Alison was Daniel's first love. They get back into contact through their mutual love of music years later,when both are settled with families. Will their love rekindle when they meet again? Is first love strong enough to make them give up everything? Well written and enthralling. The reader is kept guessing until almost the end.

A great book for any music lover. Music can & does attach itself to life events. When you here a certain song it takes you back to that time in your life be it good or bad.
This book is no different. Excellent read. Emotional yet funny.
Thank you to both NetGalley and Transworld Publishers for gifting me this book in exchange for my honest review

I'm a sucker for a book with a playlist and I was hooked on this from the opening chapter. It reminded me a little of Nick Hornby in that the writing was smart but accessible and the characters flawed but very likeable. I think it will be a huge word-of-mouth hit and I, for one, will be recommending it widely.

This is a book that is still in my mind days after finishing it. I’m sure it will be picked up by someone as a film. Not a straightforward love story, much more interesting. I also had to play all the music tracks mentioned. Fabulous

I really wanted to like this book especially based on the blurb. Unfortunately I never really felt a great deal of empathy for the lead characters who were a little too self-absorbed for my liking. I enjoyed a lot of the description but the four way time/location split got a bit confusing and disjointed - just as I got interested and absorbed in one story the focus shifted. The music references were great and I enjoyed the location descriptions particularly those of the narrowboat and Australia.

I had really wanted to like this one, as I had seen lots of love for it on social media. Maybe I’m a cynic, but I wasn’t a fan of the direction Mix Tape took. I don’t know, it was like watching something that you know there will be devastation, but you can’t look away and what’s left in its wake makes you uncomfortable . The nostalgia was good, the writing good, but I just couldn’t get on board with it as a whole. Rounded up to 3 stars because there are definite positives.

I wanted to love this. And for a while I was mostly enjoying it. I found it quite a slooooooow slow burn, which meant this took me several days to get through whereas a book this size that properly grips me should be finished in 2 nights.

I found Dan and Ali's story to be really intense and that's not a bad thing. I believed in their love for each other and the emotions felt really human and raw and realistic. Sometimes the perfect relationship passes you by and that is just life and it's so wonderful when there's a chance you can get it back. They each made decisions to get over the past that were sensible. I'm vehemently against how they decided to reconnect and it was a deal breaker for me. I couldn't love the book after these 2 adults behaved like adolescents.

So whilst I loved the mix tape concept and sending each other songs that just hit the right spot every time and could see how absolutely perfect for each other they were, I wouldn't pick this up again.

I enjoyed this book from beginning to end! It was such a warm, heartfelt and well written story. It had me rushing through the last half to see how it would resolve itself but at the same time not wanting it to end.

The pace was a little slow in the beginning but the tension was always building. Although I would totally recommend this title, one thing that didn't sit well with me was how quickly we jumped from one character's head to the next. I would have liked to stay with the thoughts and actions of a character for at least a chapter rather than bouncing around from paragraph to paragraph. Made me dizzy but I was still able to follow the narrative.

I'd read more from this author!

3.5-4 stars for me

This one was a slowburn with a lovely nostalgic feel to it. Do you ever forget your first love? What happened to them? Are they happy? These questions are answered with a phone message and a song link. The way the story was written with the musical references was a nice change of pace. I did have some issues with the flow of the book and enjoyed the "then" moments more than the "now". Overall it was a great read.

This is a fantastic book that tells the story of Dan and Alison who meet as teenagers and embark on an intense relationship. Dan can offer Alison the stability and love she’s never found at home from her parents and despite their love for each other, they part ways.
They reconnect again when they are both in their forties through their mutual love of music, and their passion is quickly reignited. Unfortunately, as we all know, the path of true love is not a straightforward one.
This novel reminded me of David Nichols style of writing, and used music in an incredibly creative way to connect the main characters. The passion and love Dan and Alison share is evident throughout the novel but the story is grounded in Alison’s tragic backstory. Highly recommended!

3.5 stars
A second chance at love for two first love characters after almost 30 years living apart and building a new life.
At 18 they fall in love and as the first love never forgets, their unique bound was a mixtape with songs that were showing their feelings more than saying them.
Years after their breakup, there's a chance to reunite and again music and old songs link them and reignite that lost spark of love.
The romance element is very well done in the book and the writing is what kept me reading without stopping. Unfortunately, overall, the story lacked for me in many departments. Not sure if the characters or the overall story, the fact that they were both married with children and always thinking what if ... but i can't get over some of my beliefs and accept them in this story especially as this isn't the kind of story where their marriage is falling apart or they are about to divorce.


Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for my review copy.

You never forget the one that got away...but what if you got another chance??

This is the story of Alison and Dan told over a dual timeline - two kids from Sheffield in 1978 at age 18 and again at age 48. As each others first love they never forgot each other over the years and often wondered where that other ended up. When Alison's best selling novel becomes a sensation worldwide Dan comes across her name on Twitter. He decides to send her a message, a link to a song from their past. This is how they begin communicating - through songs and music that has special meaning for them. Going back to their past, we learn the why and how Alison emigrated to Adelaide, and became Ali, got married and had a family. Dan, living in Edinburgh is also married with a son in University. When fate throws them a chance to rekindle their love, should they take that chance and go for it?

This is a fairly realistic story of how life gets in the way and the times when we wonder what could have been. It weaves the story with the benefit of music and lyrics (primarily from the late 70's, most of which was lost on me bar a few, being an 80's child myself), as Ali and Dan reminisce over links to music from their youth. It is a story of love, loss, passion and betrayal. Ultimately I liked the romance part of it, but at various times it got lost on me as I became more aware of the devastation that both Ali and Dan left in their wake, in their wanting and needing to be together, two families were left reeling. It is very heavy on description and non essential script, a lot of the time there is just far too much information, and the book could have done with scaling back on it by at least 25%, as I found myself skimming pages of information that really didn't benefit the story and caused it to drag for me and not flow freely.

Music is so emotive and this book just has the nostalgia and memories flowing over me.

i'm not too sure how I felt about parts of it though. Would you go back to your childhood sweetheart and ruin the lives of two families on a whim?

Now that I am retired I read a lot of books, primarily crime/mystery thrillers. Every so often I read a book that leaves me almost speechless. The last one was Daisy Jones and The Six and Mix Tape is the first since then.
I am not an avid reader of romantic multi-country sagas but this book is nothing short of fantastic - many more adjectives of this type omitted but definitely relevant.
I struggled internally with, on the one hand, thinking the book was a bit stretched and too verbose for me and on the other hand reading a book that I simply could not put down. Being a 70s Yorkshireman it is hard to admit that you get emotionally involved, upset and happy but I did many times with Mix Tape.
As with Daisy Jones etc. this book should become a film - Reece Witherspoon again springs to mind to play Alison/Ali but if this happens I so hope it does not get ruined like Gone Girl with a Hollywood ending or Girl On A Train by a switch to the US. Music is already there from the Mix Tape!
My only disappointment is that virtually none of the songs/artists would be chosen by me other than Donovan with Sunshine Superman and right at the end with I Close My Eyes by Dusty Springfield.
The ending was the right one for me.
Loved Mix Tape. Superb

Wanted to enjoy this more than I did. All the ingredients are there but I felt some of the modern day scenes were a bit like filler, especially in the middle and I found myself speed reading through these to get to the reunion

A touching story, but some careful editing of this could make it an amazing story.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my review.

Thank you Netgalley for my copy of Mixtape.

What a great read to make you remember a time where music played such an important role in your life. Where words and lyrics were profound and spoke just to you. I was transported back to that time, the time of first loves, being carefree, being young.

We meet Dan, a middle aged music journalist living in Edinburgh and we meet Alison Connor a successful author living in Adelaide. This story is about the love between Dan and Amy who back in 1978 were each other's first love. They were united in their love of music. I absolutely adored the music references and being transported back to that time. Thirty years after their break up Dan and Amy reconnect on social media and start to send songs that had a special meaning for them from their youth. So begins a reawakening of sorts. Mixtape is a story of first loves, second chances, it's romantic, poignant and I thoroughly recommend it.

A wonderful nostalgic experience of love, loss, fear and acceptance.

Dan and Alice's story is a difficult one. Separated in two timelines over 30 years apart we first meet them in the beautiful rock'n roll haze of the late 70's. In the basement of Kev's house the impossibility beautiful and mysterious Alice captivates the cool and popular Dan. Their connection is undeniable, and this is written with such a gentle and carefull style that it's impossible not to feel like a spectator to their rebel youth and young love.

However, life has other plans for the couple. Alice comes from the other side of the tracks and the harsh realities of her life caught up with her eventually. It's heartbreaking and infuriating, sad and appalling, but in order to be free, Alice must run away.

We first catch up with them when they are both married and fully established in their careers. Dan works with new talents, Alice is a renowned author living in Australia. Through Twitter they find eachother again and begin communicating in the best form that they know: sharing links to songs and building together a carefully composed playlist.

Their journey to be together again is painful. They both are married, they both have families, but sometimes, love is love...

My only issue with Mix Tape was the pacing, I'm aware this is an ARC and some might be fixed in the final version, but I felt like the book needed more editing. The middle gets a bit convoluted and it dragged a bit.

But the overall experience is a lovely trip down memory lane, a nostalgia fest of good music, good vibes and a heartfelt romance that stood the test of time.

Ps: I would love to see the complete list of songs at the end of the book.

Brilliant book. I really enjoyed it, was a lot of fun! Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in return for a review.

Loved this book. Music is an important and emotional tool to tell a story and I loved how the author used it. It was heart breaking and uplifting at the same time with realistic and likeable characters.
I enjoyed my time a lot reading this book and would definitely reach out to the writer's other books in the future.

Thanks a lot to NetGalley and the publisher for this copy in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely love how music can bring you memories, take you straight back to a point in your life or a feeling. This book celebrates this kind of attachment with music and is as successful as music in making me happy, emotional and I will be making a mixtape (on my iPhone but still the same minus pencil and tape!) full of great relatable and adorable characters, a wonderful story and great writing , it’s a very emotional read, I loved the tension and gripping nature of the read with this. Highly recommended

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion