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heabooknerd's review
3.0
I initially skipped TREBLE MAKER because the reviews were so mixed on it but I decided to give it a shot since I love everything else Annabeth Albert writes. It’s not one of my favorites but it was still good.
Lucas’s struggle was written really well and I enjoyed seeing him find himself and learn to be happy and accepting of who he was. It was hard to watch Lucas push aside all aspects of being gay because that’s how he was raised to act.
In the beginning, Cody was hard to like, I never completely got on board with him but I felt like he was really maturing and growing in the second half of the book. His progression from selfish, jaded, and ruthless guy to a more accepting and compassionate character was done really well.
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Favorite Quotes:
If Lucas wanted to find himself, Cody wanted to help draw the map.
Lucas’s struggle was written really well and I enjoyed seeing him find himself and learn to be happy and accepting of who he was. It was hard to watch Lucas push aside all aspects of being gay because that’s how he was raised to act.
In the beginning, Cody was hard to like, I never completely got on board with him but I felt like he was really maturing and growing in the second half of the book. His progression from selfish, jaded, and ruthless guy to a more accepting and compassionate character was done really well.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Favorite Quotes:
If Lucas wanted to find himself, Cody wanted to help draw the map.
gillianw's review against another edition
3.0
This was an average, okayish book about a couple of nearly two-dimensional characters who meet and fall in love during a televised singing competition.
Unfortunately, it was no True Brit.
Go read True Brit.
2.75 rounded-up stars
Unfortunately, it was no True Brit.
Go read True Brit.
2.75 rounded-up stars
zaza_bdp's review against another edition
4.0
*3.5/5*
Tombée sur ce M/M un peu par hasard, je ne regrette pas du tout de l’avoir lu.
Le contexte dans lequel il se déroule est plutôt original, puisque l’on suit le tournage d’une émission de téléréalité : The perfect harmony. Les candidats sont en équipes et doivent chanter ‘a capella’. Le livre est découpé en plusieurs parties, chacune correspondant au tournage d’un épisode de l’émission.
Côté personnages, nous avons d’un côté Cody, 23 ans, déjà rôdé à la vie hollywoodienne, c’est un jeune homme plutôt extravagant. De par son look d’abord (fringues moulantes, piercings, make-up), son attitude ouvertement gay ensuite et enfin de par son talent. La star de son équipe c’est lui, et il compte bien utiliser cette émission à son avantage pour faire avancer sa carrière.
Lucas, lui, est complètement différent. Ce garçon de 21 ans est timide, discret, un peu maladroit (surtout quand il s’agit d’ajouter une chorégraphie au chant !). Il vient de l’Iowa, d’un milieu très conservateur. Son équipe, les M&Ms (lol !) est composée de jeunes hommes issu de la même fac, là encore, très stricte et conservatrice, porteuse de valeurs qu’on peut juger complètement dépassée. Du coup, face à quelqu’un d’aussi ‘libéré’ que Cody, c’est forcément le choc des cultures ! Et puis Lucas a fait le serment de rester ‘pur’ jusqu’au mariage, ce qui ne manque pas de faire rire Cody quand il l’apprend.
Lucas va devoir lutter contre ses propres valeurs, contre la tentation, au fil des jours qui passent, car son attirance pour Cody va le forcer à dépasser tout cela. Mais on ne tombe pas dans la ‘christian romance’ par autant, c’est suffisamment fin pour que cela passe bien. Personnellement, j’aime quand les personnages doivent lutter intérieurement, et ici, j’ai bien aimé.
Pour l’un comme pour l’autre, il y a aura des moments de doute, de remise en question, de rejet, de peur …
La romance est plutôt jolie, la tension sexuelle est bien rendue et finalement, tout conservateur qu’il est, Lucas est quand même un coquinou ! ^_^
Les personnages secondaires sont présents juste comme il faut et ont tous un vrai rôle à jouer, même lorsqu’il ne s’agit que de courtes apparitions. Enfin, l’écriture est assez fluide et même s’il s’agit d’un récit à la troisième personne, on alterne entre les points de vue de l’un et de l’autre, ce qui offre un panorama complet.
Une jolie surprise donc !
Tombée sur ce M/M un peu par hasard, je ne regrette pas du tout de l’avoir lu.
Le contexte dans lequel il se déroule est plutôt original, puisque l’on suit le tournage d’une émission de téléréalité : The perfect harmony. Les candidats sont en équipes et doivent chanter ‘a capella’. Le livre est découpé en plusieurs parties, chacune correspondant au tournage d’un épisode de l’émission.
Côté personnages, nous avons d’un côté Cody, 23 ans, déjà rôdé à la vie hollywoodienne, c’est un jeune homme plutôt extravagant. De par son look d’abord (fringues moulantes, piercings, make-up), son attitude ouvertement gay ensuite et enfin de par son talent. La star de son équipe c’est lui, et il compte bien utiliser cette émission à son avantage pour faire avancer sa carrière.
Lucas, lui, est complètement différent. Ce garçon de 21 ans est timide, discret, un peu maladroit (surtout quand il s’agit d’ajouter une chorégraphie au chant !). Il vient de l’Iowa, d’un milieu très conservateur. Son équipe, les M&Ms (lol !) est composée de jeunes hommes issu de la même fac, là encore, très stricte et conservatrice, porteuse de valeurs qu’on peut juger complètement dépassée. Du coup, face à quelqu’un d’aussi ‘libéré’ que Cody, c’est forcément le choc des cultures ! Et puis Lucas a fait le serment de rester ‘pur’ jusqu’au mariage, ce qui ne manque pas de faire rire Cody quand il l’apprend.
Lucas va devoir lutter contre ses propres valeurs, contre la tentation, au fil des jours qui passent, car son attirance pour Cody va le forcer à dépasser tout cela. Mais on ne tombe pas dans la ‘christian romance’ par autant, c’est suffisamment fin pour que cela passe bien. Personnellement, j’aime quand les personnages doivent lutter intérieurement, et ici, j’ai bien aimé.
Pour l’un comme pour l’autre, il y a aura des moments de doute, de remise en question, de rejet, de peur …
La romance est plutôt jolie, la tension sexuelle est bien rendue et finalement, tout conservateur qu’il est, Lucas est quand même un coquinou ! ^_^
Les personnages secondaires sont présents juste comme il faut et ont tous un vrai rôle à jouer, même lorsqu’il ne s’agit que de courtes apparitions. Enfin, l’écriture est assez fluide et même s’il s’agit d’un récit à la troisième personne, on alterne entre les points de vue de l’un et de l’autre, ce qui offre un panorama complet.
Une jolie surprise donc !
becky_mercer93's review
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
a_reader_obsessed's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 Stars
I'll be honest, this wasn’t my favorite Albert story. While she has consistently touched on tough topics that range from drug abuse to disabilities to having HIV, unfortunately, closet cases and religious repression aren’t my favorite tropes.
Cody is a talented singer, and though Perfect Harmony is a TV show pitting singing groups against each other, he’s determined to use the experience to further his own career as much as possible. He’s been on his own for years, having been rejected by his grandmother who was unable to accept his sexuality, and he’s not shy about who he is, nor is he subtle about doing whatever needs to be done to gain advantages when he can. Cody is not going to mess up this opportunity - no one is going to stand in his way to success. That is, until the odd rules of the competition finds his group saddled with an irresistible guy who shuns his advances at every turn.
Lucas is part of an acapella group from a very conservative town and college. Despite that, his college has embraced its LGBTQ students and the entire student body agrees and signs an abstinence purity contract - no sex before marriage. Overall, Lucas is ok with this. He has strong religious beliefs and for the most part, wants to abide by the rules, especially since his family is so supportive and his dad is a prominent professor at said college. However, in his effort to stick by his values, Lucas hides a very important part of who he is, as he suppresses his attraction to avoid temptation. So technically, Lucas isn’t really in the closet, but in essence, he doesn’t want anyone to perceive him as a gay man and avoids bringing any attention to his sexuality. However, Cody is everything he secretly desires, and his will power is dwindling fast.
So yes, there’s a lot of back and forth between these two as both struggle with who they are and what they want out of life. Slowly, Lucas realizes he’s tired of living up to a standard that he didn’t set for himself. Despite being afraid of letting down those he loves, he discovers that it’s ok to be who he is, to express himself truthfully, while not needing to compromise or denounce his core values. Cody in turn, is no saint, but he does see the merit of having personal ideals and being in a monogamous relationship. Together they start to evolve, accepting their own truth.
Have no fear, in and amongst the above emotional roller coaster and the singing competition itself, sparks fly and things progress very hot and heavily. For a story about repression, Albert does not skimp at all on the lovely details. I doubt many will find fault with this story. The writing is top notch as always, but personally, these types of stories don’t give me the joy my greedy self wants.
I'll be honest, this wasn’t my favorite Albert story. While she has consistently touched on tough topics that range from drug abuse to disabilities to having HIV, unfortunately, closet cases and religious repression aren’t my favorite tropes.
Cody is a talented singer, and though Perfect Harmony is a TV show pitting singing groups against each other, he’s determined to use the experience to further his own career as much as possible. He’s been on his own for years, having been rejected by his grandmother who was unable to accept his sexuality, and he’s not shy about who he is, nor is he subtle about doing whatever needs to be done to gain advantages when he can. Cody is not going to mess up this opportunity - no one is going to stand in his way to success. That is, until the odd rules of the competition finds his group saddled with an irresistible guy who shuns his advances at every turn.
Lucas is part of an acapella group from a very conservative town and college. Despite that, his college has embraced its LGBTQ students and the entire student body agrees and signs an abstinence purity contract - no sex before marriage. Overall, Lucas is ok with this. He has strong religious beliefs and for the most part, wants to abide by the rules, especially since his family is so supportive and his dad is a prominent professor at said college. However, in his effort to stick by his values, Lucas hides a very important part of who he is, as he suppresses his attraction to avoid temptation. So technically, Lucas isn’t really in the closet, but in essence, he doesn’t want anyone to perceive him as a gay man and avoids bringing any attention to his sexuality. However, Cody is everything he secretly desires, and his will power is dwindling fast.
So yes, there’s a lot of back and forth between these two as both struggle with who they are and what they want out of life. Slowly, Lucas realizes he’s tired of living up to a standard that he didn’t set for himself. Despite being afraid of letting down those he loves, he discovers that it’s ok to be who he is, to express himself truthfully, while not needing to compromise or denounce his core values. Cody in turn, is no saint, but he does see the merit of having personal ideals and being in a monogamous relationship. Together they start to evolve, accepting their own truth.
Have no fear, in and amongst the above emotional roller coaster and the singing competition itself, sparks fly and things progress very hot and heavily. For a story about repression, Albert does not skimp at all on the lovely details. I doubt many will find fault with this story. The writing is top notch as always, but personally, these types of stories don’t give me the joy my greedy self wants.
verloren918's review against another edition
2.0
As much as I generally like Annabeth Albert, this is a bit of an older title and you can tell. Not that it's bad, per se, but the characters are flat and fairly stereotypical. I didn't feel like there was as much chemistry here. This is the kind of romance that probably once Lucas gets over the pretty shiny of finally allowing himself to be in a relationship, it's going to be over. And there's nothing wrong with that, I just feel like... maybe we didn't need a whole book dedicated to it, you know? Especially when the characterization is so shallow?
There was a note of slut shaming in Cody's direction I didn't appreciate, though. Like. God forbid Cody has been with other people before. The view was challenged, but only weakly, and far more things in the narrative supported it. They even trotted out the whole "I slept with more than one person because I don't have any self respect!" schtick which is kinda gross. It's what made what might've been a lukewarm 3 into a 2, for me.
Will I continue to read the series, though? Yeah, sure. I didn't hate it, and maybe it gets better, who knows. This one is firmly in "meh" territory.
There was a note of slut shaming in Cody's direction I didn't appreciate, though. Like. God forbid Cody has been with other people before. The view was challenged, but only weakly, and far more things in the narrative supported it. They even trotted out the whole "I slept with more than one person because I don't have any self respect!" schtick which is kinda gross. It's what made what might've been a lukewarm 3 into a 2, for me.
Will I continue to read the series, though? Yeah, sure. I didn't hate it, and maybe it gets better, who knows. This one is firmly in "meh" territory.
raynebair's review against another edition
4.0
I had a rough start with this book. I didn't like how Cody was goading Lucas and pushing him. But once I got their dynamic and that it turned Lucas' crank, things went much better. And they were hot together once Lucas gave in. Scorching! This was great and I can't wait to read Trevor's story.
rebeccabadger's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0