I will not be giving feedback on this book as I couldn’t really get into it but I think others may enjoy it.

I really loved this! It was a lot of fun, well written and the characters were well developed! I highly recommend this for others!! This was an important read and I found the book to be so great! This was not one of my favorite reads but I did enjoy it!

One of my major turn-offs in books is a heavy focus on drug use. I just find it really boring and I hate reading about it, so I was disappointed when it turned out to be a feature of this story. This was darker than expected.

Gorgeous prose that takes the reader directly into the story. Anna Hecker writes words the way I imagine Mira plays notes. This is a fresh take on the typical coming of age story, and I'm so grateful to have read it.

This book started out a bit slow but once things started to pick up, I got completely immersed with the story and with Mira. I really, really enjoyed the book and loved how it really got into the details of the DJ-world plus Mira’s own love for jazz. I never thought the two worlds would ever merge but somehow Anna, the author, made it work. In fact, I got so engaged in the book that I was even debating if I should learn to DJ, LOL (but seriously, imagine that).

Anyways, I really enjoyed Mira as a character. I admired her intelligence and her ability to simply pick things up when they’re music-related. I can definitely see why Shay was kind of jealous by her in the beginning but was glad to see her put that feeling aside because they were such good friends. Another aspect that I enjoyed was the dynamic between Mira and her sister, Britt. The journey they went together throughout the book was real and it also touched on a lot of serious issues such as drug use and sex.

For me, the best part of the book was how the author discussed about music. She really brought things to life with that world and I could feel myself drawing closer to the DJ world and even the jazz world which are two worlds that I never thought I would really be into.

The writing style was also done really nicely. Other than the slow beginning where the author took her time to introduce the characters and the setting, the rest of the book was very engaging and complex. The author also did a good job with introducing bits of secrets throughout the book and it was done expertly. The plot was definitely a bit more intricate than I had initially imaged so I was glad for that. It definitely made the book stand out more.

Overall, I really liked the book and thought it was a great debut novel.

I'm glad I gave this book a chance. It's definitely more interesting than I first thought it would be. It's a pretty good YA contemporary.

Music was the air she breathed, the notes that played in her mind, and the desire to be the best. Great contemporary young adult read that will have you feeling the music pulse in your veins.

Mira is a 17 year old music prodigy (it's all about jazz), and knows what she wants. But when her plans for a final summer at music camp fall through, nothing pans out like she thought. Her friends go to camp without her, her "perfect" sister is back from college and introduces Mira to a world she never considered. Warehouse raves, techno beats, tattooed guys, and Molly become her new norm. When tragedy strikes, Mira has to step up and figure out what is most important in her life; her family, her friendships, or music?

Slow Start
This book had quite the slow start. It spent a few too many chapters setting up the scene and the character interactions, forcing them into a ‘backstory’ role instead of an ‘active story’ role. It honestly started to make me dread reading the rest of the book as I was concerned the entire book would be told at this same slow, arduous pace. Thankfully, it does pick up after some time.

Dark Reality
Oh man! I expected some darkness in the book, but the actual amount of darkness and the realistic aspect of the darkness really helped develop this story. Perhaps I’m odd, but I loved when the story took a turn into the void of despair. Sometimes bad things happen and those things need to be portrayed, but portrayed in a real way that reflects reality. This book definitely did that!

Main Character
Personally, I connected with the main character. I could really understand where she was coming from and her plights and all her anger and confusion. That being said, there were times when I wanted to just bash some sense into her because she literally acted like the dumbest teenage girl on the planet. That bothered me to no end, but given her age, it did (unfortunately) make sense.

On the note of the main character, her develop across the duration of the story was really well done. She changed quite a bit. Much of her change was unexpected (for her), which I find to resemble real life as we don’t always notice the changes in or around ourselves when they’re happening. I also really liked the direction in which she changed.

Writing Style
Just to note, I think the writing could use some work. It felt bogged down in places and just uninteresting in others, which is disappointing given the way language was used to describe music. It could have been a real awe-striking story. However, the writing simply wasn’t up to par.

An intriguing read that is sure to grab your attention and hold it until the very end. A great fast paced read with interesting characters

This story I wanted to read because it is recommended for fans of This Song Will Save Your Life and also because I myself go to raves/music events where there are djs and I really enjoyed the music aspect to this story. I like how the main character is originally into jazz and stumbles about the world of DJing because of her sister and really enjoys it. Also I liked the diversity which is still rarely found in some books not just by race but by the hobbies these characters have and enjoy. The age difference for the romance is something that did weird me out a bit but I feel like there was a good reason the author had for that.

Mira has always been second place to her soccer star sister, Britt. However, she has found her niche with her band friends.... until they go away to summer band camp, and Mira is left all alone. Britt invites her out one night to a warehouse party, complete with DJs, dancing, and.. molly. Mira gets a new boyfriend who is constantly on the party scene, learns to DJ, starts making new DJ friends, but she still has commitments to her trumpet and an upcoming audition that she's been preparing for her whole life.

This book was not at all what I expected.. it was refreshing and new and different. I liked that the sole focus was not on Mira's relationship with her parents or just the boyfriend or just the music. The meshing of all of these things helped to make the book a pretty quick read. This is definitely for young adults, though. I can't imagine any adults who like YA being into this. There's not a ton of depth. It's just a fun read.

Even though I do not read a lot of YA books, I thought this would be enjoyable since the main character is a misfit and loves music (hits close to home). I didn't expect it to be so intriguing that I just kept reading straight through. The music details about jazz and mixing sounds make me want to find this composition and listen to it. I have never been to any event like the ones described, but I can totally relate to being out with people and having the Simply Irresistible urge to dance when a great song is played. No spoilers here :) Overall great read and I highly recommend it!!!

When the Beat Drops by Anna Hecker, a new to me author. A story of Family, secrets, music, DJing. Great character development and I love the cover of the book. I look forward to checking out more books by this author.

This book was way more than I expected! When Mira thinks her summer couldn't get any worse (not being in band camp with her friends Crow and Nicky), she reconnects with her sister Britt and attends her first warehouse party.
She falls in love with DJ-ing, learning the ins and outs from new friend Shay, and with Derek.
I liked Mira, a very relatable character, she is naive in some ways, but mature enough when it comes to making the right choices.
I enjoyed the fast pace of this book, really hooking me in. The way Anna Hecker wrote about topics like grief and mourning, drug abuse and family/friendship/boyfriend issues made this book a real page turner!

I was lucky to receive an early copy of When the Beat Drops by Anna Hecker published by Sky Pony Press from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. When the Beat Drops comes out on May 15th. When the Beat Drops follows Mira a girl who is inspired by Jazz music because of her late grandfather who she loved dearly. When Mira discovers that she can not go music camp with her friends this summer she is very upset and feels like her summer is ruined. Mira has a sister named Britt who is comming home from college for the summer so Mira is feeling a little better even though her and her sister are not as close as she wishes they could be. Britt is everything that Mira is not. She is athletic and her parents faveorite. Britt seems to have it all together and her life seems golden. one night Mira goes to a warehouse party with her sister and her sisters friend Yelena and that is where mira discovers the life of being a dj. she also is introduced to the hot guy with the tattoos named derek and meets shay the girl who teachers her how to spin. during the course of the summer mira goes through alot of changes and struggles her life is completely flipped upside down and she learns a lot about herself she didnt know before


I thought this was a really enjoyable story and at times really heartbreaking. I gave this a 3 out of 5 stars. i did have some issues with some of the topics like when it came to how characters in the book were saying molly (the drug) is not harmful it was kinda like saying its ok to go out and do this drug go try it. that was one of my reasons for not giving this a 4 out of 5 stars. I did like how the family relationship went from not really a great one to working out there problems in a realistic way and how it shows nobody no matter who you are us perfect. I will defintely be adding this book to my collection when it comes out

This was a strong book with an engaging, relatable main character. It reminded me favorably of THIS SONG WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE and will likely appeal to the same readers. I also loved the nuanced and heartwrenching family storyline.

Give me a sec as I'm trying to catch my breath from this crazy ride.
I wasn't sure what to expect, and to be honest, I'm not sure what it was about this book that made me request it, but I am very thankful for NetGalley for granting me an ARC on it.
the most I know about music is that I like to dance to it, but this book gave me a whole other view of it. Love this insight into the music scene but there is much MUCH more to it than that. It does have some triggers in here such as substance abuse and grief, but they managed to come across as part of the story and not in a preachy way. There is finally a YA book where the main character makes mistakes, pays for her mistakes and learns from her mistakes. I was supriised at how much I liked this book

I really like this book. I initially requested it because of the focus on music. This is something I'm constantly writing about, so I really liked the idea of this book. It was completely different than what I expected because I thought it would actually be different from cliches, but I did enjoy it still. I think it was hard for me to LOVE because it just felt too easy, too expected, and too nothing in some parts. I wish there was more of a focus on the DJ aspect because I think it's so interesting. I still enjoyed it for the most part, but it had the potential to blow me away and it didn't

There's a potential problem lurking behind the easy-goingness of being a book blogger. It's called the less-than-three-star-rut and I've been in it for a while now. I tend to speed through as many books as I can each week, stockpiling my reviews so I can post at my leisure. But my healthy stockpile has been gradually shrinking as lately I just haven't been feeling a lot of the books on my reading list and if I don't feel they're at least 3 stars, I won't post them on my blog. So, I skipped a bit ahead for this book, knowing in my reading soul that it would pull through for me.

Anna Hecker has written a story that's deep with tragic undertones but laced with hopefulness and meaning as Mira navigates new experiences with impending young adulthood stealing the filter of naivete. I thought Mira's storyline was exceptional, with a roller coaster of growth, happiness, and heartbreak slammed into one summer.

I haven't read many books featuring the rave scene, but this book highlights it all...from the bright, flashing lights and dancing mobs to the dirtier side of drugs and overdoses. Mia's immersion into the scene felt natural, with her musical talents allowing her to achieve a new sense of purpose outside of band camp.

I was wary of the relationship between Mira and Derek from the start. I found myself wanting him to be a decent person, if only for Mira's sake. I wish his character would have been a little more well-developed, with a more solid backstory, but I guess the lack of any solid substance just leads the reader to take him for what he is.

Two other characters who were just ick: Mira's parents. Just not good, in any aspect of the book. They dropped the ball over and over, and even with the big come to Jesus moment towards the end, I just couldn't with them.

One problem I did have with the storyline: As the summer winds down and Mira's audition nears, huge chunks of time are skipped. I get that she has her nose to the grindstone in regards to preparing herself for her big audition, but I felt like time was wasted. Like the book could have been MORE but it came up short for lack of trying. For three weeks, it's just nothing and it killed the flow of the book for me.

Overall, I gave the book 3.75/5 stars but rounded up to 4 stars for the sake of easing rating systems (detractions for dropped momentum, a meh ending, and the CONSTANT use of "FOMO"🙄). It's a quick read that will keep your attention from the first page until the last chapters.

*I was provided with a free ARC by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.