Who knew you could fall in love with a band that doesn’t exist?
I absolutely adored this book. From the cover to the cast of characters, to the choreographed dances, this book was everything. The dual perspectives were well written, Zach and Ruben stole my heart.

It’s fun, fast-paced, full of action, queer rom-com. It doesn’t flinch away from shining a light on the harsh conditions of queer musicians in the industry, especially those who have been in this reality from a young age, as all the members of Saturday are. It really shows what it’s like to have every single second of your life planned out, and the consequences of their actions if they fail to follow the rules.

Ruben is a headstrong, iron-willed young adult who has been waiting to come out to the public since he was 15. He’s an amazingly written character, and his perspective really got you into his head as he faced his struggles. Zach, who is by far my favorite, is the perfect example of a best friend. He’s always there for his band, and he would do anything for them. The story really explores him coming to terms with his sexuality and vulnerability.

Angel and Jon were also wonderful characters, and I wished we got a bit more of their relationship. Angel’s character really showed what it’s like to become consumed by the toxicity of the music industry.

Overall this was a wonderful read, and I’m sad to know that’s over. I cannot wait to see it go out into the world and to know that I was able to read it beforehand will make this book incredibly special to me.

NOTE: This is a young adult novel and it deals with heavy topics like substance abuse and sex. Please look up all additional trigger warnings before reading.

Thank you to Netgalley and Wednesday Books for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

If This Gets Out honestly is like every boy band fans dream come true! You know when you start shipping two of the members and you can't stop but read into their interactions? This book follows Ruben and Zach as they work through the new tension that has built between them while on their UK tour. Ruben feels trapped by their management and Zach wishes he could just write his own music.

This book immediately became a comfort read for me. The characters felt so organic and their interactions were so adorable.  I enjoyed that they weren't all hearts and stars from the beginning but slowly fell into each other. There is so much tension in this book and you feel for all four of the boys for the horrible situation they find themselves trapped in. Even though the story was centered around Ruben and Zach's relationship, the other two members of the band felt just as important to me. They were fully fleshed out characters that I wish I could read more about. I felt so bad for my poor baby Angel and I can't even imagine the fallout for Jon. This book is easily a 4.5/5 for me.

If you like boy bands, shipping celebrities, or just good old fashioned romance, this book is for you. You'll fall in love with the boys and wish you could see what their future holds.

I received a copy of this book free from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press in exchange for an honest review.

This was an extremely fun and enjoyable read! Coming from the perspective of someone who had been a fan of k-pop, namely boy groups, I thought this was fantastic. If This Gets Out is a story about an American boy band called Saturday. They have four group members; Ruben, Zach, Jon, and Angel. Ruben is openly gay with his group members and with their producing company; Chorus, but has not been allowed to disclose his sexuality to the world. As the story progresses we have Zach come to terms with his sexuality. As he and Ruben develop feelings for each other we see the struggles they face with a company that does not openly support them.

Characters(9.5/10) : I really enjoyed all four members of Saturday. I found they all had distinctive personalities to set them apart. I thought it was amusing how their company; Chorus had them display stage personalities that were often quite different from who they actually were. You do often see musical acts that have stage personalities, but for Saturday they were not given the choice to choose who they would be. They were dictated by Chorus on how to act and dress and all four of the boys were not content with the choices. Ruben and Zach had fantastic chemistry. I loved all the scenes they were in together (which was most of them!) The dynamic between all the boys was also really wonderful. They really felt like a family and their love for each other was charming to read.

Plot (8.5/10): I thought the story was engaging but I do find this was more of a character based story, which I do love. The plot did keep me engaged especially with the addition of some different dynamics with the other two Saturday members; Jon and Angel. I did like that they had their own problems that they were dealing with aside from the main story of Ruben and Zach. Even just within Ruben there were multiple problems he was dealing with, from homophobia to family problems.

Writing (8.5/10): I thought the writing was really good and kept me engaged. I found myself reading until late at night sometimes. I thought both the POV's of Ruben and Zach flowed well. The continuity was great. You would never know this book was co-written by two authors.

Entertainment (10/10): Like I said earlier, I was up until 2am one night reading this novel. Even some other books I enjoy, I don’t mind putting them aside for the night, but for If This Gets Out, I just wanted to keep reading to find out what happened next!

I find it difficult to come up with many cons. I suppose it would have been nice to have a longer conclusion. It was left a bit open ended. I did not mind the ending though. We as the readers did receive enough context to know what would happen next for the boys of Saturday.

All in all, a really great read! I thoroughly enjoyed reading about Ruben and Zach, and even Jon and Angel. Their “battle” against their producing company was great to read about. This book just tackled so many issues and did it so well, from homophobia, abuse within the entertainment industry, familial abuse, and substance abuse.
I would recommend this to just about everyone, but if you are a fellow k-pop fan like me or a fan of bands in general I think you would really love this!

Total: 4.6/5 = 5/5

3.5

I liked this. It wasn't anything super exciting, but it was fun nonetheless. It was a really quick read and quite entertaining. I'd recommend it if your looking for something quick and fun that still manages to deal with some important issues then this is for you. It deals with issues like homophobia, addiction and other things fairly well. The characters were well developed, as were the relationships between the four main boys.

I've seen a few people compare it to fan fiction and I wouldn't say thats too far off. Not that that's a bad thing at all. It just had a similar vibe to an RPF fan fiction. If you like that kind of thing, this is probably up your ally.

I didn't really have many problems with the book, but i felt like several things didn't get resolved. Many plot points were very open ended and i felt like certain things were brushed over without being explained. I felt like the book could've been a bit longer to clear somethings up and and explore certain plot points, but at the same time, the book is already fairly long.

As someone who has been on "stan" twitter, I can say for a fact that the way the fanbase was represented was pretty accurately. There were a few things that wouldn't have happened, but overall it seemed pretty similar to things I've seen in large fanbases like that. I think it did a good job of showing the negative sides of fandom as well as certain aspects about idolising celebrities. These types of fanbases can be a very negative environment, not just for fans, but for the artists too and I think that the book did a good job of showing this.

Overall, I didn't have many issues with the book, but it just wasn't anything that got me super invested.

**REVIEW TIME**

5 stars

So I was lucky enough to score an eARC of this baby via NetGalley recently and I could not wait to jump into it. Boy band members who fall in love? Hells. Yes. I could not read this faster.

**Potential spoilers**

Things I liked:
- Zach's struggle with his sexuality - this was so bloody relatable it wasn't funny and it was done so well. Seriously, one of my notes was literally "F*cking relatable as f*ck". Such eloquence but so true.
- the pressure the boys were put under was palpable - you could feel it, and the tension it brought had me racing through this book to find out what happened next
- Zach and Ruben were written so well - you understand their motivations, why they are the way they are based on their backgrounds and history. They also grew as characters, questioning themselves and their actions in the fishbowl existence they lived in.
- the parental figures were given very real personalities - they weren't just characters hovering at the edge of the MCs universe.
- the chemistry and tension between then two mains was #chefskiss
- I legit squealed with excitement when it came to the scene at the end where everything comes to a head. I was so invested in these characters!

Things I didn't like:
- *crickets* I... I got nothing.

To be honest, there really isn't anything I can fault about this book. I wanted it to keep going. At the end my heart was pounding. It was fantastic and it felt real and I want a #SaveSaturday shirt like right now. I seriously cannot wait for this book to come out (pun thoroughly intended)!

NetGallery provided me an advanced copy of this book for review.
I fell in love with Saturday--Jon, Reuben, Zach, and Angel. I loved all the characters in this book. The authors knocked it out of the park with how well-rounded all the band members were. Although we only have two narrators, I would have loved to see Jon and Angel's POV. Maybe the next book, huh? There is definitely more story to tell. I screamed at the ending because I wanted to see how it played out, but it was a great stopping point. Especially since we have to get another entry.
I have dedicated 2021 to queer stories. This is one of my personal favorites.
There were so many topics that were touched on. There was potential to address eating disorders, drug addiction, mistreatment, religion, several different ethnic and cultural lifestyles...there were SO many seeds planted in this first book. So many things to address in a second book. 😜
This entry primarily focused on Reuben and Zach and their secret relationship and how it affects those around them. It was heart-warming and funny. I felt such frustration for these characters...a sign of any good book when you experience the characters' emotions.
One particular thing that stands out to me as a member of the queer community is the mention of PreP. Kudos to both authors for including this and helping to get the message about PreP out there to younger people in our community.
I have read books from both authors separately. This was just a phenomenal mashup of talent. I can't wait to read a sequel.

Review coming soon. Thanks to Sophie Gonzales, Caleb Dietrich, the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC; the opinions are mine.

Pub Date 12.7.21

Opening the initial pages of this was like wandering back into the beginning of I Was Born For This from Jimmy Kaga-Ricci's point of view. The band in that book and in this one are very similar, largely because they are both pop sensations with stars who are a similar late teen age.

The main difference at that point was that this was an American band. However, shortly after the beginning of the story sets up, they are heading out on the European leg of their tour.

The other difference? Although this too has a dual point of view story, it is between two of the band mates, and one of them is already established to be very gay.

Once this novel got started, I absolutely couldn't put it down. Yes, Zach and Ruben were the main- and viewpoint characters, but part of what made this so compelling were the relationships and struggles they went through with their other band mates, Angel and Jon.

Ruben has known he was gay since before the band started, however he's been encouraged not to come out publicly since the band was put together by Jon's dad. This is more or less okay, up until he and Zach start their relationship. This, amongst other things, signals the beginnings of even more of the band's freedoms being cut down.

I just... this novel was so claustrophobic at parts, but that was what made it so mesmerising. And, although at the end, the band gets their happily ever after, it's hard won and with a lot of shakey stuff that goes on to get them there.

The only thing that I would say is a little bit of a downside to this book is that, even though the two viewpoints were written by different people, the characters read very similarly a lot of the time.

This is the perfect book to pick up when you just want to get lost in someone else's romance story. I read this book one sitting-it is that fast paced.

The Good: The boy band-c'mon, it brought me all the way back to 1999 and I am HERE FOR IT. The romance and coming to terms with who you really are...loved the themes here. I loved that Reuben was unapologetically himself and would've come out at 16 if he was "allowed". The pace of the read-I COULD NOT get enough. I LOVED that the author made a quick mention of PrEP and condoms in the book-we often times glance over the safety in LGBTQ and the strides our medical community has made in regards to HIV prevention, so I was really happy to see PrEP mentioned.

The Bad: There were some characters *cough* Erin *cough*, that are just miserable. It contributes to the plot and plays a purpose, but that doesn't make it easier to read. If there was any more of Erin in the book, I just don't know how I could've dealt. There are some heavy topics discussed and although they are eventually dealt with-I just really struggled with the fact that the adults(some) are not the ones that were willing to help solve them.

Thank you to netgalley for providing me with this arc.

I loved this book!! a romcom about two members of a band? I LOVE TO SEE IT!! its very different from what i usually read but i really enjoyed it and cant wait for others to get a chance to read as well!

Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC!

This book was everything. I basically read the entire book in one day, I simply couldn’t stop.

I love that we got to be in the head of both Ruben and Zach every other chapter. Following both of their journeys in the boy-band, Saturday, and with their other band mates, Angel, and Jon, was a pleasure and extremely emotional at times.

Ruben dealing with pressure from management to stay in the closet, Zach in the middle of figuring out his sexuality and what they could mean to each other…it was intense, I cried at times, and would read it again in a heartbeat.

December can’t get here fast enough. I need to chatter about this book with everyone I can.

Highly recommended. 5 stars.

I loved this book. It was everything I was hoping it would be and have already recommended it to friends for when it is published. As a fan of the 90s boy bands craze I loved this book even more and could see how the controlling nature of the management company could (and did) actually happen. I loved every member of Saturday and was rooting for Zach and Ruben's relationship the entire time.

There were a few grammatical errors that hopefully will be fixed before publication but nothing terrible

If This Gets Out is a fabulous young adult romance by Sophie Gonzales and Cale Dietrich.

Ruben and Zach are band members and long time friends. Zack is straight, until a kiss changes everything.

I love boy bands so this book definitely had me intrigued.

This is a sexual awakening as suddenly Zach is questioning his sexuality and dealing with his new feelings for his best friend.

Their tale includes the pitfalls of a boy band. Music they don't relate to. Being molded into a certain persona. Being the opposite of their public persona. Photo shoots. Fan signings. A troubled bandmember and drugs. I enjoy it all.

Their story is full of tension, awkwardness, chemistry and emotional first times, and fade to black scenes.

The writing is great, with two well developed characters and plenty of contributing side characters. The emotions are well explored and the story had me happy overall.

If This Gets Out is a great choice when you're in the mood for a boy band romance. These authors wonderfully bring the atmosphere surrounding this band to life, including all the troubling issues involved. I love all the feelings throughout.

An enjoyable sappy romance with hard hitting themes. If This Gets Out is a must read for any young queer

Ruben and Zack, both members of a booming boy band. But things are start to fall apart due to both management and tensen with some of the members.

(I was given this book as a ARC or Advanced Reader Copy given through NetGalley as an audiobook for an honest Review. All of these thoughts are mine and at no point was I pressured or swayed in my opinion)

This book comes out 07 Dec 2021. This is a LGBTQ Teen/YA

This book went above and beyond. 5/5 stars
I went into this book expecting a rom com about some boy band members. But what it gave me was so much more. This book gave me the the romance that I wanted, but it also went into some hard hitting themes that I wasn’t expecting. But these themes where all the more welcome. They added so much to the story, all the while being true to things that actually do go on in real life music industry.

You don’t have to be a boy band fan to give this book a read. Definitely recommend

The Band Members Of Saturday
Ruben, Zack, Angel, and Jon are all the members of the boy band, Saturday.

I thoroughly enjoyed all the characters in the band. Each had their own personality and quirks that made them who they are. All of them able to be distinguished from each other and reacting to the other characters differently.

Jon being more cautious, type A personality, Angel being more of a wild child, Zack being the more cautiously sweet type, and Ruben being the perfectionist. All of them fun to read and see how they interacted with each other in scenes and to the things that were happening around them.

Speaking of the things happening around them.

The Plot and the hard hitting themes.
The plot of this book is the boy band and management surrounding it.

I felt that this book portrayed boy bands and the politics around the music world that surrounds bands perfectly. While this book is a romance book (Which they did perfectly might I say. So cute I loved all of it) the things happening within the band due to outside forces of the music word kept me hooked.

They portrayed these real world things that happens to bands in the music world perfectly and tastefully. From fan bases, shipping, archetypes of band members, to controlled narrative of the band members. And most of all it portrays how this affects people within the industry.

All wrapped in a happy ending.

Give this book a Read if you like adorably awkward romance and hard hitting facts on the music industry
I myself will definitely be picking up my own physical copy of this book when it comes out in december so that I can have it in my hands and on my shelf. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this book and will definitely be going back to this book in the near future. The perfect read from the romance and themes. All the way down to the side characters.

No aspect of this book I disliked.

this book is so much fun! it's every bit of the cute boyband romance you'd expect, but it also isn't afraid to tackle more of the serious topics like coming out/coming to terms with sexuality and the pressure of being forced to keep up a "straight" appearance while in public. i loved all 4 of the main characters so much and while i am a little bit biased because i'm a huge fan of all different kinds of bands and attend concerts all the time, i all around really enjoy the emotion and reality of a surreal situation that is brought to life.

pros:
- the relationships between all 4 of the band members is so much fun to read! they have hilarious interactions and go through all the ups and downs that people in close friendships do. the process of them working together through the unique pressures being put on each of them is handled well.
- i can feel zach's realization of his bisexuality in my soul. the struggle of figuring out who he is and what he wants in life despite being so young is something i connect with. i'm glad that realization is drawn out and fully explored rather than just briefly addressed.
- ruben and zach's relationship, while strained at times, felt natural and i love that they really stick together throughout everything they go through. (i do wish there was more anjon though!!)

cons:
- the ending fell flat for me and it feels like the wrap up is a little rushed. i just wish there was more!
- while i do love ruben and zach's relationship, i wish there were more romantic moments. i mean while it is pretty clear, they don't even say they love each other and i think it was just briefly mentioned in a thought. the amount of pressure put on them to stay quiet by their management team is a huge part of the story, but at times feels like it overpowers their romance.

thank you to netgalley as well as the authors and publisher for providing me an eARC copy of this book!

This book is everything anyone could ever want in a SLOW BURN romance. The eternal smile of a swooning love sick human walking through a desert type of romance. That romance that starts as butterflies in your stomach, shy smiles, secret glances, and leaves you screaming JUST LISS ALREADY!

But when that romance peaks at just the right time your left feeling like a melted pool of goo. The warmest, happiest pool of goo in the whole world.

This queer boyband romance is literally what my soul needed. The embodiment of LOVE IS LOVE IS LOVE IS LOVE! The truest most intimate most beautiful encapsulation of that perfect love we all hope we will find.

This book is for all romance readers. Not just queer romance readers but ALL readers! I can not wait for the physical copy to come out so I can buy it for my daughters and their schools and my friends and of course MYSELF!

Sophie Gonzales has done it again. In this dual-narrative co-authored by Cole Dietrich, we see two sides of a “coming-out” narrative, and how every person has their own experience. I loved both Ruben and Zach, and felt that they fit so well together, complementing each other in such a perfect way. Even the supporting characters were dynamic and had well-developed personalities. It’s rare to feel such a connection to so many characters in one book. The story itself was simple straight-forward, yet kept me engaged throughout. There were so many ups and downs, not only following a developing and heartwarming romance, but also diving deep into the reality of the “life-behind-the-scenes” of the pop-star lifestyle, and what those boys must sacrifice for their dreams. A must-read for everyone, but especially anyone who once loved (or admit it, still love) a boy-band and wondered if there was ever romance among the members!

This book blew me away. Coming out vs not, navigating first love and family relationships, managing stardom and the public, and figuring out what you want out of life are wrapped up in an untidy bow of what many public figures face on a daily basis.

I really enjoyed this book! It was a wonderful break from reading heavy material. I can picture this as a fabulous summer beach read, an escape from the hum drums or just to read because you love boy bands! I loved following the behind the scenes world of the band. Each guy has his own demons to work through and the struggles of trying to do it while the whole world is watching, living in a fish bowl. I would recommend this book to anyone that loves a good story. It was a lovely world to escape to for awhile.

The story follows Ruben and Zach (plus two other band members) who are both members of a boy band. Ruben has openly come out as queer and has been forced by the record label to stay quiet about his sexuality. As Ruben and Zach realize their relationship is more than band mates-they risk their jobs and record deal if their secret gets out. This was a great quick read that I know my students will love.