I love it when C.D. Reiss brings out her oh so romantic toe tingling side and makes us feel all gooey and loved up. Lead Me Back does just that. Kayla and Justin are both captivating in their own way and complement each other perfectly. It's a romance in every sense of the word. They both have problems that just won't go away. Kayla finds herself tangled up in Justin's and let's face it why wouldn't you want to be tangled up with him. He is gorgeous. The side characters in this book are more than engaging. I loved loved loved Louise she was fabulous. Not everything about these two is revealed immediately so as you read you're left wondering what exactly went on with each of them. All is revealed and we get the HEA we love. As always beautifully written. A light, engaging romance that will leave you with a smile on your face.

I’ve been a fan of Christine’s books from the moment I was introduced to Jonathan Drazen. The Drazen Seriesi is more intense and a much darker series, so if you’re looking for something lighter, she writes a very enjoyable celebrity romance. I’m not a big fan of celebrity/Hollywood romances, per se, which says something about her writing style when I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Kayla & Justin. Justin is not your normal hero but by the end of the book he redeems himself quite nicely. Kayla is spunky and a spitfire! This author always grabs my attention and keeps me turning the pages no matter what she writes. I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC for NetGalley.

A sexy romance that I loved every minute of. These two characters are so hot for one another and you can feel the spark when they are together. Throw in some drama and you will not want to put this story down. If it’s not your list to read you certainly want to add it.

This is my first book by CD Reiss and I enjoyed it very much. Kayla is a great female lead...she’s so feisty. The male lead Justin reminded me of another popular young Justin. Kayla and Justin are great characters and their chemistry was undeniable. Cute story of famous boy falling for a normal working girl.

HOOOOOOLLLLEYYY SHHHHYYYYTTT
I swear that CD REISS can write anything but now that I have read her last two contemporary books it is so incredible that it maybe tops her dark romance. This book was dun and refreshing and different. the love story wasn't simple and easy because it focused on reall life and struggles and love and excitement. I wish I can totally re read this for the first time it was soo good and refreshing and wow loved it.

Lead Me Back
By: CD Reiss

💕📚⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️📚💕

Can the bad boy change his image?

I really enjoyed this book and it kept me engrossed throughout. I really loved the characters and the way they interacted with each other. He was cocky and assuming and she wasn’t impressed or really care he was famous. The development of each character not just Justin and Kayla but all the people close to them or the ones trying to. This is a fun, hot, romantic must read book and I would definitely recommend this book to anyone. The authors ability to have two separate individuals struggling in their everyday life and try to navigate someone else’s thoughts, needs and desires was intense and gives all the fills.


Authors Blurb: Cutting all ties, Kayla Montgomery drives cross-country to Los Angeles. New start. New life. And an unexpected new job: assistant to Justin Beckett.

The Justin Beckett....The boy band rebel with the cocky attitude and dreamy bed head who casts a spell over his fans and tests the patience of his handlers.

Now at the peak of Mount Adulthood, he has to build a clean-cut, movie star image. It’s in his contract. No partying. No attitude. No groupies.
To tie it together, he needs a normal girl.

Suddenly, Kayla’s swept up in Justin’s glamorous world, and his arms. But the most dizzying thing is Justin himself. Sweet, generous, reliable, and as eager to shed his past as Kayla is hers.
About that…Those ties she thought she’d cut? They’ve followed her across the country with her secrets in tow, and they’re about to test Kayla’s courage, Justin’s loyalty, and a love that wasn’t part of the deal.

This book has everything I love in a book. Then you add that it's beautifully written and believable. It is easily a five star read. Written in dual POV my personal favorite this story flows so incredibly well that the next thing you know your 80% into the book and loving every second of it. The believable way the characters interact is perfect. Run, Hop, Jump or use your (1 click) finger to do whatever you have to do and get this amazing book. It'll break your heart, you'll want to scream with frustration and it'll let you discover that love just might conquer all. The chemistry is steamy and sweet and oh so romantic.

Thanks Netgally for letting me read and review.📚💕

Unlike some of the other romances I've read lately that have had an annoying tendency to sag or lose their way in the middle, Lead Me Back started off on an enjoyable, 4 star level, but continued to build until by the end it was solidly in 5 star territory. I loved this book. The characterization of Justin, the bad boy lead singer of a boy band that spectacularly self-destructed was particularly strong. Initially Justin came off as a decent guy who'd been corrupted by fame to the point where he took it for granted that the world should revolve around him and his needs. When he meets Kayla, he just assumes that she has nothing better to do than to fall in line and do what he wants, regardless of her own goals and desires. It comes as quite a shock to him when she figuratively gives him the finger and walks away. Justin initially appear to be a spoiled brat, BUT, such is the magic of C.D. Reiss' writing that she slowly redeems him, showing the truly good guy underneath and having him evolve to the point where he becomes a worthy partner that any woman would be lucky to have.

As for Kayla, she was the type of heroine I love, strong, sure of herself and her own abilities, not willing to put up with any BS, and also not willing to sacrifice her own dreams and ambitions just because she happened to catch Justin's attention. She never hesitated to stand up for herself or to back away to keep from getting swallowed up by the drama that seemed to swirl around him, no matter how much she was attracted to him. The romance itself was kind of a slow burn which fit the story perfectly, since Justin needed to mature a bit before he became someone that Kayla could trust enough to be intimate with. Overall, 5 enthusiastic stars! I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this story. Both leads were very strong characters and I thought the writing throughout was entertaining and witty and the storyline kept my attention through the whole book. I particularly enjoyed the scenes with Justin’s Grandma. I wish she had been in it more!

There is something about a celebrity romance that I gravitate toward. I don't love every one I read, but I always have to try it because when it works - there's something almost magical about it. This is actual fairytale material and my sappy little romance loving heart will never ever tire of fairytales.

C.D. Reiss got it just right.

I was sucked in immediately and then I was in. Like all in for Justin and Kayla's love story.

I'll admit, I had a moment of pause when I realized I was basically reading a Justin Bieber story. A moment where I was like -- oy, can I do this?

Turns out, I can.

And then I did.

Because it was addictive and compelling and sexy and romantic. And it was a fairytale. And, well, you already know how I feel about those.

Truly, I loved everything. The banter was on point. I loved how plucky and fierce Kayla was. I loved that she wasn't starstruck or even all that impressed with Justin at first. I loved how she made him work to win her trust and her heart. I loved how he did work for her. And how he was so genuine and generous. I loved how much surprising depth he had, and how much he cared for those he loved.

I loved that there was no unnecessary drama here. These two were so real with each other - even when it hurt.

I just...loved them! In the most unexpected and delightful ways. Lead Me Back was a fun read and it delivered all the heart flutters and sappy smiles I could ever have asked for. Definitely recommend for a fun romantic escape!

After I burned through EL James, Molly Weatherfield, and Laura Antoniou, a good friend recommended the Songs of Submission series by CD Reiss. It was such an amazing series that I was really keen to read more of her work.

Lead Me Back was disappointing in that it lacked the depth, darkness, suspense, and heat that characterized the Songs of Submission series. This novel was much more conventional: from the failed meet-cute that kicks off the events to the happily ever after ending that ties up all the loose ends. I never really felt worried for the characters - probably because I never really felt for the characters. All the obstacles they faced seemed trivial, with straightforward resolutions. The fact that these obstacles persisted and took so long to resolve was a mind boggler for me.

I might be being unfair in comparing this novel with her previous work, but I picked up this novel because I really enjoyed the previous work.

I received this book as a digital advance reader copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

4.3 stars

If this author writes it, I will read it. There is just something mesmerizing about the way that she crafts a story. It doesn't matter what the subgenre is it always holds my attention.

I know nothing about fashion design. However, in this book, I felt like I did. She is an expert at giving details that lend a certain credibility to her stories. Strong characters, likable dialogue, a funny as hell Grandma, and a slow burn romance that catapulted this story to a rare treat.

There were some areas of the story that I wanted more of a resolution or to be further expanded on. One, in particular, was Ken the manager and the other was how things turned out in regards to the former boss. Regardless of those two main concerns, this story was still fantastic. There is a reason that she is one of my favorite authors in the field.

CD really knows how to write a Hollywood romance. Kayla is tough as nails but you can understand why. Some readers may not like her attitude but I loved that she was up front. She spoke her mind and her truth. Justin was a little hard for me to read at first but once you do will adore him. They’re both trying to pull themselves back up from the negativity their names bring. Both did nothing wrong but yet trying to explain to people the true story…was fighting an uphill battle. Justin and Kayla just worked!! Through it all they figured out their relationship and there was no ott drama with that. They were open and honest with each other. That’s what I appreciated the most with this story.

Arc provided by publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'm a sucker for a bad boy 'rockstar' romance and Lead me back may just be the best one I have ever read! This story drew me in and held my attention. I'm not ashamed to say I read it in one sitting and felt really sad when it was over! I shall blame the lockdown for this though!

If you are looking for a more grown up romance this one is for you! Highly recommend!

Kayla is an aspiring fashion designer forced to flee across the country, where a wrong number situation results in her working meeting Justin, a former rock star looking to clean up his image.

I liked Kayla as a character, but I wasn't convinced by the romance with Justin. It felt quite rushed to me, and I didn't really feel that they had much chemistry.

The plot had some interesting twists, and enough mystery to make me want to keep going to the end. However, this definitely wasn't the author's best!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This review has been posted to Goodreads and will be submitted to Amazon after release.

I dont remember reading a book from this author before, but I read a lot of books and she gets good reviews
I grabbed it.. So we meet Kayla a struggling young fashion designer who had to deal with the fallout of sexual assault so already I was rooting for her after something like that. She gets a new cell phone number and is getting all these calls for a guy named Justin, and since he was famous decided to cut ties with his former members (yeah I understand that) but ok we have a story. Justin wants Kayla to work for him taking his calls and she would be the in between him and his boy band members. I liked tha kayla wasn't wowed that she was meeting him.. So these two both got out of stressful situation and both are trying to reinvent themselves and now are dealing with each other, I liked Kayla, and Justin was ok he grew on me by the end but I struggled with him for a while he just seemed immature. at first...liked secondary characters, that always is the icing on the cake for me.

I cute premise with likable characters and plenty of heart, A lot of LOL dialogue and situations. Interesting supporting characters.

This story was really interesting and different than I expected. That said I did really enjoy it and the characters. This not purely a romance story, its also about friendship, family and it also has some important issues that the characters are dealing with.

Justin is a rocker who is also branching out into movies. He had a band but now he is going solo and his manager and record company has told him his old bandmates needs to go. However he feels like he cannot abandone him so when his grandmother calls him and gets a wrong number and its this girl he decides to hire her to answer his calls for him.

Kayla is new to town. She had a very bad experience at her last job and now she wants to open her own fashion design company but she gets a call from Justin's grandmother and she decides to do a good deed. That is how she meets Justin and he ends up hiring her to answer his calls.

These two get to know each other first as friends and then romantically but they also have some major issues in their lives they need to face.

This was a fascinating story and I really liked all the main characters. It was a serious story but it also featured a really good romance and story.

Lead Me Back, CD Reiss

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: General Fiction (adult), Romance.

I've read a few of CD Reiss stories, and one, Bombshell, is my favourite., so much so that i've read it three or four times now and still find new things in it. I expected to love this book as much but...I didn't. :-(

I loved Kayla, and loved Justin's gran Louise – I want to be her when I'm her age! Justin though, at first he was such a jerk and I found it took me a while to get past that.

What I really struggled with is that I felt there was so much going on the I was expected to understand but didn't. The band and the separation – I didn't really understand that, likewise it took over half the book before the truth about the last incident with them came out. Kayla and what she was running from, the significance of those bolts of cloth – they kept cropping up but they didn't really mean anything. Even when I found out the backstory I didn't understand really why they played such a big part, when it didn't really go anywhere.
I found Kayla, Justin and others having conversations where I only understood part of what they were talking about – you know, the way long time together couples, friends that are very close – can talk and say so much with just a few words. Kayla and Justin would discuss something, come to a decision and I still didn't follow what they were discussing, never mind where it was going. Justin and his agent, Justin and his band-mates, they'd talk and make decisions and I was in the dark. I just felt lost as to what was happening much of the while.

Sadly that meant I didn't really love this book as I'd hoped, it was a fun read but not one I'll re-read. I wasn't really convinced of the love either, when Justin seemed ready to push her to the background even though she told her what happened, I felt, as with his band, he was putting his career above his friends and lover. I just can't forgive that so easily as Kayla did, she was so spunky, had been through so much that she needed support, not pushing to behind the scenes. Possibly that wasn't what they meant too – it was more of those conversations that I found hard to follow.
I loved the way Kayla finally got justice, and of course that things worked out for her and Justin, but it was a little too slick, too rushed, and I'm not sure that was best for long term happiness.

Stars: Three, for me there was too much unsaid, too much confusion, and Justin went from jerk to justice too quickly for me to really believe in him.

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publisher

3.5 Stars!

"You already own me," I said. "So you might as well just take me."

Lead Me Back follows the story of Kayla and Justin. When we first meet up with Kayla, she's moved out to LA for a fresh start. Kayla even went as far as to change her cell phone number. She had no idea that changing her number would turn her whole world upside down. You see, her new number used to belong to The Justin Beckett. Justin is a former musician, turned actor. He's had a lot of bad press and is looking to reinvent his image. Fate throws Justin and Kayla together in the most unexpected way. Soon Kayla finds herself swept up in Justin's glamours world. Will Kayla get the fresh start that she's looking for or will her past catch up with her? There's only one way to find out...

I thought this book was an ok read. I was hooked on Justin and Kayla's story from the very beginning. I really liked how the two of them were brought together and how they stayed a part of each other's life. Justin needed Kayla's help to deliver messages that she might receive on her phone, so he offers her a job to help her get her feet off of the ground. I liked the banter between the two of them. Kayla was a no nonsense type girl and wasn't afraid to tell Justin no. I really appreciated the way the author dealt with Kayla's past. She made her very real and easy to relate to. And while Justin was cocky and annoying at times, he was really a good guy. Together I thought these two made a nice couple. They had some great banter and interactions. They had a good friendly foundation and a slow burn type of romance. The two of them definitely steamed up the pages together. That being said, I did wish that there was a little more romance and chemistry between Justin and Kayla. Don't get me wrong, I liked them together, I just wanted more feels and to feel more of a connection to them.

Overall, Lead Me Back was a quick and easy read. I was able to finish it in just a single sitting. Even though I wanted a little more from Justin and Kayla in the romance department, I still enjoyed getting swept up in their story.

I have thoroughly enjoyed all of the prior CD Reiss novels I’ve read so I was excited to dive into Lead Me Back! This hollywood romance had me hooked from the description alone! I love how CD Reiss consistently writes such strong women you want to cheer on in her books! I found the characters extremely relatable and well developed. If you’re looking to add a little sweet, steam, and sass in your summer reading than this is the book for you! As per usual, I am looking forward to reading more from CD Reiss in the near future!