Review: Not with the Band by Kelli Warner

Title: Not with the Band

Author: Kelli Warner
Publisher: Kelli Warner
Published: May 5, 2017
Pages: 364
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Source: Kindle Unlimited
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Drama. Jerks. Another new school. 

Those are three things Kassidy Perry vows to avoid her senior year of high school. Unfortunately, it looks like the Universe didn’t get the memo. When her mom marries the football coach from a rival high school, Kassidy’s forced to move (again), enroll in a new school (again) and adapt to life with three stepbrothers, including the school’s star quarterback who’s barely said two words to her. And what’s up with her incredibly hot-yet-cocky neighbor who’s developed a weird habit of climbing the trellis to her bedroom’s balcony? Nothing about her senior year is turning out the way Kassidy planned—and that’s before a revealed family secret drops the biggest bombshell yet.

Jordan Lawson could care less about football, even though he’s starting his senior year on the radar of college recruiters. He just wants to play music with his band, win a national contest with a record label and pursue his dream of being a musician. When those plans are threatened, his saving grace lies in the hands of his new stepsister. But how can he ask Kassidy for a monumental favor, when he’s partly to blame for derailing her life? And what if getting what he wants puts her dreams in jeopardy? 

In her debut YA novel, Kelli Warner weaves a humorous and relatable story about finding your way in a world you can’t control—and what happens when the people you least expect turn out to be the ones you need the most.

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MY REVIEW

DISCLAIMER: This review MAY contain spoilers. 

This was such a wonderful story. This is a story about so many things. Family, friendship, trust, acceptance, standing up for yourself, and the concessions that we make for the ones that we love. It's a beautiful story. 

I think that my favorite aspect of this book was the strong emphasis on family. I love how it showed the struggles that can come with blended families as well as the beautiful moments. The book it told in two POVs- Kassidy and Jordan. They are stepsiblings (and very new to the whole thing) after Jordan's father and Kassidy's mother get married. Jordan also has two younger brothers and on top of that Kassidy's mother is pregnant with twins. Everyone is still getting used to the new living/family situation. I adored their parents. It was so obvious that they really loved each other and they were such amazing parents. One of my favorite parts of the story was the growing relationship between Kassidy and Jordan. They really become siblings to each other throughout the course of the story and it's beautiful. I loved the family dynamic at the end of the book. It made my heart glow.

I liked the romance between Lucas and Kassidy for the most part. I really liked their characters separately and together both. I thought that they were good for each other. I did think that they jumped into the relationship a little too quickly. There was a little bit of a buildup but then it just jumps in at full force. At least it felt that way to me. And then they weren't exactly open with their relationship. Almost like they were hiding it so that made things confusing. I liked where things ended and I think that the evolution of their relationship was great.

All of the characters were real and likable. I loved Lucas's character and his background. I like that he acted the way that he did because of traumas in his life. Kassidy and Jordan's characters were great as well. By the end of the book, I was glad that the POVs were from the two of them instead of from Kassidy and Lucas's POVs. It really helped build the family parts of the plot. I liked all of the side characters. I wish that there had been more of some of the characters like Jordan and Lucas's bandmates. They were only ever mentioned when they were rehearsing or playing with the band and it felt unrealistic to me. If they were friends with Lucas and Jordan and in a band with them then they would probably hang out with each other outside of band practice. And I felt that Danielle's character story kind of petered out. There wasn't really any closure to Danielle's story (or any depth to it, for that matter) nor any real closure to Danielle and Kassidy's situation in the story. 

The plot is hard to sum up since there are really so many different things going on for so many different characters. There are certainly overall themes that are explored throughout the book. 

Overall, this is a fantastic and emotional book that keeps things on the lighter side for the most part. Some deeper issues are explored but the author sticks to the nitty-gritty and doesn't bombard the reader with sensitive details that can often go along with sensitive subjects. I don't normally like that approach, but it really works well in this case. This book is a well-written story that I definitely recommend. 

THIS BOOK CONTRIBUTED TO THESE 2018 READING CHALLENGES

- Beat the Backlist Challenge
- Tackle My TBR Challenge
- Let's Read Indie Challenge
- Library Love Challenge
- Contemporary Romance Challenge
- Bad Boys of Romance Challenge

Check out my 2019 Challenge Page to see my progress!

This books really surprised me. It had an amazing representation of family and blended families. It was actually really beautiful. A lot of YA books lack parents and families so it was refreshing to see it in this book. What are some of your favorite books that have a great representation of family? What else have you been reading lately?