Review + Giveaway: Before He Was a Secret by Becky Wicks [Blog Tour]

Book Description:

Before He Was A Secret by Becky Wicks
(Starstruck #3 - can be read as a stand-alone)
Publication date: Feb 24 2015
Genres: New Adult, Romance

Another standalone Starstruck romance from the HarperCollins author who brought you Amazon #1 bestseller Before He Was Famous and Before He Was Gone

“What if we can’t choose
Every battle we win and lose
What if we decided years before, to live this life, to fight these wars
And all the dreams we ever thought were ours
Were written in the stars”

Waiting tables isn't exactly what singer/songwriter Stephanie has in mind for her move to Nashville, but memories of the past and a case of writer’s block mean inspiration isn’t coming easy. When brooding pianist Conor Judge opens his mouth in a smoky bar he proves music can heal, and even help you re-write your story, but a history of his own means the one thing he starts to want most is always just out of reach. Stephanie.

Enter Travis Flynn - an upcoming star who won’t take no for an answer, and a record label intent on helping Stephanie shine, without Conor. As fame comes knocking as hard as the ghosts of their pasts, it soon becomes clear that no matter how hard you might fall in love, having the perfect songs doesn’t always mean perfect harmony.

Reviewer's Copy: e-ARC

Source: Xpresso Reads Tours+ Becky Wicks(Thank you!)

My Thoughts:

Becky Wicks is my favorite indie author. So when I found out that she was writing the third book of the Starstruck series, I knew I had just had to get it and read it. I'm happy to say that I was not disappointed. Becky's writing is superflouous, the kind that made you sit back comfortably and you see that your hours were gone. Becky writes the kind of books that trap you into their storyworlds and refused to let you go unless you were done with the story.

Stephanie was the kind of heroine that made you believe in the goodness of mankind. She was determined and talented, pouring her heart out into her music and her songs. I loved reading about her adventure in Nashville, how she sought out the music. What I liked most about reading about Stephanie was reading the lyrics that she writes. The lyrics came out to me as poetic, lovestruck and raw.

Conor was the knight in shining armor. He was gentle, thoughtful and talented. I think Stephanie fell for him the moment he sang his heart out at stage, with Stephanie in the audience. Conor and Stephanie's interaction was what I would like to consider magical and fated. They complimented each other with their music, passion and strength. I loved reading about them falling in love with one another, no matter how they tried to stop themselves from falling. It was the kind of love that was effortless.

There was magic in reading about music: your mind imagines the beat, the rhythm of the song, without you thinking too hard about it. This was what I liked in Before He Was Famous, with Noah's songs, and I'm happy to experience it again in Before He Was a Secret. The lyrics reached out to my heart, they felt so raw and filled with memories and emotions, that I couldn't help but love the songs. This was something that I look for in contemporary novels.

The plot was filled with twists and turns, some were predictable why some were not, but in the end I enjoyed every page of it. Chloe and Noah's appearance in the book made me excited, it was good to see the couples interact. Becky Wicks unleashed a measured darkness onto Conor and Stephanie's story, as expected. Becky molded the character's personality with trials and challenges, peeling back the surface to let the readers see the true Conor and Stephanie underneath it all.

Before He Was a Secret is a heartfelt and breathtakingly beautiful contemporary romance. I highly recommend this to readers who liked the first book, since Before He Was Famous and Before He Was a Secret are more alike, music-wise. If you are a contemporary romance reader, new adult reader, this would work out for you.

Rating:

5 Cupids = Strong book love.
I really enjoyed this. I recommend this!

About the Author:

Becky Wicks lives in Bali and scribbles books, and she’s mostly powered by coffee. Her first book in the Starstruck Series, Before He Was Famous recently reached #1 in Amazon’s Coming of Age and New Adult & College categories, and her three travel books, published by HarperCollins are online to make feet nice and itchy. Mostly though, she loves to write love stories. She blogs most days at beckywicks.com and always welcomes distractions on Twitter @bex_wicks. Especially if you have photos of cats.

Website | Facebook | Twitter| Goodreads

Tour-wide giveaway (INTL)

-Five copies of Before He Was A Secret, plus a character named after them in Becky's next book!

a Rafflecopter giveaway