I was surprised that this book made me tear up. It's more emotional than I was expecting, with the main character regretting what could have been while also struggling with dealing with tough emotions, especially after being left behind by the people he loves.

The plot is intriguing, following the boy who could have been famous and how he's getting on with his life now. David holds a lot of jealousy and resentment toward his former bandmates, especially front man Chance. I understood why he felt that way, but he held onto it for so long that he started to get whiny and frustrating.

I ended up liking Chance a lot, he was kind and patient with David and put up with a lot of negativity. I appreciated that he came across realistic and not as a cliché popstar and I liked seeing him be happy.

The ending was a bit rushed and I would have liked it to take a bit more time to wrap everything up, but I enjoyed the book quite a bit.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own. Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the copy.

I really enjoyed the narrator for this work! I felt completely immersed in the story at all times, and really enjoyed the acting.

The book itself was a bit of a mixed bag for me. I really liked the tension between the band Darkhearts and the main character, as well as the grief elements at the beginning. However, I detected many grammar mistakes which sucked my interest away from the book. I also wasn't a huge fan of the ending, and would've liked to see the grief aspects expanded upon a bit more, as well as some more character depth as the ending rolled around. Overall, 3.5 stars.

I can't even imagine quitting your high school band then watching the remaining members move on to superstardom. That's what happens to David though, and he can't help but be bitter two years later. Then Eli dies and Chance comes back to town. David slowly opens himself back to Chance, who had been his best friend for so long. As their friendship unexpectedly grows into something more, David starts taking a look at the choices that he's made and reevaluating his future. I was totally absorbed in their story and read the whole book in one day. Recommended for grades 8 & up.

The setup for Darkhearts is that best friends David, Eli, and Chance, started a band together (the titular Darkhearts) as young teenagers. They built a little local following, playing whatever under-18 venues they could with David's dad driving them all over the place. Eventually, though, David started to feel like a third wheel in his own band -- Chance, the frontman, is always hogging the spotlight and the girls, and Eli, the producer, and all-around musical genius, is always making all the decisions and telling David what to do. After David quits, Eli and Chance keep playing shows and (to paraphrase the book) in an Alanis Morisette more-unfortunate-than-ironic turn of events, get signed to a label almost immediately after.

Two years later, Darkhearts is one of the world's hottest young bands, and David is working a summer construction job before his senior year of high school. There's something of a cold war between David and Darkhearts (blood boiling for David, non-existent for the remaining members of the band) that would probably stretch out into eternity if it weren't for something terrible happening -- Eli dies.

In the aftermath of the funeral, David and Chance find themselves drawn together as the two people who knew Eli best. Sure, Chance is a self-absorbed asshole in a tight shirt, but every time David is ready to go back to never speaking again there's some thread of meaning or nostalgia that pulls him and Chance back together. And the more time they spend in each other's orbit, the more it becomes clear that the way David notices every little thing about Chance might have less to do with hating him and more to do with... something else. Something David hasn't ever felt, or even considered, about another guy before. But even if Chance feels the same way, could they ever make it work with all the history behind them and all the hurdles in front of them?

The start of this book was rough for me, but I'm glad I stuck with it. I was surprised at how much sweetness and earnestness there was -- that really kept me invested, even when I was feeling frustrated with David making the same mistakes over and over again (which is a tricky line to walk! How do you keep your reader on the side of a character who has to make all the mistakes before they can learn their lesson?).

I was really impressed with the way this book navigates first-time sexual experiences. The author manages to capture both the horniness of being a teenager and super into another person, alongside the overwhelm and scariness of doing something for the first time and just generally trusting another person.

Really well-rounded cast with characters that felt like fully realized people. We spend most of our time with David and Chance, but the broader ensemble is great!

Not about the book itself but a note on how its being positioned in marketing -- I find it strange seeing this comped to RWRB and Perks. I can see an argument for Red, White and Royal Blue (even if I can also make a counterargument) but The Perks of Being a Wallflower feels like such a strange comparison. If I were trying to describe this book to someone, I would probably say it it's a queer m/m romance with the themes of Mary HK Choi's Permanent Record and the fun-but-complicated vibe of Maureen Goo's Somewhere Only We Know, maybe with a splash of David Levithan?

Marketing aside, a sweet book that I liked more than I expected!

Darkhearts by James L. Sutter tells a story of love, loss, fame and friendship. David, Eli and Chance started the band, Darkhearts, but when David left them, the band rose to fame and fortune. David and Chance are thrown back together at Eli’s funeral. They reconnect as friends and start dating each other discreetly. There is some spice. David’s world is filled with his father, his job of carpentry, his hobby of woodworking, his best friend Ridley, and school. Chance’s world is filled with his singing, his manager, producers, working out, being “on” all the time, and his fame. David thinks he wants what Chance has. Is the grass greener on the other side? From friends to band mates to frenemies to friends to dating, where will we find David and Chance next? Read Darkhearts by James L. Sutter to find out on June 6, 2023. Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC.

“𝑺𝒕𝒐𝒑 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒖𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒔𝒂𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒂𝒚.”

I love a friends to lovers story, and James L. Sutter offers a fresh take on the “members of the band fall in love” trope.

This YA book was everything I wanted it to be: sweet, angsty, full of characters that were easy to love, and life lessons. Sutter also dives into some deeper topics, like resentment, forgiveness and the price of fame, especially if you are a teen star. I loved the re-development David and Chance’s friendship, as they both navigated being around each other again after David quitting the band before Darkhearts became big and fellow best friend/band member Eli’s death. Best friend characters are always a highlight for me in romance books, and David’s best friend Ridley does not disappoint: she’s funny, perceptive and supportive. I adored how Chance and David weren’t tied to labels, but approached falling in love as the magnetic pull they had with each other, while discovering who they are. Both Mrs. Ng and David’s Dad were wonderful side characters. Did some of the teenage angst get a little old? Sure, but I loved that things weren’t immediately sunshine and roses; Chance and David are messy with a history that influences their decisions. I wish Sutter had gone a little deeper with their shared grief over the death of Eli and things did wrap up a little quickly (David’s epiphany in particular), but that last chapter was perfect and swoonworthy.

Darkhearts is a story of the downside of fame, friendship, discovery, teenage love, and leaving room for the unexpected. It is perfect for fans of Heartstopper. I hope for a sequel; there’s potential for more story with these characters. I’d love to see where things head for David and Chance in the future. Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the ARC!

Thank you so much to Wednesday Books & St Martins for an advance copy of this!

If you know me, you know I am a sucker for anything boy band related so I was elated when I received a widget for this book.

This book took a spin on the "two band mates falling for each other" trope as what was different is that David had quit the band prior to them taking off and then tragedy brought Chance back into his life.

"Well," she breathed. "I'm pregnant now, how 'about you?"

I often forgot that I was reading about teenagers as I felt that they were dealing with very much grown up experiences. As much as I love the celeb culture, I will always protest that I could and would never want to be a celebrity. The constant lens on you, the lack of privacy and then add growing up and not able to make mistakes? No thank you. We saw this each time David & Chance would try to go out and be teens and would be swarm. Even though an average reader may think the paparazzi chase seemed far fetched, I do not believe so. I can't even imagine what stars like Justin Bieber went through as a teen heartthrob. It is amazing what the media and fans do to celebrities. OH and then let's add being a closeted gay teen in there.

"I'm always pretending, Holc. Except maybe with you."

I liked how this relationship was a gradual build and how David & Chance really had no clue what they were doing or feeling but knew they had a pull towards one another. Selfishly I would have love Chance's POV to see what was going on in his brain. I like how the book dealt with David's resentment and jealousy of what could've been for him. Though I am sure the idea of therapy would probably be the best route to take especially with the loss of his friend & now this new public relationship. I really liked Chance's character and how open he was to the perils of fame as a teen and how he knows that he is perceived a certain way. Fame has a way of making one more mature than the average person and I think that definitely was the case for Chance. He was able to articulate and tell David his feelings and his struggles. And then in return encouraged David to do the same.

I wish Darkhearts were a real band because I know I would definitely be listening to them and likely fangirling over them as a teen errrr or as an adult.

4.5

Thank you so much, NetGalley, St Martins Press and Wednesday Books, for the chance to read this book in exchange of an honest review.

David missed the fame and the glory when he chose to quit his band and finding himself as an ordinary person in an ordinary life in high school, while his best friend, Chance, became the hottest teen pop star. When a tragedy brings them back together, old resentment and wounds break open. But Chance could be David's second chance to glory, even though they slowly start to change their relationship, from frenemies to something more and more intense, as romance start to grow between them. What will David choose for himself?

Darkhearts is a wonderful, funny, moving and romantic story about two worlds colliding, second chances, enemies to lovers between to old best friends, whose lives took very different directions, tearing them apart and then bringing them back together. I loved reading this book. David is a genuine, brilliant and very realistic character, whose pain and resentment, jealousy is mixed with new growing feelings for Chance when he comes back into his life, after a tragedy that took their friend, Eli, away from them. It was interesting seeing how David's ordinary life collides with Chance's famous one, how they slowly start to get closer and closer and how their feelings for each other and how they see each other change during the whole book.
I've found these characters very relatable and realistic in their emotions, how they struggle with their lives and emotions, themselves, lost chances and second ones.
I truly loved this book and I was so rooting for them in this heartfelt romance about love and celebrity and the complex reality of everything.

david hasn’t seen his former best friends and bandmates, chance and eli, since they left him behind to become famous two years ago. but when eli dies, chance is brought back to town, and reconnects with david. can they move past their history together to become friends again—and possibly something more romantic?

i don’t often read books featuring musical artists, but i’m so glad i decided to pick this one up! darkhearts took me on a rollercoaster of emotions. there were times i laughed, swooned, and even cringed. i loved seeing david’s growth throughout the novel and the many different realizations he had about himself. i also thought the relationship was well-developed and didn’t seem too rushed.

i can normally tell what i’ll rate a book when i’m pretty far into it, but my rating changed when i read the ending just because i loved it so much. i highly recommend this book to any YA readers.

DARKHEARTS by James L. Sutter is a contemporary romance about a teenage boy, David, who was once in a rock band with his two best friends, Chance and Eli. David quit before the band skyrocketed to superstardom. The death of Eli brings frontman Chance back to Seattle, where he reconnects with David. The characters fall flat, which makes the romance unbelievable, as the reader can't understand the source of attraction. However, I like the story and the author's take on queerness and attraction, that it's more about attraction to a specific person than slapping on a label.

David was part of one of the most famous bands in America ... before they were discovered. David formed Darkhearts with his two best friends in high school. But he quit before they rocketed to stardom, and he's been bitter ever since. When one of the two members of the band dies, David finds himself reconnecting with the other, Chance, now a major rock star. Although still deeply hurt, David begins spending more time with Chance and their relationship grows beyond a friendship, even as they continue to struggle with past hurts and the pressures of fame.

This is a well written and perceptive story, exploring timely themes around celebrity, identity, and second chances.

Highly recommended!

I’m not the primary audience for this book, but I have enjoyed quite a few YA books, including some that deal with sensitive topics like this one does. Unfortunately, Darkhearts didn’t really grab me at all. I never felt a connection with either main character, David or Chance. We follow the two of them after the sudden death of their mutual friend, Eli. I think if more of the book had been spent on Eli and his issues, and their grief over his death, it would’ve been a stronger story. But the story quickly moves on and barely refers back to Eli for much of the book.

Chance and Eli were Darkhearts, a famous teen music duo; David was part of the band when they were younger, but before they got their big break, David left the band and has resented their success ever since. He is still in high school in Seattle and he’s learning woodworking/carpentry and loves it but he’s still holding a grudge against Chance. The two of them wind up reconnecting and more - there’s a lot of angst about whether they should kiss or not, whether Chance will let their relationship become public, and so forth. I just didn’t buy it. I could not figure out what Chance saw in David. David’s big transformation happened so suddenly that it was not believable.

The publisher’s blurb compares it to Red White and Royal Blue - nope, except for the basic premise of enemies-to-lovers maybe. And David and Chance weren’t even enemies, just former friends. Also the publisher called it “hilarious.” Nope, not hilarious in the least.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance reader copy of this book and to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to an advance copy of this audiobook. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this book! I thought it would have more of them actually being in a band together but what actually happened was way better. I liked seeing David fall for Chase and slowly understand what it was really like to be him. They had such a genuine connection.

I received an arc through netgalley.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the eARC of <i>Darkhearts</i>. All opinions are my own.

First and foremost, <i>Darkhearts</i>. is a delicious little read. I gobbled it up in about 2 days flat. The writing is very catchy, as is the storyline—a hometown reunion between two former bandmates at the funeral of their mutual friend. Our protagonist is David, otherwise known as the one who walked away—from a budding musical career, only for the remaining two bandmates, Eli and Chance, to go on to worldwide fame in the band David left behind. When Eli dies unexpectedly, Chance and David reconnect, and feelings that have long been festering under the surface boil over in surprising ways.

I love an unsure gay in a YA book, and that's exactly what we see here—both David and Chance's sexualities remain undefined throughout the book, and I really liked it that way. However, as much as this really should have been the main problem, it wasn't. Instead, the problem is David needing to face down his own abandonment and jealousy issues and decide whether he can live in a world with Chance being one way to the world, one way with him, or continue to rage at him from a distance.

Overall, this was a great read. The relationship between David and Chance had enough chemistry to be believable, but it wasn't a seething cauldron or anything (until they get together—then it's kind of whoa). I think the only thing that felt a bit off was how little time each of them spent mourning Eli, especially chance. Eli was Chance's bandmate. It seems like he would have been mourning far longer than it seems he does in the book.

Overall, I enjoyed this "boy in a band" book. It landed with me where others of this genre hadn't.

The ending?!?! Are you joking!!
I wanted to see so much more after that ending! I hope the author writes a sequel to this book!!!

Darkhearts is a book about fame, romance and a boy band. David, our main guy, quit the band Dark Hearts before the band got super famous and he's been living his ordinary life. Until tragically, Eli (one of the members of DarkHearts and his former best friend) dies. At Eli's funeral, Chance (Dark Hearts front man) and David reconnect. This re connection not only opens their friendship back up, but also sparks fly when they realize that they are actually into each other!!! I loved this coming of age aspect of the book as they are coming out together as a couple.

I really enjoyed this book and flew through it. There were so many times when I would get annoyed w/ the characters and then had to reel it back in because I just needed to recognize that these characters are teenagers and I probably would have acted the same way!
This book navigates so many themes - death, grief, jealousy, fame, friendship, relationships.

Totally recommend!

Thank you Wednesday books for my ARC!!! <3

I received an advance copy in exchange for my own opinion. Thank you NetGalley for this opportunity!

I’m not really sure where to start with this one. I had to really think about what I was going to rate this and settled on 3 stars. I *really* wanted to rate it higher but I think there’s a few things that warrant 3 stars.

1. To me, the plot feels almost disconnected and very drawn out. There were parts of the book that were honestly so uninteresting I almost wanted to quit reading, but other parts that were so interesting I didn’t want to put it down. Overall, I feel like the idea of the plot is very compelling, but the execution left much to be desired. I really enjoyed the ending, but it felt extremely rushed and like an afterthought. I think the ending would’ve made more sense if they had built up the fight and resolution a bit more.

2. I’m not going to lie, I love awful, flawed characters. I love when they develop into not flawed characters, and when they stay a POS. But something about David just didn’t vibe with me. I really wanted to like him and root for him, but he was kind of an asshole the entire book to pretty much everyone around him? I think his development from jealous asshole could have been more spread out but was concentrated in the last 10% of the book which was really disappointing. Conversely, I loved Chance and wished we had seen him develop more beyond the whole “famous me isn’t me” shtick. I don’t feel like we really got to see all of who he is.

3. I did not enjoy the side characters. All of them acted as plot devices while also being extremely annoying. Riley was overall an awful person who’s personality didn’t entirely make sense together - to me she felt like she had conflicting personality traits. David’s dad didn’t add anything to the story beyond being a plot pusher and the same goes for his dad’s employees. It was really disappointing that they didn’t have any substance to them.

Overall, I did enjoy the book. I think it’s a great read as long as you’re ok with pushing through some really boring parts.

This was a great YA read. It started off with a literal gut punch as you find yourself at a 17-year old boy's funeral., definitely set a tone for the story. Ex-best friends and ex-band mates, Chance and David, are thrown back together again after the death of their mutual friend, Eli. Chance and Eli found stardom after David quit the band, leaving David to wonder 'what if' for the last two years. Suddenly, Eli's gone, Chance is back in town, and he wants to start hanging out again. David could think of a million things he'd rather do more, but ends up going along. Slowly, they begin to rebuild burned bridges and grow closer again. Friendliness turns into romance which puts the boys in a precarious position. Now these two lovebirds find themselves in a forbidden romance, forced to keep their relationship a secret. Despite this, everything starts off pretty perfect, but unresolved conflicts, demanding managers, and crazy fans are set on tearing these two teens apart for good.

Darkhearts was a beautiful coming-of-age romance with lots of sweet moments and some tragic moments as well. A great read if your looking for a famous/not famous, queer, YA romance!

Rating: 4.5/5

DarkHearts is perfect for anyone who loved Red White & Royal Blue and Perks of Being A Wallflower. As well as fans of books like Kiss & Tell and If This Gets Out. It explores romance, fame, the consequences of fame, first-loves, and more.

I am a sucker for any lgbt boy band book, and if you add in friends to enemies to lovers? I’ll devour it. And this book did not disappoint. I loved the romance and banter between Chance and David and I thought it was executed very well. I did want more of the side characters, as for the most part they were just there, which was my only downside of the book. However, that did not hurt my view of this book too much be I was absolutely entranced with Chance and David.

I would love another book with Chance and David, but I also just want another book by James L. Sutter as fast as possible. I’m looking forward to seeing what James comes up with next!


Thank you Netgalley for the eARC!!

E-ARC generously provided by Wednesday Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much!

5 stars. Written with an inky, bleeding heart that thumps like a bass line throughout every line of it, Darkhearts is a gritty and authentic love song of a novel that explores queer teen boyhood in a way that I couldn't help but fall in love with.

A fun romance overall! The main reason this is 4 stars and not 5 stars is that there wasn't any discussion of the ethical implications behind Chance Ng, as a Korean American frontman, deciding to use an ethnically ambiguous surname, Kain, as his stage name. The decision was framed as Chance leaning into Darkhearts' punk/vampire aesthetic for his public stage persona, but it didn't mention or seem to consider the implications of not using a Korean name on stage, and how that has the potential to feed erasure and racism in showbiz—I'm thinking in particular of Chloe Bennet, who changed her name from Wang because Hollywood wouldn't give her roles while she had her Chinese name. Even if that wasn't the central focus of the story, it ended up distracting from what was otherwise an enjoyable read.