5 stars.

I have been excited for If This Gets Out since it was announced, so when I saw that NetGalley was offering arcs I knew I had to read it. I went in with few expectations for this book. I was never really into the boy band thing, so what drew me to this was my love for Sophie Gonzales’ writing and the premise of a queer relationship. I am happy to say that it did not disappoint on either account.

My favorite part of this book had to be the characters and their relationships with each other. I loved them all so much. The book was written from the shifting perspectives of Ruben and Zach, but it never felt like the other characters fell flat. They all had their own motivations, distinct personalities, and compelling backstories. Each member of Saturday (I loved this band name) was a well developed character. The relationships between them all, whether romantic or platonic, were what kept the story moving. I also usually don’t like when books shift character perspectives, because I always get attached to one character and am bored until it is their turn to narrate again, but I fell in love with both Ruben and Zach through each other’s eyes, which was a very nice experience. The characters were realistically flawed but they had notable personal growth throughout the book. I also never felt as if the process of their relationship was rushed, like it is in so many romance books. Zach had the time to figure out his own identity as a bi man outside of a relationship, and I value this representation.

Aside from the main characters, the management company was also portrayed fantastically. Something to note is that this book is not a rom-com. Both Zach and Ruben had to deal with homophobia and emotional manipulation from the very people that were supposed to be looking out for them, and there were many examples of different forms of emotional control. One of the band member’s struggle with addiction and the lack of support he receives plays a significant role in the plot. As horrible as the band was treated, none of it ever felt impossible, the authors were very good at portraying the way the characters were physically, mentally, and financially trapped in their situations.

I honestly loved this book. I plan on buying it when it is released and I recommend that anyone interested in the idea of a boy band romance should too. I know that the characters and their story will stick with me for a while and I am excited for them to be shared with the world.

It's everything I expected from this book and these wonderful authors. Smart, sweet, fun and totally addictive!

This story reminded me of the good ol’ One Direction Wattpad stories of in-band romance. Even if it had that sort of Wattpad atmosphere, I’m not disappointed at all!
The characters all had their own struggles beside the fact that they are in a band who is being controlled by a record label. Sophie and Cale were able to show their individual and group conflicts and blended that so well. Even with only the perspectives of two characters. Although there were too many descriptors that made me skip a few parts.
All in all, the story feels nostalgic (even if I don’t read wattpad in-band romance) and just makes me want to go back to the days of One Direction and 5SOS. I can’t wait for others to read this come December!

I received an ARC through net galley.

This book was so good, I didn't really know what to expect going into this book but I was blown away. I think how the book ends might set it up for a sequel and I would be very down for it.

*slight spoilers*
I do really wish that at the end they said I love you but they basically said it without actually saying it.

If this Gets out is a wonderful tribute to the boybands of my youth. I kept desperately thinking about One Direction which was such a momentous band when I was growing up.
I was lucky enough to also read Sophie Gonzales' Only Mostly Devastated as a Proof copy and knew that I had found an author who was so talented in the Contemporary Romance plot.

The characters were vivid and the whole story had so much colour and it was an easy lovely romance!

I don't want to say too much as this book doesn't come out till December and I don't want to spoil anything. But if you love music and want to see behind the curtain in a cute, fluffy, romance then this is the perfect read for you.

Maybe it's how If This Gets Out had all of my favorite tropes condensed into one. Maybe it's how I was immediately invested in these boys after a mere 2 pages (that’s how captivating the characters and writing were). Maybe it’s how I stayed up all night desperately trying to finish this book and couldn't bring myself to put it down. I don't know what happened, but my heart literally pounded throughout the entirety of ITGO - and I say this in the best way possible.

If This Gets Out follows Ruben and Zach, two members of the boyband, Saturday, and their fellow bandmates Angel and Jon, as they navigate the music industry, identity, sexuality, mental health, family, and being scrutinised by the public eye.

As romance blooms between Zach and Ruben, they’re forced to deal with coming out in an industry where their public image and identities are tightly controlled.

Where do I even start on a book that has quickly earned a special place in my heart? Friends to lovers, yearning, oblivious idiots in love, oh my god there’s only one bed, fighting against the manipulative music industry. Gonzales & Dietrich have crafted the most amazing cast of characters with their individual nuances and intricacies, and I cared deeply for each of them. I felt so much viseral joy, pride, hope, fear, anxiety, frustration, and resentment alongside these boys throughout the entire story.

If I could just hit pause on my frenzied babbling for a moment, I want to say that, more importantly, ITGO addresses really important themes as well - it sheds a lot of light on the silencing of those who do not fit society's straight/"normative" narrative, the consequence of it, and the importance of courage and taking pride in your own path. I think that because these themes hit close to home and because I felt so much for these boys, ITGO lit a fire in me to continue pressing on in our fight for the freedom to live one’s truth, so one day, others won’t have to go through Ruben & Zach’s pain or anything remotely similar. And I think that speaks volumes to how impactful and special this book is to me.

I would strongly recommend this book to anyone and everyone. It is equal parts comforting, sweet, eye-opening, and heart-wrenching. I can’t wait to hold the physical copy this book in my hands!!

To Sophie & Cale - from the bottom of my heart, thank you.

If This Gets Out was an interesting read that left me questioning my rating at every turn.

The first 50% (or so) of this book focuses on exactly what the summary tells you: it’s a love story between two bandmates as they figure out what they want between concerts. It’s the slow realization that they can have something more than friendship with each other and the bisexual awakening of one of the boys.

However, it is after the 50% mark (or so) where I began to have issues with this book.

Let’s start with some nice things: I loved the diversity of this book. In the band Saturday, we have a Black teen, an Asian teen, a Spanish teen, and a (presumably) white teen. I feel like so many of the boy bands I’ve seen are comprised of members from the same race, so having a boy band where each member was different was a refreshing spin on things.

However, I sometimes found it hard to differentiate characters, especially Ruben and Zach. Often, I’d find myself asking “is this the one who wears sweaters or is this the one with the leather jacket?” “What is this one’s relationship like with their mom again?” While the first one can be blamed on the fact that the boys’ onstage personas are completely different from their real-life personalities, the second concerned me a bit before I finally got their characters down.

I also had an issue with how different the latter half of the book was in comparison to the first half. While the first half focused on the budding relationship between Zach and Ruben, the last half focused on the band’s fight with management. And while I can understand that the relationship played a big role in their decision to fight for their freedom, the second half gave me the realization that this fight was for more than just Zach and Ruben. I wish that Jon and Angel had bigger roles in the story and that it focused a bit more on how they were also being mistreated by the higher ups because, by the end of it, this isn’t a story about Zach and Ruben, but about all four members of the group banding together to be who they want to be.

In all, I think this was a good story with an interesting plot about the boys wanting to stick together and change their image, but I couldn’t help but feel, seven months before publication, that this story just wasn’t where it needed to be yet.

I read the NetGalley ARC; this is my honest review.

It's the perfect title for this plot, something I always admire. The boy band guys are distinct - and the two POV characters get different fonts, which helped me immeasurably as they each have (different) mom issues. The plot is given enough time to develop; the issues are taken from some real-world scandals. The individual ways the guys handle problems was great. And, I liked how it ended, which is key to gaining a fourth star. I didn't mind at all that it's fade-to-black (no sex scenes). The boy band/management issues felt real, and were creepy, but the entertainment industry can be, and if you don't know that, just remember: no business is your friend. The bottom line is inherently dangerous to individuals. It's an important message, particularly for young readers.

I had issues with how poorly one of the guys deals with his inner awareness, or rather how long it lasted. That's probably just me. It isn't my own experience at all.

I give this four instead of five stars because the prose is full of showing a feeling and then telling me what it is, so double-telling, which feels like distrust of readers to me. Each POV character over-describes his state of mind multiple times, another symptom of telling instead of showing. Done sparingly, it's fine. But here it is constant.

All in all, not sorry I came across this one and gave it a try.

This book completely blew me away! It was such an adorable and sweet, but also so heart-wrenching and gripping, story about two boy band members falling in love with each other and having to choose between risking the band and their whole careers or being allowed to be their true selves. It was also a terrifying tale showing the harsh realities of the music industry, as well as a wonderful tribute to loyalty and friendship. I read this book feverishly in one sitting, hoping for the HEA the main characters so deserved, but fearing that the evil manager or the characters themselves would cause a train wreck hindering that.

The story follows the boy band ‘Saturday’ and its four members Ruben, Zach, Jon and Angel, as they head off to Europe for an overseas concert tour together with their strict management. Everything in their lives is planned and arranged in detail for the personas they’ve been typecasted for; the clothing (even in private), their hairstyles, who they’re allowed to talk to, and what they are allowed to say or do. To live up the mass-appeal demands, Ruben has been forced to hide being gay since he was sixteen, Angel has been forced to change his name, Jon has been forced to play on his sex appeal and Zach has been stopped from writing music the way he wants to. Basically, they are treated more as products than real people. That is, until the pressure just gets too high, and Zach starts to question his sexuality, Angel starts taking drugs and Ruben just can’t take any more of his mother’s ‘feedback’ and lying about who he really is. When things get weird between him and his secret crush Zach after a kiss one night with too much to drink, the foundation for the whole band starts crack.

This was such an amazing book! It didn’t shy away from the darkness and trauma and the problems with the entertainment industry, but it was also a heartwarming, sweet and adorable story about love and unwavering friendship. I rooted so for all the four main characters, they all completely stole my heart in their own ways. They were so complex and wonderful and my heart ached for them, especially Ruben and Zach struggling with new feelings for each other and for their right to be together in open, but also for Jon always coming second after the business for his father, and Angel for not getting the help he so desperately needed. And the friendship between the four of them was truly amazing. Even though they fought, they always had each other’s backs.

I loved the writing style and how the authors made us reader come along the four main characters’ journey from insecure, closeted, troublesome kids to young men finding their path. I also really appreciated the authentic way in which the pressure and objectification within the music industry was explored, showing the abuse of powers, the constant supervision, control and staging, the exhausting working conditions, the homophobia and marginalization of queer artists, and how young celebrities are kept isolated and risk to lose their sense of who they truly are. There were some parts that were almost too heartbreaking and I wanted to scream at the horrible persons responsible for the way the band members were treated. But there were also so many parts with hope and joy, amazing character developments, a swooning love story and, most of all, the important message that you are beautiful and wonderful just the way you are

All in all, I absolutely loved this book and recommend it with all my heart! It was such a powerful story about accepting and being proud of who you are, for wanting things and for being brave enough to chase after those things no matter how scary it feels or how hard it might make your life. It dealt with difficult topics in an honest and realistic way, but it was also such an uplifting, heart-warming, sweet and emotional rollercoaster for a love story!

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read an ARC of this gem! All opinions are my own and I am leaving my honest review voluntarily.

If you're looking for an engaging, swoony romance to sweep you away for a while, this one's pretty good! While it's not ground-breaking, it's a fun take on the classic boyband romance, unapologetically queer, and reads very true to the experience of "oh no am I bi?" (at least in my experience!).

Thank you to NetGalley for making this book available to me.

I was excited to receive this early since it was on of my highly anticipated reads of 2021.
As a previous reviewer stated it had similar vibes of Red White and Royal Blue and I would say that is definitely an accurate statement. Felt like a mix to me of that and some good Larry Stylinson fanfic. (Yes, I said it)
I’m not a fan of boy bands but I highly enjoyed this story and found myself squealing at the end of chapters. I sign of a good book for me is one where I am thinking about the characters still when I am not with them and I found that happening here, they felt like real people and I felt for their trials and their successes. I enjoyed the behind the scenes look at the music industry even though it wasn’t really anything new if you’ve read stories like this before, rockstar romances, etc. My reason for taking off a star was I felt like the drama at the end of the book just dragged for a little long, could have used some tightening up in some spots.

Thank you so much, NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and Wednesday Books, for the chance to read one of my most anticipated reads of 2021!

Careful of spoilers!

TW: drugs, drug abuse, closeting, homophobia, toxic parents

Ruben Montez and Zach Knight are two members of the boy-band Saturdays and along with their bandmates, Jon Braxton and Angel Phan are teen heartbreakers in front of the camera and best friends in the real life. But behind the scene all of them are suffering from the pressure of their management and fame, above all for Ruben, forced to be closeted. During an intense tour through Europe, Ruben and Zach start to rely more and more on one other, until their already close friendship develops in a wonderful romance. Wanting to live free and to tell their fans, Ruben and Zach right away realize their management will do anything in their power to keep their love secret and separate them. With the support of Jon and Angel, Ruben and Zach fight to be free to love one other and from the management homophobic rules and chains.

I LOVED reading this book, it was such a pleasure and a privilege to have gotten the chance to read before the release date and I can't wait to have the physical copy in my hands. A queer love in a boy-band? Sign me in!

Told by two POVs, Ruben's and Zach it's a journey, physical and emotionally, a journey that involves all the member of the band. The characterization is brilliant and even though the story is told by Zach and Ruben, so the reader gets to know them better, their fears, doubts, love and passions, Jon and Angel are not side characters. They are also skillfully written and complex, with their doubts and pressures, fears and desires.
The friendship between Zach, Ruben, Angel and Jon is beautifully written, with its ups and downs and fights, between friends who truly love and care about one other and who would do anything in their power to keep each other safe and happy.

Zach and Ruben are best friends and even though Ruben has ever had feelings for Zach, he has never told anyone (he was sure Zach was straight), but when something wonderful happens between them during the tour, their relationship changes, with cracks and tension, fear and confusion.
It was really intense, heartbreaking reading how Zach starts to understand his own sexuality, Ruben's fear to have lost his best friend, Jon and Angel trying to solve their tension and understand what happened between them.

I had to admit I feared misunderstandings and unnecessary dramas, but this book is perfect!
Zach's and Ruben's relationship changes and evolves in a romance and, after a moment of "crisis", silence treatment, tears and confusion, they emerge more strong and together than ever.
Their romance is adorable, I loved how they first feared to have lost one other, until they decided to finally talk and admit their own feelings. It was so beautiful, moving and satisfying and I loved how they were supported right away by Jon and Angel.
The romance is amazing, it made my heart sings and I love Zach and Ruben so much, I was squealing and swooning all the time, they are adorable together and I loved the way the author talked about their relationship, how it grew in something so beautiful and powerful, how they love, support and help one other, facing the world, the parents', the management together.

Through If this gets out and through Zach's and Ruben's romance, the authors talk about the awful pressure placed on artists, queer above all, within the entertainment industry, the invasion of privacy, the exhausting working conditions, the abuse of power, the closeting, documented by many other real artists in the world. It's not rare, expecially if they became famous at a young age, to hear about artists who struggled with unhealthy coping mechanisms, as drugs and alcohol, eating and psychological disorders, because they are forced to play a role imposed on them, because they wanted to escape the pressure and the control.
If this gets out explores this pressure, how someone can lose sense of oneself when forced to play a role they never choose, how they are abused and controlled by people in power and, also, in Ruben's case, how the pressure and abuse can come from one's family too.
It also tackles the homophobia in the entertainment industry, "justified" in their eyes, by sales and money issues, the sexualization of, basically, children and young men, how artists are treated as things and not people, how they are isolated, used and abused in order to make more and more money.

It was clear in every member of Saturday how they were forced by the management to be four different heartbreakers in front of the camera, to play a specific role, even though they were very different from it, how Jon was forced to dress and act agains his own feelings and morality, how Angel was struggling to escape the pressure and control through substances, how being forced to be closeted for so many years weighed down on Ruben, how Zach, who discovers his own sexuality, was separated by his best friend and love.

If this gets out is a book about love and friendships, about fighting against abuse of power, control and bindings, about fighting to be oneself and not to caged anymore by pressure and people.
I loved everything in this book. The romance is to die for, Ruben and Zach are the cutest boyfriends ever, Angel and Jon are amazing characters and the story is amazing, full of cute and funny moments, flirting, jokes, adorable, while tackling important issues and problems.

I definitely recommend this book to those who love queer love and the power of love and friendship.

The story follows Ruben and Zach, two members of the wildly famous boy band Saturday. There's a lot of focus in the story about how inaccurate celebrity personas are, how they're curated for maximum optimisation and sellable appeal, and how these personas fail to accurately reflect the personalities of the singers and the damage this does. I really appreciated this aspect of the novel. Being a celebrity sounds quite exhausting, and you really feel for those who are told who and how to be.

Constantly having to pretend to be something they're not is something the singers struggle with, especially Ruben and Zach. Jon and Angel are the other two members of Saturday. Being in the closest makes this even more complex, and Ruben's frustration with being told how to be becomes a driving theme of the story as he begins to fall for Zach.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher and authors for access to this book!! I've been so excited to read this ever since I heard about it, and I wasn't sure how I was going to wait for it to come out, so when I managed to grab it on here I was so thrilled!

If This Gets Out was an absolute blast. The relationships and friendships within its pages felt so real and vibrant, from the aching familial relationships to the closeness of the boys in Saturday, to the budding relationship between our sweet, wonderful protagonists. Everything was beautiful. The novel takes us on a journey that has many highs and many lows, and the entire time I was reading I was right there alongside the boys, worried for them, delighted for them, angry on their behalf. I always love it when a book makes you connect to its characters, and it's sometimes easier said than done, but If This Gets Out had no trouble at all on that front.

If you enjoy contemporary YA that delivers some lovely dramatic hurt/comfort, angst and one of the sweetest relationships I've read in awhile, then you're going to gobble this up with the same ferocity that I did. The ending was perfect and yet I find myself longing for a sequel, just so I can return and get another glimpse of the future of Saturday, and specifically Ruben and Zach.

After falling in love with Sophie Gonzales' writing when I read 'Perfect on Paper', shortly followed by the amazing 'Only Mostly Devastated', I was so excited to read 'If This Gets Out', a fantastic collaboration with Cale Dietrich. It is both a compelling and delightful romance (between two members of a boyband no less) paired with a scathing indictment of the music industry which exploits young artists. These two authors' styles meld seamlessly in this novel, perfectly balancing the love-filled delight with some darker messages.

Zach and Ruben are two members of the band Saturday, about to set off on a European tour with their bandmates Jon and Angel. It is clear there is more to the relationship of these best friends as sparks fly behind closed hotel doors (try not to smile at the romance between these two!). However, strife bubbles under the surface throughout the tour as the pair are forced to hide their romance, Angel dabbles with drugs and Jon struggles with his enforced status as the group's sex symbol.

I loved every minute of this novel, whether I was full of romantic joy for Zach and Ruben, particularly as Zach explores his bisexuality, or whether I was dragged to the depths of despair by every adult who exploits the group. I just wanted to protect them which shows us just how nuanced and realised these characters are on the page. It wasn't until the end that it was confirmed for me which author was the voice of which character but I felt Gonzales' trademark wit shone through in Ruben's chapters. I have not read any other of Cale Dietrich's works but the voice he gave to Zach made me certainly want to explore his back catalogue too!

Overall, this is a pretty long book given it is a young adult romance about a boyband, but I would easily have read a further 400 pages of this story. The boys of Saturday won my heart and I would not complain if they were given a sequel at some point in the future! I do not feel 'Guilty' and will not leave my opinion 'Unsaid' - 5 glorious stars!! *****

Zach and Ruben gave me all the Red White & Royal Blue feels in this!!!

I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley for my honest review, and I adored every minute of this. There is depictions of drug abuse in this, just a warning for anyone who’s triggered by such. But the story had me feeling all sorts of emotions from beginning to end, from Zach having to deal with the realization he’s bi to Ruben deciding when enough is enough and announce he’s gay despite what their band management says.

There are a lot of obstacles for these boys to overcome and the ending pays off after the angst and hurt. I can’t wait to own a physical copy of this book when it’s released!

WOW!!!!!!!! WOW WOW WOW

I haven't felt this way reading a book since rwrb. From the chemistry between the two leads (and for a YA book, this leans almost NA in the sexy scenes) to the incredibly engaging and entertaining plot, to the well-fleshed out side characters. I feel like I know all four boys intimately, like I could follow them on twitter and see what Saturday is up to.

Pros:

The romance!!!!
The writing. Both boys were so unique, and both had their own strong arcs and growth. I loved Zach and his anxiety and his sweetness. For me, I most related to Ruben, from his sense of humor to his wisdom to his fierceness. Together, these two have chemistry that's out of this world.
Jon and Angel!!! I would die for them.
The incredibly well-paced, interesting and deeply-explored plot around the band's management. The way it's written so that you (like a naive newcomer) believe that everything is reasonable and in the boy's best interests, then realize along with them that they're actually getting more and more trapped, is nothing short of genius.
Although there are a lot of quieter scenes between the heart-pounding scenes, there's nothing I could think of that could be cut from the story without losing something. Every single scene served a purpose.

Cons:

That it ended!!! I appreciate the more open-ended, sort of hinting at hope for the future ending (don't worry, I mean in terms of other plot points. The two leads end up together. It's a romance!), but a part of me wishes I could just know for sure that everything turned out ok. I guess that's a sign of being invested.

Otherwise, I'm hopeful maybe Gonzales and Dietrich are going to go the What If It's Us route and use the ending as a springboard for a sequel. I want to know if they move to LA! If Ruben manages his relationship with his mom better! What happens to Jon and his mom and his dad, especially! If they get out of Chorus's clutches for good! What happens with Monarch Management? Does Angel relapse, or is he ok now he has a better support system!? DOES ANGEL REALIZE HE IS NOT A CISHET MAN!? (Because I'm sorry but if Angel is a cishet man the moon is made of cheese).

I've already pre-ordered a copy, and this has shot to the top of my favorite ever m/m romance (sorry RWRB, you're still my favorite non-ya romance). Maybe this is even my favorite romance, period? I don't know I'll figure it out when I process all these feelings.

I went into this book with very high expectations and I wonder if that's why I found it to be so disappointing. I've seen several reviews comparing it to fanfiction, which is understandable given how common a premise it is, but I've read fanfiction that told the story much better. The writing was lackluster and I found the plotting to be weak. I didn't laugh at all until the last page of the book even though I think there were supposed to be jokes at points. The bad parts of it being fanfiction-like is that it often felt like the reader was supposed to have background knowledge of the band already, and certain details were subsequently glossed over.

I will still buy this for my library but I will not go out of my way to recommend it as a favorite.

This was good! Loved the rep and the exploration of sexuality. I do however think that a lot of the dialogue itself was corny and cringey. It’s like the authors have never seen teenage boys talk. These are 18 year olds. They aren’t going to talk...like that.

I loved this book.
As soon as I opened it, I fell in love with the characters. I loved Zach and how he deal with anxiety, because it felt like so much like myself. I loved that he had a healthy relationship with his mother, even if it had hiccups sometimes.
I loved seeing the troubles of the boy band - I'm a sucker for stories with musicians.

The only thing was I wish [spoilers] the management company wasn't such a monster at the end. I wish there was a happier ending with that. I also wish there was a more concrete ending. Or maybe I just want more of the story. Maybe with Angel, as his issues were interesting too and I would love to see more on just him.

Definitely this is a book I want to read again and again.