Heat Index: 6/10

—celebrity romance

—former haters to almost lovers to...?

—oh the travails of social media

The Basics:

People were once obsessed with pop girly Mackenzie Waters and punk frontman Samuel Blaze, desperate to see if their onstage clashes (and chemistry) would lead to anything real. But then Sam found out he had a son and disappeared from the scene, while Mackenzie's girl group broke up, her voice changed, and she's stuck uploading songs anonymously and trying to get up the courage to restart. When the two of them meet up again, the spark remains. But is there anything to be done about it?

The Review:

I'll be honest—I don't have a lot to say about this book because it didn't leave a huge positive or negative impression on me. But if you notice the marketing selling it as "Emily Henry meets Daisy Jones and The Six" just... know it's a lot more Emily Henry than Daisy Jones. Albeit a bit steamier than the Emily Henry books I've read.

This premise sets up a romcom, sure—if you want it to. But you can have a romcom with a good deal of drama and tension. You can have both! And I know you can have both, because I've been reading some older romcoms that have both. This is very much in the vein of newer romcoms (and it's not fair to be surprised, I guess) wherein there's like... not a lot of tension. It's pleasant, it's nice.

But this premise isn't pleasant or nice. This premise suggests friction that just isn't there. There isn't any serious antipathy from Mackenzie or Sam. They're both pretty solid, pretty normal people (to be honest, I found his mildness a bit unbelievable for a former punk guy, but sure).

Everything in this book just felt kind of sanitized for the premise, which will work for a lot of people... but didn't work for me. I wanted more. Again, it really didn't bother me. It just didn't light me up, either.

The Sex:

There are a couple of sex scenes, which are explicit, but not especially memorable for me.

The Conclusion:

I do believe this will work for Emily Henry fans, and I do think it will work for many contemporary romance fans. For me, it was mid.

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

For fans of second chance, pop star romances, For the Record will have you hooked! Mackenzie and Sam toured together with their bands over two years ago, and had a famous rivalry that fed their fans. Now, they’ll team up again to restart their careers and revisit their past in order to wrote new songs together.

I loved both Mackenzie and Sam’s POVs and seeing how they had grown since their prior experiences together. They both matured a lot, Sam having to take responsibility being a dad, and Mack with her health issues. They handled their problems like adults which was a nice turn of events!

The romantic relationship between Mack and Sam was so hot! This book is filled with chemistry and banter, making sure I turned each page for more. Obviously Mack and Sam had past feelings for each other, but I really enjoyed how they got to know each other all over again in a new light.

Both also have strong friendships and their own found families supporting them throughout the book which I loved! Ben was such a fun character and brought a lot of laughs to the story. The relationship Sam had with Ben’s moms was so cute, and showed great co-parenting skills.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars!

This was so fun! It was definitely a bit cheesy. The characters were super likable and their chemistry was palpable. I loved them rediscovering old memories and places from their past. It was unique and played into understanding them as characters. Pop star girlfriend, rock star boyfriend never goes out of style. Add in single father trope? Automatically a yes from me!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for the ARC!

It was cute, it was fun, it was a rom com. Super easy, really fluff but the characters were fun and it was a complete brain break I really needed. Great summer read.

Former pop group member Emma is in the process of relaunching her career by posting songs anonymously on a popular app. Former punk rockstar Sam’s band toured with Emma and the two had an on-stage tension filled rivalry before he left the group to raise his son. The two decide to join forces to make the final leap into officially reentering the music business.

I have seen Emma’s books before at the bookstore but this is the first one I’ve read. I think I like the idea of this book more than the execution. A second chance romance between two former pop stars who toured together sounds great, but it just didn’t go far enough on some of the plot points. I really struggled with the romance. Their past was doing all the heavy lifting and I felt essentially no tension chemistry beyond friendship between the two as adults. This was a classic case of telling but not showing. Additionally, there were too many side characters that needed their page time and the transition between the timelines was confusing without any sort of markers or breaks on page between the transitions. I’m open to trying one of Emma’s books again in the future but it will have to be one I’m truly interested in.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this novel--it's so engagingly written, and though the tropes are there--second chance romance, past hurts and misunderstandings, star-crossed lovers, celebrity love interests, the cruelty of social media--within the context of the genre, I found the characters endearing and their struggles with family and friends believable. The arc of the romance is great, and the working out of other relationship problems, notably in the friendship among the female main character and her bandmates, is also convincing and adds interest to the story. The pace is good, and the structure, organized by the names of songs written by the protagonists, keeps the story moving and provides great romantic tension. I'm adding Emma Lord to my list of must-read authors.

Title: For the Record  
Author: Emma Lord     
Genre: Romance   
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Once the most notorious rivals in the music scene, pop princess Mackenzie Waters and punk rockstar Sam Blaze electrified audiences as their bands clashed on stage. But behind the scenes, their simmering tension grew into something more — until suddenly both bands fell apart, and the idea of Mackenzie and Sam did, too.

Two years later, Sam has traded the rockstar lifestyle for a quiet life raising the son he didn’t know about. Meanwhile, Mackenzie is dealing with a postoperative change in her voice by only singing under a pseudonym. The only way to revive their public careers? A joint comeback album.

With fans over the moon and their futures on the line, Sam and Mackenzie face their biggest challenge yet: giving up the old rivalry and learning to work together. But as old sparks fly and new secrets emerge, they set off a chain reaction neither of them could have anticipated — one that proves that sometimes, the greatest hits are the ones yet to be written.

This was such a cute read! I enjoyed every page. Both Sam and Mackenzie are both determined to dislike each other again, even though it wasn’t really dislike last time. I enjoyed seeing scenes from the past through the eyes of the present, and how much both characters had truly grown and changed. Loved all the secondary characters, too, especially Ben and his “dessert” creations.

Emma Lord is a bestselling author. For the Record is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin's Press | St. Martin's Griffin in exchange for an honest review.)

(Blog link live 8/12).

I really wanted to enjoy this book. The premise had so much potential but the execution didn’t work for me. This read more like a young adult novel than an adult novel, which isn’t a bad thing- but the characters lacked emotional depth and maturity I was looking for. I also felt as though I was told that the two main characters had chemistry and were in love with each other but I didn’t actually ever feel it.

It was a light and easy read and someone who enjoys a light read may enjoy this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced copy of “For The Record” in exchange for my honest review.

3.75⭐️ Really enjoyed this second chance romance. Absolutely loved Sam’s character and growth throughout the book. I don’t think Mackenzie’s was as developed as I would have liked so I wasn’t always rooting for her. It was a lot of talk about her past but not a lot of what actually happened. I needed less vague storylines and more actual details. Overall a fun read with great banter and some spice!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC of this book!

I have yet to meet an Emma Lord book that does not make me smile the entire time I am reading it. She has a tremendous ability to write lovable, funny characters and storylines that don't feel contrived. For the Record is so cute! I loved the music/rock and pop star setup, I loved the inclusion of of many friends and family members, and I loved that the main characters' paths to and from each other felt genuine vs. forced and kind of dumb. I think readers who enjoyed the music background of books like Daisy Jones and the Six but want a rom-com will love this book! Mack and Sam will have you rooting for them on and off the stage!

Dual POV, second chance romance. I liked Mackenzie, but I think I enjoyed Sam more in this book. It felt like he had a little bit more depth, whereas Mackenzie repeatedly talked about her broken heart and former relationships but we never got more than a general summary of why she had to work through letting all of them go. The famous musician aspect was fun. This book calls itself a second chance romance, however the two main characters didn't actually get together the first time? It just seemed like a lot of tension and one kiss. Either way, I thought the book was a fun read.

I'm a sucker for a second chance romance and I ate this one up in a day! I loved that this offered the dual perspectives of Mackenzie and Sam, two former rockstars looking to make a comeback after personal reasons have kept them out of the spotlight. There was great banter between the characters, some emotional moments, and the perfect amount of spice. And that ending brought tears to my eyes!

This book had lots of potential with the typical rom-com vibes, but it felt too cheesy at some points. I loved the duel narrative and the spark between main characters Mackenzie and Sam. For the Record was a good book--just didn't blow me away. Thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC of this book!

For the Record is a slow burn, second chancenemies to lovers romance set in the world of music. MacKenzie was part of a disbanded girl group and Sam was a punk rocker who walked away from music to spend time with his son. This book was poignant and heartfelt. It touched on the meaning of family and true success. Mac and Sam were amazing. A definite 5 star read!

For The Record, I thought this was a really fun read! (See what I did there 🤪) It was sweet and steamy, but also dealt with some real life issues gracefully. My favorite part was all of the characters and the found family relationships. I really enjoyed reading this book and would definitely recommend!

I was given an advanced copy of this book. All opinions expressed above are my own.
For The Record releases on August 12, 2025.

Premise:
Sam and Mackenzie were rival pop stars years ago, but after life-altering events, both faded from the spotlight. Now, years later, they’re thrown back into each other’s orbit. Has enough time passed—and have they grown enough—for old tension to transform into something deeper?

Review:
I really wanted to enjoy this book, but unfortunately, it didn’t land for me. It took me much longer to finish than usual, and I found myself struggling to stay engaged. The story lacked the emotional pull and momentum I look for in a great romance. I never quite felt that “just one more chapter” urge that keeps me up at night. While the premise had potential, it just didn’t deliver the punch I was hoping for.

I loved Emma Lord's Tweet Cute so was excited to check out an adult read from her. This book took me a bit to get into and understand the dynamics of the characters as well as the music site that is at a center of the story. I would say this isn't enemies to lovers as it's pretty easy to see that the characters respected and were interested in each other from the start. The enemies piece was a push from their music label to build drama around their bands as they toured together. This was a quick and enjoyable read but some of the writing felt too wordy and the plot slowed down in the middle. 3.5 stars

JUST FOR THE RECORD is my first Emma Lord book, and I can see why she has such a loyal following of readers. I enjoyed the book because its a good story and fleshed out characters, even if some of the pacing was off for me personally.

I thought the story was a good one and the time devoted to ensuring the audience cared and understood the characters was something a lot of second chance romance authors struggle with. Here, it was done solidly and I cared about these characters. That’s not always an easy balance to maintain.

While I enjoyed those aspects, the middle did seem to drag a bit. The author wanted us to really connect to these characters and it slowed down the pacing of the book. Some conversations were just unnecessarily long and deep. Additionally, there were some parts that weren’t as cohesive. There was just too much trying to tie together plot wise.

Overall, this is a good book that I did enjoy reading. If you love second chance romances, celebrity romances, and slow burns, this is for you!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Emma Lord’s For the Record is a beautiful, emotionally resonant story about second chances—both in music and in life. Sam and Mackenzie, former famous rockstars turned dad and anonymous solo artist, are brought back together for a duet album after personal setbacks—his sudden transition into fatherhood, her quiet battle with a chronic illness—forced them to walk away from the spotlight.

Their chemistry crackles from the first page, not just romantically, but creatively. Watching them rediscover their passion for music—and each other—feels like witnessing the behind-the-scenes magic of your favorite song. Lord perfectly captures the vulnerability of reinvention and the pressure of fame, all while delivering her signature wit and charm. I especially loved the flashbacks to their famous days.

At its heart, For the Record is a love story—not just between two people, but between artists and their craft, and between who we were and who we choose to become. This is Emma Lord at her most mature and most moving. A must-read for fans of music, romance, and finding your voice all over again.

Mackenzie and Sam, former rivals from two different bands, have been out of the spotlight for two years. However, they want to revive their careers and the only way the record companies will do so is if they work together. Their “thing” was always will they or won’t they, and this time they want to focus on the music.

I thought this was a cute and fun read! It was a mild enemies to lovers trope but you could tell from the beginning there was still some respect. I felt, at times, the writing was wordy but ultimately got the gist!