First I want to start off by saying I enjoyed this book so much I didn’t want it to end. I wanted it to continue like a soap opera. It contained so many different topics like being famous, touring, drug abuse, mental abuse, friendship, friends to lovers. I could go on and on. I just loved how it seemed about a groups so real you question if this is real and what happens in boy bands. When I say that I mean like having to be what they tell you to be. Not being able to do what you want to do but only what they tell you you can do.

If this gets out is about 4 band mates who spend so much traveling that they deal with all types of stuff. They are super famous and are constantly on the watch by paparazzi, super fans and even their band managers.

I just want to thank Netgalley and Wednesday books for providing an ARC for an honest review!!!

What happens when two members of a boy band fall in love? If you’re curious you should pick up If This Gets Out! Told from alternating perspective this book follows Reuben and Zach, and their band as they embark on the European leg of their tour. Reuben is gay (just not to the public) and Zach can’t figure out why he can’t keep his eyes off Reuben. Cue the tension and the will they won’t they.⁣
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It’s friends to lovers meets secret relationship and I adored it. This band has a lot of secrets but through it all they supported one another. I did think it was a bit too long but honestly I would read another full book about Reuben and Zach. This is a great YA about being yourself and being able to love who you want. If you’re a boy band fan and like breaking the stereotypes, I highly recommend this one!

Ruben and Zach are two 18 year old members of a four-person boy band at the peak of their success. They’re just finished their US tour and are about to embark on their European tour. However, in the face of the European tour a lot is going on: Ruben is starting to feel stifled by their management team who are preventing him from coming out. Zach (who thought he was straight) is starting to think he might rely on Ruben more than he thought and the boys, who have been best friends since meeting a music camp are starting to feel rifts in their friendship. If This Gets Out follows the boys as they discover themselves come into adulthood, and realize how to stand up for themselves.

This was a solid four-star read for me. The plot summary sounded a bit light to me at first, but once I got into the book I realized that there are a lot of heavier issues that add a lot of substance to what I thought was “a YA book about a boyband.” The authors address issues such as the pressure of coming out, being yourself, addiction, and social acceptance. While this book is about a famous group, I think the issues the authors chose to address are ones that everyone can relate to in some way, whether you’re a part of a famous boy band or not.

What really stood out to me was the narration style. The book alternates between Ruben and Zach’s perspectives and the voices the authors use for each are very unique—I was never confused as to who was narrating. But beyond that the styles of narration were great. Ruben and Zach have dry humour and sarcasm lacing their narrations, which really worked for me. I thought it made the book very conversational, easy to read, and easier to connect to—like you were talking to a friend. This style was something I thought the authors did an exceptional job with.

I had intentions to read the e-ARC of this book back during Pride Month because of its queer representation. I wanted to (and still continue to make efforts to) diversity my reading. If this is a goal of yours too definitely pick this one up. It reminded me a lot of Julie Murphy’s latest YA book Pumpkin. If she’s an author you like, or if you liked that book, then you’re sure to like this one as well. Overall, I would definitely recommend this one as a quick, enjoyable, YA LBGT romance book!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was as fun as I thought it would be, but it also delved into a lot more important social topics than I thought it would. I really liked Ruben and Zach and their relationship is an example of friends-to-lovers done really well.

Zach's gradual realisation that he might not be straight and the way he goes back and analyses his previous attraction on other guys felt so real and made me want to give him a hug. The fact he begins to realise this while in the middle of a global tour in front of millions of people can't be easy, so it was lovely that Ruben being supportive and providing comfort when it was needed.

I didn't have many strong feelings about Angel or Jon, but I liked how they supported Ruben and Zach when their management were trying to prevent them from coming out. On the whole, the book delves into some important issues about fame and privacy, substance abuse, being open about mental health, and having a support network around you. The narrative also comments on the heteronormativity of the music industry and the subtle ways in which homophobia can pervade daily life, while also encourages readers to challenge prejudices and injustice.

Final note: I've seen a lot of people saying this is One Direction fanfiction, or that the book started life as such, and while I don't know the origins of the story, it didn't read this way to me. I will say that I was never a 1D fan so I don't really know much about the band and I didn't follow them when they were active, but this read like a YA contemporary in its own right and not really a fanfic of any kind (and I saw this as someone who reads plenty of fic).

I adore Sophie Gonzales' other works. I have never read from Cale Dietrich, but this did not disappoint. I felt like the topics of conversation in this novel were well handled. These characters were adorable. I will be reading more from both of them in the future.

I'm not a fan of boy bands in real life, but I am absolutely a fan of Ruben, Zach and the rest of Saturday! I was rooting for them both romantically and as a group from the beginning. This was such an engaging story with believable characters, despite some wordy scenes that slowed the pace. It was sweet and inclusive, well-written, staying light and easy to read while tackling some heavy subjects, from homophobia to finding yourself. Definitely recommended for YA and adult readers! (The intimate scenes are “closed door”, so there’s nothing too explicit.)

I’m grateful to St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review If This Gets Out.

Okay, I loved this book! It definitely gave me One Direction vibes - especially with all the shippers and rumors about some of the bandmates being in a relationship.

I appreciated that the relationship felt slower - while the book itself and the plot seemed more fast-paced. Beyond the adorable relationship and queer rep, I also appreciated all the other issues this book tackled (without being too overwhelming or feeling like it was trying to accomplish too much) - substance abuse, pressure of fame on children/teens, and how the entertainment industry can take advantage of underage performers.

This was just a peach of a book - and I would gladly read more from this author duo.

Oh my god. This book is ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING. Saturday is a band I would have loved if they were real. I love seeing the insider lives of made boy bands. It reminds me of one direction for sure. There's parts that make me mad. There's parts that are cute. Just all of it absolutely fantastic book. 10/10 would recommend to everyone

This book was such a fun and easy read. I adored it! It was just the right book to get me out of a reading slump. So I would like to recommend this book to anyone who is looking for an easy and fast read.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This actually surprised me immensely. I went into this book having read one of Sophie Gonzales’ previous books, Only Mostly Devastated, and not loving it. Thus my expectations for this book weren’t the heighest, but boy were they blown out of the water! I couldn’t put it down once I started. This is a story of young love and fame in equal measures, in many respects reminding me of I Was Born For This, although I connected with the band in this book more than that one. The attention to detail as well as the multitude of story strands really stood out to me, as did the questions of identity and toxic parent child relationships which I found uniquely handled. A book that surprised me in the best way possible!

Let’s face it…we’ve been waiting for a book like this!! 🎤🏳️‍🌈❤️ Secret boy band love!!! Friends to lovers!!!

This book follows the band “Saturday,” a four member boy band. Jon, Angel, Ruben, and Zach have been in the spotlight for years and letting management dictate their every move. The duel POV features Ruben and Zach. Both of their voices and personalities are clear to the reader, probably helped a bunch that two separate authors wrote their chapters! Ruben is gay, and has been told for years he could not come out and to “wait for the right time.” Zach and Ruben have always been best friends…and one night changes everything between them! 🥰

I loved the whole band and how different they were. The book had a sweet romance between Zach and Ruben but I loved how they explored the entertainment industry. Zach’s journey figuring out he was bi and coming out was well done! I also enjoyed how sex positive this book was and safe sex was a topic of various conversations. I only dropped a star because I wish the book ending had more! An epilogue could’ve really bumped this to 5 stars.

Solid 4⭐️ read. Thank you to the publisher & NetGalley for the ARC!

I adored this! The story and characters were so easy to fall into. I'm not suprised at how much I liked it since I've liked many other books by this author.

This was absolutely such a cute read. My first book from both authors so now that I’ve read this I’ll definitely read their other books – I believe Dietrich has like two YA mystery/thrillers that are very appealing to me. Which is great! I love when you read books that have two authors or even anthologies that have a lot of authors and then you can find more authors to read from! I recently reviewed two anthologies with new-to-me authors that I’ll definitely be reading from their backlists or looking at their upcoming books!

I spent most of this book grinning like a total fool because it just was so cute! Literally in the first few minutes of the first chapter I know it would be a 5 star read. And that I would read it quickly – which was a relief as some of my reads lately have been taking long

It didn’t take me long to love all four members of Saturday, the fictional band in If This Gets Out. Ruben Montez quickly established himself as the one who isn’t allowed to be himself (although you could argue that the whole band isn’t allowed to be themselves). He isn’t allowed to show his theatre background. He’s not allowed to come out or even sing the higher notes – which he definitely can hit (which I still don’t really understand why he isn’t allowed).

Zach Knight, whom Ruben says he’s like a puppy – and that’s true – but the band’s marketing team makes him out to be dark and twisty.

Even though the novel does focus on Zach and Ruben we get to know the other two band members very well. It’s like Jon Braxton and Angel Phan switched personalities. Angel’s pushed into outfits that make the fans think he’s the fun and innocent when he’s more like how Jon is shown as. Even though Jon definitely doesn’t want to dress in really tight clothing.

Knowing all of that and seeing it in action – telling the boys to act this way or to not act that way – all to keep that perfect image, was really sad. They’re teens and they’re taken advantage by adults who want to make money off of their talent. And you know this will have consequences for them later in their lives! You always see the child actors going rogue after they turn 18 or even before and it’s like yeah! You wonder why?

Zach and Ruben were so, so cute together. I loved seeing their budding relationship – which is interesting as I’m not really a fan of friends-to-lovers. I’d read every friends-to-lovers there is if it were written like this. They had so many cute moments together – even before they actually got together. I’m definitely a big supporter of them two because they’re just so cute!

Like I said, we get to know Angel and Jon pretty well (there’s a scene with Angel’s parents that I chuckled so hard at). There’s a strong friendship between the boys – difficult not to when they’re around each other basically 24/7. And even when there’s issues within the band, there’s still that feeling that they’ll remain friends.

Most of the plot is tied to Zach and Ruben so I won’t go too much into it – other than to shake my fists at the management that decided to force these boys into personas and reprimand them for acting like themselves anywhere near a camera! What I will say is that I loved there was a good balance between plot and characters. Neither seemed to play a bigger role, one didn’t overshadow the other one – all well-balanced!

Amazing! The perfect YA/NA crossover romance! I absolutely adore anything by Sophie Gonzales and this did not let me down at all!

This book was so much deeper than I expected. I went into it thinking it was mostly centered on the romance between Zach and Ruben and how their relationship affected the band and their careers. And while their relationship is a big core to the story, it was so much more about the music industry, how these boys were treated and how they were impacted by that treatment. I loved seeing the dynamics of the friendships between all the boys and how they really became unified by the end. I also appreciated that while Zach and Ruben did have to deal with some relational challenges, and Ruben was really able to challenge Zach, it wasn't centered about them coming together and Zach exploring his sexuality; but was centered more about how they were being censored and discriminated against by Chorus. Overall I enjoyed the book and am grateful this story is told as its one that is not told enough and we need more of this representation.

As you can probably guess, after watching series one and reading all four Alice Oseman's "Heartstopper" over the early May Day Bank Holiday weekend, I craved more queer romance. I didn't expected to find anything close to the light, almost wholesome-ness of "Heartstopper" but I wanted to carry on riding that wave. So, when I remembered I had "If This Gets Out" on my kindle (gifted to me by publisher via NetGalley), I decided that it was time! And I was quite excited to dive in as desperate to read more teen queer fiction.

Ruben and Zach are two members of the boy-band Saturday, with Angel and Jon. The four are close in front and behind the camera, but cracks are appearing behind the scenes. The one easy banter between the four are strained and Ruben confides in Zach that he's feeling smothered about how management and their pressure to keep his sexual identity a secret.

As the band go onto their European tour, Ruben and Zach begin to rely on each other more and more till, one night, the pair share a kiss. What will happen next to them after that night and how can they move forward with a relationship when they realise that the support they desperately need is never going to come?

I read this in two days. TWO DAYS! And one of them was a Bank Holiday Monday so you can figure me for reading it at warp speed (blame "Heartstopper" if you want), but what surprised me about this, barring how easy I flew through this book, is how dark this book is when, on the surface, it looks like a light queer romance.

I keep hearing this a lot when this first came out: how this book looks like and breezy when, actually, it's not. I think even the authors pointed it out on an occasion, but this book does look at the darker side of fame. We have one band member who has an alcohol and drug dependency, another who's parent is their management and seems to care more about the band's image and profit than about his son and fellow band members, a third who is desperate to come out of the closet but is being forced to stay in the closet by management and his controlling parents (mainly his mother) and the last band member beginning to question his sexual identity and has little to no support from those in charge.

I think we all look at what happened to Britney Spears and other celebrities and go "Oh, there are people in the media industry that don't care about the person, but the image/money/sales". But to see it in this light, from the inside looking out had a different feel as we got told, time and again, this is for the "better good", "for your own protection" and "for the fans" has a sinister edge to it. And we need to remember that all the band members of Saturday (not The Saturdays, as I had to keep reminding myself every few chapters) are in their late teens. Not legally adults in the US and in most European counties.

As for the romance, I liked it hugely. And I like how we saw Ruben and Zach fell for each other and how both tackle their own issues separately and together, and while I had a few times when I went "But do they really like each other or is it because they're in each other's space all the time?", I liked these characters and am intrigued to see what happens next...

I do plan to read more from both authors. Actually, I have a book from each ("Only Mostly Devastated" by Sophie Gonzales and "The Friend Scheme" by Cale Dietrich) on my TBR and I am ready to dive into these over the summer! But this was a fun read that, while have a romance at its heart, take a look at the darker side of fame.

(and before you say it, yes, I can see why many of you read this has One Direction fanfic. I saw it too and went happily along for the ride!)

The book provides insight into the pressures of fame and the sacrifices individuals make to follow their dreams. All the members of the band, Angel, Jon, Ruben, and Zach, have had to compromise parts of who they are to obtain fame and success. I thought this aspect of the novel was conveyed very well, but it wasn’t what attracted me to the book. I'm a hopeless romantic.

Gonzales and Dietrich sent my emotions into a flurry with Zach, Ruben, and the tension. My emotions were all over the place from the pain of unrequited love, the anxiety of crushing on someone you shouldn’t be crushing on, and the fear of losing what you already have. Because the romance was my favorite aspect of the novel, when the tension disappeared, my attention also began to dwindle. I still found Ruben and Zach to be extremely adorable.

If This Gets Out provides a backstage pass into the lives of members of a boy band, providing a glimpse of the effects of fame and the consequences of being forced to be someone you’re not. At the center is a romance I mooned over nearly as much as the leads made eyes at each other. For a YA novel, this one is a bit steamier than most I have read, but I loved how sex-positive it was. If you’re a fan of boyband ships, this will certainly be a pleasing read–substitute Zach and Ruben for your biases and your ship will come true. (4.5 stars rounded to 5)

I was actually surprised by how deep this novel was. I was expecting a light and fluffy romantical book, but I got way more. (Not saying that there's anything wrong with a fluffy rom-com.) The two main characters, Zach and Ruben were extremely relatable, for various reasons. I loved how they helped each other to get better, but the authors didn't magically solve all their problems once they got together. Instead, they realistically showed that the right person can help you evolve, but they won't make all your problems go away. I also appreciated the talks about mental health in this book. Both of them struggle with their mental health, and it's helpful for young readers to see that they are not alone in that. All in all, this was a really great novel about the music industry, and how it treats marginalised voices, like queer people.

This book follows Ruben and Zach, two members of the sensation boy band Saturday. All four members of the band have their lives controlled by their management, from the clothes they wear, to their haircuts, to where they stand on stage during their performances. We see the story told from alternating chapters between Ruben and Zach, best friends who become more and the pressures they face trying to navigate a new relationship behind closed doors. I thought the portrayal of how controlled their lives are was very realistic (although I suppose I don’t actually know, not being a boy band member myself). The additional struggle of being in a gay relationship that is clearly not supported by the management team and the panic of coming out to both families and the bad, and the public, made it all so real.

This is the first book I have ever read by either of these authors, and I loved it! I felt all the emotions, and at some points I was SO MAD at the adults I could SCREAM! I am looking forward to other books by these authors!

I was given an advanced reader's copy via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own

Loved the book. Fulfilled the love of fanfic in a real book. Author did a wonderful job portraying the high stress environment of being an international pop star while still feeling very relatable and human. The romance was cute and the multiple perspectives are done well.