining as they took the Mickey out of each other constantly. It made for amusing reading, and when I learnt that they both were keeping secrets, I was dying to know what they were and it definitely kept me turning the pages as they both kept almost blurting it all out.
I loved all of the characters. Jemima is a very intriguing character right from the off. I knew she had a secret, as the synopsis says so, and I was desperate to find out what it was. Despite her secrets, I loved Jemima, she’s very sarcastic, and she’s someone I could definitely see myself being friends with. She’s exactly what I look for in a main character and she carried the book with aplomb. At first, I wasn’t completely taken by Ben. He interested me, but the description Jemima gives of him makes him sound very skinny and a bit scruffy, but as Jemima changes her opinion of him, I did too and by the end of it, I loved him. I also really liked Rosie and Jason, Jason in particular were hilarious and they were such good friends to Jemima despite not knowing her as well as they might have liked.
Please Don’t Stop The Music is really well written, and I flew through the pages and the book just seemed to pick up steam the more I got into it. It’s told entirely from Jemima’s point of view with regular diary entries from Ben and I liked that small addition, because it gave us a bit of an insight into Ben’s head. As I’ve mentioned, both characters have big secrets and while I eventually guessed Ben’s, I had no idea of Jemima’s. We’re told a little bit about Jemima during the book, just snippets, so while I was expecting something a bit different to what you normally find in a Chick Lit book, I wasn’t expecting what I got! It was very much a surprise. I absolutely loved reading Please Don’t Stop The Music, I loved the writing style, I adored the characters and I loved the humour within the pages but most of all, I loved the romance. I’m a sucker for a happy ending, and I was rooting for Jemima and Ben throughout, practically from their very first meeting. Jane Lovering is definitely an author on my radar and I really hope she’s working on a new novel. I hugely recommend you pick up this book, it’s really great.
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