This one wasn't for me. I thought I would like it, but it just didn't resonate with me. Though it may have something to do with my personal reading habits moving away from romantic comedies centering around teens.

This has spoilers



I feel like this book was a bit slow for me. I do think it was cute at times. This is the way I saw it. Millie wanted to go off to school and her dad said no so she was going to be a brat and “Mama Mia” style her way into finding her moms. It kinda didn’t really matter who got hurt, because she could apologize after. Because she was Millie. The end.

Are you a fan of ABBA, Mamma Mia, musicals, theater, or YAs? (Let’s assume you said yes to at least one of those things...I mean, who doesn’t scream-sing along to Dancing Queen?) Well, When You Get the Chance is the book for you!

When You Get the Chance is sweet, fun, and heartfelt. It’s so well written in the way that it truly feels like you’re experiencing each event as it would play out in Millie’s mind. 

As someone who does enjoy musicals and was active in Theater throughout highschool, I felt my mood completely shift while listening to this audiobook. While Millie is mooning over a musical, I’m transported back to my friend’s bedroom as we screamed along to Hairspray. When she talks about the friendships she built with her theater friends or the rivalry she has with Oliver, I am brought back to my own group of friends as we get ready for the next play after school. When Millie is grasping at what she has in common with each of her potential moms and realizing that she is living out Mamma Mia, the play vividly flashes through my mind. There are many relatable aspects to Millie and the other characters in this book but I was truly impressed by how much this book made me understand Millie’s world through my own experience.

Audiobook wise, I think that When You Get the Chance was well done. It was a very smooth read; though, I would personally recommend speeding up the audio just a bit as I feel like it really helped me feel the whirlwind that can be Millie.

I would 100% recommend this audio book. Go check it out and while I'm inspired by miss Millie, I'll continue my life mission of subjecting my husband to hearing me sing every single ABBA song ever written.

Thank you Wendesday Books for giving me access to the ALC -- it was such a fun read. I didn't know exactly what I was getting into with this book, and that was half the fun of it. I loved Millie and Teddy and Oliver and Chloe. They're all big personalities in their own ways, and they each found a way to shine. Millie's voice was so exhuberant, it was hard not to love theater as much as she does. The pacing of the book was perfect, and it hit all the right beats as I was hoping for.

✨Mamma Mia here I go again, my my, falling for fictional characters✨

So good. So so so good. Seriously good. It’s so touching and emotional and cute. I did not expect to feel as much as I did at ALL. I was apprehensive of the theater kid aspect because it can be… a lot. But when Mamma Mia is the reward, I’ve got to at least play the game. While there were many, many theater references I didn’t understand, I still loved it.

Millie was over the top, but self aware which was refreshing. Her vanity at times was honestly relatable and I’d rather have her know she’s a great actress and singer than be self-doubting all over the plot. Her Millie-moods never actually bubbled over into truly destructive. Sure, she made bad and dramatic choices, but things weren’t strung out for the purpose of angst. People in her life held her accountable, but were also supportive and very cool.

I definitely wanted more Oliver and Millie as a couple because their conclusion was very quick. They didn’t even really have a third act breakup which was GREAT because gorgeous gorgeous Oliver is very smart and amazing and and Millie told him the truth instead of running away again.

Oliver legitimately didn’t do one bad thing in this entire book. He always gave Millie the chance to be herself (and to apologive) and he was SO gone for her. His crush origin story made this cookie CRUMBLE. He’s literally an angel cinnamon roll sundae with very pure motivations and words that melted me.

He ordered mint chip (Millie’s fav) at the party, but then his favorite is revealed to be sea salt chocolate chip cookie pieces at the end which is SO CUTE. He knows her favorite ice cream and subconsciously ordered it. AH! You can’t tell me this wasn’t intentional. This book is too clever for it to be a coincidence. I also definitely love that Oliver is so pro bike helmet.

Teddy was an amazing platonic best friend and I loved his little side story. I love that Cooper got his happy ending as well. And Heather! And her “moms” did too! I figured out the mystery around 50% and I was very happy when I was right. Ugh it was all just so perfect at the end. I was not expecting to be as emotional as I was, but damn if I didn’t get all mushy. It was both heartbreaking and heartfelt.

The narrator also narrated Better Than the Movies, which is part of the reason a. why I love it so much and b. why I think these books are c. similar and d. similarly amazing. The audiobook performances are fantastic. The narrator has such emotion in her voice and basically defines the term “voice acting.” Plus, her guy voice is amazing. So good. So amazingly good. Please hire the narrator whenever you can. .

Overall, this is such a warm and spirited story, with definite influence and references from Mamma Mia. Millie is a Cancer, I’m a Cancer, and this book is definitely a Cancer (no matter what the pub date says). It’s my favorite book by Emma to date and I am extremely jealous that her brain gets to live forever with these characters.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

✨This audiobook was provided by the publisher. Opinions are honest and my own.✨

Thank you @wednesdaybooks @netgalley for a copy of When You Get a Chance. If you love broadway and Mama Mia, this will be for you. This was a cute coming of age story about Millie and her dream on making it on Broadway and her desire to find her mother.

Millie is interning along with her arc nemesis, Oliver, and lots of fun times ensue. Their interactions are fun with great banter.

All the supporting characters are great in the story and creates a fun read. The narration was perfect and brought Millie to life.

This was a quick fun read, that I thought was a cross between Mamma Mia (which it for sure is) and Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen (which is vibes that I got from it, but haven't heard anyone else say. I loved the found family aspect of this story, and I appreciate how Emma Lord always writes books with families that have such different backgrounds/issues.

I also reallllllly liked Millie and Teddy's friendship. I also enjoyed watching Millie's relationship with Oliver grow. It was so sweet. Millie is a lot sometimes, and I was frustrated with her... But she's a teenager so I guess that's just how it is lol

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for allowing me to listen to the audiobook.

Nothing is going to stop Millie from being a Broadway star, not even her dad. When she gets into a prestigious early college prep but her dad says no because of finances, she sets out on a mission to find her mom. She has never met her mom and she learns from her dad's LiveJournal entries from 2003 that it could be one of 3 ladies. This is a cute millennial Mama Mia story and just a huge love letter to musical theater. I just love Millie and her Millie moods which are just normal things that teenagers feel and go through. Best Emma Lord Book Yet!

I'm sure a younger reader/audience would enjoy this book.
I should have taken that into further consideration before applying for access to the book as I was often really off-put by the main character & her way of approaching decisions. It felt as though she were constantly putting the well-being of others in jeopardy to follow whatever endeavour she was after. For example, applying to a school across the country without ever broaching the subject with your parent? Couldn't be me...could not have been me in my youth because that would simply never have been allowed. So, perhaps there are a couple culpable people in this demise however, it was difficult to read about such a young person who did have such high aspirations, going about them at the expense of the kind people around her.
I will say there there is probably a lot of this story that a younger audience will appreciate so, please take my review with an aged grain of salt.

I had the best time with this book. I have to admit I was surprised, but the setting, characters and musical theater elements were all super cool and fun to read about!

🔊Song Pairing: Mamma Mia! - ABBA

(Because it’s mentioned 100000x throughout the book so I had to do it)

💭What I thought would happen:

A cute little YA with a ton of musical references…wasn’t disappointed

📖What actually happens:

Millie Price is that theatre kid in high school that lives and breathes Hamilton and any hit musical to hit broadway (don’t get me wrong…me too but I don’t talk about it relentlessly). Recently getting accepted into a prestigious drama school, Millie finds herself competing for a paid internship with her theatre nemesis, Oliver, to save up for the following year.

The other reason for pursuing the internship? Millie’s mother may be one of several women and one by chance works at the talent agent’s office Millie concluded after hardcore sleuthing her introverted father’s Facebook. Millie finds herself on a journey to find her mother and to in addition understand herself.

🗯Thoughts:

I enjoyed You Have a Match. I loved the parent trap appeal of that one and I expected some similar vibes. This book made me miss that one. This read had the whole are you my mother? kind of vibe (that children’s book with some varietal of fowl starring in it).

Overall, it was okay but I found Millie to be exceptionally annoying. I know teens are annoying, I was thee most annoying teenager ever and even teen Kelly would have told Millie Holiday to take a hike. But everyone loved her in the story so maybe that’s just me.

I liked the way everything came together at some point. It was super cute and sweet like cream soda. Also…I have the worst kind of craving for a milkshake after finishing but definitely not for the monstrosity concocted with ice creams that had no business joining in holy matrimony.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. Emma Lord just knows how to write in a way that you can't wait to get back to the story each day. I would often sit in my car, even after arriving home, and just listen. Great story, excellent characters, and loved the bit of mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review!

Spoiler-free review:

This book is cute. I know it's being marketed as Mama Mia vibes, but I also got strong Bunheads vibes, despite this taking place in a big city like New York and not a small town. Like Bunheads-meets-Mama-Mia, sort of. A splash of Glee. Larger than life characters and a flashy plot.

The writing in this book didn't really do a whole lot for me. A lot of the things I found funny or endearing about Lord's writing in Tweet Cute, I found a little irritating at times here. Like it was trying a little too hard to be quirky or quippy, and it relied a little too much on the silliness.

I didn't particularly enjoy Millie, our main character, at times. I appreciate a protagonist who has confidence and high self-esteem. I think it's refreshing in YA, but within the romantic realm of books in general, to see an MC who isn't always so hard on themselves. But there were times... It's just a little *too* much. I appreciate a diva. I appreciate a loud and larger than life female-identifying character... But Millie just. It was just a lot for me.

That said, there were definitely things that I enjoyed. The vibes were fun, the pacing is great, and it's well-formatted. I could see this playing well as a Netflix original romcom aimed at teena. I enjoyed myself and would recommend this book to fans of Emma Lord, despite the few issues I had.

Calling all musical lovers! Ive found the perfect book for you!

In the newest book by Emma Lord, Millie decides to pull a Mamma Mia or rather a Millie Mia by trying to track down her mother in this modern day spin on the popular musical Mamma Mia.

Millie is young but shes confident and exuberant and she just loves musical theatre. When she was a baby her mother dropped her off on her fathers doorstep and left. He raised her with the help of her aunt but as she embarks on her future post secondary education she decides to try to track down her mother from a few possible options by weaving herself into each of their lives.

I enjoyed this book even though Im not a big musical theater fan. It definitely swayed more to the Y than A in YA as well. I enjoyed the side story with her enemy Oliver and her relationship with her dad and aunt.

Read if you like:

Musicals
A New york setting
YA
Previous books by Emma Lord
Mamma mia vibes
Very exuberant and confident female
Enemies to lovers
Strong family bonds

⭐⭐⭐⭐
No steam / just kissing

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the audiobook of this book. All opinions remain my own as always.

Pros: This book is so charming! I loved the YA take on Mamma Mia, with a teenager who tries to find her mom after learning about three potential moms in her dad’s live journal from college. The New York City setting and musical theater references throughout were so much fun.

Cons: The parents in this book are my age, which is just weird.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to listen to this book.

I’ve shared this review on Goodreads, StoryGraph, and Amazon.
https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/63ff9c02-2704-467e-a4b9-75e8f8fef1d6
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4446081490

When I started this book I thought from the summary that it might be cheesy and constantly be alluding to the fact the it is a retelling of mama mia with no shame. Turns out the main character herself refers to her situation as mama mia and it wasn't cheesy.
The main character is Milly, she is a confident and unashamed musical fan who was raised by her dad and aunt. It is now the summer in New York City and she's looking forward to going to a special theater school next year. Turns out that her dad is not going to let her go though and for some reason Milly gets it in her head that is she found her long lost mom, who she knows also loves theater, she would let her go and this is all she needs to be able to go. Along the way she discovers a lot about herself and adds extra people to her non-traditional family. The journey was a lot of fun and learning about Milly was like learning about myself too. She felt real even though she was very impulsive and basically has a sort of bipolar disorder that she calls her "Milly moods".

As expected Lord delivers an adorable, yet somewhat cerebral romcom with a satisfying conclusion. In this story, our protagonist, Millie, is a musical theater addict on her own “Millie Mia” quest for her birth mother. There are enough twists to keep the reader guessing and the enemies to lovers trope is well done. I usually can’t appreciate those relationships, but this one worked. Give this to any musical theater enthusiast. Narration on audiobook was especially engaging and enthusiastic.

OH MY GOODNESS! This is such an adorable and heartwarming read. We follow Millie, who dreams of being a Broadway star and of finding her mother. She lives with her Dad, and has grown up loving musical theater and basically orchestrating her whole life in the pursuit of her goals. When she is presented with an opportunity to attend a pre-college program for theater, she is distraught that her father isn't on board. She finds a journal that gives her three options for the identity of her mother, something her father has never shared any information about. She sets off on an adventure to find her mother and prove that she would be on board with her plan to move across the country for the program. Mille has a theater frenemy, Oliver, who is a backstage/manager type and basically the opposite of her performer persona. He keeps popping up in her travels and provides a wonderful twisty slow burn that made me laugh each time they engaged in banter.

I loved reading about Millie's search for her mother which is essentially her search for herself. Her inner monologue was charming and amusing and her circle of friends was the perfect sounding board for her adventures. In this book, we explore such a tricky age, where who we are is defined by what we do and the circles we exist in, and Millie is reaching out in the universe hoping to make some sense of things. She is endearing and kind, and remains honest. The depth and introspection in this book impressed me, and I would recommend it to others!

The narration of this audiobook was outstanding! I enjoyed the character created by the narrator through the use of phrasing and vocal tone. It was true to age and was read with passion and conviction. It was easy to distinguish between characters and didn't feel the least bit overacted even though a teenager was being narrated. I I was very impressed! It was an enjoyable listen!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an audio copy to listen to and review.

I loved loved loved this book! Mamma Mia but with Millie trying to figure out which woman is her mother. The characters are so fun and loving. I adore all of them; which is amazing. Millie is confident and realistic and anxious and talented. I love all of it! Emma Lord has quickly become a favourite author for me!

Happy pub day to When You Get the Chance! This was my second read by Emma Lord, and it was perfectly sweet, quirky. YA read. This book follows the story of Millie Price, a rising high school senior set on becoming a Broadway star who, in mamma mia fashion, tries to figure out who her mom out of three potential women. I personally found Millie to be a loveable protagonist & thought the story was well written. I also loved the supporting characters, especially the relationship between Millie and her dad & Millie and her aunt Heather. I hope we get to see this world again!