Date With a Rockstar
by Sarah Gagnon
Released: 23rd June 2015
Publisher: Spencer Hill Press
Genre: Romance, Dystopian, YA, Girly
Other books by Sarah Gagnon:
Nil
Goodreads Description:
Monet isn t just another lust-struck teenager trying to win the heart of Rock God Jeremy Bane--she needs the prize money from his new reality show to cure her illness. Monet has Fluxem, a contagious disease that's spread through saliva. It's completely curable if you have enough money, which she and her single mother don't. Now that she's on the show, Monet has to work harder to keep her Fluxem hidden. She only has to keep the secret long enough to woo Jeremy Bane so he picks her as the winner. She doesn't even care about the love part; the prize alone will change her life. But the real Jeremy Bane is nothing like she imagined. Monet finds herself fighting against feelings that make her want to give in to her attraction and Jeremy's attempts for a kiss. The further she goes in the competition, the more impossible it becomes to resist him--and when the producers turn the tables and start digging up dirt on the contestants, Monet fears her secret will be revealed before she's ready and ruin everything. The only way to win Jeremy's heart is to tell him the truth, but confessing her disease could cost her the competition, the prize money, and him.
I write this at ten to four in the morning, precariously cradling a cup of tea on the sofa arm, inbetween my laptop and the crook of my elbow. Yes, Date With a Rockstar is one of those books. You know? The ones that you desperately try to put down just before midnight because you know you need sleep, but it’s to no avail because you just need to read a little more. So, you read a little more, and after that you’re reading a little more again, and the next thing you know you’re sat in front of Sky Arts at ten to four in the morning, writing a review whilst precariously cradling a cup of tea on the sofa arm, inbetween your laptop and the crook of your elbow.
Just to catch you up, Date With a Rockstar is about a girl named Monet who enters a reality TV show contest called…wait for it…Date With a Rockstar. So basically, she has this disease called Fluxem and it’s going to kill her unless she can get her hands on the $20,000 cure. If she can win Date With a Rockstar, which involves her having to woo the hottie popstar of the time, Jeremy, she’ll get $30,000. Also, I’d like to mention that for some reason this story seems to be set in a future where there’s a crap-load of sci-fi style technology, lots of pollution, and America’s selling all their metal back to China. I know what you’re thinking: “Oh for Christ’s sake… Really Sarah Gagnon? Really?” However, I am pleased to inform you that it surprisingly works and somehow manages to add a hell of a lot of charm. You’ll have to read it to get what I mean.
(Afternote: If you’re feeling put off by the idea of crazed fangirls and worshipped male pop icons, don’t be. I hate this idea as much as (and I’d be willing to bet more than) the next person, however it’s definitely worth the read. Sarah Gagnon writes in a way that makes it bearable and a little less frustrating than you’d expect.)
Now, I’m not quite sure what made this book so compelling. The writing was extremely easy (probably what made it so effortless to read so despicably late on) and the characters weren’t anything greatly special. Sure, Monet (our main gal) was likeable, and Jasmine (our beloved antagonist) was wholly hateable, however I’m not quite sure how I found myself rooting for Monet so much. I was whole-heartedly invested in her success with Jeremy (the lad of the book) and suffered some confusing and unnerving hyper squealing, as well as some tense palpitations of the heart on multiple occasions. I often found myself wondering: “What in hell’s name is happening to me.” Just to explain, this crap doesn’t happen to me with easy-read YA like this. What is going on?!
The world was fabulous, and even though the plot really was rather contemporary-style, Sarah managed to combine the world and the plot in a surprisingly fluid way. The sci-fi-esque technology wasn’t overly shouted about and I really felt as if the world was completely normal. Not sure how you managed it, but well done!
Read this if you like an easy and entertaining read that’s a little peculiar and eccentric whilst remaining a girly YA romance that you’re sure to finish in one or two sittings. It’s great if you’re looking for something that’s not necessarily intellectually stimulating but compels you from start to finish and sucks you into the storyline.
I entered Date With a Rockstar with a hell of a lot of trepidation however I finished it in one sitting. (It wouldn’t let me put it down; it’s the book’s fault.)
Links
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Amazon UK
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