Author : Kevin Emerson
Genre : Contemporary
Published Date : April 29th 2014
Publisher : Katherine Tegen Books
Pages : 320
Source : Publisher, in exchange for a fair and honest review
From Goodreads :
Catherine Summer Carlson knows how to manage bands like a professional—she’s a student at the PopArts Academy at Mount Hope High, where rock legends Allegiance to North got their start. Summer knows that falling for the lead singer of her latest band is the least professional thing a manager can do.
But Caleb Daniels isn’t an ordinary band boy—he’s a hot, dreamy, sweet-singing, exiled-from-his-old-band, possibly-with-a-deep-dark-side band boy. And he can do that thing. That thing when someone sings a song and it inhabits you, possesses you, and moves you like a marionette to its will.
Summer also finds herself at the center of a mystery she never saw coming. When Caleb reveals a secret about his long-lost father, one band’s past becomes another’s present, and Summer finds it harder and harder to be both band manager and girlfriend. She knows what the well-mannered Catherine side of her would do, but she also knows what her heart is telling her. Maybe it’s time to accept who she really is, even if it means becoming an exile herself. . . .
Review
When I first saw the cover for Exile, I was actually feeling a kinda bit meh about it. I mean, it's like . . . yellow. Yellow all the way with a clashing pink font for the title. Euh.
But those tag line on the top of it totally won my heart because, I don't know, it have a sweet feeling or something about it. And since it's also about music and Rock n Roll, I'm actually finding myself becoming quite curious about this one.
"I wish we all could just stay in this moment, in beautiful light, lost in music, free to play and dance. But the song ends."
—Summer
One thing I really love about this book was how the tension was done really right. How the unveiling was made little by little. And how the story managed to take a turn into the most unpredictable road.
But, while Kevin Emerson does really know how to write well and keep the plot tight-knitted, I feel like Exile stretched the story a bit too far. I mean, I expect a novel like this to resolves its story at the end neatly. But this one decide to be a series and take it into a waaay too open ending and made this book resolves nothing. Like, seriously. You should be perfectly fine being a standalone, in my opinion.
But, while Kevin Emerson does really know how to write well and keep the plot tight-knitted, I feel like Exile stretched the story a bit too far. I mean, I expect a novel like this to resolves its story at the end neatly. But this one decide to be a series and take it into a waaay too open ending and made this book resolves nothing. Like, seriously. You should be perfectly fine being a standalone, in my opinion.
The main character, Summer, was interesting and fun to read. She's well-flawed while still being likable, and she had this believable teen-ish feeling going on around her. The rest of the cast, though, didn't share her goodness but rather fell flat and feels like they're just there and do nothing.
And the romance, which by the way sounds promising on the blurb, really fell flat too here. I don't particularly hate it or love it. And it's like, you know, not feeling any particular thing toward it? That's exactly how I feel about this book's romance.
Overall, I really feel like this book could become big and great, and I could see myself loving it. But what take the 5 stars away and made me put the 2.5 on its place was mainly the rest of the characters, which is mostly bland. Plus the open ending and the series things.
But with a tight-knitted plot that will keep you curious, a strong main character, and plot twist that you wouldn't even see coming, this book could be your try if the mood on reading something about Rock n Roll strike you.
Cheers, x
NK
