alexandra_avital's review
4.0
4 for genre, 3 in general. Very cute, great intersectional cast BUT a bit predictable and the boy band gay angst trope seems a bit stale.
Spoiler:
I never felt the tension build between the 2 romantic interests. It always felt luke warm.
Spoiler:
I never felt the tension build between the 2 romantic interests. It always felt luke warm.
james_orion's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
morj's review
challenging
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I liked the themes of this novel, and I thought those were well-developed. However, except for Hunter, the characters were not well developed, and at times were hard to tell apart from one-another. I also found the romance to be way too fast and there for convenience only.
mb918's review against another edition
4.0
This book was not the fun cutesy celebrity romance I was expecting, but it was still great nonetheless. The commentary on celebrity culture and the idolization of boy band members was expertly done and devastating to read in a way that emphasized how wrong and prevalent it is in our society. Some chapters made me physically anxious over the decisions Hunter was making, and others made me feel equally sorry for him and disgusted by how awful people can be without knowing the full story. The mixed media aspect also added a nice window into the cruelty of that soul-sucking vacuum we call the internet.
The discussion surrounding relationships and dating was thoroughly insightful, but I just didn’t like Kaivan. He said some important things about white privilege and sanitized diversity, but I couldn’t move past the weird red flags I felt were sprinkled throughout. It seemed to me like he was too pretentious and was mostly using Hunter for the fame, but it was never properly addressed in the story. I also would have appreciated a bit more group bonding between the band members because Hunter’s relationship with Ashton was one of my favorite parts of the whole book.
Despite not being invested in the main romance, I did enjoy this book overall. It was certainly a wild ride from start to finish, and I look forward to finally reading Khorram’s previous works.
The discussion surrounding relationships and dating was thoroughly insightful, but I just didn’t like Kaivan. He said some important things about white privilege and sanitized diversity, but I couldn’t move past the weird red flags I felt were sprinkled throughout. It seemed to me like he was too pretentious and was mostly using Hunter for the fame, but it was never properly addressed in the story. I also would have appreciated a bit more group bonding between the band members because Hunter’s relationship with Ashton was one of my favorite parts of the whole book.
Despite not being invested in the main romance, I did enjoy this book overall. It was certainly a wild ride from start to finish, and I look forward to finally reading Khorram’s previous works.
teacupsandtropes's review against another edition
4.0
★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
Oooo I loved this. This was my first book from Adib Khorram (although I own [b:Darius the Great Is Not Okay|37506437|Darius the Great Is Not Okay (Darius The Great, #1)|Adib Khorram|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1520460519l/37506437._SX50_.jpg|58014975] and [b:Darius the Great Deserves Better|49025767|Darius the Great Deserves Better (Darius the Great, #2)|Adib Khorram|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1576517046l/49025767._SY75_.jpg|73514089]). Kiss & Tell follows a Canadian boy band on their North American tour. One of the members, Hunter Drake, has broken up with his boyfriend and is thrust into the spotlight when his ex-boyfriend leaks their sexts.
I don't know what I was expecting with this book. I thought it might be a little like [b:If This Gets Out|54738255|If This Gets Out|Sophie Gonzales|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1610723548l/54738255._SY75_.jpg|85387795] but they were completely different and I loved that.
Hunter was dealing with so much, and honestly, I still feel so bad for him. The pressure from The Label, his friends, the public, his fans, and his love interests... Everything was just piling on top of him until he snapped. Honestly, everyone got off easy imo. I did like how Hunter took what his friends were saying to heart; but I felt as though they still kind of brushed him off. Idk, I think it's just me, but I would've dropped the lot of them and went to live my best life with Masha Patriarki tbh.
I DO NOT like Kaivan. I just think there wasn't enough done to redeem him for me. I was suspicious of his motives the whole book and honestly, still sus. Also don't like Aidan either. I'm #TeamHunter. You do you, boo. Love yourself first. <3
Oooo I loved this. This was my first book from Adib Khorram (although I own [b:Darius the Great Is Not Okay|37506437|Darius the Great Is Not Okay (Darius The Great, #1)|Adib Khorram|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1520460519l/37506437._SX50_.jpg|58014975] and [b:Darius the Great Deserves Better|49025767|Darius the Great Deserves Better (Darius the Great, #2)|Adib Khorram|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1576517046l/49025767._SY75_.jpg|73514089]). Kiss & Tell follows a Canadian boy band on their North American tour. One of the members, Hunter Drake, has broken up with his boyfriend and is thrust into the spotlight when his ex-boyfriend leaks their sexts.
I don't know what I was expecting with this book. I thought it might be a little like [b:If This Gets Out|54738255|If This Gets Out|Sophie Gonzales|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1610723548l/54738255._SY75_.jpg|85387795] but they were completely different and I loved that.
Hunter was dealing with so much, and honestly, I still feel so bad for him. The pressure from The Label, his friends, the public, his fans, and his love interests... Everything was just piling on top of him until he snapped. Honestly, everyone got off easy imo. I did like how Hunter took what his friends were saying to heart; but I felt as though they still kind of brushed him off. Idk, I think it's just me, but I would've dropped the lot of them and went to live my best life with Masha Patriarki tbh.
I DO NOT like Kaivan. I just think there wasn't enough done to redeem him for me. I was suspicious of his motives the whole book and honestly, still sus. Also don't like Aidan either. I'm #TeamHunter. You do you, boo. Love yourself first. <3
dianelime's review
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
laejone's review against another edition
5.0
This book was very good and I was extremely stress about some plot points near the end. I def recommend the audiobook.
lozzamwright's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
moondustreads's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
samstxt's review
4.0
i get drawn closer to the center of the crowd, a swirling, hungry mass of people. i'm not human anymore: i'm a slab of meat. a cinnamon roll to get pulled apart and consumed.
this book was so extremely good! i loved that an lgbt book like this also tackled being gay in the limelight. its crazy how much we want to dissect celebrities' sexuality, speculate on them, like they were fictional people. a very good commentary on being famous while young and lgbt. however, i have to nitpick. i could not stand kaivan. i didn't like how quickly they got into a relationship, and i especially wasn't fond of how kaivan seemed to brush off hunters reactions (and probably almost panic attacks) from fan encounters while on dates.
edit: tbqh. i do wish that hunter wouldn't have ended up with kaivan in the end. i wish he was written better, but i did not like him the entire time i was reading this book, and i hated that. honestly, i would have been just fine is hunter didn't end up with anyone!
i also wish it could have spent a bit more time discussing the issues the other band members had with their own personal struggles. nothing really set them apart for me, and i wish we spent longer getting to know the band members individually. they all seemed to blend together. AND i wish we spent longer with aiden and his struggles? they seemed to only really get briefly mentioned when the plot called for it and it HAD to be brought up. the ending was also rushed through very quickly; the story had a LONG rising action with the briefest of falling action/climax, and just seemed like "its ok hunter, you said sorry and everything is ok now! :)"
HOWEVER, many of these are just nitpicks. id give it a 4 and a half stars if i could, because i was just such a huge fan of the lgbt celebrity topics being discussed in this book. i hope to read more by this author in the future!!!
this book was so extremely good! i loved that an lgbt book like this also tackled being gay in the limelight. its crazy how much we want to dissect celebrities' sexuality, speculate on them, like they were fictional people. a very good commentary on being famous while young and lgbt. however, i have to nitpick. i could not stand kaivan. i didn't like how quickly they got into a relationship, and i especially wasn't fond of how kaivan seemed to brush off hunters reactions (and probably almost panic attacks) from fan encounters while on dates.
edit: tbqh. i do wish that hunter wouldn't have ended up with kaivan in the end. i wish he was written better, but i did not like him the entire time i was reading this book, and i hated that. honestly, i would have been just fine is hunter didn't end up with anyone!
i also wish it could have spent a bit more time discussing the issues the other band members had with their own personal struggles. nothing really set them apart for me, and i wish we spent longer getting to know the band members individually. they all seemed to blend together. AND i wish we spent longer with aiden and his struggles? they seemed to only really get briefly mentioned when the plot called for it and it HAD to be brought up. the ending was also rushed through very quickly; the story had a LONG rising action with the briefest of falling action/climax, and just seemed like "its ok hunter, you said sorry and everything is ok now! :)"
HOWEVER, many of these are just nitpicks. id give it a 4 and a half stars if i could, because i was just such a huge fan of the lgbt celebrity topics being discussed in this book. i hope to read more by this author in the future!!!