I'm such a fan of Sophie Gonzales, but I hadn't read anything by Cale Dietrich before. This author duo is the perfect amount of heartfelt and sweet and I can't wait to see what they write in the future. I went into this book expecting a fun rom-com about the music industry and secret relationships but the story ended up being lot more serious, addressing themes like drug abuse and exploitation of young musicians.

I adored Ruben and Zach (and Angel!!) throughout the entire book. Their relationship felt so real and Angel was the perfect amount of comic relief. I loved his dialogue, his relationship to Ruben and Zach, and this strong portrayal of male friendship. While I expected the book to be most about Zach and Ruben's relationship and coming to terms with their sexualities, the content had much more to do with the confines the music industry places on young performers to live up to impossible standards.

This book was such a delight and definitely delivers on the heartwarming, rom-com pitch.

E-ARC received as part of street team
oh gosh!! where do i even start with this book,, it’s a wild ride to read in the most enjoyable way possible. it’s one of the most refreshing and original books i’ve read all year with such a realistic focus on relationships and working yourself out. i can’t recommend everyone to read this enough when it comes out in December!!

Full Review Here: http://www.millennialbeautysisters.com/if-this-gets-out-book-review/

I LOVED these characters. They were all so human and beautiful and just going THROUGH IT. I really enjoyed how the authors were able to take something so far out there (for most of us at least...pop star dreams shall remain only that for me...but alas) and make it super relatable.

I also thoroughly enjoyed all the representation. So much going on here with mental health, self identity, sexuality, addiction, religion, ethnicity, this book really had it all and I loved it. Gah. I almost can't wait for December for more people to be buzzing about this one.

Lots of laugh out loud funny moments but some really tearful introspective moments too. I actually literally laughed until I cried and then cried until I could laugh again. Love the alternating points of view and thought it all worked well for telling the story as a whole. Zach and Ruben process the world so differently and it was amazing to be seeing the story through their different perspectives. Would 10/10 read another book / continuation from Angel and Jon's POV's as well.

Definitely one of my favorite YA romances of the year so much stands out about this one. Truly can't wait to see this one burning up Bookstagram and BookTok later this year!

This is a fast paced novel that I would encourage high school students to read that are looking for a LGBTQ+ romance novel. The characters were relatable, despite being successful rockstars and musicians. The sub plot of another band mate struggling with addiction was important for high schools students to learn to address. The character’s showed how difficult dealing with feeling burned out is, which is relatable for busy high school students. Suitable for ages 16+.

Ok. Um. Wow. First off I want to say that I am absolutely BLOWN AWAY??????? I mean, I was hoping for greatness and boy did it deliver.

If I were reviewing vibes alone, it would be a 5/5. I mean, let’s be real I’m here for the vibes and the vibes only. I devoured this book in one day and felt emotionally wrecked after finishing it. Happiness, internal screaming, external screaming, crying, more screaming, and then after it all a general feeling of satisfaction. And then came the overwelming urge to reread it. Something about this book is so addictive, I never wanted it to end.

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I would have loved a bit more resolution. The ending wasn’t necessarily sudden by any means, but I could have used a bit more to wrap things up.

Building on to that, I would have liked for a couple of more fluffy moments. Given the circumstances, sure, get why it isn’t there. But I could have gone for a bit more high notes within the story. I think it could have upped the stakes of the relationship a touch more and made readers more invested. But then again, I was ridiculously invested either way sooo

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And lastly, but most certainly not least, the exploration of abuse within the music industry was really well done. Honestly, it is the foundation that holds the whole book together. Don’t let the gorgeous cover and promises of romance in the synopsis fool you, liquid emotion will be seeping out of your eye sockets by the end.

The whole plotline with the management conflict was handled with great depth. Seeing all the members of the band --- but especially Zach and Ruben --- grapple with their situation was truly heartbreaking. It was kind of like a new before seen, behind the scenes, exposed sort of energy to it that made the whole book really special.

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4.5 Y'all. This is a must read. Dual pov, the perfect balance of heartbreaking and hilarious, all while keeping you craving more of these loveable idiots. You know that you need it in your life.

This is one of the smartest, most entertaining, wittiest books I’ve read in a long time! Zach and Ruben are two members of the world’s biggest boyband, Saturday. Ruben’s been in love with Zach for a long time, but Zach’s straight and doesn’t reciprocate. When Zach kisses Ruben one night, everything changes.

One of my favorite things about this book is that it trusts the readers. A lot of the story is told subtlely, without the usual “and this is what’s happening and why” scenes that most YA books opt for. For this reason, I think of this book as almost new adult, along with the topics covered and the steamier feel.

Take Ruben, a character who knows he is gay. Talented and confident, he’s also the child of a narcissistic mother who he’s terrified to cross, and a father who doesn’t stick up for him. Paralleling Ruben’s relationship with his emotionally abusive mother, is his relationship with the band’s management team, mostly the head figure, Geoff. As a child who’s spent his life being controlled and emotionally abused, he has no skills to stand up to management when they tell him to be smaller, and plainer, and not share himself with the world. Throughout the story, he goes on a journey to start to learn how to insist upon his own agency—both with his parents, and with management. Without greater spoilers than that, I will say that as someone with an NPD parent, I thought the rep here was immaculate, and saw a lot of myself in Ruben’s dissonance: he knows who he is, but he’s especially vulnerable to abuse because he’s never been allowed to advocate for himself over an authority figure’s wishes.

The inverse of Ruben is Zach. If Ruben knows exactly who he is from the start, Zach’s issue is that he isn’t sure who he is, from his sexuality to his personality. Left by his father at a young age, he’s internalized the idea that he is only worth as much as he can give to others, so he spends his time trying to appease everyone around him. This, again, is subtlely conveyed through Zach’s action and dialogue. He’s often the last to speak, waiting to see what the rest of the room thinks and wants, before jumping in. It’s only as he starts to realize that this approach is costing him his own happiness (he wants to be a writer, loves different sort of music, realizes he is bisexual: all things that will “upset” those around him) that he goes through a transformation. The anxiety rep was wonderfully relatable here, and it’s easy as a reader to bond to Zach and want to bundle him up.
The relationship between Zach and Ruben is something beautiful to watch. As Ruben, confident in just who he is, helps Zach realize who HE is, and Zach, caring and patient, gives Ruben the reassurance that he will still be safe and loved if he pushes back against the rules placed on him. True soulmates that I can actually picture being together in the long run.

The two main side characters, Angel and Jon, are unbelievably thoroughly crafted! Most books, side characters are relegated to existing to help out the MCs, but these two have well-defined personalities, their own issues, their own arcs. Jon, Ruben’s friend prior to the band forming, is the biracial son of the band’s manager, is kind, reserved, a total worry-wort and sometimes a buzzkill, very religious and morally driven. He struggles between his relationship with his dad, who he’s afraid to stand up to, and with the rest of the band. Also, his dad has picked him to be the leader of the band, which goes hand-in-hand with sexualizing him, which the religious Jon is very uncomfortable with. This leads to some wonderful and subtle commentary about the sexualization of Black bodies, and how Black children are seen as adults (his own dad submits a shirtless photo of him to a world’s sexiest men magazine).

Then, Angel, who is far and above my favorite character, is loud, crass, always joking, and fun. If Jon is over-sexualized, Angel is stripped of his sexuality, as the management frames him as the boy-next-door role despite being the most attractive group member, and a huge ladies man in another example of management’s racism. This has devastating consequences for Angel, who lashes out after years of being minimized and stripped of his identity and name, which leads to one of the most powerful scenes in the whole book (IYKYK).

Finally, with the ending approaching, I was nervous we were going to get a bubblegum happy ending where everything was resolved. In real life, a lot of the things happening in the book happen to real celebrities (Taylor Swift, Kesha, Britney Spears, Lance Bass to name some), and I wasn’t sure how the book would handle this without minimizing the real struggles of real people who are struggling to get their happy endings years later. I needn’t have worried though! Without spoiling things, the book gives you just enough information to clearly know what is going to happen over the next year, without rushing the resolution. My only qualm here would be that I would’ve loved an epilogue so we could check in with the boys a year or two later. We didn’t get that, which makes me think / hope maybe there’s an unannounced sequel? This would make a lot of sense, because the book works well as is, but there's a lot of room for further resolution / drama.

Obviously I heartily recommend this story.

RATING: 4/5 STARS

The premise of this book was something I had never read before - two members of a boyband falling in love. It's fun as a fan to "ship" members together (One Direction and several K-pop bands come to mind). This book brought life to that imagination and fleshed it out in a creative and fun way with characters that are not imitations of any one real-life boyband member. Instead, Ruben and Zach are fully developed, individual characters, but they are relatable enough to remind you of traits of your favorite celebrities. The romance in this story was very sweet, but also incorporated struggles of the highly controlled and regulated existence that comes with fame. Overall, this was an enjoyable read. It was a compelling combination of lightheartedness and angst. Also loved the diversity.

A sincere thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Social: @_shelf.awareness on Instagram

I received an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you NetGalley!

I admit, I really liked this book and the behind-the-scenes look at the life of a boy band. It gave off vibes of a real-life group who have faced similar rumours in the past. I wish there was more of an ending than what I read.

It was…fine.

I did appreciate the exploration of anxiety and emotionally abusive parenting. And the contrast between Reuben knowing he’s gay but forced into the closet by producers (Ugh) vs Zach finally examining the bisexuality he’s been trying to ignore in himself.

Still, that wasn’t enough to keep me turning pages. The boy band drama just didn’t connect emotionally for me. I think someone has been part of the One Direction / BTS / boy band hype would enjoy this story, but to me the storyline was pretty bland.

I got this as an ARC from netgalley because I kept hearing about this. At first I thought it was going to be a lame wannabe "larry" fic (Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson from One Direction) but it is not! It is so much more than that. Take *NSYNC leaving Lou Pearlman and mix it with social media and boy bands of today (ok so mostly One Direction) and you have this book. I really, really liked it and it didn't just dive into "we have to keep our relationship a secret because management said so." but how Zach felt coming to terms with his sexuality. How the other band members felt, how it was to be in the band, etc.

It does use both Zach and Ruben's POVs and even though I finished this, I still got confused sometimes on who's chapter I was reading lol. But really this is a great book and highly recommend it!

This seemed a little cliche. All the characters just felt cliche and also their situation didn't seem very believable? I loved Sophie Gonzalez's other books, but this one didn't work for me. I just couldn't buy it. Like maybe one character getting being casted the wrong way, but every single member of the group was the opposite of the way they were portrayed? I don't know.
I mean, the writing was kind of addictive in a base way, but I felt myself rolling my eyes.
As for the romance, there definitely was chemistry though. Props for that.

"At the crux of it, everyone wants the world to see them as they are."

This isn't your fluffy pop teenage boy band story. The dark underside of high-profile music entertainment makes and appearance: dictator management teams, substance abuse, and the exhaustion that comes with non-stop touring for months.

TW: substance abuse, indirect homophobia, semi-forced outing, language, some sexual content (mostly off-screen, implied)

Throughout the book, we see Chorus Management take over more and more of the band members' lives as they tour through Europe. At one point, the tour they're on is equated to a pressure cooker, given the intensity and lack of freedom. We follow Zach and Ruben as they struggle through their sexual orientations, what it means for themselves and the band, and how they begin a fight for their freedom: of expression and of the ability to be themselves.

I loved this because Ruben and Zach represent two sides of a coin. Ruben knows what he wants (has since he was sixteen, when he first realized hes gay) and keeps pushing for it. He understands the doubletalk that Chorus Management speaks in thanks to his mom. He's angry and bitter and frustrated but can't push too far when it could result in the destruction of the band. Meanwhile, Zach is quiet, introspective, and the go-along guy. A textbook people-pleaser. He doesn't know what he wants anymore because his identity has been eroded by Chorus Management, replaced by the marketable version they created for him. Once he starts having options and revelations, he panics that this change could rip the band apart; thus he remains a step separated from what he wants.

The tension builds and builds until finally, it snaps. With near-devastating consequences.

My only disappointment came with the ending. It remained too open-ended for my liking. While there is a sense of hope (and a strong one at that), it didn't offer any epilogue with a "where are they now" or "one year later" with a final sense of closure. Otherwise, "If This Gets Out" is a stellar read.

I tore through this book in a little under 5 hours because I could not put it down! This story is told through the two main protagonists, who also happen to be the two love interests in question throughout the novel, and the authors do an incredible job at developing their every single one of the characters throughout the book through the lens of just the two of them. I pre-ordered a copy as soon as I finished reading, and I look forward to many more reads of this book in the future!

Over the years, the headlines have been ripe with tales of various boybands in the world and in the United States. This work follows the lives of four young men in a very successful boyband group. The horrible schedules, the fast pace, the isolation of the group, and the challenges they face are well documented. When one finally needs to come out to his bandmates as gay, it sets in motion a movement where the band finds its strength against the conservative, commercial establishment to whom the boys answered. Fun and effective writing that could have used an editor. The characters are all distinctive and well defined.

Thanks to Net Galley for this ebook in exchange for an unbiased review.

The combined forces of Sophie Gonzales and Cale Dietrich

When authors like Sophie Gonzales and Cale Dietrich join forces, the only thing you can expect is a great story!

If This Gets Out follows Ruben, Zach, Angel and Jon, the four members of the boy-band Saturday, as they embark on their first European tour. As days passed, Ruben and Zach’s friendship grows into something much deeper… a romantic relationship. As the two boys try to navigate their new reality, they will have to face a new set of challenges and pressures that could change everything and that will make them question what’s more important… living their lives as they want or stick to the roles they were given as part of Saturday.

But Ruben and Zach’s relationship is not the only thing we’ll find on this coming-of-age story! If This Gets Out shows us what lies beyond the spotlight… The shadows that linger on stages and music studios… The pressures and strict rules some young artists have to follow sometimes…

The situation that Ruben, Zach, Angel and Jon feels like something real… Something that could have happened to so many young artists that are forced to be in the spotlight under restrictive conditions… And that it probably happens to this day.

If This Gets Out is a story about finding yourself in spaces where you’re not the one in control…
It’s a story about finding the right people, the one that will stay with you through thick and thin and appreciate you for who you really are…
It’s a story about the dark side of the entertainment industry, that sometimes seems to value more the profits than the people who work on it…
It’s a story about finding the strength to stand for yourself and your priorities when others don’t treat you well…

It’s all that and so much more!!

Sophie Gonzales and Cale Dietrich have given life to these characters that feel like real people, characters that are full of heart and kindness despite the sometimes complicated things they face…

You’ll be rooting for Ruben, Zach, Angel and Jon as they travel Europe and find the truth about themselves, who they really are and what they really want.

Gonzales and Dietrich combined writing style flows seamlessly between Ruben and Zach’s points of view, and showing us how these two boys experience everything and see the world that surrounds them.

If This Gets Out is a book that will bring so many important conversations to the table… A book that shouldn’t be dismissed!!

Finished this book at 3 AM in the morning and all I could think about is Ruben and Zach and Angel and Jon *cries*

This book was just incredible. Yes, I expected boyband romance, yes, I expected angst and pining. But damn, it still caught me off guard.

What Sophie and Cale has created here is a riveting story about the pressure towards young artists (esp queer, marginalized artists), young people being exploited and controlled by the industry, trying to figure out your sexuality, figuring out what you really want and standing by it, finding family among strangers and coming together, and about finding strength and hope. And of course, a story about love.

This book has left a mark on me and I'll forever cherish this story about Ruben, Zach, Angel, and Jon. Kudos to the authors for this book! I cannot wait until it releases to the world! 💜

(E-arc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This, of course, did not affect my overall opinion of the book.)

Full review soon!

Also, I am officially part of the If This Gets Out Street Team! Look out for exciting stuff on my platforms and the whole team!

I mean, this was a team up between Sophie Gonzales and Cale Dietrich. Could I expect anything less than perfection?

This definitely had some 2012 One Direction fanfiction vibes but it was much more than that. With a premise only Dietrich could dream up (two members of a boyband start dating) and an amount of heart trademarked by Gonzales, If This Gets Out is exactly what I wanted. It's cute, funny, swoony. All the 'must-haves' of a great YA book.

Plus, the cover. Someone give the cover designer a raise because this cover is a piece of art. Tumblr fanart could never.

More thoughts closer to the release date but toss this book on your TBR, pre-order it from your favorite indie bookstore, and get yourself ready for the boys of Saturday.

They stole my heart and I'm certain they'll steal yours, too.

(Did I do it? Was that last line cheesy enough to be a line in a pop song?)

review will be cross-posted to goodreads and The Wellesley News! article should be up once the school year starts; the news hasn't really done much over the summer and i have a backlog of reviews waiting to go up

I’ve read a decent amount of books about relationships between band members, but I have to say, If This Gets Out was a pretty fantastic one. I know for a fact that there are many One Direction fans who go to this school, and if you’re one of them, you’ll want to read this book. Even if you aren’t, stick around.
America’s hottest boy band sensation, called Saturday, is embarking on the European leg of their tour, and band member Ruben has one problem: he is undeniably in love with fellow band member Zach. But as it turns out, Zach likes him back, and soon enough, they want to tell people, or at least come out as queer. As it turns out, that’s easier said than done when you’re a member of a chart-topping boy band.
From the beginning, I was hooked. If This Gets Out is a book absolutely full of heart, packed with moments of joy, fear, sadness and probably all the other Inside Out emotions. I love how distinct Ruben and Zach’s voices are, which I’m sure is because the authors each wrote their own narrator (co-written books are my favorite kind of dual point-of-view book, and I say that as someone who’s written her own dual point-of-view book). But more than that, I love how Sophie Gonzales and Cale Dietrich wrote a story that feels incredibly unique and authentic despite neither of them being famous singers or Americans.
This is a queer story that’s absolutely worth your time reading. It’s romantic without quite being a romance and thrilling despite not being a thriller. I read the book in one sitting in a single morning, which is an impressive feat considering it’s nearly 450 pages long. I’m going to be thinking about this one for a long time, and I can’t wait to get a physical copy for my shelf.
If This Comes Out will be released December 7 in the US and Canada by Wednesday Books, an imprint of St. Martin’s Press. I received an early copy of this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Disclaimer: I’m also part of Cale and Sophie’s street team, so it is kind of my duty to promote this book, but rest assured I would love it regardless.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read this gem. This book had everything I look for in a good romcom; sweet layered characters, a bright romance, and just the right amount of drama. I loved the look into the band and the music industry, and the consequences a relationship can have. The only thing I wish we got more of is how the fallout with Chorus is resolved, and some peek into Zach and Ruben's relationship after that. Overall this was a fun summer read and I recommend for anyone looking for such.

I already had this on my TBR list so I was very excited when I got the chance to read it early. I wasn’t completely sure what to expect when reading this book but I think I had assumed it would be more fluff. I was pleasantly surprised by how dark and (likely) realistic the behind the scenes of the music and boy band world was described. I can’t even imagine having every little detail of my life be so controlled and calculated for public consumption. I also liked the exploration of how confusing it must be to be so famous that you doubt the intentions of those around you even when you want to trust them.

Overall, it turned out to be a darker and more realistic portrayal of what might happen in this kind of situation. It was still sweet but wasn’t overly saccharine.