So I loved both of Erin La Rosa's previous books and I can say right off the bat that I didn't like this one as much. I still liked it, but the bar was really high for it in my mind and it just didn't totally work for me. I could see lots of people loving it, though, especially those who enjoy a mostly realistic contemporary romance with a magical element - in this one, it's a CD player that is capable of sending our female main character (Sam) back to different points in an alternate version of her life for the length of a song. The alternate version of her life shows what would have happened if she had kissed her best friend Damon when she was a teenager and completely changed the course of her life. Now she's a successful pilot - one of a very small number of female international pilots - which was her dream. Unfortunately, she had to completely leave her hometown of Tybee Island (and Damon) behind to make that happen, and she hasn't been back since. Now, her beloved Grandma Pearl needs her help as she prepares to move out of the home in which she raised Sam so that she can go into a retirement community. That's where Sam finds the magical CD player and the whole alternate past unfolds while Sam and Damon reconnect in the present. I thought this was well-written and the characters were really interesting, but perhaps I just wasn't in the mood for magic? I'm not sure, but I would recommend this to folks who enjoyed The Road Trip Rewind by Kate and Danny Tamberelli, This Spells Love by Kate Robb, and Landline by Rainbow Rowell.

Another amazing book from Erin. She is a master at romance and you are going to not be able to put this book DOWN! It is so so good. Definitely add to your list.

This was a very cute, quick and fun read just in time for the start of the summer season! I really enjoyed the backstory of our two main characters, Damon and Sam, and their childhood relationship. The side characters were so funny and made great comic relief when the story got heavy.

You will enjoy this book if you like these tropes;
- friends to lovers
- second chance
- small town
- magical realism

I did feel that adult Sam and Damon's relationship was a little underdeveloped and we only really got to see them together towards the end of the story but I really liked the dynamic between them.

Thank you, Harlequin and Erin La Rosa for the ARC!

There's something so tangible about Erin La Rosa's characters; it truly feels like they are people in your real-life orbit.

The Backtrack is an excellent exploration of What Ifs and Second Chances. When Sam returns to her hometown, she is flooded with nostalgia—old friends, familiar places, and belongings from the past. As Sam rifles through her things, she recovers an old mixtape her best friend made her. What she doesn't realize is that it's kind of magical. She plays the first song and is immediately transported to one fateful night. The night she and Damon didn't kiss. Except, in this version, they do.

Throughout the story, Sam is faced with dilemmas that could change the path of her entire life. I loved the conflict and how Sam overcomes it. There's so much angst in The Backtrack that when the conflict was resolved, I could feel my own shoulders being relieved. La Rosa has an excellent way with words that makes you feel everything her characters feel. I'd certainly recommend this to anyone who loves second chances, emo/nostalgic music, and the idea of someone making you a mixtape/playlist. Peak romance, in my opinion.

Loved the concept of the book and enjoyed all the early 2000 throwbacks! I even made them into my own Spotify playlist.
However, it was a slow burner for me

Sam goes back to her hometown to find her old cd player still works. Inside is her best friends from high school mix cd. Upon listening to the first track she is transported to a vision of an alternative reality, a reality where she kissed Damon.

While this book hits lots of nostalgia points for those in high school in the earlier 2000s I wish it would have been more in-depth with the past visions. The pace felt a bit off. Overall I did enjoy this book. 3.5 stars rounded up.

Thank you to netgalley for providing me with a copy to review

Th premise of this book held lots of promise for me but ultimately fell flat. I could definitely see how it would be a win for others, though! Read for:

- lots of naughts nostalgia
- flashbacks to your favorite Emo/pop-punk tunes
- a fun second chance romance and the chance to imagine “what if”

read this in one sitting. you can call this one of those cute, second chance, rom-coms. i'm sure we all wonder the "what ifs" and the "shoulda, coulda, woulda" in our life. and it's normal to. but what if you could go back in time and just experience it all a little differently? now add a great early 2000s emo playlist in the mix and you've got this book.

i enjoyed this book. it can get a little slow and a little heavy at times... but it's still a solid 4 stars for me. some might say more spice would be nice, but i liked it as it is. there are supporting characters who made this even better. i love when authors include a cast of characters who just add the *chef's kiss* hilarious commentary or chaos in the background.

i found myself heavily rooting for both Sam and Damon. they had palpable chemistry, and you just absolutely want them to end up together. despite them wanting to lead lives in different paths, there's that "first loves never die" type of thing. what i took from this is this... whatever the choices that lay before you, do what makes you happy.

i feel like lots of millennials, like myself, would really enjoy this and appreciate it so much more. it brought lots of nostalgia. personally, it hit a little close to home with some of the heavier aspects. but i think that's what made it all the more better for me. i'd definitely recommend this though. t'was a fun read for sure.

thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing & Canary Street Press for allowing me the opportunity to read this book. i received this as an ARC and leave this review voluntarily.

A favorite read!! We only get Sam’s POV, but it was so full of that angsty emotion that translates clearly through the page. Clever take on the alternate dimension, an enjoyable read I stayed up until 4am to finish reading.

OK, upfront let me say that I'm not much for straight-up romance but I do love a quirky comedy with romantic elements from time to time. From the blurbs and description, I was expecting more humor and lightheartedness... I love the concept here - who among us hasn't wondered "what if" at some point, after all - and the execution through the "magical" discman was delightful. I'm a bit older than our fearless protagonist, so her music wasn't the music of my own life story at that same point in life, but I could easily extrapolate and definitely loved that stroll down memory lane.

What I didn't love was the seemingly constant self-doubt and "oh woe is me without a man" nature of her thoughts after she went back to Tybee... That didn't seem to jive at all with her *real* adult life as a very successful international pilot, and it made me roll my eyes more than a few times. That may be where my tendency to not favor traditional romance story lines comes in, but it bugged me nevertheless. This was a predictable story, albeit set in a fun(ky) world of magical almost-obsolete tech, and I did like that part of it - as well as the reminder of how music is not only a trigger but also a background for so much of our lives.

4.25 stars⭐️! This was the first book I’ve read by Erin La Rosa and I really enjoyed it! I grew up listening to Fall Out Boy, MCR, and P!ATD so all reading it made me feel super nostalgic! I thought Sam and Damon were fun together! I really enjoyed the magical realism of the book and seeing their lives in the alternate timeline! I thought showing different stages of their lives with a different song was so creative and fun! I tried to listen to each song during these “flashback” and it added so much to my reading experience! I loved the beach setting of Tybee Island, it creates such a fun summer atmosphere, making it the perfect summer read! If you enjoy tropes such as second chance romance, friends to lovers, small beach town, and magical realism, this is the perfect book for you!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

My Goodreads review is live and linked to this review! I will add my Instagram post to this review once it is live!

A story about what if. I myself have thought about writing a booking about this exact topic. But Erin La Rosa did this in an interesting way, through an old CD-Walkman. Ever wonder if you made the right choices in your life. Whether it was if you went to the right college, or didn’t kiss that boy - best friend of yours that you eventually started to crush on, all because you didn’t want to be stuck. We have all thought of if we had made a different decision would our lives turned out much different, would our lives been better or worse. La Rosa did this question justice, as Sam was able to see through a CD, that cause her to see an alternate universe, that her best friend Damon gave her their senior year of high school on the day he asked to kiss her and she chose to say she didn’t feel well. She did this all because she didn’t want to get stuck in Tybee, her home town. She wanted to go to flight school and see the world; her mother who abandoned her always told her “Don’t get stuck in this place”, which she later finds out meant something else entirely. This book brings you through all the feels. The Backtrack takes same through her life is she would have done the opposite of her current life choices, but would she interpreted what all the visions mean for her and Damon for the good, or will she still feel stuck as to what is the best thing to do.

Thank you Net Galley and Harlequin Trade Publishing - Canary Street Press for this ARC for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book in exchange for honest feedback.

The Backtrack is a fast-paced, friends to lovers romance with a touch of magic. The way the author incorporates her magic through the medium of the tracks, aka the elder millennials nostalgia playlist, is really unique and central to the story.

I found this story easy to read, and Sam and Damon are two characters you want to root for.

I love books that kinda have a Freaky Friday/13 Going on 30/alternate universe plot and this book delivered it with a CD player showing an alternative universe of a what if! It was a fun book but also a serious book as there is a subplot with Sam's family/upbringing and it has parts about real life issues. I feel like Millennials and older Gen Z would enjoy this book. I would say it's cheesy at points but who doesn't like a little cheese sometimes? And for me personally the start was a bit slow BUT once I got into the book I did not want it to be over. Overall I really enjoyed the book and can't wait to read more from this author!

unfortunately didn't work for me! while it started off intriguing, i couldn't stay with it and attach myself to sam or damon. i think the pacing was a bit slow for my taste so i wasn't hooked immediately. i was waiting for something "more" to happen. unfortunately a miss!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review this book before publication.

This book was a wild ride for me, as someone who grew up with the songs mentioned throughout this book. Nostalgia hit hard and so did both great and awful memories from my teenage years. I think a lot of people have regrets and dreams and disappointment from their time in high school, but what I don't think everyone has is a way to process these things and find closure.

This book is about finding yourself and how the choices we make in life changes our individual path in life. The main character has been running from her past in her hometown, and when she goes back to help her grandmother she's confronted by everything she left behind.

I was not expecting a little magic that's in the book, but it made the nostalgia and hope really hit home. What if you could take a closer look at things that happened in your past and learn from them? You can't change the past, but you can use it to inform your future.

Get some tissues, get comfy, and lose yourself in this beautiful story where the main character gets everything she wants without having to sacrifice her happiness in the process.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for access to an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This was my favorite Erin La Rosa book to date! Super fun and playful concept - especially for the elder millennials among us. Sam is a strong, independent female protagonist (a pilot, so badass!) who returns to her small hometown in Georgia for an extended family visit only to reconnect with an old flame and be transported back to the early aughts through a magical mixed cd walkman. Chefs kiss concept, stellar story, and I really got a kick out of the nostalgic music and other pop culture references. This was a really fun and sweet story and the grandma’s dialogue was pure comedy! A must read!

Sam Leto left her small town a long time ago, leaving behind everything she knew to become a pilot. She gave up her home on Tybee Island and her best friend Damon Rocha, the boy she knew she loved but didn't stay for. Now, she's back in town helping her grandmother move into a retirement home. As she packs up her childhood room, memories flood back, making her wonder if she made the right choice.
While going through her things, she finds an old CD player with a mixtape Damon made for her. It plays without batteries and only for her. When she listens to it, she's transported to a different reality where she sees what could have happened if she chose Damon...

This book was a joy to read. Sam is a dreamer with a touch of pessimism, and her journey is filled with relatable moments. She grows a lot, and while her relationship with Damon is a big part of the story, it's not the only thing that defines her. Her struggles with family, guilt, and self-doubt make her a complex and believable character.
I loved how the story explored the idea of right person, wrong time. Sam and Damon weren't ready for each other when they were younger, but they grew into the people they were meant to be. This added a sense of romance, whimsy, and hope to the book.

I had a blast reading this book. It took the magic from 13 going on 30 and turned it into something deeper and at times a bit painful.
Sam Leto left her small town years ago leaving everything she knew behind to pursue her career as a pilot. In her pursuit of happiness, she ended up abandoning not only her home on Tybee island but her best friend Damon Rocha, the boy she she knew she loved but wouldn't allow herself to stay for.
Now, she's back in town helping her grandmother pack up her childhood home to move into a retirement facility and all of what she left behind is suddenly rushing back to her and she's left wondering if she made the right decision.
While packing her old room, she comes across an old CD player that holds the mixtape Damon made for her when they were teenagers. Something is strange though. It plays without any batteries and will only play for her. Even weirder, when she listens to track one, she is transported into an alternate reality in which she sees what would have happened if she gave her relationship with Damon a chance...

This book was a delightful read.
Sam is a pessimistic dreamer with a soundtrack full of relatability. She grows so much and her relationship with Damon, as much as it is a main plot point, is not the only way in which she finds herself. Her estranged relationship with her mother, the guilt she feels surrounding her grandmother, and the self doubt she faces every day make her nuanced and believable in the midst of the extraordinary.
When it comes to her past and present with Damon, I loved seeing how some situations really are right person wrong time. They weren't ready when they were teenagers (as is the case with most people of that age), and they were able to grow into the people they were meant to be before committing to a life and a love they weren't ready for. This brought so much whimsy, romance, and the truest feeling of hope to the page.

I hope everyone picks this book up because it was truly delightful.

2.5⭐️


La idea me pareció interesante, imagínate poder regresar a tu adolescencia y cambiar o hacer cosas que siempre quisiste, pero por cualquier razón no hiciste y te quedaste con el "y si hubiera". También me dio curiosidad por saber si era posible hacer que ese nuevo pasado se volviera permanentemente o ¿cuál era la finalidad de ver que hubiera pasado? Tristemente ni Sam ni Damon me parecieron personajes interesantes y me aburrieron.


Algo que me molestó mucho fue que en el presente Damon tenía novia y tanto a el como a se les olvidaba y se besaron. No me importa que en algún momento fueran los mejores amigos y que tenían sentimientos románticos por el otro, la infidelidad nunca la apoyaré. Después del beso, la novia terminó con él.


Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for and honest review.