I received an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Emma Lord is quickly becoming one of my favorite romance authors - mostly read her NA. For The Record is an adult romance. Both main love interests are established music successes in alternative/pop punk. McKenzie was in a girl band Thunder Hearts with her best friends, Serena & Hannah. Sam Blaze with Candy Shard, a pop punk group. They toured together for the height of popularity. There was an immediate frenemy/competition dynamic between McKenzie and Sam.

Now that members of Thunder Hearts have found other paths, and Sam is raising a son he discovered 2 years ago. McKenzie is thrown back into Sam's orbit. The record label wants them to put together a duet LP.

A lot of things can change in a month. While the beginning of the book was somewhat abrupt, I quickly got into these characters, their quirks, secrets and personalities, and their spark.

Thoroughly enjoyable if you are a music fan & also love romance. Some parent/child issues, artist vs. label ownership issues, health issues, not nothing too heavy for a summer book. 4.25/5☆ available August 12, 2025.

I went into this knowing Emma Lord is more YA so I found this enjoyable and fun to read. It knows what it is and is okay with that. Easy to read, fun at times, some good side characters. Overall—decent way to spend some time.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

An electrifying rom-com of rivalry, redemption, and rhythm, "For the Record" by Emma Lord hits all the right notes — and then some.

This was not my first Emma Lord book, and let's just say, it won’t be my last! I’m usually a bit hesitant about celebrity/popstar romances (they can veer into cringy or stereotypes territory), but For the Record manages to avoid all the usual pitfalls. Instead, it delivers a heartfelt second-chance romance that balances fun and feels in equal measure.

The Premise
Mackenzie Waters and Sam Blaze: once music rivals, always complicated. She’s a rising pop star grappling with a sudden vocal shift that threatens to derail her career; he’s an ex-rockstar who’s swapped tour buses for toddler toys. When their labels strong-arm them into recording an album together, old sparks start to fly — and not just the combative kind.

What follows is a story that blends banter, emotional vulnerability, and that delicious tension only ex-rivals-to-lovers can deliver. Forced proximity + musical collaboration = fireworks. There's also a really thoughtful exploration of female friendships when you go from being best friends/attached at the hip with your girlfriends to individuals figuring out how to lead their own lives without leaving each other behind.

What I Loved
🎶 Second chance romance with actual stakes.
🎶 Dual POVs that peel back the public personas and show you what’s really going on inside.
🎶 Found family and strong female friendships that ground the story beautifully.
🎶 A thoughtful arc of self-discovery, especially for Mackenzie.
🎶 That cozy, bingeable writing style that makes hours disappear. (I genuinely blinked and was at 80%. IYKYK.)

The chemistry between Sam and Mackenzie? Chef’s kiss. Watching them rediscover their connection, both musically and emotionally, was incredibly satisfying. And their creative process — messy, vulnerable, and electric — was a highlight.

Final Thoughts
For the Record gave what needed to be given. It’s a heartfelt, easy-to-devour rom-com that hits all the right beats for fans of Emily Henry or Daisy Jones & The Six. If you're into:

🥁 Second chances
🎤 Music industry drama
💘 Angsty, slow-burn chemistry
🎶 Pop meets rock energy
👯‍♀️ Solid female friendships
💡 A satisfying redemption arc

...then For the Record deserves a spot on your TBR.

4 starts because it left me smiling and swooning — and really, what more can you ask for?

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Thank you, St. Martin's Griffin and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with my ARC/ALC.

For the Record by Emma Lord is a fun second-chance romance between Mackenzie and Sam. They were former music rivals when their bands were pitted against each other to create more publicity. Years later, their label decides to have Sam and Mackenzie write music together, which is the backdrop for this enemies-to-lovers romance.

Read this book if you enjoy:
-Rockstar/Popstar romance
-Rivals-to-lovers
-Enemies-to-lovers
-Second-chance romance
-Playful banter
-Single dad
-Hashimoto's disease rep
-Secret identity
-Dual POV

3.5 This book was good. But I wanted to love it more. It felt more like a YA than an adult. They were acting very juvenile and talked about when they knew each other when were young. But, it was only 2 years ago. If this was marketed as a YA I would have rated it higher. Overall the general concept was good.

Mackenzie and Sam spent years on tour as “rival bands” playing into a “will they, won’t they” type relationship their record label pushed them into. When the bands break up and family obligations take precedence for Sam, they go two years without seeing each other and without making music publicly. They reunite to record music as a duet and explore the relationship they never have a chance.

Memories and discussions about their pasts during their time writing new music showed both Mack’s and Sam’s realizations about how they impacted each other’s pasts allowed them to grow to trust and love each other fully.

I enjoyed both Mackenzie’s found family with her former bandmates and Sam’s unconventional family.

And I always appreciate when the third act conflict in a romance is not a break up! Thank you Emma Lord! I loved how even though Sam felt the impact of the conduct in a more negative manner, he was concerned less for himself and his career and wanted the best for Mack.

Overall, this was a quick and enjoyable read. I’m not typically a huge fan of stories where the MCs are famous (there are exceptions of course), I enjoyed Emma Lord’s last book, The Break Up Pact, so I took a chance on For the Record, and am glad I did.

I truly wish this book came with a soundtrack!

I loved every second of Mackenzie and Sam’s second chance romance. From the popstar nostalgia to the steamy writing sessions in all their favorite haunts, this book had me hooked.

Thank you to St.Martins Press and NetGalley for this arc!

I thought this was a super cute second chance romance. I liked both Sam and Mack. I thought the characters were well written and that the storyline was pretty solid. I would recommend to anyone who wants a quick, cute rom com to read.

I couldn't finish this one, I wasn't buying the premise of their relationship (the enemies or the close connection) and the writing was hard to get through. I read about 25% before setting it aside.

“From the first damn day I was—so in over why head, the way I felt about you.”

For the Record by Emma Lord is a second chance romance that follows former pop star Mackenzie Waters and punk rock star Samuel Blaze.

The synopsis and the cover gave me high expectations but sadly they fell short. 25% into the book I wasn’t feel any chemistry or real love between the characters, keep in mind there should’ve at least been something, seeing as they dated previously. And when it came to them giving each other another chance, it all happened so quick leaving me confused. I had initially thought they started a friends with benefits agreement, but no they jumped straight into a relationship which was never really confirmed by either character.

There’s also the fact that because the characters got together so quickly there was still so much more left of the book which honestly bored me. I had lost interest because the characters were finally living there happily ever after again.

Honestly after seeing the tropes for Mack and Sam I thought I’d be getting an angsty second chance romance with yearning and true love, but instead I got a fast paced romance with secrets.

*Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and to the author, Emma Lord, for providing me with this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.*

I'm so glad I had the opportunity to listen to an ALC of this book as I really think it added an extra spark to the slow burn of the story. Sam and Mack have both had separate experiences that have shaped their lives and them into the artists they are today. I loved that that a comeback is what drew them back together, kind of bringing them full circle. I could feel the spark between them and their love story is a fresh take on second chance romance.

I really enjoyed this second chance romance story. I thought the characters were well written. I really enjoyed the banter and chemistry between the two main characters, Sam and Mackenzie. There were some really emotional parts to this story, and they were really well done. The story also had a found family element, that really tugged on my heartstrings. I think everything about this book worked really well.



Thank you St. Martin's Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

For the Record was a fun contemporary romance with great main characters. Mackenzie and Sam had an interesting and complicated history, and I liked how they both grew and changed over the course of the story. Sam really stood out to me. His relationship with his son added so much depth to his character, and I liked how his past with his own father tied into that. And the way he felt about Mackenzie? Swoon! His feelings were pretty clear from the beginning, and I liked how steady he felt throughout the story. Mackenzie’s struggles with her voice and her career gave her arc some depth, too, and even though she’s a celebrity, her personal challenges felt very grounded and realistic.

The romance, of course, was my favorite part of the story. So good!! I liked the dual POV more than I expected to, especially getting to see Sam’s side of things. It didn’t feel overly dramatic or too perfect, which I enjoyed, especially because it's a second-chance romance, which isn't always my favorite trope. There was tension between the couple, and they definitely had things to work out and get through, but the connection between them is so strong. It's clear there are unfinished feelings between them.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

First Line: If you think your love life is a disaster, I’m here to make you feel a whole lot better about yourself.

Reasons to Read:
Rivalry Romance
Sam and Mackenzie went from enemies on tour to almost-lovers off stage, and now they have to make music together again—sparks, snark, and second chances guaranteed.


Hidden Identity
Mackenzie’s vocal surgery leaves her performing in secret under a new name, adding an emotional edge to her comeback and raising the stakes for revealing her truth.


Single Dad Twist
Sam’s rockstar past is behind him—now he's balancing fatherhood and fame, adding heart and depth to every lyric they write.


Comeback Collab
A joint album forces two former rivals to confront what really broke them—and whether they’re ready to rewrite their story together, one track at a time.



Good For People Who: like books about music, enemies to lovers, Dual POV

Rating: 4 records

Thoughts: Emma Lord has written some of my favorite YA Contemporary books and I have noticed while those have an element of theater, her adult ones seem to have an element of music. It was fun getting inside the heads of Sam and Mack, and seeing the dad that Sam is trying to be. Mack as a character was one of those I felt needed to know more about why things happened in her head, because to me some of her decisions didn’t make as much sense as Sam. Overall, I thought it was a quick and fun read.

Thank you, St Martin’s Press and Libro.fm, for my #gifted copies.

I love a good Singer/Songwriter story, and this second-chance romance was about Sam and McKenzie, both Singer/Songwriters who played in different bands. Sam and McKenzie's managers set them up to fake date for publicity early in their careers, but something happened, and they haven’t seen each other for years, giving their hard feelings some time to grow.

With both of their careers needing a little boost, their managers suggest they work together again, writing songs. The story has a bit of a “then and now” style to learn the background of their story.

Their banter is what made them famous early on, and the more time they spent together, the easier it was to fall right back into their old groove. I loved the chemistry they had from the beginning, after the years of familiarity, even if it had that "Rivals" tone to begin with. The more time they spent together, their years of regret and maturity took it to a whole new level. We got glimpses into songwriting, and the lyrics in the song shared so many tender and swoony moments between the two of them.

The story explored complicated family relationships and shone in protecting the family you choose.

The dual audiobook narrators were chosen perfectly for these characters. Their performance enhanced the story. I HIGHLY recommend the audio on this one!

Romance Content: 2 Open-door scenes

Closed-door Modification: Ch. 19 & 24 (end)

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martins Press for the early access read in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Honestly, this book was a pleasant surprise. When I started it, I was a little overwhelmed because you are put in right when things are getting hectic. At first I thought I missed something but I was quickly brought up to speed and felt like part of the story. The way this story is written, I felt like I knew all of their songs throughout, which is really powerful. Having a song I’ve never heard stuck in my head is a talent not a lot of authors have.
I also loved the romance side of everything. These two have had such a history and to watch their story continue to develop was such a fun journey. I think this story also has enough potential to be a really fun series with the rest of Thunder Hearts, and I hope that comes to fruition!

Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin for early review copy.

Emma Lord's sophomore adult romance follows two musicians, Sam and Mackenzie, as they collaborate on an album. Two years before, Sam was the lead in a pop punk band, and Mackenzie was a singer in a girl group. The two were pitted against each other by their labels, for their will they/won't they tension. Now, the two are reconciling unresolved feelings and working through their past to write new songs.

This book was a delight, with great characterization of our two leads.

Probably 3.5 stars. I loved the dual POV and the book was easy to read in one sitting. Both Sam and Mackenzie were great main characters, I liked how Mackenzie shined in the spotlight without ever seeking it out and how Sam essentially put his life on hold for his son. I enjoyed the side characters, Ben, Serena, and Hannah. The relationship between Mackenzie and Serena felt so special and I wanted to see more of that dynamic. Sam and Mackenzie's journey through some of their haunts were interesting, especially because of their past, so it was good to see how and why each place was special to them and the memories associated with each location. Their past is so complicated, it'd be hard to distinguish what's real and what's fake for a normal person and way harder for anyone living in the public spotlight.

*Dual POV
*Rivals to lovers
*Second chance (kind of)
*Music industry

For the Record follows former music rivals Mackenzie and Sam as they reunite for a joint comeback album, only to discover that their past sparks and unresolved feelings might lead to more than just a chart-topping hit.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

With witty writing and plenty of tension-filled run-ins, For the Record delivers a cute, music-fueled second chance romance. While the characters could have been more fully developed, the heartwarming moments and fun behind-the-scenes band dynamics make it an enjoyable read, especially for fans of the messy, musical world of fame.

Cute romance with an enemies to lovers trope surrounding the music industry. Friendship, family drama, nepotism babies, and open door scenes. Fun summer read!