This was beyond good. Great if I must say. I can’t wait to rave about this to everyone. If you are looking for a good book, pick this up.

Everytime You Hear That Song by Jenna

I really enjoyed this one!
Especially when a RomCom book includes a mystery type treasure hunt for a time capsule for a famous singer that just passed and a cash prize is at stake! What?!
Doesn’t that sound epic!?

I sure enjoyed the nods to another famous singer who also loves making her fans figure out puzzles and clues! (Cough cough Taylor Swift)

I loved the journey and character growth that happens through out the story as well the duel pov which I typically don’t enjoy (makes it hard for me to keep information given straight) but it was done perfectly in this and felt it was key!

This book was uniquely its own and I loved EVERY MINUTE OF IT!🫶🏻
Add this to your TBR STAT!

Adding Jenna Voris to the list of auto buy authors!

Thank you so much to Penguin & Viking for an advance copy of this book!

Listen country music is all the rage right now! Yes, I'm aware that its always been popular but within the last couple months there has definitely been a spotlight on it. And I am sure when a certain blonde pop star re-releases her country debut, the genre will be buzzing. But that leads me to this gem of a book!

This was such an enjoyable YA read told in two timelines and two POVs. I thought the premise of this was interesting and I thought the chapters were really quick. The book kicks off with us learning the passing of country superstar Decklee Cassel after battling brain cancer. At her funeral there was going to be a time capsule reveal but instead a scavenger hunt was planned for fans to win a whopping $3 million dollars. Enter Darren Purchase who grew up in the same town where Decklee came from and grew up listening to her music. She knows all about Decklee and thinks she has what it takes to solve the scavenger hunt. She recruits her co worker Kendall who has a car on a roadtrip she'll never forget!

Decklee falls in love with her best friend/songwriter Mickenlee Hooper and the book goes through their love affair starting from 1963 until present. I am always fascinated to read stories about the start, during and end of a music career. My heart broke for them because they just wanted to be able to open but knew that Decklee could lose it all. Darren is coming into her own self. She admits out loud that she likes girls all while falling for her co pilot Kendall. I won't spoil the ending but it felt very believable for the age. There was a moment between Kendall and Darren that really struck a chord with me. They are talking about wanting to leave their hometown - Darren doesn't want to feel stuck there and Kendall loves his town and will never leave. It just reminds me of all the people who I've gone to school who couldn't wait to leave and I just never understood it because my family were all here and I just love where I'm from.

If you are looking for a quick queer YA romance with all the country music vibes - give this one a read!

I really liked this book like a lot. It was emotional and adventurous but the focus and main topic of this book are the characters and it was a good choice to doing two different point of view between the present and the past. We see parallel of the two characters and their differences and how there is not always pure characters but gray and no good person in stories and it felt real and raw. With her point of view we could easily know more about Decklee, her story, selfish and love feelings. I really liked the travel that Darren and Kendall did. We could sei the character develomp of Darren and their relationship as they build it more close as much they go far away. Another think I liked was the writing, it's simple but the sane time draws you in and made the reading fanteria and enjoyable.
Some things i didn't like as much at other things is maybe the ending, as is not I didn't understand it because i think it could be have a differenza outcome but it felt rushed and less soaked on feeling as the rest of the book.

This was such a lovely novel!! It had a slightly awkward start but a gorgeous finish. It took me a bit to get into it but once I did I was hooked! I don’t listen to country music, but I still got a lot out of this novel. I also loved the treasure hunt plot line, it kept it really engaging. Overall a really fun summer novel filled with a lot of love and music! 4.5 rounded up.

🌈Queer rep: Bi/pan main female character in a M/F relationship, FF main relationship. Secondary gay male character, MM relationship. Brief mention of a trans girl.

4.5/5 Stars

17 year old Darren is an aspiring journalist. Her favourite country singer, Decklee Cassel has passed away, but left a string of clues for her fans leading to unreleased music and a cash prize. Darren takes off on a road trip with her coworker, Kendall, to be the first to find the clues.

I haven't read too many road trip stories, but I really enjoyed this one! I listened to this on audio, and I think the narrator did a great job bringing these characters alive. This is told in alternating timelines between the present road trip, and flashbacks to the 1960s through out Decklee's career. I thought the hunt for the time capsule was fun, but I was more invested in Decklee's chapters. She wasn't a particularly good person, and is very flawed, but I couldn't help but root for her as her career progressed. It broke my heart watching her have to keep her true self hidden, especially when it came to Mickinlee Hooper. Their relationship was very toxic, but I couldn't help wanting them to work out. I loved both timelines and loved how they subtly wove together through finding the clues, and then getting a flashback of how it was relevant to Decklee's career. I thought Darren and Kendall's romance was sweet, and I liked watching their relationship grow as they searched for the clues.

The ending was such a surprise to me, but I loved it so much. I'm definitely going to be looking for more road trip stories in the future!

Enjoyed this book! Truly a mix Daisy Jones and the 6 with a scavenger hunt and Evelyn Hugo vibes. LOVED the dual timeline and ALL of the queer characters.

The premise of this book was really promising and I really liked the country elements. It was a sweet read. However, something about this book didn't quite work it for me... It was a but slow for me...

Every Time You Hear That Song is a YA story where we see two young women embark on the same journey 60 years apart. Darren Purchase has always felt a strong kinship to country music icon Decklee Cassel: both are from the same small Arkansas town, Darren wants to leave town as soon as possible, and Darren also suspects the pair may also share being queer. When Decklee dies, she leaves a message to her fans that she has one final album for them-if they can follow her clues to find it. Finding the songs would give Darren a final part of the artist she loves, a once in a lifetime story for her journalism instagram account, and money her single mom needs to pay for her cancer bills. On the quest with her coworker Kendall, Darren hopes to find the lost songs- but also ends up finding a sense of understanding she hadn't expected.

The story features similarities to The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Huego in that it tells the story of the hardships of a queer celebrity in the mid to late 1900's. Both of these books will get tagged in the romance genre, but I would consider this having less romance between the two characters in the past timeline and the romance between Kendall and Darren in the current timeline is pretty minor. Much like Evelyn Huego, there is a twist in the story that took me by surprise (although looking back through previous passages there are hints of it laid out). Overall I enjoyed this book, I liked all the pop culture references in the present timeline but I found the story in the past timeline hard to follow at times. I didn't get the full sense of what Decklee's goal for herself was outside of being at the top of the industry, and I wished there was a better sense of closure in her story since the events of it leave me with somewhat of a sad feeling.

Thank you Penguin Young Readers Group and NetGalley for an advanced readers copy of this book.

While normally I enjoy dual timelines, something about this one was hard to really lose myself into. Partly I think it was a pacing issue, but also I think bouncing around between the two meant I never really felt I knew all that much about either of them. When I step back and look at what I read, I do enjoy it, but in the moment of reading, it was hard to immerse myself and sometimes dragged. Overall, I did enjoy it, but I do wish some parts of the execution had been better.

THIS BOOK. I love it so much. My little country music loving heart can’t take it and I love the mystery of trying to figure out the time capsule. The singer in the novel, Decklee,’s story reminds me a lot of Dolly’s. Also, the journey to romance. Ah. Give me more Jenna. Thank you.

Frankly, there was no way I wasn’t going to love this book. Sapphic Dolly Parton-esque country singer throws a posthumous treasure hunt for fans to find her last album? I was hooked before I even started reading. A dual POV split between Decklee Cassel’s rise to stardom in the 60s and superfan Darren’s quest to win her treasure hunt in the modern day, the pacing never once faltered. If anything, I’d have liked to spend more time with Decklee, although the glimpses of her career’s pivotal moments were more than sufficient to paint a picture of both her professional and personal life. In the present, Darren’s road trip with co-worker Kendall was at once lighthearted and deeply emotional. Her desire to escape Mayberry for good while slowly, inadvertently falling back in love with it felt so true to the experience of growing up in a small town, with an added layer of depth from her queer identity. Some of the plot milestones were slightly predictable, especially the final twist, but this only made the experience of piecing together the puzzle so much more satisfying. Overall, this was an absolute blast of a road trip/treasure hunt/historical music novel, one that would be just as much fun adapted for the screen in the style of Daisy Jones and the Six.

I enjoy the premise of this book and the idea of two teenage girls in different timelines discovering more about themselves and finding a place where they can live authentically. However, I ultimately felt like some parts were not fully fleshed out and I wasn’t sure what message about small town life the current timeline meant to leave us with. I found myself drawing numerous comparisons between this book and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid, from the actions of the characters in the historical timeline, to the dual POV with a young reporter as the current timeline’s main character. Teenagers who haven't read Reid’s adult novel may connect better with this story. The best takeaway from this book is perhaps to reflect on how one’s actions affect others. A secondary purchase for YA collections.

This was SO CUTE. Like Dolly Parton meets Evelyn Hugo. I thought that the Arkansas representation was good as well as the way that the characters bucked against the stereotypes of the small minds in small southern towns. It really was such a delight to read this!

I'd like to thank Netgalley and Penguin Teen for this arc!!

"I don't miss Mayberry, but sometimes I'll catch a few notes of a childhood folk song or inhale the scent of warm summer grass and the feeling is so familiar it's like my ribs are cracking apart."

This book was immaculate. The story is told in two perspectives/timelines. In the first timeline, we follow Darren, a teenage girl who feels like she is wasting her life away in the 'nowhere' town of Mayberry. And in the other, we follow Decklee Cassel, a budding country star who will do anything it takes to get to the top, and stay there. But after Decklee dies, she starts a country wide search for a time capsule, which she said holds a new album and comes with 3 million dollars as a reward. Darren decides she has to go on a road trip to find the time capsule, and to do that she has to pair up with her coworker, Kendall. The story follows both perspectives of living authentically and coming of age, while dealing with the stifling feeling a small town can bring.

vibes: 🚗🎸🪕⏳🥰

"Maybe there's something beautiful to being known like this. maybe being seen isn't a curse."

I absolutely loved this book. I knew from the beginning that it would be one that got me, and I was right. The story not only touched me because of the relationships, but also because of the conversations it has. The talk about the small town and the music were so beautifully accurate. It was so so good!

I really really enjoyed this one! I finished it in nearly one sitting! Decklee Cassel is a superstar country singer whom Darren has idolized her whole life and whose music has seen 17 year old Darren and her mom though some incredibly hard times. Darren struggles with feeling trapped in her small town; the same town that Decklee Cassel is from and Decklee got out…so Darren can too but Darren devastated when she learns of Decklee’s death.
Decklee's has left one last gift for her fans… a long-awaited time capsule to be revealed at her televised funeral…but instead, it's empty and now has to be found via scavenger hunt. Darren sees this as her way out and she is determined that she will be the one to find it. She enlists the help of a co-worker, Kendall – a boy she has know most of her life and they embark on a quest for the capsule but find so much more along the way.

The story alternates between two timelines. Darren and Kendall in present day and their search following time capsule clues and Decklee Cassel and her relationships with songwriter Mickinlee Hooper and fashion designer Markell in the past and their rise to fame. I did figure out the twist very early on but I think the reader is meant to because it just adds that extra emotion underlying the whole thing as you go along waiting for the reveal. Each story parallels the other and comes full circle in such a poignant way that it left me in tears at the end.

"Every Time You Hear That Song" by Jenna Voris hits all the right notes with its captivating blend of mystery, romance, and the allure of country music. Through alternating perspectives, Voris weaves together the stories of Darren Purchase, a determined young journalist, and Decklee Cassel, a country music icon with a tumultuous past. As Darren embarks on a spontaneous road trip with her coworker Kendall to uncover the truth behind Decklee's mysterious time capsule, readers are transported back to 1963 to witness Decklee's journey from runaway to fame.

I'm loving the trend of LGBTQIA+ road trips, and this one was no exception! I found the dual timeline kept this trending trope fresh and exciting. I think this is one of those few young adult novels that will keep the older readers entertained as well. The plot of the story kept me guessing too, which is rare for me! Pick this one up if you're a fan of books that keep you laughing, crying, and doing everything else in between.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I'm not sure I can begin to tell you how much I enjoyed this book. It was beautifully written with lyrical prose and rich, complicated characters with clear motivations and flaws. It was very "Dolly-Parton-by-way-of-Evelyn-Hugo-coded" and I was here for that. Both timelines were captivating to me, and I never felt the need to skip over parts because I was getting bored in one timeline or the other. The way it ended was satisfying, but not neat, which felt real to me, and so bittersweet. And as a queer girl who grew up in a small town and always wanted to escape (and did), that theme really hit home and resonated with me. Absolutely lovely (and fun! road trip scavenger hunts are always fun!)

ARC Review: Every Time You Hear That Song by @jennavoris
Released: April 2, 2024
Rating: 4.5/5
Format: eBook via #netgalley , but I had also pre-ordered it from @onemorepagebooks
Recommended by: @bdkennedybooks (Author of A Little Bit Country/My Fair Brady)
The Low-Down: Young Adult. Coming of age. Dual POV/timelines. Bisexual & Lesbian rep. Scavenger hunt. Roadtrips. Angst. Entertainment Industry. Country music.

With dual POV/timelines, we meet our present-day FMC, Darren, as she sets out on a road trip to hunt down clues to a time capsule left by country star, Decklee Cassel. Along the way, Darren will discover secrets about her favorite star's past, as well as secrets about herself.

I really enjoyed each of the characters and this storyline with how much depth there was. While you could see certain plot points coming, there was still an air of mystery. I am also always a sucker for an entertainment plotline. Especially ones that show the angsty emotional trauma of the industry.

"Here, everybody burns until they burn out."

Whenever someone asks me why I left the music industry in Nashville, I'm going to show them this book. There truly is no place like Nashville, but it can also take a piece of who you truly are. Ultimately, you choose the music or you choose yourself. This book perfectly portrayed that.

For Fans of A Little Bit Country, The Last Love Song, Dolly Parton, Taylor Swift.

4 1/2 stars

What a special book. It was told in alternating timelines and went between present day and Darren's viewpoint and Decklee's viewpoint in the past.

Darren has idolized Decklee her entire life. Decklee is a successful country music artist and it always seemed that she had it all. But looks can definitely be deceiving. When Decklee dies and it's evident that she had lost a lot of people before it happened, you have to wonder what happened in her life that they weren't there at the end.

Over the course of the book, Darren grows and starts to see things she couldn't see before. And I don't just mean that her co-worker, Kendall is awesome - - but she does see that too. And at the same time you are reading about Darren's evolution, you're also reading about Decklee's downfall. It's all very full circle.

I thought this book really did a beautiful job of trying to show how you can't take things or people in life for granted.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.