Clem has spent years caring for her sick mother, putting her own dreams aside. But when she’s offered a chance to tour as a vocalist for rising star Thomas Patrick Halloran, she’s forced to step out of her comfort zone. Tom is no typical rockstar—introverted, magnetic, and mysterious—and their connection is undeniable. As Clem struggles between love and her responsibilities, she must decide if she deserves a shot at her musical dreams.

A passionate, electrifying romance with an unforgettable connection. Highly recommend this one!

I received an eARC of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was okay. It was a bit boring in that the story has been done before and so I found it quite predictable. Normally that wouldn't be necessarily a bad thing, but I think the CONSTANT mentions of how big and tall our MMC was compared to our FMC had already gotten me agitated. This is also an age gap book which I'm not a huge fan of either. The ending was so silly to me because it was obvious what our "villain" was doing, and the naivety of FMC was just unbelievable to me. If you have spent all this time with this man and getting to know him plus the literal conversation that was just had between FMC and MMC, I feel like you need to work harder and be more manipulative to pull off the narrative she was trying to spin. This book also did a lot of tell and not show. Overall, it was okay. If the big and tall vs tiny little doll with Bambi eyes thing doesn't irritate the hell out of you then you might enjoy this book.

Overall, I loved this book. The relationship between Clementine and Tom was so sweet. The only thing I didn't enjoy was the third act breakup (I understand why it happened, but I just don't like those) and the scene at the end in the storm. Despite that, I will absolutely be recommending this book to my romance book clubs, patrons, and especially Hozier fans.

I am OBSESSED. This book was potentially the best book I've read this year. It's a rockstar romance, but its so poetic? and beautiful? and just amazing!
I'm ready to read all things Kate Golden now.

If you handed me a cinnamon roll hero with alpha vibes and said “don’t get attached,” I’d laugh, cry, and get immediately attached. Kate Golden delivers another swoony, fantasy-infused romance packed with political tension, emotional gut punches, and a big, soft man who falls first, falls hard, and would burn the world for his found family. If Not for My Baby is angsty, tender, and full of that aching slow-burn payoff we crave.

I actually do need more books like this! I love a celebrity/normal person romance. This one was lovely and surprisingly low on the angst, but didn’t quite hit the right notes for me in the end.

To be honest, I thought the uncanny likeness to Hozier a little off-putting (yes, I know it’s inspired by him, but it’s like… very identical in a way I wasn’t quite expecting!!). I get people’s criticisms on this aspect of the book being a hard no for them. Besides that, I think the plot was good! It was really easy to read and I finished it so, so quickly. Perhaps my biggest issue with this book was Clementine being really stubborn on denying herself happiness and jumping to MASSIVE conclusions that were exhausting. By the end, I did really like her character growth though, and thought that the insights in this book were really beautiful.

I lowkey wish that this was more slow burn and less insta-love (my LEAST favorite trope), but it was nice to read about a couple who just got each other immediately and then couldn’t get each other out of their heads. Tom Holloran was a swoonworthy MMC!!! It was a fun read even if it just fell short of my expectations but I would recommend!

Thank you so much to Berkley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

This book may be a new favorite for me. Clem and Tom were such a sweet couple, and it reminded me of my own romance, honestly. I think it made me even fonder of them and their slow burn and peaceful love. I loved so many of the side characters too! And seeing the world through Clem’s eyes as she traveled for the very first time was so sweet. I shed a few tears for their gentle love, if I’m honest. I’m genuinely already recommending this to people and it’s not even out yet!

God I love a rockstar romance!! This had me so giddy and giggly the other time. I’ll admit I do not know a too much Hoozier, however, I want to know more after this book! Tom was such a top tier character. Gorgeous, talented, patient, kind, so Swoony!! Then there was Clem, just a girl who was a waitress and always thought of others before herself. I wanted to shake her from time to time with her self sabotage but she grew so much as a character!!

I love the found family of this little band. They welcomed Clem in with open arms and showed her the ropes from the start.

Thank you so much Berkley and Kate for giving me a chance to read this early!!! You definitely have a fan in me!!

4✨
1.5🌶️

So this was a good book and was very different from what I was expecting, after reading the Sacred Stones trilogy. It shows that Kate Golden is a very adaptable author and is well versed in different genres. I am rating this 3 starts, because unfortunately I did not finish this book. The further that I read, the more I just realized it wasn't for me. I kept thinking how similar it was to Hozier (which i know that was the inspiration of the book) but the parallels almost felt intrusive they were so similar.

I tried to stay open minded about IF NOT FOR MY BABY, but I could not, in good conscience, recommend this novel. I am an American woman of color and some of the cultural references felt very off so I did some research. Several Irish readers found the content if not stereotypical then insulting. I also saw people concerned about the ethics of writing this, inspired by a real person. This is someone’s fantasy about another living celebrity. Would it be okay if a man wrote such a book about a famous woman he had a crush on? That’s for readers to decide, and I can’t speak to the accuracy of the Irish cultural references, but I kept being taken out of the novel and distracted by the story elements and not in a good way.

THIS BOOK!! When I say I was tempted to call out of work to stay home and read I am not even kidding.

The yearning!! This man was so down bad for Clementine that I couldn't handle it.

Clementine is a cynic to her core, after seeing her single mum go from deadbeat to deadbeat after being lovelorn over her father who left, Clementine has no desire for romantic love. She does, however, love to sing and act. When a series of events leads to her being the new backup singer for Halloran (a fanfic inspired version of Hozier) Clementine is thrust on a multi-week tour across the states. Along the way she gets to explore for the first time, and ends up having a deep connection with Halloran.

Since she is a cynic to her core, Clementine continues to refuse anything more with the 6'6 IRISH GOD thats again, so down bad for her that he's holed up writing love songs. This was the one unrealistic part for me - as a cynic myself, if that man called me a gothic forest goddess I would be falling at his feet.

Go read and fall in love - you wont regret it

'Live, laugh, love', but make it 'giggle, scream, cry'
Devoured this one

I am a huge Hozier fan, so I was initially drawn to this story because it's supposedly loosely based on the singer. I admit that I was a little on the fence about it, as it felt rather invasive to write an almost 'fanfiction' romance about a real-life person, but I think the MC is different enough to be distinguished from the real artist. The influence is certainly there, but it's no carbon-copy.

OMG, absolutely devoured this book. I am not much of a contemporary romance girly, but this book was something ELSE! I absolutely loved the Sacred Stones trilogy and Kate Golden's work, so of course I had to read this, too, and I am so glad I did!

Clementine is so funny and relatable, Indy is THE girl's girl, and Halloran is just perfect. I love how we got to see Clementine's character development. The world building 5 stars, the characters 5 stars, and the plot 5 stars. Loved every second of it and am so thankful for receiving an ARC!

If Hozier had a romance - it would be this one.

Precisely what I was hoping for! I really enjoyed Kate Golden's fantasy series (The Sacred Stones), so I knew I would enjoy her writing—and I'm glad I listened to my instincts. I devoured this one from start to finish because it's exactly what I needed it to be.

There were so many amazing moments between our main couple, and I really loved how our heroine, Clementine, grew. It's really hard to meet someone who feels so right at such a pivotal moment in your life—figuring out so many things at once is NOT easy. Clementine's strength and humility were such a joy to read!

I'm excited for whatever Golden writes next! I received this book for free, but all thoughts are my own. ALSO, THAT COVER?! I will be ordering a copy!

Where do i start with this

MY GOODNESS THIS WAS AMAZING

I was balling my eyes out, laughing and feeling 100 percent apart of this amazing story ♥️

Once I had finished it was like where does my life go from here?

The love, fears, heartbreak and passion that went into this was next level and come on who can love Clem- just the name is perfection.

This is the happy ending we all wish for but are so happy to watch others have.

There have been some horrible reviews on this book but please do not judge by that! I actually read this book and it was a work of art!

This book is not without flaws, but I could not put it down.

The plot had me hooked from the start. A small town waitress, who had to turn down admission to Berklee College of Music to care for her chronically ill mother, unexpectedly gets the opportunity to tour as a backup singer for the brilliant, ethereal rock star Halloran. I love stories where both main characters are artists who find inspiration in each other, and this book did that well.

Set on the most anticipated tour in years, this book has a great cast of entertaining side characters. The male main character, Tom Halloran, is enchanting and magnetic. I will say that there’s a fine line between a character inspired by a real person and fan fiction about a real person, and this book definitely toes that line. There were a few times I felt the male lead may have been teetering into fan fiction territory, but I think the author managed to keep him on the right side of the line.

The female main character, Clementine, started this book as somewhat unlikable. As the story progresses it becomes apparent why she is the way she is, and she does recognize her issues and has some growth. She’s quite insecure and a bit immature, and I would have liked to see more development from her. Other than her voice, I did have a bit of trouble figuring out what Tom saw in her. He says he loves her kindness, but we don’t see a lot of evidence of this kindness. She certainly didn’t treat her ex/best friend/friend with benefits very kindly, and her thoughts toward female Halloran fans she perceives as groupies aren’t very kind either. But she did have some very kind and understanding moments, and at times seemed quite insightful - despite her tendency to make assumptions and act based on those assumptions.

I would recommend this book for those who like sweet and angsty rockstar romances, gentle male leads, and Irish accents.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkeley providing a digital ARC for an honest review.

If Not for My Baby by Kate Golden
5 stars

arc read
pub date | 8/05/2025

Tropes:

💘 Hopeless Romantic Guy & Doesn’t Believe in Love Girl
🎸 Hozier Inspired Romance
🤫 Sneaking Around
💬 Late Night Sexting
👿 “Get Your Hands off of Her”
🇮🇪 Irish Accent
🚍 Found Family on a Tour Bus
🫶🏻 He Falls First

Okay so so so hear me out, yet another top freaking read of 2025. I was obsessed with this story from page one. Have never fallen so fast for an MMC. I also really love that the MMC was Irish but the writing was not overly exaggerating in the accent.

Our FMC has grown up taking care of her ill mother and never does anything for herself. She has dreams but why would she even peruse them when she has a mother to take care of and doesn't believe in love anyways. Until an opportunity presents itself that helps her mom but it also opens up some doors for her dreams as well,maybe. *Insert golden retriever 6 ft + taller than an oak tree isolated irish man here*

Just a chef's kiss to all the characters wrote in the story, they were all so different and easy to connect with and understand, it really made the new found family trop excel in my opinion. I just had all the emotions while reading this which always makes a book ten times better for me.

Um, not me finishing this book in a day!? And let me give you an example as to why... "𝑷𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆. 𝐈𝐟 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐈 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠. 𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐲𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭'𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭. 𝐈𝐭'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐩 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞'𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐭𝐲 𝐧𝐞𝐭."

THIS WRITING. Kate Golden is a stunning writer and this books is so beautiful. Bigger than just a "contemporary rock-star romance", this book tackles deeper themes and feelings than you might initialy expect. Chronic illness, grief, navigating new female friendships, not fitting into pre-conceived "boxes", the guilt that comes with being selfless for the first time in your life. And it is so incredible insightful..."𝑳𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒔𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒔 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉. 𝑾𝒉𝒚 𝒅𝒐 𝒊𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇?"

While also navigating these deeper themes, the book manages to be punchy, witty and such a fast-paced read.

I can't not talk about the romance, because boy was it amazing. The spice feels fresh, full of "realness", and an insane about of tension and yearning. You'll fall in love with both Clementine and Tom Halloran. I've seen others say this and I have to confirm, Hozier lovers THIS IS YOUR BOOK.

"'𝑰 𝒄𝒂𝒏'𝒕 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒔𝒐𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒘. 𝑵𝒐𝒃𝒐𝒅𝒚 𝒄𝒂𝒏. 𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝑰 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒚𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆.'" MY HEARTTTT.

Thank you NetGalley, Penguin Random House and most importantly Kate Golden! This is going to be a top read this year.

4/5⭐️

I don’t think there’s anyone in the world who loves a concert/tour romance like I do - what can I say, I was a hardcore Directioner and read lots of 1D fanfiction when I was younger and old habits die hard. Add in musical theatre and broadway, I’m sold.

This romance was so good! I think we all need a Tom in our lives and him and Clem were so perfect together.

I also found the concept of a Hozier inspired romance so intriguing since it was kind of like fan fiction but not? Hozier is to lesbians what Ryan Reynolds is to straight men so reading this was so fun, putting together the pieces and references throughout the book.

Additionally, I am a strong hater of the miscommunication resulting in a third act breakup trope but I actually thought this one was done well and didn’t unnecessarily draw it out.

This book was maybe slightly longer than it needed to be and light on the spice (I’m a thirsty b*tch) but I still really enjoyed it and would recommend it to any and all romance readers!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC of this book in exchange for an open and honest review! All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

this is easily a book that i would've read circa 2010-2011 on wattpad about harry styles. it is the definition of fanfiction and for that, it felt nostalgic and was very, very entertaining to read. however, when we see this translation to traditionally published media and pieces are not changed to at least disguise the inspiration of said book, it becomes difficult to not feel some type of a way. there are pieces of this book that feels so direct from hozier that its ridiculous, even the title alone is a bit much. there is a way to use celebrities/famous figures as inspiration for media, but please do it tastefully. this blurs the lines tremendously.

on another note, the fmc is a bit too much "i'm not like other girls" for me and for that, i had a hard time rooting for her. nonetheless, she's living out my fanfic dreams and the spice was good!