I'll preface by saying I love Elissa Sussman's work. If this book has flaws, which I know it does, I'm actively choosing not to harp on them. 🫣 If you liked Funny Feelings (which I did), you probably will also enjoy this one. In the same token, if you didn't like Funny Feelings, you most likely will not enjoy this one & that's ok!

Strictly vibes, this book is a 3.75. (childhood friends to lovers, celebrity romance, slow burn, workplace romance).

the main cast then/now:
- Kathleen "Katee Rose", once-beloved pop star
- Ryan (Katee's clout chasing boyfriend) & Cal Kirby (old theater camp flame and now broadway director/choreographer), ex-members of the boy band CrushZone
- Harriet, songwriter, and Kathleen's best friend

I enjoyed the preface, story, and characters as a whole- but not so much individually. Kathleen was incredibly difficult to root for throughout but despite that I still liked the banter and dynamic between her and Cal.. I just don't think Cal had a drop of accountability in the part he played in the "then" timeline and I can't get over that, but I digress, 🫢 It's something to be said about how women are unfairly crucified in the entertainment industry to their male counterparts.

Overall, while I did like the book, I think I may have enjoyed this even MORE if this was written as a screenplay. While I do enjoy reading, I think this book would translate beautifully into a movie or television show, especially with the character's singing and dancing (and all the musical/broadway references and nods). If one happens to pop up, remember I said manifested it here first. 😉

This is high school musical meets making the band and it is a super fun read! Katee Rose (now Kathleen Rosenberg, gave up her dreams of starring onstage in a musical after her run as a teen pop star comes crashing to a halt. That is until old fling Cal Kirby, reaches out to her with the opportunity of a lifetime - star in the broadway show he's directing that was written by her best friend! She knows she's perfect for the part because her friend wrote it with her in mind, but with the sordid past between her and Cal, will she be able to pull it off without a hitch? For fans of musicals and romance novels!

-Dual Timelines (past & present)
-Second Chance Romance

Kathleen, aka Katee Rose, went to camp to hone her singing skills and meet scouts to get on Broadway someday. There she meets her best friend, Cal and Ryan. She gets chosen to become a popstar, and Cal, Ryan, and a few others get put into a boy band.

Kathy dates Ryan but soon begins to question her choices and the way her life is going. Her bestie and Cal help steer her but things take a turn for the worst.

I felt for Kathleen, for the media judging her so harshly. I could only imagine how many celebrities felt like Kathleen and the toll it took on their careers and lives overall.

Her bestie and Cal turned director offer Kathleen an opportunity to do what she has always dreamed of.

I enjoyed reading this, I've never read a celebrity themed like book. This was giving me Britney and Kevin vibes 🩷

I felt like it was lacking in places.

Thank you Penguin Random House for the ARC! I liked this! As a musical theatre girlie myself I always have a hard time reading fictional celeb books/ reading about Broadway reminds me of the books I read as a kid in my room dreaming my big ole dreams. For me, it didn’t have the same pizazz Funny You Should Ask had, but I am a sucker for second chance romances with allllll that pining. I found Kathleen to be a bit hard to root for, constantly switching between “I am the most amazing performer to ever live” and “I ruined my career by being a hoe” when clearly there were some deeply rooted family issues there we could have dove deeper into but alas. Girlie has a brownstone in Brooklyn and is on the B Way she is living my DREAM!

These covers are amongst some of my favorites, too.

Once More with Feeling tells the story of Katee Rose (then), pop star, and Kathleen Rosenberg (now), aspiring Broadway star. Katee was the Princess of Pop, touring with her boyfriend Ryan - the Prince of Pop - and his fellow boyband members of CrushZone. After Katee cheats on Ryan, the world turns on her and her career is over. She's incredibly angry because neither Ryan nor Cal, his bandmate that she cheated on him with, experienced backlash for their roles in the scandal. Her best friend, Harriet, has written a musical with Kathleen in mind for the lead role. Only Cal is the director. Kathleen agrees to continue in the role, but the relationship with Cal is tense - and she still feels the attraction.

The story gave me Britney/Justin vibes. Kathleen is honestly not very likeable, but we can definitely tell that she's bitter. She also hasn't forgiven herself and is consistently putting herself down and thinking that she doesn't deserve success. Cal seems to be keeping his cards close to his chest (we eventually can see why), but it's obvious he can't deny his pull to Kathleen either. I really enjoyed that the book was written with "then" and "now" taking turns in the storytelling so you didn't know the whole story behind their previous relationships until near the end of the book. I'm interested in reading some more from this author!

A big thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing/Ballantine/Dell for providing me with a digital reviewer copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

Thank you to the publisher for allowing me to read the ARC of 'Once More with Feeling'!

Once again, I was super excited to receive this arc! Last year ('22), I had the opportunity to meet Elissa Sussman at the LA Times Festival of Books. She signed my copy of 'Funny You Should Ask:. She was so sweet and kind to every single person who came through her line. Sadly, I still haven't read that book, but now that I have read 'Once More with Feeling, I already know that I'm going to love it!

I really enjoyed this story. An enemies to lovers trope, is one of my faves. I liked how the story developed. I also really enjoyed the 'then' and 'now' sequence. Going back and forth from the past and the present. It was nice to see what had happened in the past and how it impacted the present. I enjoyed the characters as well. Cal seems like a really great guy, who is supportive and wants the best for the people that he loves, but also knows he has made some mistakes. Kathleen, also a good character... and real, because I think she definitely depicts the realness of a person who needs to learn to forgive themselves. (Why is that the hardest thing to do?) I also liked Harriett (I can't remember if she has one or two Ts), though I think she was quite unfair in a few ways toward Kathleen.

If a storyline of a 'romance' doesn't have a happy ending, then it's not a romance. So, I'm happy how things turned out. However, my one teeny tiny criticism, is that so much time was working toward this ending, that we know we wanted, that we needed (!), and then it was like boom bam here it is. Okay, bye it's over. It seemed quite rushed.

Other than that, I truly enjoyed it. I read the entire thing in less than 24 hours. Fun, cute, funny, real.

Also, cover design is killer!

this was one of my most anticipated releases for this season and it did not disappoint at all!

cal and katherine and their history in the entertainment industry is so interesting and the layers of their relationship slowly come together in such a unique way.

i think the perspective of a retired pop star is such a unique and intriguing concept, i loved seeing katee’s journey, seeing her grow into and out of the image projected onto her, and navigate her life post-stardom. her collaborative relationship with her boyfriends boy band and the roles they were assigned to play created this interesting dynamic of the real and the fake of hollywood, and that these people we watch perform and see in magazines are real people and are living this life for the first time just like us and trying to navigate through their lives without ruining everything they’ve worked for. i also loved the muppet and drag race references, they felt personalized to me almost! i love those two franchises!

I adored Elissa's debut novel FUNNY YOU SHOULD ASK, but I think I love this one even more!! I really loved both Kathleen and Cal as characters, and also enjoyed Harriet's character. The 3 different timelines employed to tell their story masterfully take us between present day; the characters' *pop star* moment in their early 20s; and the first summer they met, as teens at a performing arts summer camp.

At first, I didn't deeply "believe" or feel the connection between Kathleen and Cal, but through those alternating glimpses into their mutual past, my understanding of their dynamic grew and I became totally invested in their relationship. I loved the way in which Sussman used these alternating timelines to tell Kathleen and Cal's story. I also appreciated the book's commentary on double-standards regarding how the public and media treat female performers vs. male ones, and the theme/importance of female friendship as represented through Kathleen and Harriet's relationship.

With its structure, character development, and romance; its early 2000s pop music scene/storyline, and its musical theater references, ONCE MORE WITH FEELING hooked me and kept me *riveted* till the end.

This was a fun, quick read for me!

The book cover drew me in, and the content inside kept me going! I will definitely be adding this to my wish list.

I've never wanted two people to be together more than I want Cal and Kathleen to finally be together forever. This book was Smash + middle aged former pop stars + a lovely enemies to lovers romance. I give this book 4,000 heart eye emojis. Unmissable if you're a fan of musicals and romances.

Elisa Sussman is a master at writing a fantastic celebrity story! I loved Funny You Should Ask last year, but Once More With Feeling I loved just a little bit more 🥰

Here’s what you can find:
🩵 childhood friends to lovers
🩵 enemies to lovers
🩵 second chance romance
🩵 music theatre vibes (so many references to classic musicals!)
🩵 chapters alternating between then and now
🩵 former pop stars turned Broadway superstars (actress and director)
🩵 a heartfelt romance with light steam
🩵 a great message about forgiving yourself

Thank you Random House and Net Galley for my ARC in exchange for an honest review. Once More With Feeling is out now!

RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I really enjoyed the premise of Once More with Feeling. A popstar who fell from grace over a decade ago tries to make a Broadway comeback in a show written by her best friend and directed by her former... almost ex. There's some theater nerdery, pop culture references, boy band jokes, an excellent cat named Fish, and a sweet second chance romance, all of which come together to create a book that mostly worked.

Kathleen Rosenberg used to be Katee Rose, bubblegum popstar of the early 2000s whose career came to an end when she cheated on her beloved boy band boyfriend with one of his bandmates. Since then, she's tried to live a mostly normal life, but she's never really gotten over the loss of her stardom and all the unresolved trauma of it. One of the things this book does best is ponder what fame means and why some people are drawn to it while others are generally neutral. It also unpacks, to an extent, the way culture treated "bad" women in the 00s, through the eyes of someone who lived that experience. Kathleen never shies away from the fact that she made a mistake, but comes to understand that she also has to forgive herself for it.

All the intersecting plot threads - the past and present, the play and Kathleen's personal life - worked fairly well for me. But I never really felt like I had any connection to the characters, not even Kathleen, whose head we're in the entire time. Cal, her one-time partner in cheating and long-time theater camp crush, always felt like more of an idea than a person, and I found myself wanting a bit more of Harriet, who had a lot of potential as the best friend but ultimately came across as a bit of a drag. I walked away from this book having enjoyed it, but also feeling like there was a bit of a hollow center where I wanted the real emotional impact to be.

Still, there's lots of fun things going on here, and it was overall generally enjoyable!

3.75/5

As a former theater kid, I absolutely adored this book. Kathleen was such an interesting and complicated protagonist and loved seeing her grow and change through the multiple timelines of this sweeping story. The chemistry between her and Cal was palpable, and I couldn't help but stay up late, turning the pages to see what happened next for them. Elissa Sussman has an incredible voice that is so empathetic and honest towards the realistic messiness of figuring yourself out and falling in love. I can't wait to read what she comes out with next!!

World famous pop stars? Boy bands? Broadway dreams? Childhood friends to lovers? Second chance romance? This book has it all!

This was a fun second chance romance read! I loved the theatre setting & the old pop star storyline! It was different and fun. The past and present setting is always a favorite of mine and the story itself had me glued to my kindle (I read the whole book in 1 sitting, unintentionally)

I will say some of the plot lines left me with mixed feelings, could all of that be forgiven?? I’m not sure. Either way a fun read for sure.

*thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an earc in exchange for an honest review*

I am now addicted to Elissa Sussman! Once More With Feeling was a perfect summer read- full of love, betrayal, and forgiveness. You won't be able to put this novel down. HIghly recommend!

Thank you, NetGalley, for an advanced copy of this book.

Kathleen Rosenberg has always loved performing. In her teens and early 20s, she was on television and later, pop star Katee Rose. Her career went crumbling down when she cheated on her boy band boyfriend Ryan with his bandmate and former camp duet partner Cal Kirby, and was lambasted in the media. Now - a decade later- Kathleen has lived a relatively normal life until her best friend Harriet's musical is finally being produced, and the director is none other than Cal. As they are forced to work together, Cal and Kathleen struggle with their past and whether they have a future.

I loved this one! Funny You Should Ask is still on my TBR, so I'm unable to compare the two or how Sussman's writing has evolved, but I really enjoyed this book. Kathleen and Cal have such good chemistry and you can feel the tug of war between their emotions of distrust and lust - SO GOOD!!! I also loved how they grew and matured, but still had the connections of their past that ultimately formed such a strong connection. I also enjoyed watching Kathleen's growth and realization that she didn't need to keep beating herself up for her past mistakes, and that she still deserved happiness in the present despite those mistakes. Overall, a fantastic enemies-to-lovers, second-chance romance!

Thanks to PRH/Ballentine for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

TW: Cheating, strained family relationships, fatphobia

Once More With Feeling was my 2nd book by this author, and I am impressed! I definitely look forward to reading more from this author! Sometimes romance can feel a little cringey but not with this author! The characters were so real and relatable and it was really interesting to read the behind the scenes of a broadway musical production. I read this book in a day because I could not put it down!

2.5 ⭐️

I wanted to love it… but I don’t think this author is for me. I didn’t love Funny You Should ask and I loved this book even less. Maybe I’m just not a fan of second chance romance??? Side note - her books have some of my favorite covers ever so I’m sure I’ll end up buying the next one regardless 🥲 I can’t help myself

Sussman is very good at creating specific tension. This makes Kathleen and Cal and excellent central couple. But I wanted a lot more from Harriet and just the overall plot.

I love me a pop-culture-y romance! I love the narrative behind-the-scenes of a pop star/broadway star and a second chance at love. It was a quick read with fun characters and an engaging premise. ONCE MORE WITH FEELING, however, was just an *okay* read for me. I felt like it had a lack of deep spark that left it, unfortunately, a bit forgettable for me. I think I just expected more out of it?

A thanks to Ballantine and Netgalley for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest, unbiased review. ONCE MORE WITH FEELING is out now!