This had all the feels one could hope for in a romance book. Loved how in the beginning you see the FMC struggle with love that goes along with her day to day life. Overall, excited to read again!

I loved everything about this book. As a massive fan of Hozier, I didn't think I could love him more. But Halloran truly came to life in this book. Clementine truly is a wonderful, chaotic, sweet human in the best way possible. I could not put this book down. Their chemistry was amazing. The writing was beautiful and the story flowed so well. This is absolutely going to the top of my recommendations.

I quite literally begged for this book and not only did my desperation pay off, but it also proved to be totally warranted.

5 big shining gold stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

What to expect:
🎤 rockstar romance
🎤 found family
🎤 slight age gap
🎤 romantic mmc / ‘loves not for me’ fmc
🎤 dreamy hozier-esque lyrics
🎤 he falls first
🎤 chronic illness rep

One thing I love is how Clementine knows she belongs on the stage. She comes to life when she’s up there. She’s reluctant to chase her dreams of performing professionally, but when it comes to her talent, she is confident and comfortable and unafraid. What she is afraid of is falling in love with Tom Halloran, which is, of course, bound to happen.

Halloran is a bit of an enigma: a painfully normal Irish musician that also happens to be an internationally famous rockstar. He‘ll hang back on the bus to write or read rather than join in with the post-concert revelry. Everything that comes out of his mouth, lyrics or otherwise, is ridiculously swoony and honest. I think it’s this more than anything that takes Clem, the love cynic, completely off guard.

I won’t give much more away in terms of plot, but I do want to make mention of three additional highlights:

1. The moments leading up to and surrounding Clementine’s first performance on tour, before she even meets Tom, are a masterclass in tension building and it honestly needs to be studied.

2. I have an entire edit planned for all of Clementine’s reluctantly feral thoughts about Tom which are hysterical and one of the best parts of the book.

3. I fully sobbed during the epilogue.

Anyway, I’m going to Sea Hear Now in September and it is entirely Kate Golden’s fault 💖

Thank you to Kate and Berkley for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book is imprinted on my brain 🫶🏽

Thank you NetGalley and Berkeley Romance for providing me with this ARC!

I adore Kate Golden. Her writing is fun, witty, and poetic. In a world where every contemporary romance author is breaking into romantasy, she's doing the opposite and I hope she continues to bless us with more modern day love stories.

If Not for My Baby follows the story of Clementine Clark getting the chance of a lifetime to tour with rockstar Halloran as a backup singer. As her mother's caregiver, she's never left her small town for a vacation, let alone to follow her dreams of preforming. But when the chance at touring comes along, she doesn't just get the chance to sing, but to pay her mom's medial bills. The next eight weeks are a fun journey of meeting new friends, falling in love, and realizing what she might really want out of her life.

Clementine was easy to love and relate to. I can not give a book five stars unless I love the MC, and I adored Clem as a perfectly imperfect heroine. Green flag number one is her being an Austin, Texas girly. I get so giddy anytime my home is a setting in a book. Getting to read her story of growth and exploration was very grounding. I read this while on a solo trip in the UK, so the parallels of her leaving home alone for the first time to start a new career was comforting. Clem is brave, passionate, loyal, and the biggest mama's girl. Her relationship with her mom, and the illness that haunts them is very relatable to me, and was one of the most beautiful parts of this story.

Okay. So the big draw of this is that it is a Hozier romance. Yeah, like the singer Hozier is the inspo for the MMC and it was done to perfection. If you are in love with the lyrical genius that is Andrew Hozier-Byrne, then you will automatically enjoy this for that alone. Halloran was written beautifully - so beautifully that I actually look at Hozier in a different way now. The best fics should make the fandom better, and that's what this does. So, thank you Kate I'm even more obsessed now.

I can not finish this review without mentioning how it gave me butterflies I haven't felt since watching Selena for the first time and getting the tour/tour bus moments of them falling in love. If those scenes are special to you, then this will make you feel SOME type of way.

5 ⭐
2 🌶️

Pre read: AHHHH im unwell i received an ARC for one of my most anticipated reads lets go!! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher!

4.5 ⭐️ This did not let me down!! The Hozier vibes are vibing 🫶🏻 If Not For My Baby follows Clementine’s POV, a woman who does not believe in love/relationships and only thinks they bring heartache. She gets the opportunity to become Halloran’s (MMC) backing vocalist and we get to follow them throughout his tour. I appreciated that Clementine didn’t really know who Halloran was/his music before going on tour with him.

I have come to the realization that i love a rockstar romance. Maybe its because i love going to concerts but i just love following them throughout a tour and seeing the behind the scenes aspects. This is my first Kate Golden book and i really enjoyed her writing style. I read the first 50% in one sitting it was so addicting. I felt like i was on that tour bus with them.

I feel like I really connecting with Clementine and how she would avoid things in order to stay in control and not step out of her comfort zone in fear of being rejected/something going wrong.

I loved Halloran and Clementines love story! I think it moved a little fast for my personal taste and the middle was one too many smut scenes but glad that the last third was all plot.

Overall, I really enjoyed this and would highly recommend especially if you are a Hozier fan ❤️

If Not For My Baby

As a fantasy girlie, I thought I had sworn off romances but I’m down to read any book by Kate Golden. I loved every aspect of the music scene and particularly resonated with the FMC and her passion for musical theatre. The hidden romance between the FMC and MMC had me on edge because it felt like a secret that only the reader knew. I also particularly enjoyed the messiness that came with the FMC’s feelings. While at times she felt immature, it was nice to witness a relationship that felt real. The only thing stopping this from being a 5 star read for me is the fact that it’s based on a real life person. I personally would have preferred a wholly made up MMC to feel less intrusive on someone else’s life.

Many thanks to @netgalley and @berkleypub for the ARC!

Rockstar Romance
Age Gap
Irish MMC
Small town FMC

Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🔥🔥.5

I’ll start by saying the writing itself is genuinely great—I would absolutely read more from this author, and I’m confident I’d enjoy it. That said, this particular story made me incredibly uncomfortable. It is very clearly based on a real, well-known musician, and it doesn’t even try to hide that fact. As a fan of that artist, I found it unsettling and, at times, downright cringey.

The book felt more like an oddly personal fanfiction that somehow made it to publication. The fictional lyrics were written in a way that tried too hard to mimic the musician’s actual style, which came off as pretentious rather than authentic. While the storyline had potential, it really needed to be reworked so it didn’t feel so blatantly tied to a real person—especially someone known for being private.

As for the characters, Clementine (the female lead) was frustrating. Her entire personality boiled down to being cynical and loving Broadway, and I didn’t see any real development in her arc until the last 10 pages. Her dynamic with the male lead was also off-putting. It was strange to see her pushing for a physical relationship while he was the one asking for something deeper and more grounded. It made her seem like she was only after one thing.

I could say a lot more about the discomfort I felt reading this, but the bottom line is: it crossed a line for me. Using a public figure as the blueprint for a fictional character—with minimal effort to disguise it—feels ethically murky. Changing the name isn’t enough when the inspiration is so painfully obvious.

3.5 ⭐️ rounded down. “If Not for my Baby” is a swoony love story between a rock star and a waitress/aspiring singer who has a lucky break when she gets the chance to be his backup singer. I will admit romances about famous and non-famous people happen to be a favourite a trope of mine when it’s done well. But this one definitely wasn’t perfect. By the 50% mark, I was expecting to give it a much lower rating.

I saw some other reviews that called this a slow-burn and I have to politely disagree, there’s nothing slow about this story. It made for a fun and steamy read, but when you’ve got the MMC professing his love for the FMC after they’ve literally only had two conversations with each other, my skepticism was high. I felt like they barely knew each other? Add in the age gap factor and I couldn’t help but feel this rockstar was really “in love” with the fact the she’s hot, young and blonde.

There were also issues with Clementine as a character. Her motivations were confusing and there wasn’t enough time spent getting to know her which didn’t help the romance feel believable. For instance I think the author could have done a better job exploring her distrust of love and relationships… it just didn’t really make sense or seem believable. If she hates relationships, why does she go on so many dates?

That being said, the second half of the book redeemed itself. I really enjoyed the fact that Tom was quiet, intelligent and sensitive and not the aggressive or overly masculine type. The ending was very sweet and romantic and I think served the appropriate justice to everyone. Overall, I enjoyed it!

Thank you NetGalley and Berkeley Romance for providing me with this ARC!

I devoured this book!! As a huge Hozier fan who has definitely listened to his music while having sad girl time, this book was everything to me. It was also by far the most romantic book I’ve read in awhile. This things this man would say!! Honestly, the way he spoken was as lyrical as Hozier’s lyrics. I had so many highlights from this book and definitely blushed a few times.

I also just happen to love a good rockstar romance, and the author did this one so well. There were obvious flaws/conflicts to the relationship between Clem and Tom, but they were resolved in a way that wasn’t too unrealistic. I loved how the author drew out Tom’s character, as someone immensely private, in it for the art, and intensely romantic. I also found myself rooting for Clem. Usually I’d be annoyed with a character like her—basically stuck in life and closing down opportunities as they opened. However this time the author did a great job of helping the reader understand why Clem was that way and instead of getting frustrated, I was just cheering her on with each step forward that she made.

I love a book that has me smiling like a dope the whole way through. As soon as Kate Golden announced this book I was excited for it. I loved the Sacred Stones series and was looking forward to what she would do with a contemporary romance. I was not disappointed!

Clementine is a little lost in the world, working a dead end job in her small town when she gets the opportunity to sing back up for the famous Irish crooner Tom Holloran on his American tour. Told from Clementine’s perspective, If Not For My Baby tells the story of not just falling in love but facing your fears and living your dreams.

I loved the way Golden described music in this book. There were several times where I found myself wishing Clem and Tom were real so I could watch them sing together. The chemistry between these two characters felt so natural and their earnest conversations were so pleasing to read.

The friendships Clem made with the other bandmates were written beautifully and it was fun to read about their dynamics and antics.

My favorite quotes:

“‘You’re not interested in me.’
‘I’m not?’ A slight smile twists at the corner of his mouth. ‘You should tell my dreams that.’”

“He’s more of a man than any I’ve met. If he told me he ate tree bark and slept in caves, I’d believe him.”

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5 stars- it was swoony, spicy, endearing and encouraging. If Not For My Baby will make you want to listen to all your favorite music about love.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for the opportunity to read the arc!

This book had everything you could want AND MORE from “the Hozier romance” book you’ve heard about. It’s a personal journey for our FMC Clementine about herself but we also see the evolution of Halloran as well. They both have such wonderful character arcs and it’s killing me to be so vague so I don’t spoil it before the official release date!!!!

If Not for My Baby by Kate Golden
I devoured this book in one weekend—I was completely swept away by the story! If Not for My Baby has everything I love in a romance: crackling chemistry, slow-burn tension, and deeply emotional moments that linger long after you turn the last page.
Clem and Tom’s connection is magnetic and beautifully layered. Their conversations are so full of yearning and quiet intensity—I couldn’t get enough. The tension between them, the way they see each other... it was absolutely captivating.
Tom completely stole my heart. He’s Irish, introverted, and effortlessly magnetic. He’d rather be alone with his books and music than in the spotlight surrounded by groupies, and honestly? That made him even more irresistible. I’m now fully obsessed with the quiet, introspective musician MMC trope—Tom is perfection.
Even though I typically love dual POVs, I didn’t miss Tom’s perspective at all. Kate Golden did such an incredible job showing us who he is through Clem’s eyes, it felt even more intimate and powerful that way.
Clem’s backstory added so much emotional weight to the story. Coming from a small town, setting aside her dreams to care for her mother, and witnessing so much heartbreak—everything about her made perfect sense. She’s strong, vulnerable, and easy to root for.
The song lyrics woven throughout the book added such a rich emotional texture, and the friendships and side characters brought so much warmth and charm.
This was my first rockstar romance and now I’m officially hooked. Huge thanks to Berkley and NetGalley for the eARC! I had already preordered the book, and getting the ARC only made me more excited—absolutely no regrets. I can’t wait to have my finished copy in hand!

I truly devoured every page of this book and could NOT put it down!! The way I could picture everything so clearly with the imagery Kate uses, I feel like I was transported into the middle of Halloran’s tour. The lyrics and music description were so real, I found myself in love with a show I’d never been to, but felt like I had! As someone who is so connected to music, I love reading the description of Halloran’s songs and performances, it was so well thought out.
The strong emotion and character development of Clementine being brave and choosing herself and her life was also inspiring and hit home.
The intimacy and swoon worthy moments between Clem and Halloran had me giggling and kicking my feet. It was the perfect romance, and felt so fun to read the chemistry and relationship grow throughout the tour and on the bus.
And the found family aspect also made my heart sing! This book was refreshing, a breath of fresh air, and exactly the kind of rockstar romance I needed for the teenage me that still thinks she’ll get plucked from a crowd one day. Thank you Kate for your wonderful writing and making this dream story come to life!!

This book was such an enjoyable read. Clementine was extremely relatable and Tom (Halloran) was both the mysterious and sexy rock star, and the warm, lovable, down-to-earth “Guy Nextdoor” (or at least “Guy Across The Pond”). This read was easy and enjoyable, while still bringing to light topics like holding yourself back from chasing a full and meaningful life, or letting grief consume you and become an identifying trait that permeates all aspects of your life. I’ve seen this books talked about in various reading circles and am very pleased with the actual result. Definitely recommend.

This book CONSUMED me. I have never read a rockstar romance before.8 loved Kate Golden’s fantasy, though so I knew her writing style would grab my attention. What I didn’t expect was to fall absolutely madly in love with this story. Clementine is so jaded with life and just pushing through for the she of doing. She is so tied down by her family and her past and so afraid of building her own future, for fear of her mom needing her and she not being there. This familial reliance and need to live up to expectations and putting yourself aside is so damn relatable that I had to put the book down and stare at the wall lost in thought more than once. Tom is also so so enticing. Despite being a rockstar, he is much more comfortable and at home with his tea and his book. My guy, you are perfect. These two felt so opposites attract. I loved watching them fall in love and I extra loved watching a MMC see a scared, worried, held back FMC and not pushing her or demanding she make moves for her. he was so supportive and loving and kind, no matter how much it hurt him and IGH IT MAKES ME SOFT. This book was a rockstar romance, yes, but it was also a story about finding yourself, about reaching for what you want, about learning how to love yourself and love others, and about becoming the you you want to be. I loved it so much, 5 stars, no notes. (Other than please pay someone to actually produce the music. It would be stunning.)

This book is like a siren song. I was lured in and utterly enraptured by this love story. She’s enamored by him, and he’s equally if not more enamored by her. The imagery, the lyrics, the soul searing connection… It all left me entirely unwell.

I loved watching Clem live her life. And I mean LIVE it - and not just the life she thought she needed to.

Can this be made into a movie? We love a swoony rockstar romance filled with sexual longing and Barry’s tea (IYKYK). I hope one day I wake up and find Halloran in my kitchen when a cup of tea playing Monopoly.

Thank you to Berkeley + NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest (and unhinged) opinion.

This entire story is basically a 400 page love song about romance and heartbreak. And it's amazing! Just the right amount of angst and some very witty banter between the main characters. The spice is spicing but doesn't overwhelm the plot, which I deeply appreciate. Halloran is sweet and patient and never expects Clementine to be anything but herself. The lyrics to Halloran's songs are beautiful and consuming, just like him. Clem may be cynical, but she is also pretty self aware and her emotional growth is just right for the story. A must read for anyone who loves a book that gets you right in the feels.

"If Not for My Baby" tells the story of a young woman whose life takes an unexpected turn when she becomes a mother. The novel delves into the emotional and practical challenges she faces as she navigates single motherhood, career aspirations, and personal growth. Readers appreciate the realistic portrayal of the protagonist's struggles, from financial difficulties to the overwhelming responsibility of caring for a child.

The author skillfully explores themes of resilience, self-discovery, and the importance of family and community. The characters are well-developed, and their interactions feel authentic, adding depth to the narrative. While some reviewers found the plot somewhat predictable, they praised the book's heartwarming message and its ability to evoke strong emotions.

Overall, "If Not for My Baby" is a touching and relatable read that celebrates the joys and challenges of motherhood. It's a story that will resonate with parents and anyone who appreciates a tale of perseverance, love, and the strength of the human spirit. If you're looking for a book that will make you laugh, cry, and reflect on the power of family, this one is definitely worth checking out.

This was such an enjoyable romance to read. The music element was just so fun and refreshing, I loved how the author not only created a romance story, but also created the lyrics to the songs in the book. And they were so well done and romantic. It was really interesting to see those two worlds intersect, writing a novel and songwriting.

I was sucked into this book from the start. Following Clementine's journey from small town life into a massive tour with a famous musician was so heartwarming. Being from a very small town myself, reading about the awe and joy the main character felt when she was exposed to other states/cities, hit incredibly close to home. It felt like reliving my own first times traveling away from home and I loved that.

Her relationship with her mother was maybe tied for the romance for me. I loved how the author made her so doting and helpful to her chronically ill parent. And showing how they were so close and how it had impacted her entire life and her life choices. Reading that growth from being consumed by taking care of a family member to becoming her own person was beautiful.

I thoroughly enjoyed this read, I would 100% purchase a physical copy for my shelves and read it again.

Have you been itching for a Hozier-inspired romance? LOOK NO FURTHER. Tom Halloran is a YEARNING man, and one of my new favorite MMCs.

He’s Irish, can sing, and is down bad for Clementine, what more can we ask for? Also doesn’t want anyone else calling her by his nickname for her, which is actually the cutest thing ever 😭

This book seriously could’ve doubled in length and it still would’ve kept me entertained. I loved all the characters, loved the story line, and I simply cannot wait to hear this audio in my ears this summer!!!! Who doesn’t want to listen to an irishman for a few hours?

Tropes:
🎸rockstar romance
🎸sneaking around
🎸found family
🎸he falls first
🎸a yearning irishman!!!!! (this is so important to me, can you tell?)