Second Edit: 1/8/20 Yeah, as time passes I realize that I was giving an entire star to the audiobook. I still think the story is interesting, but it hasn’t stayed in my feelings the way I hoped it would. Bumping down to 3 stars.

Edit: I’m leaving my rating at a 4, but I have the feeling if I were to re-read this book I would probably bump it down. I still think the audiobook is well-done and I would totally watch this as a movie, but I really don’t think I would’ve enjoyed it nearly as much if I’d tried to get through the physical copy.

Original Review:
So, I don't have the best history with TJR's books. I liked Evelyn Hugo, but thought it was way overhyped as a 'romance' book when the main relationship was actually quite dysfunctional. I wasn't fond of Maybe in Another Life because I wasn't a fan of either ship, which was kind of the point of the book. liked After I Do quite a bit, and before this book would've said it was my favorite TJR book. I loathe One True Loves and don't understand the love this book gets AT. ALL.

So when I went into this book I went in with supremely low expectations. Yes, everyone and their mother has been raving about the audiobook for this story, but they are also people who loved her other books, so I didn't have high hopes.

I am so glad I was wrong and so glad that I gave this book a shot. I think it's absolutely my favorite of her books, and it's not all that close.

I love stories about bands from the 60s, 70s, and 80s, whether real or fictional. Everything from the music, to the band fights to tours to groupies to break ups...everything about it just intrigues me. This book had all of those elements and executed it really well.

The main characters were interesting and complex. Flawed would be an understatement. They just all felt very real. I will say that some of the more minor members of the band didn't feel quite as fleshed out as Billy, Daisy, Karen, and Graham, but I still enjoyed them.

This story being told as a series of interviews was an interesting format that I think has pros and cons. In one way, I really enjoyed it, specifically as I listened to this on audiobook. It reminded me of those tv shows that chronicle famous people and groups, which I am a total sucker for. However, I don't think this would've been as successful for me if I'd read the physical copy of the book. I honestly feel like it would've lost some of the magic for me. That is absolutely because of the actors portrayals of these characters. This wasn't just someone reading a story. These actors were ACTING the story. The emotion they were able to convey in this format was just awesome. I would absolutely love to see this as a movie or miniseries or something.

I don't know if I had a favorite character, but I really admired Camilla's tenacity and her determination to keep her family together and happy. I also love the passage where she talks about not feeling bad saying 'I told you so'. She says something like, "Yeah, when people come and ask you for your advice and then do the exact opposite and then it blows up in their face, I will definitely say I told you so!" That is me. 100%. There's nothing more aggravating than someone coming and laying all their drama on you, begging you for advice, and then doing the opposite because they didn't REALLY want your advice, they just wanted justification for their shitty decisions. I call those friends 'Ask-holes'...and I have no regrets about it. Anyway, back on track.

I really think that even if you haven't enjoyed TJR books in the past, you might want to look into this one. I know that I'm in the minority, but I'm not the ONLY person who doesn't worship the ground TJR walks on. But this book, specifically this AUDIOBOOK, is wonderful.