Down Beat - Max Henry

Blurb:

Some call him a rock god.
Others a celebrity bad boy.

Me? I call him the arrogant bastard who stole my concert venue.

His apology? To take me and my violin on tour with the band.
It’s an offer I can’t refuse, even if it does come with strings attached.

Because Rey Thomas isn’t who he seems.

Life isn’t pretty behind the deviant frontman’s facade.
It’s raw, ugly, and at times downright painful.
But it’s real.
And far better than the lie he presents to the world.

The man behind the face of Dark Tide is beautiful in his chaos.
All I have to do is keep him alive long enough to see that too.

Nobody ever said loving a rock star would be easy.

Sam’s review:

I got this book for an honest review and… HOLY SHIT, WHY DIDN’T ANYONE EVER FORCE ME TO READ MAX BEFORE? WHAT HAVE I BEEN MISSING?!

Let me start off by saying that if this book doesn’t do anything else for you, it at least makes you think about the disease Rey suffers from. I couldn’t stop myself from googling just to know a little bit more about it, and if books are there for one thing, it’s to make you think, right?

Okay, and now the book… Let me tell you about that scene when Tabby first watches Rey on stage. Imagine this: Theater, filled with screaming people watching their band. Rock music coming through the speakers, your skin vibrates with the bass, right? Feel it? That’s what I felt when reading that scene. I was standing there, right next to Tab and Kandall. I. Was. There.

And that’s what makes Max Henry’s writing so incredible. Add to that the characters that draw you in.

Faulted.

Flawed.

Perfect.

So much so, basically at every turn of the page you want to freaking hug them. I know Rey is the main character, but man, Kris, one of the side characters, he’s quiet and yet… My heart. It’s not his book and I already lost my heart to him.

But let’s get back to Rey and Tab. I will admit, I’m a reader who thrives on pain. When my chest aches and my breathing gets hard, that’s when I know the book is good. And this book made me ache.

It’s not easy to handle, and if you cannot deal with the darkness within a person, stay away, but honestly? You’d be missing out. This is one hell of a book, and you have to read it. I won’t lie, I’m glad I got to read it before everyone else (granted, with other ARC-readers, but still…) because it makes me feel super special—and because I can imagine just how many people will message Max Henry while reading that book. So, thanks Max for talking to me through this book, and…

GIMME KRIS!

Rating:

 Stay glam! 

Sam