A review by beca_reads
If This Gets Out by Cale Dietrich, Sophie Gonzales

adventurous dark hopeful medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

 I forgot how much I loved reading about famous bands, and the implications of fame. We follow Ruben and Zach who are both apart of the biggest boyband in the world "Saturday". Ruben is gay and is out to his friends and family, but the record label won't let him come out to the world in fear of backlash. Meanwhile Zach starts to explore his sexuality and realises he is bisexual. Zach and Ruben enter a relationship that to begin with is supported by their record label, but it slowly becomes clear that they will try to keep Ruben and Zach silent for as long as possible. This book explores the pressures of the media, and the dark side of the music industry. Drug use and addiction is also discussed, with Angel one of the members of the band using them as a way to get away from the pressure.
I felt this book was pretty well written, It was pretty obvious that Ruben and Zach were written by different authors, as there was a slight shift in tone and at times was slightly jarring. I would of liked to see a bit more discussion around mental health this was very loosely touched upon but could of been developed further. I would have also liked to see more of Jon, as I didn't feel that we got enough of him, or the depth that we got with the other characters.

 
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