What an unexpected surprise. Musicians, concerts, fame, and lots of time and money to get into trouble with a capital T. Not the case at all, well, to some extent. Blair Bennett, rising star with a ton of talent and baggage that is causing her to blame and make bad/horrible decisions. Reagan Moore, level headed understanding the price and consequences of fame. When the two interact there is a give and take that both women can and do benefit from. To some extent predictable, but as the story unfolds, the read learns some background information that assist in understanding why Blair and Reagan behave and respond the way they do. The secondary characters provide some insight as well. This is a read that may have you thinking about family and how family can look different to different people and what does that mean and how will you react/respond as you grow into adulthood. Embrace or blame?

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.

I love stories where it revolve around music and how the process work on making songs and everything.

Blair is still going through grief when her grandfather dies who was more like father to her and she hasn't made his life easy growing up. In order to keep her out of trouble growing up her grandfather introduce her to music where she learns a lot of instruments.

Blair is in a band where she going on tour to opening for famous singer Reagan we learn she very down to earth and she bit of a homebody because of her overzealous fans. As Blair gets Reagan out of her comfort zone a friendship is form right along with a attraction and they decide to hook up on tour.

I understood why Blair broke up with her girlfriend because she feels she going on downward spiral and doesn't want to bring her down but also I think she didn't have any feelings of love for her anymore and with Reagan it was like breath of fresh where she can breath but you still see her going through her grief.

If you're reading this, I have to give out the overall warning right at the beginning that you may want to take my opinion on this read with a grain of salt. I'm an unashamed lover of pretty much any book that has to deal with musicians, and this story brought on those feelings of nostalgia again for me with this one!

MC Blair is still reeling from the death of her grandfather (who was like a father to her) when her band is called to be the opening act for an super famous musician, MC Reagan, while on the North American portion of her tour. Reagan isn't a typically famous musician though, she's down to earth and very likeable, even though she's essentially forced into solitude due to her fame. Blair quickly starts to wear down on Reagan's introverted tendencies though, and the there's a very tangible connection between the two that's obvious from the get go, but both women are too shy and hesitant to make the first move.

Blair, to be perfectly blunt, is a pretty horrible person. From the outset, she's introduced as a jerk who dumps her girlfriend without a second thought, and I was concerned that Miller wouldn't' be able to really turn her character around. The more I read though, the more I realized that I liked her, despite her many flaws. It's obvious from Blair's actions that she's on a downward spiral, with the abundant drug and alcohol misuse, but it somehow still just worked for me in this story. Blair comes across young and very reckless, struggling to find her way in the world that is now missing her anchor (her grandfather) while also struggling with falling in love for the first time.

This story is told from Blair's POV only, which is my least favorite, but surprisingly I found myself loving that and think that was actually a perfect choice for this story. As a reader, we're able to see Blair's passion and all the emotion that goes along with her choices, good and bad. She's reckless, but she's also real and genuine. We're taken on a ride while Blair struggles to deal with loss, love, and newfound fame. He actions aren't always the best choices, but every choice she made felt real and believable, even the bad ones.

Again, you may want to take my review with a grain of salt just because I may be rating this a bit higher due to nostalgia from my time on tour as a musician, but then again, maybe not. Drugs and alcohol, (and the characters' high level of fame!) weren't on my radar back in the day, so I think I was still able to approach this with the eyes of an unbiased reader. There's a lot more going on in this story than first appears, and while I thought the climax was resolved a little too easily with a pretty little bow, it was still a wonderful read. Solid 4 stars.

**Many thanks to Bold Strokes for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.**

Beautiful Music
This book is so amazing! Blair is an exceptional musician who just lost her grandfather to cancer. Along with her partner Miles, they are set to open for the American leg of singer/songwriter Regan’s tour. Blair is a partier, loves her SoCo and weed (and sometimes more) while Regan is much more mellow, enjoying yoga and sage. As they say, opposites attract and WOW, do these two ever!

I fell love with Blair and Regan so gosh darn hard!!! I loved their cuddle time, their awkward attempts to figure out if the other was into them, the way they look at each other and the way they send secret messages on stage via songs… And the emotions in this book! OMG, SO many, so different, so amazing and so good! I had the warm fuzzies, I cried, my heart got broken then put back together again… This book is truly wonderful and I can’t wait to read it again! It belongs in my All Time Favourite folder!! Thank you Ms Miller!!

'ARC provided by both NetGalley and The Publisher in exchange for a honest review'

**'Sometimes in certain popular fiction, the writer's aim must be to get readers to feel the emotions of their characters..Writers should write for the most intelligent, wittiest, wisest readers in the universe but still write to please yourselves...'

'HAMMERS,STRINGS and BEAUTIFUL THINGS' was the least of what I expected, along with a little more for interested readers. What it does is summarized each female's path towards their successful musical careers, their current lives or things/advice that people/family member said to influence their lifestyles. There are certain elements of this storyline that I did not expect to feel so personally affected by:- whether it's the comfort in knowing that I too have a few close friends that share the very same struggles with substance abuse -- because of family issues, pressure, stress etc.. or reading how both did what was necessary to survive at the top not only from scandals but because of their determination to being in love.
For this storyline, Ms.Lee Miller takes a different approach in adding the complexity of each character's life and their situations, even examining both Blair and Reagan's lives prior to touring plus sharing many snippets relating to what made them who they were as musicians.
However, while the story does not excuse Blair's bad behaviors and it clearly illustrates all the reckless nature of her actions towards everyone that she came in contract with, Ms.Lee Miller did try in some ways exploring and interweaving these parts as a plus -- also addressing tolerance, rehab and forgiveness.
She also included text messages, social media exchanges, lyrical content and poetry in order for readers to come away fully understanding the heart of the storyline and the nature of both leads chaotic lifestyle. Some readers might also be left with a feeling of empathy for Blair and her best friend.

Overall, the storytelling is rich in depth, has intuitiveness, an inextricable family bond and a feel of realism. So with all its many musical references, lyrical artists of today and a love story, this should be all interested readers need to be entertain and even enjoy.

This was not what I was expecting - and that's not a bad thing. Based on the blurb I thought that this would be a fluffy kind of romance with a pop singer and a rebel rocker. Instead Morgan Lee Miller provides an engaging story that is more about self-realization than romance. But don't worry - there's still a romance. :)

Blair Bennett is on the cusp of fame - an well regarded song writer and part of a two person band, she is invited to be the opening act for Reagan Moore's concert tour. Blair is still struggling with the recent death of her grandfather, a man who's love and influence is evident in everything she does as well as how to deal with the newfound fame in the music industry. There's a connection between Blair and Reagan from the start, but they are both cautious in starting anything or even naming the relationship anything that may be more than a convenient series of hook ups. Despite the fact that they are touring the US and selling out venues, they are both in their early twenties. There's still a realistic level of innocence and self-doubt as they both try to figure out if the other is as invested as they are. At the same time, Blair is slowly spiraling into more self-destructive behaviour.

This was a good read - well written and I didn't realize how engaged I was until I finished the book.

An honest review thanks to NetGalley. This was an amazing read, I connected from the beginning and as the angst path of Blair started I loved it even more. The story progression and the obstacles that were faced felt real and the emotions that came across were in massive supply. When I started writing this review I realized this is the author who wrote all the worlds between us, a book I read awhile ago that showcased raw and angst filled emotions that bled from the book and into my own emotions. She has a gift with making readers feel the angst her characters are going though. Great read and I cant wait for more from this author!