Love Songs & Other Lies

by Jessica Pennington

[Sam@WLABB]

Rating: 4.5 Stars

If someone had taken a picture of me, when I finished this book, it would looks something like this:



Because, I was shedding all sorts of happy tears!

This book opened with Vee joining her bestie, Logan, and his band on a battle of the bands reality concert tour. -- sounds interesting right? Once there, Vee discovered that her ex, Cam, was also on the tour, and that my friends, was where the fun began.

I immediately wanted to know more about the past Cam and Vee shared, and I was dying to find out what he did to make her write so many angry songs about him. Pennington delivered this information via flashbacks, and present time "discussions". If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times, I am a fan of alternating timelines. I appreciate the way they kept me guessing and wanting more. They also allowed me time to speculate about what happened, which just added to the fun for me.

The alternating timeline also enabled Pennington to really develop these characters. It's an interesting and effective way to reveal the events, which shaped the characters, and made them who they were in the present timeline. I watched them fall in love, fall apart, and then get an opportunity to either get closure or start a new chapter together.

I sort of devoured this book, because there were so many things that just hit the right notes for me. You know I loved the format, but other things that kept me flipping the pages were:

•The romance! I am a lover of love, and this book featured a second chance romance, which is one of my favorite kinds of romance. I am such a fan of the idea that all is not lost, and one can redeem themselves and atone for past mistakes.

•Cam won me over in this book. When he finally realized that he wanted Vee back in his life, he went for it. His heart was on his sleeve, and he kept doing all these swoony things. I let out a bunch of happy sighs as I wore a stupid grin. He was excellent book boyfriend material.

•Both Vee and Cam were carrying a lot of baggage. I am always a fan of slightly damaged characters, and Vee and Cam fit the bill. They were both struggling wth some losses related to their families, and I loved seeing them work through it all, together and apart.

•There was a side romance, which was a nice parallel to Vee and Cam's. I didn't expect it, but I really enjoyed it.

•This book had a soundtrack, which was predominated by love songs. I enjoyed all the music Pennington incorporated into the story, because these were not random songs. They were Cam and Vee's hearts put on display, and an integral part of the story.

•The reality show aspect was a fun extra touch. I enjoyed the dynamic it created, as well as the extra drama it added to this tale.

•Road trips are always tons of fun, and this one delighted me in many ways. We got to visit some great cities, go to lots of parties, attend a bunch of shows, and live like a rock star.

•The Feels!!! I was happy, sad, angry, joyful. I felt so many emotions. All sorts of tears were shed, and I just couldn't get enough of it all.

•A grand romantic gesture! It's not secret that I am a HUGE fan of grand gestures. It makes every book better, in my opinion, and this one was so wonderful! I swear!

Overall: A heartbreaking and heartwarming story of second chances, which was filled with a little angst and lots of swoons.

* ARC received in exchange for an honest review.

BLOG | INSTAGRAM |TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | FRIEND ME ON GOODREADS