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A review by lisaluvsliterature
For One Night Only by Jessica James
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
As this is a debut author, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I’m not always a rock star romance reader, but this one hit the spot! And I’m kind of excited that when I went to find the Amazon link, it looks like maybe, just maybe, this might turn into a series and we can get some HEAs for the other band members?
I loved that Caleb had gone home and become a teacher. Such a totally different career compared to being a rock star. Valerie and the others had all pretty much gone onto rock star adjacent jobs, or at least still with some music or fame/celebrity aspect to them. Valerie however seemed to not be doing as well as her latest show was in danger of not being renewed for another season. Not to mentions people on the show, ex-boyfriends especially, were using her – badmouthing her – on social media but really just to help their own images. So it definitely made me sympathetic to wanting to see her be able to get ahead.
While both Caleb and Valerie had issues with family – specifically their mothers – at least Caleb’s for the most part at least somewhat cared and wasn’t taking advantage of him. But Caleb also had sisters to be there for him or for him to have a reason to be there for them. Valerie really had no one for the most part. Not to mention most everyone kind of blamed her for the band’s break up. But while Caleb kind of blamed her for why he left partly, he also knew he was in a way just as much to blame for the breakup because of how he left.
Their reunion and subsequent rekindling of their relationship, even as they pretended it was just fake-dating to help with the concert was a really fun, yet emotional journey to go along with as the reader. I got to know the both of them so well, and developed both a love and hate relationship with the other members of their band. Enough so that as I mentioned above, I would love to see the rest of them get a story! Of course something had to happen to make things blow up even as it seemed they could maybe get back together, both as a couple, and maybe even the band. And even with how it seemed to totally be blown up and what a crazy way to just walk off once again, it made sense for the history between all of them, and what was hanging on the line with their former company and the contract they found an extra copy of.
In the end I like the way it all worked out. How everyone came to figure out how they really felt and how they made it up to the ones who needed that. As someone who is a major superfan of a group from my high school years, New Kids on the Block, and I consider myself a Blockhead, it was fun to read about other superfans and their much better nickname of the Glitterbugs. In fact I loved the background story on the name of Glitter Bats! I really enjoyed this story, and hope to read more by this author in the future. Especially if it is another one set in this same world!