I adored everything about this book.

I had the pleasure of reading an ARC of Erin Hahn's debut novel 'You'd Be Mine' and she instantly became one of my favourite authors, so I was so excited to get to read 'More Than Maybe' & am incredibly glad to say it lived up to all my expectations.

More Than Maybe is a fantastic novel full of vibrant and lifelike characters that will keep you hooked till the last page.

I highly recommend this novel.

This is a cute YA contemporary perfect for music lovers and romantics. I liked the writing style, full cast of enjoyable characters, and tons of music references. This is a lighter read for those looking for a happy insta-love book, though it didn't give me much other substance to make it stand out.

Erin Hahn is quickly becoming my favourite contemporary YA author. I absolutely loved You'd Be Mine, and I feel the same way about More Than Maybe. I loved Luke and Vada as characters so much, and the development of their relationship from friends/coworkers to more was so well written.

Luke and Vada are everything I aspired to be/have as a teen, a little nerdy, but also super cool, musically inclined, very talented, and hard-working. I loved this book so much.

For the music loving teens in your life. I loved this one. The two leads alternate telling their story. They both have major crushes on the other, but are too scared to say it. Life brings them together, and they truly get each other's musical nerdiness.

Note: I like music, but I'm not as obsessed as these teens. Is Adam Duritz still a big thing? The Counting Crows?

I really really enjoyed this one! I really love stories that tie in music, as I have a lot of musical roots myself, and this one absolutely delivered. The story took a little while to really find itself, and it's not the fastest moving romance, but I actually really loved the time it took to flesh out all of the characters.. The story had some heavier themes, while also remaining hopeful and joyful. I just loved the romance, and thought this book was so heartwarming and sweet! Highly recommend and wish this book had more hype surrounding it!

This book would have made infinitely more sense if the characters were seniors in college and not high school. So much of this book suffers from the incredibly odd placement of these problems with 18-year-olds. Especially the ending, the resolution for our female lead, Vada, is comical in the incredible improbability. Normally this kind of thing doesn't bother me this much, but the book reads so clearly like a college story; it really should have been a college story.

This is a terrible review start though, More Than Maybe is a rom-com focusing on Vada, an overachieving high school senior who writes a music blog, works at her mom's boyfriends bar, and wants to go to California for college, and Luke, music-obsessed, songwriting shy British boy, who fall for each other over the course of the book. Their relationship didn't work incredibly well for me; it was kind of doomed from the beginning. They are set up as two people whose lives are incredibly intertwined; they see each other a minimum of once a week, and Lukes twin, Cullen, is very good friends with Vada, but despite both characters being obsessed with each other for years, we are meant to believe they only started actually talking when they were assigned to the same group project (or essentially a group project). It just seems kind of silly? Especially because we know Vada is confident in other areas, and we know Luke has no problem talking to other girls. We can move on from this now.

The real issues I had with the book lay elsewhere—specifically the writing and some of the characterization. I am not the arbiter of what is and what is not good writing, I can only really say what does or does not work for me, and Erin Hahn's writing does not work for me. That's fine. I found whole chunks of text that could be essentially skipped over without affecting the reader's understanding of the story or the characters, and I just didn't like the way the book was written even when it was conveying needed information to me. Again, that's fine; not every writer is for every reader. If this wasn't an ARC I have had forever, I would have stopped a few pages in; that is how quickly I didn't think the writing was for me. However, I didn't give up hope that it would turn around for me until about the 30% mark. After this, I just kind of barreled on so I could finish it.

The characterization stuff that didn't work for me was mostly in the stereotypes the author used to build characters from marginalized communities and a good chink of the non-primary female characters. I was uncomfortable with a lot of how the author portrayed characters who were POC or LGBTQ; specifically, I was uncomfortable with a good chunk of how people talked about Cullen, Luke's gay brother. I am not saying she is a racist or homophobic person, just that it made me uncomfortable, and I am not sure how well this author wrote those whose lives are not like hers. I also really really want the thing where most girls who aren't our main character, her mom/sisters/family members, and best friend are 'slutty', stupid, vain, and/or just there to show someone else is better than them to die. I hate this so much. It becomes harder and harder not to be bothered by it the later it was published and the older I get.

On to a petty complaint. I lived in London for a while (yes, hello, I am an annoying American who mentions when they lived abroad), but this would have bothered me before that, I think. While I lived in London, I was consistently asked by British guys if I found their accents attractive, which is a kind of wild way to speak to others. Still, it is because of narratives like this where an American must repeatedly mention the hot British accent that is very British and very hot is so hot and British. I was just kind of rolling my eyes. Also, the Brit speak was very fanfiction in my humble opinion. Maybe the author has British friends or family, and I just don't like her writing, but it comes off as very odd to me.

I was mostly just bored and distracted while I read this book. This might sound odd because I read the book very quickly. But I was absolutely sure if I put it down, I would never actually finish the book. So I did it in one go as quickly as I possibly could. Also, the way the internet functions in this book is very much how magic functions in vague fantasy. It made me laugh a little bit.

I clearly didn't like the book, but maybe it is for you if you like fluffy YA rom-coms, pretentious British boys, and saving the small business narratives.

ARC provided by publisher through NetGalley

4.5 stars!

I did not expect to love More Than Maybe as much as I did, so this book took me by surprise in the best possible way!

More Than Maybe follows high school seniors Vada and Luke, and even though it's set in high school these characters show a great deal of growth, maturity, and empathy. Honestly, it was easy to forget at times that they were just in high school. Someone just needed to give them a hug! So when that scene with the hug in the kitchen happened, I straight up cried too, it was so beautifully written!

While this could be considered a character-driven story, the plot of the book was so sweet and well rounded; I loved the senior showcase, the performance, the deeper emotions and relationships between parents and their children and, the friendships, the concert at the end, all of it! Also, has anyone made a Spotify playlist of all the songs? Because if not, I think that needs to happen! I don't know if it's the music lover in me or the former teenager in me that relates to Vada in nearly every aspect aside from hair color, but I love this book so much!

This would be a great read for any current high school student, parent, and everyone in-between. I think this would make an excellent read for parents to actually read along with their teens too. The only part that felt off in the book to me were the two short mentions of religion that occurred; specifically the scene near the end at a Sunday service. I don't feel like it added anything to the story, and instead actually pulled me out of it. But the rest of it was so incredibly done that it's easy to forgive!

I think this book is definitely a YA underdog this year, and I'm so glad that I read it!

Very much a feel good story with some delightful characters and all kinds of music. A very quick read, Vada and Luke are a great couple who deserve a happy ending.

This was cute! Pretty run of the mill for YA romance, and sometimes the music references felt a little overkill, (and kinda cringey), but all in all this was really fun! It's a good book to just escape into for a little while

Did not finish. This novel was not for me. I had a hard time connecting to the story and the characters.

More than Maybe had a really cute premise but the book didn’t seem realistic. And before you all call me out for saying that, yes most high school romance books are not realistic BUT this one takes the cake. Vada and Luke are supposed to be high schoolers. How many high schoolers do you know who work in bars? To me, that was more unrealistic than Luke being a somewhat famous singer.

Whilst the plot wasn’t super realistic, the dialogue was. It felt natural to the ways teens actually speak.

The romance was cute enough. It wasn’t instalove and the characters were suited for each other. The only thing that detracts is that there didn’t actually seem to be chemistry between the characters.

A big theme in this book is music since Vada writes about music and Luke is a musician. They had this cute thing where they’d text each other songs and flirt. Their actual music opinions were a little pretentious though. Like the amount of hate Stevie Nicks gets in this book is a little peculiar. And Heart Shaped Box is a damn good song and I stand by that.

The characters were interesting. Luke’s brother Cullen was one of my favourites, and his relationship with Zach was cute. I’d rather read about Cullen and Zach, to be honest. Okay this isn’t an actual critique but I really wasn’t a fan of the names. Who names their kid Cullen in the post-twilight world we live in. Vada’s friend Meg was a little annoying.

This book is absolutely adorable. I've been in something of a reading slump lately, and I've got ALL KINDS of very serious books on my shelf that I can't seem to get into. This book was exactly what I needed.

More Than Maybe follows Luke and Vada, music-obsessed, on-the-verge-of-college teens that like each other from the start, but who can't find the words to say it. Naturally, they use music to speak for them. What results is a constant back-and-forth of YouTube links to songs that might mean nothing to *anybody* else, but mean everything to each other.

As they get to know each other through being partnered on a music project for school, Luke and Vada both get hit with real life, and it throws them for a loop. Vada is desperate to work in music, and she has a five-year plan for how she's going to make it happen. Work at The Loud Lizard, music-lounge/bar owned by former legend (and her mom's boyfriend) Phil. Take over Behind the Music, Phil's indie-band-review blog. Manage The Loud Lizard's summer concert series. Get into her dream music program. Work for The Rolling Stone.

Vada has the talent to make all of those things happen - she even got into her dream program. The problem is, her dream program is all the way across the country, and her deadbeat dad stopped paying child support the second she turned eighteen.

Luke has a killer voice, and the passion for craft that would make him a stellar musician. He's even the son of a legendary punk-rocker, so the world is practically waiting for him to come out of the woodwork. The only problem? He doesn't want any of it. He's happy to stick with recording a mildly-popular podcast with his twin. Then the unthinkable (for him, anyway) happens, and he's forced to deal with way more attention than he's ever been interested in.

Through it all, Luke and Vada deal with what it means to really fall for somebody. The culmination is a heart-melting, anticipation-building, can't-get-enough-of-it read - packed with equally fantastic supporting characters that are just as easy to get behind as Luke and Vada, from Luke's twin Cullen, to his boyfriend Zack, to Vada's fairy-winged BFF.

This book is a wonderful homage to any lyric lovers and music scene aficionados. I absolutely loved all of the music references and most especially how closely it was tied to the plot and characters. Vada and Luke were absolutely adorable, two lovable idiots who love each other but think the other person hates their guts. Maybe I just hit this book at the right moment, but every piece of it rang for me and gave me the warm and fuzzies!

Kind of missed the mark for me. I really had to push to get through the book. I think a lot of that was the pace of the story. The main characters were just blah. The secondary characters were definitely more likable. I did enjoy the music aspect of the book and that kept me going. Some serious issues hit on but mostly avlighthearted, cute romance. I'm definitely in the minority but I didn't love this one.

I was not the biggest fan of this book. In fact I didn't finish it to be completely honest. I just didn't connect with the authors writing.

It's safe to say I really liked this one! The fact that I knew 90% of the artists and songs mentioned in the book not only made me feel like Erin Hahn and I like a lot of the same music, but that I might have good taste in music (if I do say so myself.) MORE THAN MAYBE reminded me a lot of IF I STAY but without the life-altering drama and more about the fact this girl is in love with a rising star for a singer. And I freaking love that book and that movie. One thing I wish about books is that when the main character is a singer or they write music and the lyrics are right there on the pate, I wish there was already a band that had recorded the song so that I could just listen to it over and over again while I read. Can someone do that for me? That would be amazing.

I've been in a bit of a reading rut lately, and this one sucked me right in. I'm a sucker for contemporary romances, especially teenage romances, because, ahem, I'm unapologetically single, it just makes me happy. Needless to say, this one hit me right in the feels and checked off all the boxes on my list of things I wanted in a YA romance.

5/5 stars

I enjoyed this one quite a bit. This is my first read from Erin Hahn, and I enjoyed her writing style a lot.

Vada and Luke were really great characters, and I enjoyed their chemistry and slow-build relationship. As a music lover myself, the added music knowledge/element as part of the story was really great and I loved all the references and nods to great bands.

I think that for me at least, the side characters just weren't as strong as Vada and Luke to me. I realize that they are obviously the main characters, and their romance was the main plot of the story, but side characters can really make or break a book, and these ones just didn't work for me.

Other than the side characters though, I enjoyed the storyline and the main characters enough to give this one a 4 star rating instead of something lower. I definitely recommend to anyone who enjoys YA Contemporary Romance and loves music as well!

Vada Carswell has her life plan set. Get out of her cold, Michigan town and head to sunny California for college to pursue a degree in music journalism. She’s halfway there, graduating in the spring with early acceptance at the school of her choice, when her only issue becomes funding her dream. Her deadbeat dad won’t contribute and without his assistance, she may not be able to attend. Along comes, Luke Greenly, a handsome British transplant twin who grew up with a punk rock dad and wants nothing to do with the spotlight. His twin unknowingly records Luke preforming a love song he’s written for a girl and plays it on their podcast. The song goes viral and Vada suddenly wants it to be about her. This was not part of her plan.

More Than Maybe is a light, easy to read, young adult romance, with the special spin of music. Music is how they communicate and it sets the scene perfectly for the reader. Luke and Vada capture your hearts in endearing ways and have you cheering their romance throughout the pages. I’m a music lover, so this novel was like listening to my favorite jam. I highly recommend it!

I have conflicting feelings about books that have a plot point revolving around a song written about one of the characters. I immediately want to read them but also usually end up disappointed. It seems like, for me at least, it is a premise that is tricky to get right. I am happy to say that my streak of disappointment is over because More Than Maybe pretty much hits all of the right notes.

This is one of the books that you'll fly through. It's pacing and charm ensures that you'll have a problem putting this one down. It's strength is the care that is taken to create these characters and ensuring that the reader cares about them.

The family dynamics that both Vada and Luke are dealing with are really the heart of the book. The romance plot is fantastic and important to the story but I found myself more invested in the other plot elements. The synopsis focuses on the romantic elements but it is all the other stuff that made the story for me. I always love when the characters have something more than just the romantic side of things going on in a book and this one definitely delivers.

The romance itself is well done and sweet. It perfectly captures those early stages where you circling around each other trying to determine if the other likes you too. It feels effortless with them texting song titles to each other as part of their flirty banter. I highly recommend listening to the songs included while reading for an extra bit of magic.

Music is really the soul of Erin Hahn's books. They revolve around music in a way that reminds you why you love music. It makes you want to create playlists and go check out local talent. Lyrics for important songs are crafted with care because they are often a vital puzzle piece to the story being told. If you are a music fan of any genre Erin's books will feel like love letters to something you love so much.

If Erin Hahn's first book, You'd Be Mine, is country More Than Maybe is indie. It is a hip, you feel like you discovered it read that is much a love letter to music as her first book is. It's got a lot of the same elements while still feeling quite different. If you are contemporary young adult fan and are not reading Erin Hahn I highly encourage you to fix that immediately.