This book was a cute romance of two rival bands who have all gone separate ways over the last two years. Until one night Sam and Mack bump into eachother at where their love story kind of began.

I enjoyed the HEA in this book and the way Emma made all the minor characters stand out. It was more of a slow pace for me but once it got me hooked I was in and loved the added spice to it. Sam and Mack truely were meant for each-other after going through life without eachother.

For the Record was a solid read, but it didn’t fully click for me. I liked the second chance romance angle, and the whole former rival rock stars thing was fun. Mackenzie’s journey, especially with the thyroid disorder representation, was a nice touch—it’s not something you see often, and it felt really meaningful.

There were some moments I enjoyed—like the dual POVs and the songwriting parts—but overall, the pacing felt a little uneven. Some parts dragged, and others moved too fast. I also didn’t totally buy the deep love between the main characters—it felt more told than shown, which made it harder to feel really connected to their story.

That said, I did like the ending and the way things came together for them. It had a sweet vibe and some emotional payoff. I think if you’re into low-drama, music-centered romances, this might work better for you. Just didn’t totally hit the mark for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the advanced copy.

4.5/5 stars

Wow, I really enjoyed this book.

The characters? The romance? The drama? I loved it all! The final few chapters pulled at my heartstrings. I loved the love story and I also loved Mackenzie’s story of redemption.

And I also really loved the inclusion of Mackenzie’s thyroid disorder. I’ve never seen my illness represented in a book and it just made me feel really seen, especially as hypothyroidism is so often invisible.

I love Emma Lord’s dive into adult fiction and am so eager to see what she does next.

Thank you to the publisher for an advance copy!

Emma Lord’s enemies to lovers tale has all the best moments—music, drama, redemption, and even a precocious six year old. The only thing it’s missing is a Mack & Sam playlist. Add this book to your TBR. It’s golden.

Pub Date 8/12/25

#emmalord
#fortherecord
#netgalley
#enemiestolovers

Rockstar/Popstar rivals-to-lovers, second chance romance? Yes, please! I enjoyed this book from start to end, and Emma Lord’s signature style (cuteness+banter?! If you’ve read her YA books then you’ll know) all over.

I appreciated all the other parts of the book beyond the relationship between the two MCs as well. Such as female friendships, found family, and their journeys of self discovery.

Thank you for the ARC!

Five full stars. I loved this book so much! Mack and Sam 4Eva! Two former rival rock stars reconnect two years after whatever their relationship was ended. They had both gone through a lot during that time and brought all of their past to create a different future. I’m a sucker for a rock star romance and it’s even better when they’re both rock stars! I appreciated the level of maturity included in this story. I worried that the secrets would blow everything up in toxic ways which would make their story the worse kind of contemporary romance formula. Instead, adults behaved like adults and I was there for every single minute of it. I can’t wait for the audiobook to release so I can listen to the story again!
*Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review! I’m usually a fan of Emma Lord’s books, but this second chance romance between rival rockstars fell flat for me. I just could not relate to either MC and the fact that Sam Blaze ( who must be referred to always by first and last name) and would not stop calling Mackenzie Waters sparkles was just too much. The writing was just too cheesy for me (lots of blaze/water puns). DNF @ 40%.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.

This was a fun second chance romance and I enjoyed the “enemies” (which was really just disguised mutual pining) to lovers. The banter between the main characters was great, and letting each other see their fears and flaws, and who they really were was so well done. This was my first Emma Lord, but it won’t be my last.

This was such a cute story! A little bit enemies to lovers and a little bit second chance romance. They are both stubborn though....so it takes a little while for them to accept it. I would recommend this book. Read pop princess MacKenzie and punk rock star Sam's story. Their adventures of working together again and drama with friends and family.

I love Emma Lord and consume every book she puts out. She’s so good at building up the romances and giving great backstories to her characters, and slow burns/enemies to lovers always work when she does them. I loved this book!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin Press for a copy of an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

To be completely honest with you all, this took me much longer to read than I initially expected it would. I sincerely thought that with the title of this that I would be hooked instantly, but sadly that wasn’t the case. Don’t get me wrong this was a nice enjoyable read but I somehow thought I needed a bit more. This book is a nice second chance romance with two former music rivals.

This is told with dual point of views which is one of the favorite things this had to offer. The little rival moments was also needed and the way we got a bit of flashback of how they once was great.

Truthfully. There was times when it felt a little flat, with some parts feeling a bit slow and others feeling a bit fast paced. The book is great if you want something with not too much drama and may be a quick read for you. This isn’t too bad, but not my overall favorite.

I finished this book up on April 10, 2025. It was so good!

The plot and the love story within really kept me entertained as I devoured this book. I'll leave my goodreads review below.

Thank you for allowing me to enjoy and review early! I hope you have the best release day in August!!

I’m often wary of the second chance romance trope, but this one worked! Everything was definitely bolstered by the setting here but Sam and Mack were cute as heck. My one complaint (which is purely subjective) is that at times it did lean YA— not a bad thing just not my preference! Overall cute and would recommend:

I was excited to receive a complimentary copy of For the Record by Emma Lord from NetGalley. Opinions in this review are completely my own.

First of all, I loved this book. I have loved all of Emma Lord's books so far and have a number of them in my classroom. This one has a slightly more YA feel to it than some of her other novels. I loved the feel of redemption for Sam that this book had. It was obvious that their relationship had not worked in the past, so it was nice to see how he had changed and grown to get to a place where he was ready for a relationship. I felt kind of sad how their relationship had been manipulated in the past, so it was nice to see them rebuild their friendship.

The book definitely gave Daisy Jones and the Six vibes. I loved the idea of them getting together to write a joint album that would be the comeback they both needed.

Mack and Sam were in popular rival bands, with fans notoriously and loudly rooting for them to get together. When the bands fell apart, so did any hope of their relationship – this was a really creative take on the rivals to lovers trope.

We get to watch them navigate life after this high and decide what they really WANT to do – and whether or not that includes a joint comeback album.

The story had Emma’s signature style and sweets (by way of Sweet Harmony Bakery), and I think it will be such a fun summer read for fans of Taylor Swift, Daisy Jones and the Six, and sugary sweet romances.

I am a die hard fan of Emma Lord’s YA novels, and I think she keeps getting better with her adult novels – I’m eager to see what she does next.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the e-arc!

My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice Rating: 🌶️
Book boyfriend ranking: 18/54

The way I put this book off because it was my first time reading an Emma Lord book makes no sense because I flew through this sweet romance. I think I read it in under 24 hours.

You’ve got a single dad, a semi second chance romance, found family, and yearning! There is a bit of miscommunication but it didn’t bother me too much because it made sense why the characters were making those decisions.

This book has all the things that make a good romance. I had a great time reading this and would recommend to those who are fans of Emily Henry, Ashley Poston, Kristina Forest, and Annabel Monaghan.

Thank you to NetGalley, St Martins Press, and Emma Lord for the advanced readers copy. All opinions are my own!

*Posted to Goodreads, will be on TikTok, Instagram, and Lemon8 within two weeks*

I love musical themed books and this one was no exception! It was so sweet and the characters were so relatable! Ugh!! love!!

I don’t usually love books with “celebrity” main characters but I enjoyed this one! The characters did feel a little juvenile at times despite being full on adults. But I did enjoy the second chance romance. Also love a romance book that also showcases platonic love and female friendship!

2.75 ⭐️⭐️💫
Thank you NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review. I wanted to like this book, it has the second chance romance trope that I love. The FMC is Taylor Swift-esque, what more could you want. Unfortunately, the story telling struggled from a case of “Tell Don’t Show”. There was so much unnecessary narration and we were given a wall of information that could have more easily been achieved by “showing” the audience with a scene. The excess information did nothing to add to the story and halted the momentum. I found it hard to want to keep reading.

A main issue I had with the book is the FMC and MMC are secretly in love with each other since they were in two rival groups, but why? It is clearly explained that they were always horny for each other, but there is no reason to believe they share any kind of genuine love. And it made the FMC’s heartbreak all the more baffling. Additionally, I felt the sexual tension was lacking. I think the book would have benefited from a flash forward/flash back motif throughout. It would have solved the issue of telling not showing, and we could have seen more reasons why the FMC/MMC were supposedly in love the entire time. I had other issues with the story as a whole, but I think it’s pointless to bash on a story.

I do think the author succeeded in delivering a satisfying end and when the FMC and MMC are “together” as a couple, I did appreciate the tenderness between the couple.

Ultimately it wasn’t a horrible book, but it wasn’t my favorite.

Rating: 5 stars 🌟

Thank you to @netgalley @dilemmalord and @stmartinspress for the opportunity to read the eARC of this book!

Spoiler free review :)
The pining. The banter. The ROMANCE!! I cannot mean it more when I say this book is a MUST READ!!! It was the perfect amount of sweet and funny, gave me all of the feels and has definitely earned a spot in my top 5 favorite books of all time.
I loved the dynamic between the FMC and the MMC, the fact that they both have their own conflicts and support each other through them. At the center of everything, they don’t let their fears completely hold them back from living and from joy and I LOVE THAT FOR THEM ❤️ The found family aspect of the book also makes my heart squeeze, I definitely shed a few tears over the course of my journey with this book.

This book absolutely stole my heart. Please support @dilemmalord and get this book, available on August 12, 2025. 🫶🏻