5 Star Read
Received ARC in exchange for an honest review

I was not sure if I should request this book first time reading not only this author but genre M/M relationship. I read a few of the previous NG reviews - all excellent & so is mine

Praise for this author who writes an amazing story of two people trying to find love. Theo & Caleb were such amazing characters & together they are just phenomenal...

Theo is a reluctant Rock Star & lead singer for the band Riven. He meets Caleb a recovering addict formerly in the music business - their chance meeting in a bar where Caleb is just holed up with his AA sponsor working some of the new material / lyrics floating around in his head .& playing his guitar.

There is Immediate & intense chemistry between the two but Caleb keeps pushing Theo away not wanting to go down the path that might set him on his 4 attempt in rehab.

These two are so good for each other -when they do put all their issues behind them it’s such a tender love story.

Just read please such an awesome love story !!

***ARC courtesy of publisher, via Netgalley, in exchange for a review***

~3.5~

If I had to break down what this book was about, I’d say it’s about two lost and lonely people finding their way (back to music, back to trust, back to allowing others in and facing rejection, etc.) through one another. Both characters are likeable and provoked strong empathy and protectiveness in me, and I loved how the author handled Caleb being a recovering addict with past multiple relapses, and the inner struggle that comes with that.

The story is also about music. You can tell the author has an intense love and appreciation for music. The lyrical prose and descriptive metaphors are not something I’m used to reading, but I really enjoyed it here. I highlighted so many passages due to loving how ideas were phrased. I really liked how Theo and Caleb met...the intense intimacy and connection they build from the beginning carried on until I stopped reading. They are both very complex characters and their emotions were very palpable. The smut was very sensual and beautifully crafted.

With all the positive being said, I DNF at 50% mark because it was no longer holding my interest. Not sure if real life is getting in the way, if it is a book slump or if it was the miscommunication brewing around this point, but I stopped. May pick this up another time.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2303624433?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

Can you possibly imagine having everything you’ve ever wanted and feeling lost? Constantly seafood the one thing that seems missing. Theo had it all but felt at a loss for the instant fame that followed him everywhere. Only one person truly understands everything that he is going through and sees Theo for the person he is. Two damaged souls that some how fit one another. Finding strength to achieve their dreams and push the fear that has consumed them for far too long to the side. Definitely reminds you of how important it is to find your soul mate and to give you the push that will change your life forever.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author but it won’t be the last. I love this story. Normally I don’t like rock star stories but something drew me to this. It’s much more about two guys who were both hurting each in their own way. How they are put into a relationship and how that relationship progresses kept me hooked. I really liked not only the main characters but some of the secondary characters are very attractive. I feel the character development is good. I feel I understand where these guys are coming from and why they feel the way they do. I think the story flowed right along not giving me anywhere I wanted to skim over. I am very happy with the ending even though I would have been happy to spend a little more time with these two. I look forward to more books by this author.

I got a copy of this ebook from Netgalley and to be 100% honest, I didn't expect it to be great. At best, I expected a novel full of fanfic-esque tropes where we all know the two mains are going to end up together, but they spend the entire novel somehow managing to avoid any sort of meaningful communication until the last chapter. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Riven was nothing like this.

I am usually fairly picky about realistic fiction, because I feel like too much of the plot hinges on lack of communication causing problems that don't need to be there. Riven completely avoids this pet peeve of mine, and I was thrilled. Yes, Theo and Caleb's relationship is not easy, and they get in a few fights. But the difference is that these fights are based on real issues that cause tension in their relationship and need to be talked about, and even more importantly, they are talked about! After fighting, the characters reflect on their actions, and after a little time, they talk to each other about the problem and work it out together. I mean, talk about groundbreaking! It shouldn't feel revolutionary to read about a couple who don't spend hundreds of pages fighting and giving each other the silent treatment because of a simple miscommunication, but unfortunately, it is. Theo and Caleb actually talk about their problems, work out their issues through open communication, apologize for their mistakes, and work to build a trusting and healthy relationship where they can both grow as individuals as well as a couple, and I found it immensely refreshing.

The conflict in the novel is not "will these two people end up together," but rather that Theo and Caleb both have their own issues based on their life situation and their past, and these issues are something that affect them as individuals as well as affecting their relationship. Their relationship is not a cure-all or a replacement for actually working on their issues (in Caleb's case, addiction and recovery, and in Theo's case, a lack of fulfillment in his rock star status and a profound feeling of isolation from the people in his life); rather, they help provide a catalyst for each other to start addressing these issues and moving forward, with the support and encouragement of a loving partner. Falling in love is not *the solution* to their problems, but having a healthy relationship is certainly a positive influence as well as a challenge.

Without going into too many details about the plot, I also really appreciated the musical aspect of the novel. I felt like I got a cool look into the process of creating music, and how different people relate to that experience in different ways. It was written in a way that seemed genuine but also accessible to readers.

On the whole, I truly enjoyed this novel and I thought it was a great example of how a novel about two people and their lives and relationships can be interesting without contrived miscommunications or unnecessary tragedy. On the surface, not much actually happened compared to the action-packed sci-fi/fantasy I usually read, but by the end of the novel I felt like there was a complete and very satisfying story arc. It felt real and very relatable, and it felt very hopeful in the end. I don't read realistic fiction often, because often it bums me out and makes me feel bad about my own life, but Riven felt very uplifting. If these two characters could work through their problems and move forward with hope for the future, then so can the reader.

My one disappointment in this novel is the lack of female characters. Like many books about romances between men, women were few and far between and did not play a major role in the story, which was a bit of a bummer, especially in a book coming from a female author. Female-authored male/male romances where women are almost non-existent are unfortunately, quite common, but I always am a little disappointed, especially when books are this well written. The supporting characters were lovely (I especially liked Rhys, and would have loved to read a book about how his relationship with his husband developed), and I have no doubt that the author could have written interesting and well-developed supporting characters that were women.

On the whole though, I did really really enjoy Riven, much more than I expected to. It's probably one of my favorite realistic fiction novels, and I would definitely recommend it.

This isn’t Roan Parrish debut novel (that’s In the Middle of Nowhere), but it is the first novel I’ve read by Parrish. And I’m so glad that’s the case.

I read Santino Hassell’s blurb about it being an ode to music, and I couldn’t agree more.

Whilst reading Riven, I felt like I was part of the journey. That I was getting to know this 3-dimensional characters and the way the worked and reacted to life and each other.

Theo and Caleb had a story worth getting to know. Although, everyone’s story (I mean, this is trick especially regarding diverse books, so I’m not including that) is worth telling and reading. But, the thing with Theo and Caleb, and their stories is that it is raw and emotional. At times heart-breaking, and knees-buckling-rendering.

Since the beginning, I wanted to dissect who Caleb was, and what made Theo so ethereal to read perform, because even in the words of the pages I could FEEL the music. I could feel the passion that both Parrish and Theo infused into the music. It wasn’t about telling how the music sounded, but about feeling the music through the words in the page.

I really want to go into detail how Caleb and his journey and to see him believe the things he believed in himself just about broke me, but also made me mad at him. Though I 100 percent get where he was coming from, and why he kept pushing Theo away, and I’ll even admit I felt reflected in some of his thought process and what he believed of himself, as I’ve mentioned.

Then, for Theo. Who just wanted people to want to get to know him, to think he was worth it. In this, I felt a piece of myself reflected in that mirror, too. Great books and great character show pieces of yourself in little ways. Theo was great. I loved the way he loved, the way he felt music, and I especially loved the journey he went with himself, music, and with Caleb.

As for Caleb and Theo as a couple. I can’t praise it enough. I loved their beginning, I thrived on their getting to know each other, I cried for their lows, but I lived for their ending.

Although you can see that my reading tends toward the YA and sf/f ends of things, I'm a sucker for a decently written romance, and when I read the blurb about Riven on NetGalley, I had to request a read. Angsty, sexy musicians navigating vulnerability and addiction to be together? Yes please. Also, the title compelled me. Riven. There was just something about it. So I was very pleased to get a chance!

It's not spoiling much to tell fellow romance fans that this is a bit of a love-at-first-sight novel. There's a little bit of time after Theo and Caleb's first night together, and it's established early on that Theo frequently takes guys home for some meaningless sex, but that makes it even more clear that the emotions they're feeling in that first (pretty intense) round are more than just a fling. For those curious, there's definitely a lot of sex in the book - you can pretty much depend on the fact that whenever Caleb and Theo get together (between shows, on vacation, after making up from a fight, whatever) they're going to hook up. I found that part of the romance sexy and well written, and I enjoyed reading it. It occasionally made me roll my eyes a little -- there are only so many times someone can get fucked within an inch of their life and also come first (and the refractory period scene -- you'll figure it out -- was as unbelievable to me as it was to Caleb) -- but it wasn't too bad, and I'll give that star back for condom and safe sex discussion in text. Anyway, for some people, these aspects may be awesome, and for other people, those won't be their thing - that's how it goes.

Initially, I felt that Caleb was fleshed out much better than Theo was. In fact, for a book called Riven, the band Riven, including Theo, were fairly uninvolved and never ended up particularly well described. While Caleb's background as a blues/rock musician, addiction, previous romance and current friendship with his fleshed-out best friend, even his lack of cooking skills revealed itself at just the right pace, Theo was more of an info dump. I found myself knowing a lot of things about him, without knowing much about him at all. Sexy, genius musician, shitty parents, hates fame more than anything, always wearing eyeliner, girls and boys at his feet. Okay.  I had a pretty good image of Theo, but I could never quite understand what sort of music he was actually creating, how Riven had become famous, or what he would do as a person if he wasn't with Caleb or the band.

(This did ease up towards the second act of the book -- certainly there's a lot more action and conflict around the halfway point, anyway. Big decisions start getting made. I'm still not sure I believe that Theo has very many interests except genius-level-composing and loving Caleb a lot, which seems unhealthy, but I'll give it a pass.)

I guess that's, generally, what lost a few stars for me. I felt that there were a few areas of the book that just didn't read as believable. Aside from personality, I just wanted to know more about the band. Riven is described as sort of industrial, but I can't imagine an industrial band making it quite so billboards-and-arenas-big so fast on what seems to be the hotness of their lead singer just as much as his  songwriting. I got caught up thinking about other industrial bands and -- well, to save you the ramble, I didn't come up with any answers, but that's not what I wanted to be thinking about. There are some references to him "being emo" in a way that doesn't indicate he has much experience with the real genre, but the description of his look and meteoric, crazy level of fame comes across as an emo/pop-punk/plain ol' rock singer, famous on the level of Pete Wentz or Gerard Way in their prime and with a look that comes across as dated to a similar period.

There were parts of the book where I was totally willing to overlook things like this, though: for example, the likelihood of industrial rock fans being big fans of a semi-retired blues guitarist enough to recognize him playing a duet with their favorite lead singer is fairly low, but the duet was written excitingly, and was just a cool romantic culmination for the tensions in the book at the time. So, a lot has to do with how things are played. 

Ultimately, I did find myself rooting for Theo and Caleb, possibly because I found myself rooting for Caleb so hard. His struggle with alcoholism, fear of commitment and of screwing things up, and his deep friendship with his ex/ex-bandmate Rhys, besides other beautiful little character-revealing moments, really let me fall in love with him. Theo seemed a little young and in need of a bit of therapy for most of the book, but their combined will to get through their shit to love each other was worth it.

And yeah, the sex was pretty hot.

The Verdict: ★ ★ ★ ½
Trigger Warnings for this book: narcotics addiction, alcoholism, depression, parental emotional abuse/neglect

There are some books that are hard to review because there are just no words to adequately describe how much you loved the book. This book was one of those. All I can say is, wow! This book was nothing like I expected. I expected the typical rock star romance, but it was not that at all. It was full of emotion, realness, heartache, struggles, laughter and self-reckoning. It was heartbreakingly beautiful. It was one of the best books I've read in a very long time and that says a lot when I read 200+ books a year.

Theo Decker is the gay lead singer of rock band Riven. They are super popular, touring the world and Theo is going along with the motions and living the lifestyle of a rock star while he's at it. But he's not happy. He loves music, but he hates the attention and popularity it gives him. He's one person on stage and in public, but we see that he's very vulnerable and shy when he's away from all that. He was absolutely adorable and endearing. I loved Theo's character so much and how much he grew as a person and artist in this book. I would certainly go buy his album!

Then there's Caleb Whitman, a recovering drug addict and musician who is trying to get his life back together by living at his grandfather's old farmhouse in the middle of nowhere. Caleb keeps himself isolated, but every now and then, he'll head into the city, visit his sponsor and even play some tunes in his sponsor's bar. He's just playing around on his guitar there one night when Theo walks by, is drawn by the music and walks in.

And the rest, as they say, is history. Well, there's a lot more that happens after they hook up that night, but it's the start of their life together. But it's not without some battles, Caleb running away from Theo when he was scared, Theo not doing what will make him happy, etc. They certainly had a lot of personal issues to deal with, more than most people would in a relationship. But somehow, they managed to overcome them. I wasn't sure how it would play out since they were both so damaged in their own ways, but they did together.

I loved the ending and how far they had grown in both their personal lives and their relationship. I wish the author had given more of a future view so that we could really see where they were now, but at least the view we got was sufficient to make me happy with the ending :-)

Oh and this was my first Roan Parrish book - not sure how that happened! But it definitely won't be my last.

Disclaimer: I received an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Riven is the story of two musicians who don't know how to make much-needed changes in their lives. Theo is the famous frontman for a rock band who wants a family to belong in, and Caleb is a recovering drug addict who is hiding in an isolated farmhouse. They meet over music, almost by chance.

Roan Parrish specializes in characters who have dark places making connections with each other. None of her characters get "fixed" or cheer up, but she nudges them, carefully and sensitively, into better places in their lives. It's always satisfying to read.

ARC review for NETGALLEY, Roan Parrish is really hit or miss with me. For me this one was not grabbing my attention and I gave up about 15% of the way. This is most likely a case of just not clicking for me as everyone is loving this book. I may give it another go sometime later down the road.

Let me start off by saying I'm not sure what it is about this cover but I love it. Riven was such a great rock star romance read. I absolutely loved Theo and Caleb and I also enjoyed the side characters. You have two people who are broken in very different ways trying to do what's right for them but realizing that everything has its risk and sometimes the risk is worth reward. They just have to have enough faith and love to take that leap. This is the first book I've read from this author and I definitely look forward to reading more of her work. I would definitely recommend this book. It's a great book for readers that enjoy a good m/m romance read.

Theo is a reluctant rock star and lead singer of the band, Riven, while Caleb has stepped away from the music industry after years of addiction and rehab. How they meet, slowly get to know each other, and come to realize what is important in life makes a beautiful story, enhanced by two heroes who struggle but eventually discover what love really means. Told in both of their voices, the book is enhanced by a strong sense of music and what an important role it can play in people's lives. This is the first book by Roan Parrish that I have read, but I will be reading her earlier works and definitely looking forward to what comes next.

I think what I loved most was Parrish's gorgeous exploration of music and the process of creating it. The entire book had a dreamy quality to it, that I often feel when I get lost in a good song. Theo and Caleb were great characters, and I appreciated how their issues were rough edges that they had to smooth out.

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were real, had troubled pasts that realistically affected their outlook on life and relationships. Both Theo and Caleb were engaging and endearing in their own ways.

I can’t get this book out of my head. It was-

breathtaking

soulful

magical

poetic

passionate


I don’t think I can write a coherent review for it. Riven is one you have to experience. It’s about two men going on a journey together; it’s about healing, trust, new beginnings. It’s also unlike any rockstar book I’ve ever read. It didn’t rely on typical cliches. It was just so full of feeling.

Trust me, friends, read this book. Sorry to be so vague but you’ll be the better for it.

5+ GORGEOUS Stars.

This book blew me away.

It moved me.

It made me hurt.

There was so much feeling in the writing.

I couldn't stop reading.

I loved Theo and Caleb so so much.

One of my favorite books of the year.

This was an outstanding read. The authors prose really grabbed me from the start. I could feel the emotion between Theo and Caleb. Also, this one touches on some very specific issues that can be used in a not great way. ( I'm trying to avoid any spoilers) but this one issue is one I personally battle with and not many authors get it right. This one did.

5 stars.

"How strong the stories we told ourselves were. What power they had to shape how we saw the world, even when confronted with evidence to the contrary."

This book was breathtaking.

I just...I'm blown away by how much I loved this.

I loved Caleb and Theo. Their love for music, for each other, to be happy again, to find what makes them want to live.

"There was this moment before, the first note left my mouth, when everything changed. There was the before and the after, the quiet and the noise; the off and the on. It was the moment when I felt like I appeared, pushing everything that I was out of myself like the notes I sang were a strong-currented river, able to disgorge me."

Riven is an honest and beautiful book that makes you shake your head, want to throw your kindle and pull at your hair. But it's real and it's raw. And it makes you feel everything that the characters feel; their nerves, the fear, and the happiness. What it feels like to live in fear and not be able to do anything about it. Or that it takes you a while to find you happy place.

"I wanted to be the center of my own life again. I wanted to matter."

It was about Theo and Caleb being 'reborn' in a sense. And there isn't a book like this out there. And that is why there is absolutely nothing that I hated about this book or would change.